LOVER OF PEACE

Evening Post, Volume CXXX, Issue 83, 4 October 1940, Page 8

LOVER OF PEACE

LEADER IN WAR

MR. NEVILLE CHAMBERLAIN

HISTORIC EVENTS

Of Mr. Neville Chamberlain, whose resignation from the War Cabinet and from the post of Lord President of the Council is announced today, it has been said that he is slow to think and move, but, once convinced, like a terrier to the wall—a safe friend and a dangerous foe. It has fallen to the lot of few British statesmen to be called upon to lead his nation at a more critical stage in world history. In 1937, when Mr. Chamberlain succeeded Mr. Stanley (now Lord) Baldwin, Europe, under the menace of' Hitlerism, was already heading for disaster. To Chamberlain, the lover of peace, the astute man of business, the cold realist, was given the task of countering the lightning thrusts of Hitler, the fanatic. It is,. recorded that David Lloyd George, the fiery Welshman, who led the Empire Lo victory in the Great War, was once asked his opinion of Chamberlain as a possible Prime Minister of England. His reply was typical: "Neville Chamberlain? A good Lord Mayor of Birmingham in a lean year." But fate held a great deal more in store for the Birmingham business man than the direction- of the affairs of his- native city—in a lean year. Whatever place is given Chamberlain by the historians of the future, it is certain that his name will long be remembered with affection by many millions of people in many countries of the world. Whatever criticism may ba directed at him, he will be remembered as the man v/ho ! saved the peace in 1938 and gave to Britain what sh<* needed more than anything else at that time —a breathing space to prepare for the crisis that Hitler and his associates had made inevitable. .'. And it can also be said with equal' truth that, once the die was cast and war was declared, Chamberlain threw himself intcvthe task of leading the nation in its life-and-death struggle with the same determination' and thoroughness that had marked his efforts to save the peace a year earlier. PERILOUS DAYS. So much has happened since the perilous days of September, 1938, when the Sudetenland crisis threatened to bring the nations of Europe to war, that the stirring events which followed each other with almost bewildering rapidity are apt to be forgotten. The role which Neville Chamberlain played then is as romantic as any in history—and it was played by a man whose whole outlook and whole upbringing made him a stranger to romance. . On September 14, 1939, the European situation could not have been more critical. Germany, France, and Britain wee on the verge of war. Suddenly, as a gleam of light in the darkness, came a dramatic announcement from London. "The Prime Minister," a London cable stated, "is to fly to Germany tomorrow to see Herr Hitler and try to find a solution of the Sudeten problem?'. Chamberlain's message to Hitler could not have been more formal. It read: "In view of the increasingly' critical situation, I pro? pose to come over at once to see you with a' view to trying to find a\ peaceful 'solution. I propose to come by air, and am ready to. start tomorrow. Please indicate the earliest time you can see me and suggest a place, of meeting." Hitler at once agreed to the meeting, and so, early on the morning of September 15, the British Prime Minister broke with precedent by setting out from Heston aerodrome on his lirst air trip to meet the German dictator at Berchtesgaden. Europe was startled but thrilled, and millions of people throughout the world who knew the horrors of war travelled with the Prime Minister in spirit—and in hope. Of the actual meeting at Berclitesgaden little need be said. Chamberlain returned to London on September 16 to consult his Cabinet and with the news that another meeting was to take place, this time at the small town of Godesberg. And so Chamberlain flew again to Germany. The meeting at Godesberg was followed by more days of suspense, during which the crisis became more acute. Czechoslovakia mobilised, and on September 27, ■ when the British Prime Minister rose in the House of Commons to make a statement on behalf of the British Government war seemed inevitable. Chamberlain, it seemed, had played his last card in his great effort for peace. But the last word had not oeen said. In tired and gloomy tones Mr. Chamberlain was reaching the end of his speech when a messenger was seen calling the Foreign Secretary (Lord Halifax) from the Peers Gallery, where he was alongside the Duke of Kent and Earl Baldwin. A few minutes later the messenger struggled through the crowded Bar of the House and handed a document to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who quicklyglanced at it and passed it to Mr. Chamberlain, who was then outlining his last desperate approach to Signor Mussolini. Mr. Chamberlain halted a moment, drew himself up to his full height, and, in ringing tones, read Herr Hitler's agreement to a conference. Feeling in the House burst like a volcano. Members on all sides, Peers, members of the Diplomatic Cprps, distinguished visitors, and pressmen leaped upon their seats, shouting, cheering, and crying. "ALL RIGHT THIS TIME." And Mr. Chamberlain left the House for Downing Street, sparing only a moment, for the cheering crowds in Whitehall. "It's all right this time," he called to them as he entered historic No. 10. That it was not "all right this time* the world now knows. Once again the word of Hitler, pledged at Munich, was broken, and the rape of Czechoslovakia brought Europe and the world one step closer to the war which Chamberlain tried so strenuously to prevent. It is well, now that Neville Chamberlain is stepping down from active participation in the control of the Empire's fight for existence, to remember these things, for they help in an appreciation of the services which he gave to his country at the most critical stage in its history. Chamberlain has relinquished the cares of office because he feels that he can no longer give the service which the times demand, just as he relinquished the Premiership because he felt, with the rest of his countrymen, the need for new and inspired leadership. He deserves well of his own people and countless others.