Former Premier of Britain Passes Peacefully Away After an Eventful Career London, Nov. 10.
Neville Chamber lain, former British Prime Minister, who died peacefully at his house is the country yesterday evening, will go down in history as the man who by acts of singular courage, as by flying to Berchtes, aden in 1938, postponed the war for 12 months, says Reuter's chief parliamentary correspondent.
'The majority of thinking people concede that act one of personal courage, but the justification or lack of justification for Munich will continue to be argued by opposing schools of opinion. Tenacity of purpose was Mr. Chamberlain' outstanding charac teristic, Munich might have be wrong, but he thought it right and went through with it, Mr. Chamberlain's influence began to recede when members of the Labour Party refused to join a Government led by him. Rightly or wrongly Mr, Chamberlain continued to be regarded by the Lobo and Liberal opposition, and even by some of own supporter as incapable of the military ruthlessness required by the development of the war.
His detonation in health had been rapid and in recent months only his strong will kept up a semblance of recovery of his ability to enjoy tis retirement. For personal eclipse Mr. Chamberlain cared nothing, but for the failure of his plans "peace in our time" he eared everything and the failure undoubtedly" shortened his ite, What verdict will history pass on Mr, Neville Chamberlain?
Had he died before becoming Prime Minister, he would have been known os a politician of strongly practical and business-like mind showing equal ability as Minister of Health. and Chaneeltor of the chequer, As Prime Minister and, according to "some critics, his own Foret Secretary, confronted with the menace of Hitlerism and Fascism, he was at one time the most be-praised man in Europe for his policy of "ap easement." When that tailed, owing to Hitler's treachery and bad faith, there was a considerable re= action against him.
But his firm conduct of the war showed that he could surmount the hitler disappointment of his, hopes that the "Munich Settlement" with Hitler had saved the peace of Europe.
He could never rival the fire of Mr. Winston Churchill, but his cole, studiously restrained manner speaking gained warmth and effec tiveness as the war continued, and Ils periodical surveys of events Parliament were eagerly looked for by the House and the nation, it his famous "appeasement" failed, the fault was not his, but that he hod relied on the word' of a man who new neither faith, honour nor de-coney, There was tiver the slightest out of Mr, Chamberlain's sincerity, of that having learnt what Mitlerism meant, he became resolved that at all ost It must be destroyed, kind ever brought before Parlia ment, and was much opposed in many quarters. "Mr, Chamberlain had "to deal with dimeult and in-trieste points brought forward by experts {rom all sides of the House.
But he was thoroughly the master of the subject and succeeded in get ing this great measure of reform on the: Statute Book, He went out of office in 1920 with the fall of the Baldwin Government and was one of the principal orities
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.