From the Inside

'Winnie" Recharts His Hectic Course as Suzerain of the Seas

Now on the outside of politics, Winston Churchill gives full vent to his literary genius. His book,* except for some too technical pages, is one of the most outstanding of its kind written since the war. The style is straightforward, easy, Churchillian--a style, be it said, that in the domain of politics more than once caused no inconsiderable alarm among his colleagues. No one should miss this book who takes an interest in pre-war European " fireworks," who is interested in British political figures of the period, who is interested in British naval policy.

With the exception of the first chapter, the book deals with the period 1905 to September, 1914. It is to be followed by another dealing with a further period of the war as seen by Mr. Churchill. It deals with the Moroccan question, the despatch of the Panther by the German Government to Agadir, the rivalry between Britain and Germany on the seas. The days immediately preceding the war are described with graphic minuteness from the naval angle, as are the opening phases of the world conflict. The author's descriptions of and anecdotes about famous personalities are, from the layman's point of view, particularly interesting.

Some excerpts:

About Lloyd George. "He told me that he was to address the Bankers at their Annual Dinner that evening, and that he intended to make it clear that if Germany meant war, she would find Britain against her. . . .Hotfoot on our track came a messenger. Will the Chancellor of the Exchequer go at once to Sir Edward Grey? Mr. Lloyd George stopped abruptly and turning to me said: ' That's my speech. The Germans may demand my resignation as they did Delcasse's.' "

About Britain. " All around flowed the busy life of peaceful, unsuspecting, easy-going Britain. The streets were thronged with men and women utterly devoid of any sense of danger from abroad. For nearly a thousand years no foreign army had landed on British soil. For a hundred years the safety of the homeland had never been threatened. They went about their business, their sport, their class and party fights year after year, generation after generation, in perfect confidence and considerable ignorance."

About Friedrich Wilhelm. " The world has heaped unbounded execrations upon this unlucky being. He was in fact no better and no worse than the average young cavalry subaltern. ... He had considerable personal charm, which he lavished principally on the fairer sex, but which in darker days has captivated the juvenile population of Wieringen."

About Himself.. " Early in October (1911) Mr. Asquith invited me to stay with him in Scotland he asked me quite abruptly whether I would like to go to the Admiralty. All my mind was full of war. I accepted with alacrity? I said, 'Indeed I would.'"

About Lord Fisher. " From the very beginning his letters were couched in an affectionate and paternal style. 'My beloved Winston, they began, ending usually with a variation of 'Yours to a cinder, 'Yours till Hell freezes,' or 'Till charcoal sprouts,' followed by a P. S. and two or three more pages of pregnant and brilliant matter."

About Prince Louis of Battenburg. "It was recounted of him that on one occasion, when he visited Kiel with King Edward, a German Admiral in high command had reproached him with serving in the British Fleet, whereat Prince Louis, stiffening, had replied: ' Sir, when I joined the Royal Navy in the year 1868, the German Empire did not exist.' "

The Author. The Right Honorable Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill was born on November 30, 1874, and is the eldest son of the late Lord Randolph Churchill, 3rd son of the 7th Duke of Marlborough. He started his career in the army and saw service in Cuba and with the Spanish forces, and with the British Army in India, Egypt and South Africa. He entered politics in 1906 and was appointed Under Secretary of State for the Colonies almost at once, a remarkable tribute to him and an unusual fact. Since that time up to last year he has held almost continuously no fewer than six cabinet posts. He has written several books, among them Lord Randolph Churchill (1906). He was educated at Harrow and Sandhurst.

*THE WORLD CRISIS--Rt. Hon. W. S. Churchill--Scrfbner ($6.50).