Baldwin Back

Refreshed by almost a month of "water-curing" at Aixles-Bains,

Premier Baldwin returned cheerfully to London last week, faced again the stark reality of the five-months-old coal strike.

Just before Mr. Baldwin's return the coal owners had definitely rejected the plan of compromise evolved in his absence by Chancellor Winston Churchill of the British Exchequer (TiME, Sept. 20). Fanciful stories were circulated in the British press anent Mr. Churchill's intense annoyance at the failure of his compromise. Underlings at the Chancellory of the Exchequer were represented as tiptoeing gingerly into his office and getting a dressing down for their pains. The coal atmosphere was thoroughly befogged. What would Premier Baldwin do?

The Premier, ensconced behind the well polished brass knocker of his official residence, summoned Chancellor Churchill for a conference. Up to last week Mr. Baldwin had taken the attitude that the miners and owners would now have to settle their differences among themselves. Having conferred with Mr. Churchill however, Premier Baldwin followed up the avenue opened by the Chancellor to the extent of calling representatives of both the miners and owners to confer again with the Government.

No definite progress toward a compromise was announced, but Mr. Baldwin was obviously striving for some formula which would reconcile the owners' demand for a settlement of the strike by regional agreements with the miners' insistence on a national agreement.