Straight Choice

Trumpeted London's Laborite Daily Herald: "It is not enough to have a Labor Government in power at Westminster. The Government's most vital plans and reforms must be put into practice locally by means of towns and other councils."

Harrumphed the conservative Daily Mail: "The trend all the time is towards a concentration of Socialist power at the center and the loss of the authority, rights and privileges of local people...It must be resisted today by all responsible local electors."

With the issue thus neatly ticketed, Britons braved an icy drizzle to vote in last week's annual municipal elections. The result was a smashing victory for Labor. In 223 cities and towns of England and Wales, socialists registered a net gain of 159 local council seats.

Birmingham, Britain's second largest city and the Chamberlains' old stronghold, went Labor for the first time.

Laborites made their gains not at the expense of the Conservatives (who increased their holdings by four seats) but over the political corpses of Liberals and Independents. Most significant losers were the Communists. They yielded five seats, kept only one. By rejecting the Independents, Britons gave notice that they wanted their politics served up, uncluttered, as a straight choice between Socialism and anti-Socialism. For the time, the Socialist tide was still flowing.

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