Whistle in the Dark

GREAT BRITAIN Whistle in the Dark In the state coach that Queen Victoria got in Ireland, King George VI this week rode to Westminster, put on his robes of state (an ermine cape, a robe of purple velvet over a military uniform), and formally opened Britain's most evenly divided Parliament in 40 years. The King walked slowly into the House of Lords, his head held stiffly under the weight of the heavy (2 1/2-Ibs.), jeweled crown of state. Queen Elizabeth, impressive in gold-embroidered white satin and pearls, walked by his side, her white-gloved left hand held high in the King's right.

The King's Speech from the Throne was prepared by Clement Attlee's Labor government, and constituted Labor's statement of policy for the present session. It was mild, conciliatory, and--perhaps prophetically--quite short; it took only twelve minutes to deliver.

The last Parliament, with a Socialist majority of 140 seats, had turned out legislation at an unprecedented rate. Now, with its majority reduced to a risky seven, Parliament's legislative output would be scant and careful. Said the King's speech: "In view of the restricted time available . . . my government proposes only a limited program of legislation for the present session."

The speech gingerly skirted any mention of nationalization, offered instead a domestic program devoted to such unregal subjects as "legislation ... to vary the constitution of the central midwives' boards ..." and better living conditions for the crews of fishing trawlers'. There was just one brave Socialist whistle in the dark. "Nevertheless," said the King, "should other measures prove in their view to be immediately necessary for the maintenance of full employment and the national wellbeing, my ministers will not hesitate to submit them to Parliament even though they may seem likely to prove contentious."

On foreign affairs, the speech nodded politely to the U.S. and Canada for their "generous help," pledged continued support of the Organization for European Economic Cooperation. By inference, it rejected Winston Churchill's campaign suggestion for renewed top-level talks with the Russians on international atomic energy control.

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