LONDON LETTER.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 149, 25 June 1936, Page 23

LONDON LETTER.

ROYAL RUMOURS. ' MYSTERY COLONEL MacDONALD PARTY'S FUTURE, (From Our Own Correspondent.) LONDON, May 22. '' There is a good deal of talk about the J King's possible travels before his coronation. After the coronation, of course, j he will bo visiting India and making an Empire tour. But it is now being sug- ! gested that he will take a holiday in IVi'.Tre this summer, and later [i/.y an official visit to the Irish Free State. It is said that the King is very j anxious to go to the Free State, in the hope of inaugurating a happier «tage in the troubled relations between Britain and her youngest Dominion. Cabinet members are believed to be trying to dissuade His Majesty because of their fear that there might bo an attempt on his life. Such fears are not likely to influence a man of King Edward's character; but as a constitutional monarch, he may decide to accept the advice of his J!':i;plers even on a personal natter such as this visit. The King's' suggested holiday in the South of France is being linked up with gossip about 'a forthcoming marriage. I'-incess Alexandrine of Denmark is also gaid to be visiting the Riviera this summer —and that is enough to set rumours going again. The sole basis for such talk seems to bo that she is one of the few 'VJigiVle" princesses left in Europe. The "Dum-Dum" Colonel. It was thanks to the resourcefulness and industry of Scotland Yard detectives that Mr. Eden was. able to give the House of Commons such a detailed account of the mysterious Colonel Pedro Lopez (alias Messier) who provided the faked "evidence" that Britain had been supplying dum-dum bullets to Abyssinia. Weeks ago the police became suspicious of his movements, but they were hampered by the fear of creating a diplomatic incident at an awkward moment. Knowing this, the colonel was able to slip through their fingers. Had Whitehall given the detectives a free hand, there is no doubt that they could have arrested their man. But difficulty would then have arisen over what charge to make against him. The authorities therefore preferred to let the mischiefmaker get out of the country, and then to use "the information gathered about him in the form of an effective Parliamentary statement by , the Foreign Secretary. Mac Donald's Dwindling Party. Parliamentarians are prophesying the speedy disappearance of Ramsay MacDonald's National Labour party. Lord Allen has just resigned from it because he believes in continuing sanctions against Italy, while Mr. MacDonakl apparently wishes to abandon them. Earl De La Warr, almost the only other supporter of the group in the Lords, wants to found a new Centre party in its place. In fact, the only reason for the National Labour party's continued existence seems to be to provide an cxcuse for the presence in the Cabinet of Mr. Ramsay Mac Donald, his son Mai-1 colm, andr- Mr." J. H. Thomas. Govfl£a>d ment reconstruction is now again air. It is hinted that Mr. Mac Donald may become a peer or resign on grounds of ill-healtii. Mr. Thomas' resignation is also rumoured. There would tlien be no purpose in continuing a party which has scarcely any support in Parliament or in the'; country, and its few M.P.'s would either become "Independents" ot join one of the older parties. Too Many "Commercials"? One has only to glance down the "Situations Vacant" column of any English newspaper ..to. see that in one vocation, at least, there are always plenty of vacancies. Dozens of firms announce every day that they are "increasing their sales force" and every day scores of new commercial travellers take the road with silk stockings or vacuum cleaners, canned foods or toilet preparations. The commercial travellers' union is now becoming alarmed at the overcrowding of the profession. One of their spokesmen gave an instance this week of a little one-man grocery business in a northern village which was visited by no fewer than 54 travellers in a single morning. Of course, not more than two or tlirqe of them had any chance of getting'an order. Yet the ranks of "commercials" continue to swell at the rate of something like 4000 men every year. No doubt many drop out again, for large numbers of travellers are paid no salaries, but have to rely entirely on commission. Journalists And Film Folk in U.S.A. Two distinguished Englishmen have just come back from the United States expressing not altogether flattering opinions of .American ways. Lord Horder, the King's physician, does not like American reporters; and Sir John Lavery, the artist, could not stand the pace of Hollywood. Lord Horder complains bitterly of the fertile imagination of the newspaper men who interviewed him at New York. He told them he would not discuss his Royal patient — but the published result was nevertheless a long imaginary "interview" about the King's health and habits of exercise. Sir John Lavcry's complaint is less personal. He just found Hollywood overwhelming. He went there to paint film scenes, but he could not find a quiet corner to set up his easel. "It was really pandemonium in the studios," says Sir John. "Everyone was rushing about. They didn't seem to grasp that I was not a snapshot camera." The Gas Mask Age. The day when every English family will keep a set of gas masks hung up in the hall with its hats and coats has come a stage nearer. An enterprising firm has just put on the market a model costing only 15/. The masks are on sale at several large stores, and hundreds of them have been bought already by nervous citizens. Before long this private enterprise will be assisted by the Government's scheme to provide 30,000.000 masks for distribution in an emergency. The Police Take a Hand. The English local policeman generally confines his activities to local affairs. But at Doncaster, in Yorkshire, the police have decided to advise the Government on international trade policy. They want an import ban placed on Japanese catapults. Small boys in Doncaster have been breaking Windows, and it is alleged that they do it .withj • Japanese-made sold at the J incredible price of one halfpenny each. l So the police, tired of chasing small boys, have sent a sample parcel to Whitehall with a suggestion that their importation be prohibited* Sf '