Lord Chandos

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30058, 16 February 1963, Page 3

Lord Chandos

The Memoirs Of Lord Chandos. Oliver Lyttleton P.C., DJS.O., M.C., LXD. Bodley Head. 446 pp. New Zealand readers will be glad to read this autobiography of the grandson of the Lord Lyttleton who had so much to do with the foundation of the Canterbury setnearly 70 years ago, Lord Chandos has led as varied and interesting a life as any man of his generation. His youthful years were spent conventionally at Eton and Cambridge, but the 1914 war caught up he and his contemporaries. Consequently, four chapters are given by Lord Chandos to his military career in the Brigade of Guards.

After the war there came the beginning of a business life which led him into the world of non-ferrous metals, and in 1939 he was appointed to control them. From this it was a short step to politics, the Presidency of the Board > of Trade and a seat in the House of Commons, and thence to a place in the War Cabinet and the responsibility of being Minister of

State in the Middle East at a critical time in our fortunes. Latter he was Minister of Production until the postwar Labour Government came into power; but when the Conservatives regained office he had the difficult task of helping colonial territories along the road to independence.

In the world in which he has moved, Lord Chandos has met and come to know most of the prominent men of his time, and the reader in turn meets them at one remove in toe pages of this book. There are of course, the men who steered Britain through the Hitler war, particularly Churchill, who has a chapter to himself, and for whom his friend and former colleague has a tre-

mendous admiration and deep affection. Among the famous: Smuts, Glubb Pasha, Lord Halifax, Roosevelt, and Harry Hopkins appear in these pages, as well as a

great number of others less well known. Where there is criticism it is restrained, and Lord Chandos is generous in praise where he thinks it is deserved.

All this is of general Interest, but the author also reveals a philosophy of life and a personal view of toe world in which he lives. Lord Chandos has firm opinions about such diverse matters as education, nationalisation. toe psychology of the House of Commons, commercial morality, the strains of ministerial life and colonial policy. Five chapters deal with his problems and experiences as Colonial Secretary. Through it all the reader may build up a picture of an able man who revels in hard work, modestly enjoys power and responsibility, has a high ideal of public service and combines devotion to his family, with a great zest for the world of business and politics.

In their Newsletter No. 16, Affien and Unwin comment on their newefatter No. 9 which announced toe forthcoming pUbttattfon of « story about toe Iffiddte Ages csMed "The Bastard of Ghtasi”. "Both press end book trade" suggested to toe pubttshere tost tides mgM be prejudtoed by the tvtde, 00 ft has been derided to change ft to ■’’Ute Tbltoti of GHri”.