PEOPLE'S LEADER

New Zealand Herald, Volume 78, Issue 24136, 1 December 1941, Page 9

PEOPLE'S LEADER

WINSTON CHURCHILL ; tributes on birthday ' -JIAN whose hour came (R«cd. 0.40 p.m.) LONDON, Nov. 2D "Mr. Churchill is to-day the spirit *' 0 j Old England incarnate, with its un- . • ghakable self-c6nfidence, its grim -i piety, its unfailing sense of humour, ' its underlying moral earnestness, its unflinching tenacity. Against That inner ..•unity of spirit / between leader and nation, the ill-cemented moral fabric of Hitler's perversion of the German soul /" must be shattered in the end." This tribute to Mr. Churchill on the f' occasion of the Prime Minister's 67th birthday to-morrow was paid in a broadcast by* Mr. L. S. Amerv. Secretary of State for India, says a British official tireless message. , . "What kind of man," asked Mr. . r. Amery, "is tin's English Prime Minister, who in his personality so strongly represents the outlook and will to victory of a great nation?" Family Distinguished in History . „ First and foremost, Mr. Amery continued, Mr. Churchill had his roots deep and firm in English history. He was the descendant of a family which, , from the. days of the great Duke of Marlborough, played its part in British affairs. To renew the lustre of his name, to make good, and more than make good, the brilliant promise of his father's brief political career was his ambition. This soon displayed that hunger for sheer dangerous adventure which for a few led him to every scene of warlike action, on the Indian frontier and in South Africa. That ambition had, however, a background wider than mere family pride —a motive deeper than the mere per'soaal desire for political distinction. The splendid drama of English history always appealed to him. both as a student and a writer, and tilled him with the desire to make his own contribution to that wonderful narrative. Administrative Experience ... More especially had Mr. Churchill ""been stirred by the history of war. .These were the foundations on which i were built in the course of years practical administrative experience in almost every great department of State, including all the services, Navy, Army, r " Air Force and munitions, concerned frith the conduct of war. Last, but not least, 40 years in the House of Com- -• mons made him not only a great orator, but one supremely fitted both to unclerstand and to lead that unique body ' of men in which was concentrated the wisdom, courage and independence of a . . free people. War Bringa Opportunity . Mr. Amery reviewed Mr. Churchill's political career, and recalled that for - 10 years he was out of office—a distinguished, but isolated figure. Then came • the 'war. That, in a moment, made an immediate depiand for his immense fund of experience in military affairs. ' It also immediately raised issues which transcended all party divisions, and "V linked up the England of to-dav with ' • the England that fought the Spanish ". Armada and wore down Napoleon. ' ' "In that New England/' Mr. Amery ' " concluded, "Mr. Churchill by natural - - right came into his own." Mr. Churchill has received hundreds of messages of good wishes from all •parts, of the world. -- Birthday gifts for Mr. Churchill have ' 'included an aeroplane from South <r America and tanks from the West •'* ; Indies. /" - ±.' LIFE OF ACTIVITY SOLDIER AND STATESMAN " * On- his first birthday last year as Prime Minister Mr. Winston Churchill *as described as "the youngest 66-year-old in England.", It is a matter of satisfaction to all British people and all supporters of the cause of freedom v. th3t, under the weight of greater responsibilities than any other leader in history has had to bear, he still enjoys •" excellent health and is carrying out •• his stupendous task with the utmost - • Tigour. Fortunately for the Empire and the world at large Mr. Churchill inherited not only abilities fairly to be described .*• as genius, but also a first-class consti-•;-tution. This has been attributed to his American mother, the beautiful Miss ■ Jennie Jerome, rather than to his father, Lord Randolph Churchill, who died while still a comparatively young .. man after a brilliant, but disappointing, career in politics. Sound health carried Mr. Churchill in his earjy years through four wars—in Cuba, on the North-west Frontier, with Kitchener to Khartoum, and in South Africa. In 1914 he personv ally accompanied" the hastily-raised force which he sent to defend Antwerp, ... i a^er the close of the ill-fated Dardanelles campaign he spent some as a combatant officer on the western Front until he was recalled to ,y. ne,r Ministerial office. Knocked down and badly injured by r---a tasicab in New York in i 9.31, he made a good recovery, only to be at- . v tacked by paratyphoid in Austria the > following year and to suffer a relapse in r k' s re turn to England. Early in 1940 he went through the full programme of a visjt to Paris and the ■British front., regardless of a bout of gastric influenza. To-day, thanks to the <*?; watch kept over him by Mrs. Churchill, he is in excellent form, constantly smokes' large cigars, takes • moderate exercise; and enjoys a bottle • of champagne, with, his dinner. Accordto some reports he has lost some pounds ... m weight since the war began. It was j' agreed at the time that his Atlantic T ?J a p to meet President Roosevelt pro-' paed a welcome break in his routine, ' ana that he returned from it refreshed . ®nd>at the top of his form.