12 MAY 1939, Page 6

Englishmen travelling abroad are generally listened to with considerable respect,

and they do not invariably realise that the impression they create is a matter of some import- ance. Here for example, is a paragraph from a recent private letter from a representative and well-informed Norwegian—who is incidentally not a Socialist: " I am astonished to hear to what extent English financiers and M.P.s (visiting Norway) seem to admire and long for the system of the totalitarian States. It may be due to a desire for quicker results and higher efficiency, but I suspect that their sub-conscious Imperialistic ambitions make them more impressed by Hitler than anything else."

I know too many of such Englishmen myself.

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