Portrait of the Week —

HIE PROPOSED THREE-DAY rail-strike hung in the balance while the NUR and Dr. Beeching played out their war of nerves: meanwhile, as Mr. .Marples claimed that the Beeching Plan will be implemented within two Years, Lord Hailsham told the Lords that it might well take seven years. This was a week for retirements: Sir Winston Churchill announced he was leaving the Commons at the next election, Stirling Moss announced he

Was leaving motor-racing, and Sir Brian Horrocks is to retire as Black Rod. Coming back is Mr.

Galbraith, as junior to Mr. Marples at the Ministry of Transport. The Daily Mail, who so hounded Mr. Galbraith six months ago, formally apologised for then printing 'inaccurate statements based on false assumptions', which seems a neat way of summing up the Radcliffe Report's findings that the Daily Mail's main story was 'in all essen- tials a piece of fiction'. Gold reserves went up, Just : so did car sales on hire-purchase. Archbishop

Hcenan denied that the Pope was going soft on

Communism, and Edward Heath denied that the Government was going soft on .Europe.

-1111S WAS 'WE'VE BEEN . HERE BEFORE' week : Everest was climbed, ten years bar one month from the first ascent. The American climbers found no trace of the bust of Mao Tse-tung

suPposedly left by the Chinese climbers who claimed to have climbed the peak in 1960. A Mos-

cew spy-trial opened with confessions from the accused, one of whom is a British businessman.

bonald Campbell had another accident in Blue- bird. There were more race riots in the Southern

S, tates, another ITV lobby assault on the turnover !evy plan was repulsed, and there were more court incidents featuring Miss Christine Keefer. Dr.

Erhard, playing himself in as the best Chancellor- designate Germany has, brought about a compro-

raise in the German engineering dispute. The Congo police mutinied, British troops were rillnoured to have rioted in Nairobi, and the !hutf-D0minican Republic fracas weilt beyond a Joke. President Kennedy is not to visit Ulster next rtinnfh, and seems to have lost all enthusiasm for visiting Italy. Dr. Castro lost none of his enthu- siasm in Moscow, except when at a May Day

Parade the Russian Army displayed its latest rockets, recently exported from Cuba.

41i, MACMILLAN -row Jimmy Edwards to bring his euphonium with him to the Commons, as he would need it. Other prominent news in a light Week included Equity complaints about 'the out- ,r,#genus case' of Miss Maudling, the shambles of

me London Co-operative Society elections, Lord Goddard's appeal for the return of the stocks for

Juvenile delinquents, and, of course, the Duchess of Argyips diaries. Rather less funny was the news that the AEU had decided to reject the findings of the Jack Inquiry into Ford's of Dagenham, which seems to 'put the issue back at square one. Also, ac NeddY meeting broke up after two hours because !ew present could agree on what was meant by 'an

Inc°Ines policy'. And the local elections seemed neither goc;c1 nor as bad as any side expected.

Time HESI yvk.EK in May, and the worst snowstorms

of the Year for parts of the Highlands. The first Mrs n s. •-•ale (Ellis Powell), Max Miller and Dr. Per

lacobsson died. England and Brazil drew 1-1, and the captain of Mansfield Town was suspended

for offering £300 bribes to two Bristol Rovers Players (also suspended). Rangers and Celtic

"rew the Scottish Cup Final almost without 1„nnci_dent, though a ship returning supporters to

oeltast turned round after 400 yards because of a Pitched battle between rival supporters, and the crew refused to go any farther without strong Police protection.