* * * * The brevity of Mr. Chamberlain's statement,
on Tuesday, on the internacional situation, took a full and expectant House by surprise. The very careful addition of the U.S.S.R. as one of the countries with which the Government are con- sulting showed that recent question hours have had their effect. The House greeted with loud cheers the Prime Minister's reference to Mr. Roosevelt; but there were no supplementaries, and nearly everyone, afterwards, said they would like to have been told a little more. The announce- ment of the names of Regional Dictators, as they are called, very nearly provoked a storm, and undoubtedly presaged a great deal of controversy for the future. The Opposition showed quite clearly that they resent the inclusion of so many titles in the list, and even some Conservatives appeared to be unhappy about it. What was more disturbing was the postponement of certain appointments until war actually breaks out. Sir Archibald Sinclair pressed Sir John Anderson as to the scale of payment which these gentlemen are to receive in war-time, and the fact that Sir John had to ask for notice seems to reveal that the Government are still unaware of the sensitiveness of most of the House on the question of payment for national service when so many people are giving their services voluntarily.
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