23 JUNE 1939, Page 32

The Friendly People That is no matter for astonishment. The

friendliness is probably perfectly sincere (individually, of course, the German is normally a very friendly person), but it might equally be that boring phenomenon which is so badly staged by all its exponents, propaganda. I hear the same thing from Italy, where the arrivals have been many fewer than in previous years, but there, of course, there is no likelihood of propaganda against the democratic visitor. There is and always has been genuine sympathy and liking between the Italian people and ourselves and the Italian is the least regimented national in existence.