Missions

Three British statesmen were terrestrially in motion, last week, in the furtherance of their several missions:

Sir Austen Chamberlain, the British Foreign Secretary, journeyed to The Hague and settled down for a fortnight's visit as the house guest of U. S. Minister to the Netherlands Richard Montgomery Tobin. Presently Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands bade Sir Austen to come and take dinner at the unpretentious, neatly painted mansion which serves as Her Majesty's palace. Placid Dutch courtiers admitted that Crown Princess Juliana, 19, is beginning to ponder whether she should take as a useful consort one of the British King-Emperor's younger sons: Prince Henry, 28, or Prince George, 25.

The Earl of Birkenhead, Secretary of State for India, set out from London for Berlin with Baron Ashfield, famed London subway and omnibus tycoon. A suspicious circumstance was that both peers stated that their mission would be to play many a round of golf--in Germany of all places.

Before quitting London the Secretary of State for India delivered a wholly characteristic after dinner address to the famed Authors' Club on the subject: "Women's Position in Literature." Said scathing Lord Birkenhead: ". . . Women have no position in literature."

Sir John Simon returned to London from India last week. He is the great Liberal barrister who is Chairman of the Indian Statutory Commission (TIME, Jan. 9 et seq.). The Seven Wise Commissioners have now completed their first visit to India, a visit which has been punctuated by numerous riots and demonstrations against them. Their mission is to recommend, after much further study, what additional measure of sovereignty shall be extended to Indians. Last week Sir John struck a significant keynote when he said: "The Commission will recommend no sweeping changes in the Indian form of Government. The Indian people are not yet ready for a large measure of independence, but we will suggest many minor changes in order to encourage them to govern themselves."

He added: "Two months in India don't qualify any one to arrive at conclusions, but they have shown us the complexity and the multitude of Indian problems. Each province, in fact, has its own difficulties and their solution will not be found in a repetition of vague generalities. India is the real meeting ground of the East and West."