 It's time for the Lawn Gene Chronoscope, a television journal of the important issues of the hour brought to you every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. A presentation of the Lawn Gene Wettner Watch Company, maker of Lawn Gene, the world's most honored watch, and Wettner, distinguished companion to the world-honored Lawn Gene. Good evening. This is Frank Knight. May I introduce our co-editors for this edition of the Lawn Gene Chronoscope? From the CBS, television news staff, Larry Lisser and Winston Burdette, our distinguished guest for this evening is the Honorable Frank Darvelle, Director General of the English-speaking Union of the Commonwealth. Mr. Darvelle, I guess the people who know you best are that band of war correspondents who covered the London Blitz when you were in the Ministry of Information. I remember how that Ministry of Information was a target for the German bombers, but it seems to me that there are some bombs being thrown in the direction of Britain right now, and I refer to charges that she has been trading extensively with Red China. Would you care to say anything about those charges? Well, firstly, I think they're exaggerated. As a good many of the bomb stories during the war were exaggerated, I think we always tried to pretend that our particular bomb was twice as big as it really was. If it was a little 50 pounder, we said it was a 500 pounder. I think these charges of trade with Red China almost precisely the same. Actually, there is a certain amount of trade, but a great deal smaller than I don't actually carry the figures with me. But I think people here who criticise it exaggerate it. People in Britain who think it might be the saving of the country equally exaggerate what the potentialities are. I think it's something like 12 million pounds worth a year, isn't it, which taking the whole amount of trade is a comparatively small show. Mr. Darfur, when you're in England, are you called upon to explain these charges to the British people? Well, yes, it's rather odd. When I'm in Britain, my main job is to try to explain what is the policy of the United States government, why Senator Nolan looks to this way, why Senator McCarthy looks to that way. Whereas over here, it's the other way around. I'm there to say defending the United States in Britain, and Britain in the United States. What actually is the chief mission of the English-speaking Union? What do you do? Well, we try. In each Commonwealth country and the United States to make the other Commonwealth countries in the United States better known, our feeling is that our group of countries have a lot in common, not merely a language, which we all understand, but a common interest, and it is important therefore that we should, each of us, understand the position of the others. Mr. Darvel, from your experience trying to promote mutual understanding, what would you say are the chief sources of misunderstanding between the English-speaking people, particularly between the Americans and the British, today, right at this moment of history? Well, one of the differences, I think, one of the difficulties is that we have a slightly, the words the Cold War mean different things in the two countries. To you, I think, in the United States, when you talk about the Cold War, you place emphasis on the word war. You think therefore that any sort of dealings with communists, to recognize the communist government of China to trade with it, it's monstrous, it's trading with the enemy. We, on the other hand, place emphasis on the word cold. It isn't quite like an ordinary war. It would therefore be wrong, for example, to trade in strategic items with it, but not necessarily wrong to have trade in non-military items. It's due to the same word, carrying a different meaning in the two countries, and I think that often happens. Well, do you mean then that the chief sources of psychological friction between the Americans and the British today, the chief sources are primarily political ones then? I think so, and they arise really out of the fact that our roles in the world have changed. For a long, long while, we took the primary place. You were annoyed, you were frightened, you thought we were going to drag you into trouble, and therefore you criticized us. Now you are the leader, and we tend sometimes to wonder whether maybe your leadership might drag us into trouble here or there, but that is the problem. We are involved together in a great number of dangerous situations throughout the world, and we may often differ as to how those situations would be best dealt with, and that causes arguments. Mr. Darvelle, a great master of the English language, late George Bernard Shaw, I think once said that the England and America are divided by a common language. Well, we do use the same words like Cold War, but do you think we actually attach the same meaning to all our words? No, I don't think we always do, and that is productive of misunderstanding. And also, of course, we overhear one another's insults. And now, if the French, I notice that when traveling in France, I understand a little French. I can hear if a Frenchman makes a rather rude comment about a party of visiting Englishmen. I understand it, but most of the visiting Englishmen don't, and therefore they aren't annoyed. Mercifully. Mercifully. But the problem is if Englishmen insult Americans or Americans insult Englishmen, we understand enough of the language to get the insult. Is anti-Americanism on the rise in Britain now, would you say? In recent months. Well, there's perhaps a little more of it spoken, but I don't think it really is that we're more anti-American. The point is that our affairs are getting more and more mixed up together. You're taking the lead in more and more issues. We wonder whether your lead is the wise one. There are more occasions for us to argue as to whether your lead is wise or not than they used to be. But I don't think basically there's any more criticism than they used to be. Mr. Darvel, Sir Winston Churchill once sponsored a form of English called Basic English, but I don't think it got very far. But nevertheless, do you think that the English language is actually spreading now throughout the world? Oh, I think with our question, the film, the radio are spreading it, and above all, perhaps, the fact that so few Americans and so few Englishmen can really speak any other language, and yet people in every continent want to trade with you or with us, want to borrow money mostly from you now, not from us, have something to gain by dealing with us. And since we can't speak their language, they're compelled to try and speak ours, so that undoubtedly English is spreading. You must have noticed it. Nowadays, there's almost nowhere in free Europe that you can go where you won't find quite a lot of people who can talk to you in English. That wouldn't have been the case before the war. Which form of English do you think is actually spreading the English, English, or the American spoken English? Oh, I think the American English, without question. Even in England. Nowadays, somebody, it doesn't matter whether they speak with the accent of the Midwest or New England or the Deep South, English people have heard so much on the films of the different accents which are current here, that at any American accent would be understood in England. Has Britain been feeling the impact of things American in other ways in these post-war years in addition to language spread by the films and so on? Oh yes, I think a good deal. Music, the most successful musical shows in London in recent years have been American. Oklahoma, Annie Get Your Gun, South Pacific, Kiss Me Kate. They've been immensely popular and many people, not merely are your screen stars well known, but your stage stars. Mr. Darvell, I don't suppose there's any connection between the English-speaking Union and Clarence Streit's Anglo-American merger plans, but could you tell us how the people of Britain would actually regard becoming a part of America if that were possible? A 49th state, shall we say? I don't think they'd relish the idea of becoming a 49th state. Maybe they, I think myself, they don't realize the great advantages that there might be in becoming the 49th state, but they certainly wouldn't like the idea and certainly our English-speaking Union doesn't advocate any political merger, either our becoming the 49th state or forming some sort of federation. All we think is that as completely separate sovereign states, we ought to understand one another's point of view and walk together as partners. Well, Mr. Darvell, merger or no merger, our affairs and our destinies are getting more and more mixed up together, as I think Churchill said. Do you find that this experience is a proving ground for misunderstanding or understanding between the two peoples in the long run? In the long run, I think understanding, but of course in the short run it gives many opportunities for misunderstanding. And of course there will always be more arguments. It's like somebody once said that he had more arguments with one woman, the one he was married to, than with all the other women in the world put together. And I think the more intimate the Commonwealth and the United States work together, the more occasions there will be for us to argue with one another. Well, Mr. Darvell, a recent international press survey show that there is more comprehensive coverage of Britain in the United States than any other foreign country. But on the other hand, the survey pointed out that the coverage of the United States in Britain, its motivations, but anything but the most spectacular stories were not very well covered in the British press. What does the English-speaking union think of that? Well, we regretted a great deal. Of course, one of the difficulties is the English newspapers are, in fact, so small. And of course, a good many newspapers, I think in both our countries, are rarely in the entertainment business. People buy them for the comics or that sort of thing rather than for the news. Undoubtedly, you get more American news, I would say more British news in America than American news in Britain. Mr. Darvell is a final question. I have to say that, of course, there are many class differentiations in Britain, but under certain circumstances it can be the most homogenous country in the world. Is there any real common denominator on which all the people of Britain agree about the United States? Yes, that when we talk about foreigners, we never mean Americans. We often say these wretched foreigners, but we wouldn't include Americans in that. If we were going to criticize you, it would be under some other designation than foreigners. But thank you very much, Mr. Darvell. It's been a great pleasure to have you here tonight. You're nice to have been here, Mr. Listener. The opinions that you've heard our speakers express tonight have been entirely their own. The editorial board for this edition of the Lawn Jean Chronoscope was Larry LeSœur and Winston Bridette. Our distinguished guest was the Honorable Frank Darvell, Director General of the English-speaking Union of the Commonwealth. A Lawn Jean watch makes the most distinguished Christmas gift, for a Lawn Jean watch is not alone one of the very finest watches made anywhere in all the world, but equally important. It's the watch of highest prestige. Now consider these beautiful Lawn Jean watches for ladies. Here are superb examples of the jeweler's exquisite art. Diamonds were used out of the finest quality. Meticulous hand finishing gives that final touch a perfection. What a delightful thrill to find such a Lawn Jean watch in one's Christmas stocking. For men, Lawn Jean has created a watch for every need and for every purpose. Stainless steel models for rugged service, handsome models for business and for formal wear, each style with impressive good taste. 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