1955-12-24 — Page 7

THE CHINA MAIL, SATURDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1956.

THIS MR MARSHALL

ALSO HAS

HAS A A PLAN

ing.

Tis no good just list- ing the facts about Davki Marshall. They take too much bellev-

11

David Suul Marshall is a litle man In a bush jacket -an eloquent orutor, brilliant lawyer who has successfully and sensation- ally defended 38 men AC- cused of murder, a one-time London walter, a man who once aspired to be a Metro- politan policeman.

the

He is a Jew who is elected Chief Minister of a British Colony, 80 percent of whose citizens Chinese.

ure

He in the scion of i family whose history is the epitome of the bitter story of the Jewish ruce-und hẹ has emerged as the articu- late spokesman of a kind of Asian nationalism

He is Socialist who until recently was earning £2,000 a month.

new

He founded El polition! party because he could find no political party to jun. entered an election been he thought {{ would pleasant to have polities for a hobby, and found himself. to his intense surprise, the frat "Prime Minister" Stagnpore.

Freely Elected

THERE

}

are those who say that David Marshad is just one more "incident" in the political and social emer- gence of ther Orient ---

Bash-in-the-pan, a one-night

stand.

They pererive that

he sometimes talks too much, that, like a Chinese firework, he generates more heat than light but not enough heat to set the world on fire.

By LES ARMOUR

David Marshall is more than just another colonial politician. Ho is symbolic of the growing sense of nationhood in the till depondent territories, He is soon

talking to the Pross in London.

rises which are not always Lennox-Boyd mulded to understand. He laurels as n negotiator. Psy to fought a desperate-looking

Was there battle with the Governor of

ever such

Singapore over the question happy crisis? of the number of ministers he had the right to have in his cabinet. He quelled

wave of Communist strikes wud a wave of Cum- munist riuts.

his

રી

The Communists, of course, couldn't take this sort of thing lying down.

Marshall, despite his regular threals to resign, doesn't want to go to the country simply be- cause his political organisation

dia't exist before the musi lion, and its electoral machinery might find the strain too much.

It is this which leads to the view that Marsholl muy dis appear overnight,

his

They remembered that 011 the olher hood, Marshall had campagined popular support probably galos

the fight

with

"emergency" day by day. the against

regulations to combat Com- Governor WILA in every

munism and they set out sense a sham battle.

to hoist him with his petard.

Taunted and jeered at by his opponents from the monent of his election over the "reality" of self. povrument in Singapore he chose to assert himself on

a question of no vital im- portance.

His Shrewdness

There are even the who THEREBY he showed his

think that David Marshall is an invention of his own imagination and that the world, having been diverted by the spectacle, will short ly forget him.

But they reckon without some of the facts.

In-

In the first place Marshall is a European who was freely elected by Chinese, Maluys, and Indians who could have gone their own separate ways and voted for Chinese, Malays, and dians. In a world where race is more explosive than gunpowder and where ram- pant Asian nationalism is, for better or worse, an all- important driving force that fact itself makes David Marshall worth attention.

Furthermore,

Singapore is one of the great cities of the world, a commercial and strategic bustion of Empire which is fast be- coming D Commonwealth which may become either a

mere name

or a

An

decisive

force in world affairs.

Bitter Blow

else.

shrewdness if nothing

Common

&

Open Violence

own

THERE were strikes, riots open violenco in schools, disruption in the economy.

But they reckoned with- out the lawyer's mind.

Marshal snapped. "Singapore under Communism would be worse than Singapore under the Japanese occupation." Then he get to work and drafted ទ tourth Emergency Powers Bill.

He reasoned that the Com-

Marshall already had cabinet of seven. He pro- posed to appoint four more ministers. The English munisis had had their chance sense of the and had determined to declare Governor rebelled at the open war. Under the circum- thought of a cabinet of 11 stances, they could expect only

open war in return, members when the govern- 14 ment party had only seals in a 25-seat legisla- ture.

They got

Marshall won. But more than that, his popularity increased rether than decreased. He had Marshall, in private, may proved that self-government in even have agreed with him. Singapore had met the first re-

quisite condition But the point was that, government: it could govern

tho even in if he could trounce the hostility from a secilon of open

face

for any

of the

Governor on this point-and community and it could keep a even the Governor probably majority of the community didn't really think it

im behind it. portant enough to wreck the

Now he is in London to constitution over-he could smooth the way for the next then appear before his op- stage. He envisages a Singapore ponents as a man who had completely free made his power felt.

Breath-taking

20

determine

its own internal affairs, but bound to co-operation with Bri- tein in matters of defence and foreign affairs.

He recognises that Singapore exists because it is a trading centre. can only continue to IT didn't quite come off. But exist as trading centre in co- Colonial Secretary Alan operation with Britain at least, Lennox-Boyd hustled out for the time being. from London, went into On this trip, he is burried conference with Mr sounding things out. Marshall, and emerged smil- ing five hours later.

In any case, Marshall kimself doesn't care.

He has had a lot of ups and downs during his 47 years.

he

in

He spent World War 1 prison in Baghdad becauso had happened to be born Singapore and he and his father were therefore British subjects and, from the Turkish point of view, on the wrong side of the

war.

After the war, he wandered through Europe, worked his way through London University working as a walter and by glving chess lessons.

Long Story

IN those days, whenever

he

went out on any important oc- caston he had to borrow a pair of trousers from

barrister friend.

A

He tried to join the Metro- politan Police and was turned down on medical grounds. Sp he went back to Singapore ૫૪ try his luck, There he became the colony's top lawyer.

Behind that is the long story of his family. They started in Spain (the name was Mashal unil recently), were thrown oul during the Inquisition, wander- ed through the Middle East for several hundred years and final- ly come to Singapore from what was then Mesopolamis. He and his father went back just be- fore World War I-und were Intered.

bolh

But they found their fee! again afterwards as they always ind. The tradition of resource-- fulness still stands-and Mur- shall has nothing but a happy guffaw for the whims of fate.

(COPYRIGHT)

WELL, WHAT D'YOU KNOW!

It Rained Frogs,

Fish, Insects

EVER were the hureen recorded.

IVER since the third century AD, the oddest kinds of

With or without rain, fish have fallen all over the place. So have frogs, birds, larvae, worms, oranges, pebbles and even fossilised hazelnuts. The nuts fell on Dublin in 1867.

An early Greek writer talked of a fish shower lasting three days, und ut Drumhirt, Northern Ireland, in 1928, dozens of red fish were found on the roof of a bungalow, two miles away from the nearest stretch of water.

Frogs paid a flying visit to Trowbridge, Wiltshire, in 1989, when hundreds of tiny ones rained down on a concrete path surrounding a swimming pool.

BARLEY SHOWER

New York had its strangest shower in 1950, when almost half a bushel of barley rallied down on the tower of the 1,250-feet- high Empire State building! How it got into the sky, no one knows.

Another queer downpour was a fall of hallstones as flat as coina. When they began to melt, the centres became liquid first" and the stones took on the shape of small rings. They fell on Cyprus in 1931.

Hailstones as large as tennis balls have been reported in Britain, but the biggest stones of all time—the size of grapefruits fell at Potter, Nebraska, USA, in 1928, One was 17 Inches round!

Hailstones have brought other surprises. In 1940, a resident of Springfield, Missouri, telephoned the U.S. Weather Bureau to report that it had halled coat in his part of the town." A small tornado had swept the coal area of Missouri and carried aloft a quantity of "nutty slack.”

The rarest of all hailstones contained insects. Currents of Just ale must have carried the little creatures upwards to their icy

tombs.

Ups and Downs

L

Sometimes, ruin and snow fall in glorious technicolouri - There was red rain at Bordighern, Italy, in 1928. It covered the pavements with a red-brown deposit, which turned to a MOST important, it may be What happened in that

delightful salmon colour when dry. "At Guildford, Surrey, in that in Singapore and meeting was breath-taking,

1940, a greeny-yellow rain was reported, N the way to London he had adjacent Malaya the fate of

Blue rain fell from a cloudless sky in a small village near O few minor scuffles. Communism in what

First of

He Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire, in 1950, is

Splotches of blue all the British called "free: Asla” will be Government conceded that, stopped off in Delhi to say that the size of a penny covered an area of over 100 square yards.

he "had come to learn at the Ashby-de-la-Zouch by the Sea."

Everyone recalled the song hit of four years before, called determined. And David in principle, the Governor feet of Me Nehru." That en-

One of the lines of It was, Marshall has dealt Com- ought usually to take the raged his opponents at home "The skies are full of blus't

Chief munism a bitter blow.

his personal friend Minister's advice, especially

and arch political enemy Leo Then Marshall decided that Kuan Yew, who runs the BLACK CHRISTMAS

David Marshall must be considered in this context.

he wouldn't press the issue treme left of Singapore

Do

It is often bright yellow In New Brunswick, Canada, and some.

a delicate rose to a deep blood shade Alpine climbers have times green on Alpine, peaks, a

After whlie, the commonest mow colour red, ranging from found this red snow on the hopes of Mount St Bernard.

over the ministers. Finally dollying with the Communists dream of a Block Christmas, for the mow is often back there. lites. Marshall accuses Loe of On the high mountains of Tatra, in. Hungary, the peasants" He proposes to establish Lennox-Boyd agreed that Lee accuses Marshall of dally-in other places; there is sometimes yellow, red and green snow. the Welfare State, British he would meet Marshall in ing with the British. style, in the Orient. He pro- London in March and there poses to make Singapore a they would hammer out the Marshall "humiliated Singapore Leg's current line is that self-governing part of a "self-government" question in front of Mr Nehru. He hopes "Co-operative Common and talk about dates for in- to rally nationalist support

Scientists say it is due to the presence of minute' plants, known wealth" in which, he hopes, dependence.

as aigne, or to minoral dust. It would take only'a little to the adjectiye "Co-operative"

But pertinps the strangest snow of all fell on Rochestera Result: the Governor bring down Marshall for his miles from New York in 180,8The white, emosigh will have a specific mean- kept his dignity, Marshall overnment habitually survives found to be radioactive! The tall followed, atuendo fest explosions

of confidance, Inge, the invern about £1,000 miles away made the point that he was legliature

only because the Rochester Fehlkren clai He has dealt, in a few the man to bring about real the Governor vote for: Alm. Bo three metobars ( nominated by

W months, with a series of self-government, and am BAVO KETERA

*

was

WAS

the night before Christmas

when out in the road

Stood the old family bus, having lost its abode, For the garage was empty and tidled with care In hopes Santa might have a new car to spare, The children were nestled all snug in their beds, While thoughts of convertibles danced through their heads; The Missy and I dreamed in front of the grate Of our next leave at home in a new Ford V-8. When out in the drive there arose such a roar

That I sprang from my chale and rushed straight to the door.

I threw back the bolt and peeped out in the night, And saw, with the moon making everything bright, A gift-laden sleigh swooping down from the stars, St. Nick at the helm, driving eight shiny cars! He swept around comers at breathtaking speeds, Calling out to his swift-running powerful steeds: "On CONSUL! On, ZEPHYRI On, CUSTOMLINE, 100{"

As down through the Christmas Eve darkness they flow; "Now, PREFECT! Now, ANGLIA! POPULAR! — Now! Come MAINLINE! Come ZODIAC! Show them all how?” They drew nearer swiftly then silently stopped,

And out of his vehicle Santa Claus hopped, He paused not a moment but to his work dashed; From trimming the tree to the stockings he flashed. While Old Father Christmas was busy inside,

I gazed at his coursers and longed for a ride.

They had floated along with such grace and such poise, So easily pulling that huge load of toys, That

thought on the instant how nice it would be

To have a new Ford under our Christmas tree,

When Santa had finished, he sprang to his sleigh, Pressed once on the starter and darted away.

But, thoughtful, he circled 'round once, looking back, And his gaze travelled down to our old-fashioned hack, He had spotted the garage with doors gaping wide, And I saw a broad smile that his beard couldn't hide. Then as he sped onward, I managed to hear His tip for the season, the gift of the year! "Try HARPER'S on Tuesday"

he called with a grin,

"They've got the best cars --

and they'll trade that thing in!"

Then i heard him exclaim as

he drove out of sight,

"Merry Christmas

to all,

and to all a good-night!"

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