F01 1 <#FLOB:F01\>New Departures

F01 2 Changes in lifestyles, living standards, opportunities and F01 3 patterns of cultural behaviour are apparent in all the Western F01 4 societies between the late 1950s and late 1960s. A major feature, F01 5 indeed, is a greater cultural interchange than ever before, along F01 6 with a marked reversal of the one-way movement from America: F01 7 Italian espresso machines and Italian fashion; French discos; F01 8 British pubs, British pop music, and British pop design; European F01 9 film directors and a medley of European film actors and actresses. F01 10 Many of the developments to be discussed in this chapter, then, are F01 11 international; some, in origins at least, are specifically F01 12 British.

F01 13 The phrase 'cultural revolution', which I have used on a number F01 14 of occasions, may or may not be an apt one. It is certainly F01 15 contentious. From the left it is contended that no fundamental F01 16 shifts in the structure of power, no serious attacks on the F01 17 deprivations suffered by substantial minorities, took place, and F01 18 that those features of sixties culture which hit the headlines were F01 19 shallow, commercial and sexist. From the right, it is argued that F01 20 the steady abandonment since the war of older disciplines and older F01 21 values escalated into an orgy of self-indulgence supported F01 22 on income which had not been earned. Mrs Thatcher's comment of F01 23 March 1982 is well known:"We are reaping what was sown in F01 24 the Sixties ... fashionable theories and permissive claptrap set F01 25 the scene for a society in which the old virtues of discipline and F01 26 restraint were denigrated." Certainly, what happened F01 27 between the late fifties and the early seventies was not a F01 28 political revolution, not a revolution in economic thought and F01 29 practice; but it was, I believe, a transformation in the F01 30 opportunities and freedoms available both to the majority as a F01 31 whole and to distinctive individuals and groups within that F01 32 majority. These transformations were not imposed from above, nor F01 33 were they the achievement of a coherent group of 'revolutionaries'. F01 34 They helped to make possible the events of 1968, but their F01 35 significance had nothing to do with the success or failure of these F01 36 events, on which too much attention has been lavished. More F01 37 critically, the real changes in ordinary lives have been obscured F01 38 by the attention lavished on the minority practices of 'underground F01 39 culture' whose long-term influence was minimal.

F01 40 Fundamental was the marked economic recovery of Western Europe F01 41 from the early to mid-fifties, creating new kinds of consumer F01 42 demand both internal, and as already been<&|>sic! suggested, F01 43 international. The principal new markets can be defined as youth, F01 44 the working class, the provinces, racial minorities and, in lesser F01 45 degree, women. The new consumers were in a position to reject the F01 46 canons laid down by established authority, metro-politan, F01 47 upper-class and old. America was escaping from the insular F01 48 parochialism which had gripped it during the Cold War period: even F01 49 in the Mid West outlets appeared for foreign cultural products, F01 50 including British ones. Hollywood had ossified, so had Tin Pan F01 51 Alley: therein lay the opportunity. But the challenges to F01 52 established authority were particularly striking in Britain, partly F01 53 because Britain had long been such a conservative and homogeneous F01 54 society, but partly also because Britain had generally been such a F01 55 sensible society, characterized, as I have expressed it elsewhere, F01 56 by 'Secular Anglicanism'. The codes of behaviour which had grown F01 57 up, generally enforced with discretion, were not absurd given their F01 58 historical context (the economic dependence of women on men, for F01 59 instance, and of youth on age). Now a country which lacked the F01 60 antediluvian bigotries of the American Bible Belt, the clerical and F01 61 anti-clerical factionalism of France and Italy, or the F01 62 reviving bourgeois stolidity of Christian Democratic Germany, F01 63 showed itself specially responsive to the new pressures.

F01 64 British developments can be summed up under six overlapping F01 65 headings. The first is defined by the two clich<*_>e-acute<*/>s F01 66 'affluence' and 'consumerism'. Average weekly earnings F01 67 for industrial workers rose 34 per cent between 1955 and 1960 and F01 68 130 per cent between 1955 and 1969; average earnings of F01 69 middle-class salaried employees rose 127 per cent between 1955 and F01 70 1969. While prices of food and other necessities were steadily F01 71 rising (retail prices rose by 63 per cent between 1955 and 1969), F01 72 the prices of small cars, in relation to earning power, were F01 73 falling, and many products of new technology such as television F01 74 sets and washing machines were, despite inflation, actually costing F01 75 less. Still a rarity in the early 1950s, TV sets were to be found F01 76 in 75 per cent of homes by 1961, and 91 per cent of homes by F01 77 1971.

F01 78 Second, though the basic class structure remained F01 79 unaltered, there were significant changes in detail and attitudes. F01 80 The working class became visible and assertive as it had never been F01 81 before. Some of its most talented escapees held the limelight and F01 82 while doing so retained, with bravado, working-class accent and F01 83 manner. The vogue for 'classlessness' was somewhat spurious, but F01 84 the very advocacy of the notion altered the old indicators of F01 85 status: 'posh cockney' replaced the plummy Oxford accent. Third, F01 86 there was the power of, and preoccupation with, youth. Both F01 87 rock-based pop music and pop fashion were products of, and even F01 88 when fully commercialized remained products for, youth. Fourth, is F01 89 the transformation in sexual attitudes and F01 90 behaviour. The survey material is copious: perhaps the single F01 91 most significant statistic is that, while in 1951 only 51 per cent F01 92 of women interviewed had declared sex to be very important in F01 93 marriage, in 1969 the percentage was 67.

F01 94 'Permissiveness' was the word brought into use to describe the F01 95 whole complex of developments within the sexual arena. Yet in F01 96 characterizing the social legislation of the period a better F01 97 heading might be that of fairness towards, and F01 98 freedom for, each individual. To the fifth heading, I F01 99 would add a sixth, pervading all aspects of private and communal F01 100 life, frankness and openness to the extent of (another F01 101 word of the time) 'explicitness', these together being part of F01 102 the general reaction against the emollient fibbing of the older F01 103 generation (including the fashionable clothing, male and female, F01 104 that concealed the imperfections of form and figure).

F01 105 In the voting preferences of the British people there were, as F01 106 ever, no great swings. At the beginning of the sixties the F01 107 Conservatives were in power, led by the one-nation, patrician Tory, F01 108 Harold Macmillan. In 1964 Labour scraped into office under Harold F01 109 Wilson, also very much a consensus politician, going on to win a F01 110 substantial majority in 1966. In 1970, to the surprise of many, the F01 111 Conservatives, led by Edward Heath, certainly no fanatic of the F01 112 radical right, returned to office. Unsuccessful confrontation with F01 113 the miners pushed Heath into another election early in 1974. F01 114 Although the Conservatives polled 37.9 per cent of the popular F01 115 vote, Labour with 37.1 per cent had four more seats and formed a F01 116 minority government till October when Labour polled 39.2 per cent F01 117 to 35.9 for the Conservatives. The government of first Wilson, then F01 118 James Callaghan (yet another middle-of-the-road figure), in effect F01 119 depended on the support of the Liberals. Continuity is clearly seen F01 120 in arts policy, as Arts Council funding and local authority F01 121 initiatives increased. Indeed the entire period could be F01 122 characterized as marking a culmination of the idea enunciated F01 123 towards the end of the war of culture as a form of social welfare. F01 124 The major stages were the transference in 1964 of the source of F01 125 Arts Council funding from the Treasury to the Department of F01 126 Education, the appointment of Jennie Lee as Minister for the Arts, F01 127 and the publication in 1965 of Jennie Lee's government paper A F01 128 Policy for the Arts. In education, too, the sixties marked a F01 129 climax in post-war developments, with the expansion in higher F01 130 education providing part of the basis for enhanced interest in F01 131 artistic and intellectual practices - from opera to feminism.

F01 132 Outside of consensus politics there were, indeed, mighty F01 133 political issues, principally hostility to American military policy F01 134 in general and, above all, to American activities in Viet Nam in F01 135 particular, revulsion against the commercialism of contemporary F01 136 society and the power of multi-national corporations, and protests F01 137 over nuclear weaponry. These matters of concern often appeared in F01 138 'alternative' or 'underground' culture. Yet that very culture also F01 139 benefited from Arts Council and local authority patronage.

F01 140 The key Acts of the period were not part of some political F01 141 blueprint for transforming society, but resulted from pressures F01 142 generated from within society: 1960, the Betting and Gaming Act F01 143 (recognizing working-class vices as well as more aristocratic F01 144 ones); 1967, the Abortion Act, the National Health Service (the F01 145 Family Planning) Act and the Sexual Offences Act (legalizing F01 146 homosexual acts between two consenting adults in private); 1968, F01 147 the Theatres Act (abolishing censorship); 1969 the Representation F01 148 of the People Act (reducing the voting age to eighteen) and the F01 149 Divorce Reform Act; 1970 the Matrimonial Property Act (establishing F01 150 that a wife's work, whether as a housewife within the home or as a F01 151 money-earner outside it, should be considered as an equal F01 152 contribution towards creating the family home if, as a result of F01 153 divorce, that had to be divided), the Equal Pay Act (imperfect, F01 154 certainly, and not intended to become fully effective for another F01 155 five years) and the Chronic Sick and Disabled Persons Act (which F01 156 symbolized and ratified the new openness towards the problems of F01 157 the disabled). Acts of Parliament must never be mistaken for the F01 158 reality of social change; but in fact the reality of change was F01 159 palpable in the archaeology of everyday life, in attitudes, F01 160 behaviour and artefacts. Of course, there were many sources of F01 161 tension and deprivation - race relations and high-rise housing for F01 162 instance. This era was not a golden age, simply a time of release F01 163 and change.

F01 164 Mrs Thatcher, indeed, was right, if for the phrase"the F01 165 old virtues of discipline and restraint were denigrated" we F01 166 substitute 'the social controls established by the Victorians were F01 167 overthrown'. This was a revolution which could not easily be F01 168 reversed since, in fact, it had little to do with the state and F01 169 everything to do with society. It was not a revolution towards F01 170 socialism, but if it had its too-evident male chauvinist aspects it F01 171 also contributed to the launching, partly in response to the F01 172 manifestations of decontrolled male sexuality, of activist F01 173 feminism. The culture of the day was influenced by these F01 174 developments, contributed greatly to them, and indeed was an F01 175 integral part of Britain's striking new departures.

F01 176 'The Snobbery that Used to Exist ...'

F01 177 The central role of cinema

F01 178 Rick Wakeman was one of a number of musicians who moved from a F01 179 strictly classical training into the world of pop music. He F01 180 explained to Michael Cable, chronicler of the pop industry, F01 181 that:

F01 182 the whole attitude to serious pop music is changing in the F01 183 colleges and academies ... Even members of the staff, the tutors F01 184 and the professors, are beginning to accept that at the top end of F01 185 the scale rock is musically valued. The snobbery that used to exist F01 186 is gradually disappearing ...

F01 187 How far, and in what ways, were barriers between different F01 188 'levels' of culture flattened?

F01 189 Here I want to begin by looking at the conversion of Braine's F01 190 novel Room at the Top into a popular film carried out by F01 191 Romulus Films (a company with a profitable specialization in F01 192 'problem' films for minority audiences). Romulus employed three F01 193 competent professionals, Jack Clayton to direct, Neil Paterson to F01 194 write the screenplay, and Mario Nascimbene to produce the musical F01 195 score, and one very distinguished one, cameraman Freddie Francis. F01 196 As was the custom, the film was planned throughout F01 197 <}_><-|>it<+|>in<}/> consultation with the British Board of Film F01 198 Censors. What becomes utterly clear from the censorship F01 199 correspondence is that, influenced by wider trends in British F01 200 society, the censorship was itself changing its views as to what F01 201 was now acceptable to British audiences. Where it did put up a F01 202 fight (usually over words like 'bitch' and 'lust'), it nearly F01 203 always gave way in the end. By concentrating, altering and F01 204 frequently developing material in the novel, the film presents two F01 205 major preoccupations (or 'meanings'): class power, class rigidities F01 206 and the possibility of social mobility; and sex, frankly presented F01 207 and still more frankly discussed. As visual medium, the film gives F01 208 very strong representations of the physical differences in social F01 209 environments. While Joe Lampton in the novel was fastidious and F01 210 self-questioning, Joe Lampton in the film is straightforwardly F01 211 predatory, a figure much more likely to impact strongly on mass F01 212 audiences. F01 213 F02 1 <#FLOB:F02\>Is there still a Ruling Class?

F02 2 Britain does still have a capitalist business class, rooted in F02 3 industrial, commercial and landed property and occupying a position F02 4 of high status. The privileges of this class are legitimated F02 5 through a frame-work of 'traditional' norms and values, and F02 6 the practices and processes of this status system are central to F02 7 the mechanisms of class reproduction. But is the capitalist class F02 8 still a ruling class? The concept of a ruling class, I have argued, F02 9 is far from straightforward. In Chapter 2 I introduced a number of F02 10 ideas which can help to evaluate the meaning and relevance of this F02 11 concept. Before it is possible to answer the question 'Is there F02 12 still a ruling class?', those ideas must be reviewed and F02 13 elaborated.

F02 14 Power Elites and the Ruling Class

F02 15 The state elite comprises the positions of authority at the F02 16 head of the leading institutions of the state. From this F02 17 standpoint, all societies with a state have, by definition, a state F02 18 elite and a political elite. It is for this reason that, for many F02 19 commentators, the claims of classical elite theory have been seen F02 20 as trivial. To claim that all societies have a political elite is F02 21 not to claim very much at all. But there is far more to be learned F02 22 from the elite theorists than this. While all societies with a F02 23 state do, indeed, have a political elite, not all societies will F02 24 have a power elite. The assertion that a particular F02 25 society has a power elite is far from trivial, as it involves F02 26 definite and contestable claims about the actual exercise of power. F02 27 The occupants of positions of authority within the state elite F02 28 comprise a power elite only where they are recruited from a power F02 29 bloc. A power bloc, it will be recalled, is an alignment of social F02 30 groups having some similarity in social background and experience F02 31 and which is able to monopolize positions of authority within the F02 32 state elite over a sustained period.

F02 33 But to demonstrate the existence of a power elite is still only F02 34 half the task, as power elites vary according to the cohesion and F02 35 the class basis of the power bloc <}_><-|>whith<+|>which<}/> F02 36 dominates the state elite. In figure 6.1 is a typology of power F02 37 elites, defined by the dimensions in terms of which they may vary. F02 38 The first dimension in this typology measures the degree of F02 39 cohesion and integration which the power bloc is able to achieve. F02 40 This may vary from the situation where all sectors of the state F02 41 elite are filled by those from a similar background to that where F02 42 distinct clusters of positions are recruited from particular F02 43 sections of the power bloc. The second dimension measures the class F02 44 basis of the power bloc, and this may vary from the extreme of a F02 45 highly restricted bloc, in which one particular class is dominant, F02 46 to those situations involving more extended recruitment and where F02 47 there is a broader balance of classes.

F02 48 The social character and class base of the power elite varies F02 49 in each of the situations defined in the typology. Rule by an F02 50 exclusive power elite exists where the power bloc is F02 51 drawn from a restricted and highly uniform social background and so F02 52 is able to achieve a high level of solidarity. Rule by an F02 53 inclusive power elite, on the other hand, exists where a F02 54 solidaristic power bloc is not dominated by any particular class. F02 55 While both cases involve the identification of a power elite with a F02 56 high degree of solidarity and self-consciousness, they differ in F02 57 terms of the restrictions which exist on membership of the power F02 58 elite.

F02 59 Rule by segmented power elite exists where the power F02 60 bloc is divided into a number of separate and distinct fractions F02 61 and has a relatively low level of overall cohesion, despite the F02 62 fact that all fractions are drawn from the same restricted pool. In F02 63 such a situation, competition between elements within the power F02 64 elite will be strong. Rule by a fragmentary power elite, F02 65 on the other hand, occurs where the power bloc has very little F02 66 solidarity and cohesion, and where the basis of recruitment is F02 67 somewhat wider. The relatively broad base of recruitment means that F02 68 the various sections within the power elite constitute a F02 69 pluralistic diversity of competing groups. In this situation, the F02 70 concept of power elite becomes an almost abstract category to F02 71 describe the competing, countervailing groups that participate in F02 72 the exercise of power.

F02 73 To describe a society as having a power elite, therefore, leads F02 74 to the further stage of describing the particular form which is F02 75 taken by this power elite. While each of these forms may be F02 76 compatible with the existence of a ruling class, the nature of F02 77 class rule and the extent to which the state may be expected to F02 78 operate in the interests of the capitalist class will differ from F02 79 case to case.

F02 80 The classical Marxian view of the ruling class assumed the F02 81 existence of a highly exclusive power elite: the state machinery F02 82 was supposed to be dominated by a single class with a high level of F02 83 class consciousness and solidarity. Pluralistic critics of this F02 84 view, however, have rejected both aspects of this view. They have F02 85 argued that the basis of recruitment to the political elite is far F02 86 wider than the Marxists assume, and that its cohesion is also far F02 87 less. Miliband, I have shown, adopts an unorthodox Marxist position F02 88 mid-way between these two extremes. While recognizing that F02 89 positions within the state elite are not monopolized exclusively by F02 90 the capitalist class and that there are certain important lines of F02 91 division and conflict contained within the political elite, F02 92 Miliband argues that these differences are contained within an F02 93 overall similarity of outlook and background.

F02 94 Underlying the dimension of the restricted or extended class F02 95 basis of recruitment are the strategies of closure and F02 96 incorporation through which the power bloc defines itself. F02 97 Closure is a process though which a social group is able to secure F02 98 the backing of the state and of the overall framework of law to F02 99 establish certain privileges from which others are excluded and F02 100 through which they are able to ensure that the enjoyment of these F02 101 privileges is closed to outsiders.

F02 102 Parkin has argued that the formal criteria of access and entry F02 103 to positions of privilege which are adopted in various societies - F02 104 criteria such as the 'rights' and 'obligations' attached to F02 105 lineage, property, or education - involve powerful processes of F02 106 collective exclusion. Whole groups are excluded from such positions F02 107 because their members are held to possess or to lack particular F02 108 attributes. Positions within the state elite, for example, may be F02 109 restricted to those who were born into recognized aristocratic F02 110 families. Collective exclusion can also occur when positions are F02 111 formally 'open' to all through competitive entry, examinations, and F02 112 educational credentials. This is the case, for example, where the F02 113 members of a particular class monopolize the 'cultural capital' F02 114 which enables them to be more successful than others in the F02 115 educational race. Through their families of birth, they acquire the F02 116 cultural qualities, attributes and skills - for example, those of F02 117 language, literacy, and aesthetic enjoyment - which are embodied in F02 118 and reinforced by the educational system. Classes which lack these F02 119 inherited cultural assets are disadvantaged in the educational F02 120 system, and so a formal system of competitive entry to elite F02 121 positions will actually result in the exclusion of these classes in F02 122 favour of the other. As I have shown in the previous chapter, the F02 123 public school system has, for a long time, operated in just such a F02 124 way to privilege the classes of the power bloc.

F02 125 A successful monopoly of power may also depend upon the F02 126 continuing efforts of the members of the power bloc to maintain a F02 127 degree of closure while adopting a strategy of incorporation. In F02 128 these circumstances, the power bloc or its dominant group seeks to F02 129 maintain its dominance by enlarging the power bloc through the F02 130 co-optation of the leading elements of a rival group. In F02 131 this way, it is hoped that the opposition of the incorporated group F02 132 will be defused. Incorporation of wider social groups need not F02 133 undermine the monopoly of the dominant class if those who are F02 134 incorporated can be relied upon to acquiesce in or to actively F02 135 support the dominance of those who have co-opted them. Indeed, a F02 136 strategy of incorporation will generally be followed because the F02 137 dangers from continuing to exclude a group are greater than those F02 138 which would arise from their incorporation in the existing power F02 139 bloc.

F02 140 It is in this context that a distinction between a power bloc F02 141 and an electoral bloc must be made. While the power bloc consists F02 142 of an alignment of social groups which actively participate in the F02 143 exercise of state power, an electoral bloc comprises the wider F02 144 alignment of social groups which supports and sustains the power F02 145 bloc in electoral competition. An electoral bloc gives continued F02 146 long-term support to the political party or parties of the F02 147 power bloc in parliamentary and local elections, though its members F02 148 are themselves outside the power bloc. Thus, challenging groups can F02 149 be incorporated into either the power bloc or the electoral bloc. F02 150 Leading elements within the power bloc may, for example, seek to F02 151 incorporate potentially threatening social groups into an electoral F02 152 bloc, while continuing to exclude them from real participation in F02 153 state power. Of particular importance in building an electoral bloc F02 154 are the values and ideas which can be encouraged among those within F02 155 the electoral bloc. Deferential attitudes among the working class, F02 156 for example, allow a stable electoral bloc to be built by members F02 157 of the dominant classes without there being any danger that those F02 158 who are incorporated will seek to gain entry to the power bloc.

F02 159 Practices of closure and incorporation maximize the cohesion of F02 160 the power bloc itself by emphasizing its separation from F02 161 subordinate groups outside the bloc. But this is not to say that F02 162 relations within the power bloc are egalitarian. I have emphasized F02 163 that a power bloc is an alignment of groups with differing life F02 164 chances and conflicting interests. These groups stand in relations F02 165 of dominance and subordination to one another and, except in those F02 166 rather unusual situations where it is recruited exclusively from a F02 167 single social group, a power bloc will be organized around the F02 168 balance of power and interests among its constituent forces.

F02 169 If a power bloc is to persist for any time, it must attain what F02 170 has sometimes been described as the three C's of consciousness, F02 171 coherence, and 'conspiracy'. <}_><-|>that<+|>That<}/> is to say, F02 172 the power bloc must evolve some awareness of common interests and F02 173 concerns, it must achieve some degree of solidarity and cohesion, F02 174 and its leading members must be capable of pursuing some kind of F02 175 coordinated policy of action to further these interests. Those who F02 176 are the occupants of similarly structured positions will, indeed, F02 177 share certain interests, but the achievement of a degree of F02 178 coordination in their actions in pursuit of these interests depends F02 179 upon their becoming conscious of these interests. It is only on F02 180 this basis that the members of the power bloc can achieve any F02 181 consensus over policy goals and, thereby, seek to influence F02 182 successfully the direction of policy-making in their interests.

F02 183 Insights into the processes involved in this area can be gained F02 184 from the work of C. Wright Mills on the power elite in the F02 185 contemporary United States. This power elite, he argued, was F02 186 recruited from the 'higher circles' of American society - it came F02 187 from the privileged upper circles of those who "know one F02 188 another, see one another socially and at business, and so, in F02 189 making decisions, take one another into account". They are, F02 190 Mills argued, "involved in a set of overlapping 'crowds' F02 191 and intricately connected 'cliques'". Their shared F02 192 background and community of interaction among the upper circles is F02 193 the basis of their shared understandings and their recognition of F02 194 common interests, and it is the basis on which they are able to F02 195 formulate a self-conscious awareness of what they have in common F02 196 with one another:

F02 197 In so far as the power elite is composed of men F02 198 [sic] of similar origin and education, in so far as their F02 199 careers and their styles of life are similar, there are F02 200 psychological and social bases for their unity, resting upon the F02 201 fact that they are of similar social type and leading to the fact F02 202 of their easy intermingling.

F02 203 F02 204 F03 1 <#FLOB:F03\>Writing Your Speech

F03 2 Now you are ready to put pen to paper, or finger to F03 3 wordprocessor. Most people, including some of the most experienced F03 4 raconteurs, write their speeches down, even if they then transfer F03 5 the words to cue cards or speak extempore.

F03 6 Writing your speech out in full is a useful exercise, even for F03 7 experienced speakers, for two reasons. Firstly, it helps to F03 8 organise all your thoughts. Secondly, if you are still stuck for F03 9 ideas, the actual process of writing will help your creative buds F03 10 to produce inspiration.

F03 11 Drafting a speech step by step

F03 12 The recommended steps are:

F03 13 <*_>bullet<*/>first, write a rough draft;

F03 14 <*_>bullet<*/>second, refine your draft, adding illustrations F03 15 and changing words;

F03 16 <*_>bullet<*/>third, rewrite it into spoken English, F03 17 shortening sentences and changing words;

F03 18 <*_>bullet<*/>fourth, rehearse the speech aloud, timing it; F03 19 and

F03 20 <*_>bullet<*/>fifth, make alterations in order to fit the time F03 21 slot.

F03 22 We are going to look now at how to use language to communicate F03 23 effectively in speech, how to make an impact at the beginning and F03 24 bring the presentation to a suitable close. Finally, once you have F03 25 written your speech you will then learn how to transfer this to cue F03 26 cards or other prompt devices.

F03 27 Learn how to "write like a good talker" and F03 28 "think like a listener". (David Bernstein, Put F03 29 it together, put it across.)

F03 30 THE USE OF LANGUAGE IN SPEECH

F03 31 Language is simply a code which conveys meaning. Like morse F03 32 code or semaphore it works because the sender and receiver of the F03 33 communication understand similar meanings for the same words - or F03 34 at least they should do.

F03 35 Your choice of language is crucial if you are to make contact F03 36 with your audience. If you use too much jargon to a 'lay' audience F03 37 you will lose them. If you use formal language with a group of F03 38 teenagers you will send them off to sleep. If you speak English in F03 39 a pompous, written style then people will switch off. Language is F03 40 the main tool by which you communicate your ideas and facts to the F03 41 audience. However, the response of the audience will depend very F03 42 much upon how you use that language. Simply telling people F03 43 facts will fail because it won't affect their emotions or meet F03 44 their needs. Facts need to be dressed up for the audience to F03 45 remain interested and to remember what you have said.

F03 46 The main errors of language that speechwriters make are:

F03 47 1. Writing an essay and then reading it without translating it F03 48 into spoken English.

F03 49 2. Being too long-winded and using long sentences.

F03 50 3. Not understanding how to use repetition and rhythm.

F03 51 4. Failing to give the audience frequent signposts to tell them F03 52 where the speaker is heading.

F03 53 5. Failing to use rhetorical questions and the word YOU.

F03 54 6: Failing to harness the emotive power of words.

F03 55 7. Overuse of clich<*_>e-acute<*/>s and redundant language.

F03 56 8. Using jargon and abbreviations that people don't F03 57 understand.

F03 58 9. Failing to use anecdotes, quotations and illustrations to F03 59 add colour.

F03 60 10. Overusing dry facts and statistics without making analogies F03 61 and using colourful illustrations.

F03 62 11. Failing to consider the limits of memory of the F03 63 audience.

F03 64 So what should you bear in mind when writing a speech?

F03 65 ELEVEN GOLDEN RULES

F03 66 1: Use spoken rather than written English

F03 67 What is oral style and why should you use it?

F03 68 The commonest error of the inexperienced speechmaker is to F03 69 write down their speech and then read it with their head buried in F03 70 the paper. The audience immediately feels that the speaker is not F03 71 talking to them but at them. Experienced speakers, F03 72 politicians included, often do read speeches, but they still F03 73 manage to make them sound as it they are just speaking from notes. F03 74 Newscasters have to be able to read from an autocue whilst making F03 75 it appear that they are talking directly to the viewers. (At the F03 76 end of this chapter are examples of radio and television scripts F03 77 for you to read as an exercise.) Don't write your notes in long F03 78 sentences; they be too difficult to get your tongue around.

F03 79 Look at the way advertisements are written. They break most of F03 80 the rules of grammar, starting sentences with 'And' for instance F03 81 and they use a very chatty style. Take a look at this extract from F03 82 an advertisement of Ovaltine:

F03 83 Yes, Ovaltine can be drunk for breakfast.

F03 84 And why not? It's made, is it not, from barley, malt extract F03 85 and eggs. What better for setting you up for the day? ... In fact, F03 86 a mug of Ovaltine provides most of the nutrients required by the F03 87 body.

F03 88 And Ovaltine contains no added sugar, no artificial flavour, F03 89 colour or preservatives.

F03 90 Formidable! Eh? Mind you, if Ovaltine is such a good source of F03 91 energy how come we Brits drink it before bed?

F03 92 This is English written to be read out loud - and it F03 93 is an example of the kind of style you should use when writing your F03 94 speech.

F03 95 To show you how stilted written English can sound when spoken F03 96 aloud, try reading aloud this passage from The Student F03 97 Book (Macmillan) on studying Chemistry:

F03 98 "Chemistry is an area of study which touches human life F03 99 at innumerable points. It is the science which forms a bridge F03 100 between physics and biology as well as between earth sciences and F03 101 life and medical sciences. It is therefore a central F03 102 science which holds the key to an appreciation and F03 103 understanding of life-cycles on the one hand through to man-made F03 104 processes on the other.

F03 105 The development of chemistry as a science has taken F03 106 <}_><-|>pace<+|>place<}/> at an increasingly rapid rate over the F03 107 last two centuries, and has depended upon quantitative F03 108 reasoning. Chemists of the nineteenth century could not have F03 109 anticipated the contribution which their research would make to the F03 110 applications of chemistry today - applications which range from F03 111 micro-circuits and developments in solid state devices to the use F03 112 of hormones as a new generation of pesticides, and which even give F03 113 a glimmering of understanding of the chemical basis of life itself. F03 114 In many cases this rapid progress in the application of chemistry F03 115 has itself created new crises for man (eg: some forms of pollution; F03 116 the effect of some pesticides on the environment, or the side F03 117 effects of some pharmaceuticals), but chemists have immediately led F03 118 the search for an answer to the resulting problems so that the F03 119 advances could be controlled or harnessed to the benefit of man.

F03 120 Superficially it is fairly easy to visualise the earth in terms F03 121 of basic chemical concepts - it is an apparent equilibrium between F03 122 solid, liquid and vapour phases surrounded by space and supplied F03 123 with energy from the sun. However, the apparent position of the F03 124 equilibrium is continually moving and small changes have profound F03 125 effects on the processes of life ..."

F03 126 So why doesn't it work as a piece of English to be spoken F03 127 aloud?

F03 128 <*_>bullet<*/>The sentences are too long. Take the one which F03 129 starts: "Superficially it is fairly easy to visualise F03 130 ..."

F03 131 <*_>bullet<*/>Some of the language is too complicated. It can't F03 132 all be taken in at once (solid state devices, micro-circuits, F03 133 etc).

F03 134 <*_>bullet<*/>There are no pointers or linking words like F03 135 'however'<}_><-|>.<+|>,<}/> 'firstly' and 'although'. It would need F03 136 phrases to coax the audience into the next points, like: 'Let's F03 137 look at some of the practical uses of chemistry ... Firstly F03 138 ...'.

F03 139 <*_>bullet<*/>There is no reference to the needs of the F03 140 audience, or the word YOU.

F03 141 When you read such a passage, you can take it at your own F03 142 pace, go back and read bits again. When it is spoken, you lose F03 143 most of it once it's been said.

F03 144 Try reading a piece from a newspaper and see how it sounds. Try F03 145 re-writing the piece for a radio news bulletin (example on page F03 146 98).

F03 147 Here are the main points to bear in mind when writing English F03 148 to be spoken aloud.

F03 149 <*_>bullet<*/>Use 'You've' instead of 'You have' and other such F03 150 abbreviations. See how clumsy this sounds: 'I have come here today F03 151 to tell you why you are making the wrong decision and why you F03 152 cannot pursue this course of action.' Use 'I've', 'you're' and F03 153 'can't'.

F03 154 <*_>bullet<*/>Use positive sentences. Don't say: 'I am not here F03 155 today to persuade you to choose accountancy as a career, nor will I F03 156 try and tell you that it isn't boring, sometimes.'

F03 157 <*_>bullet<*/>Use active not passive sentences. Don't say: 'The F03 158 rules of the common room have been changed by the school F03 159 governors.' Say 'The school governors changed the common room F03 160 rules.'

F03 161 <*_>bullet<*/>Use direct speech. Avoid the use of the pronoun F03 162 'One'. Hear how stilted it sounds: 'When one goes to the races one F03 163 often makes a bet, doesn't one?' Use the word you - it makes F03 164 direct contact with your audience. Incidentally, try and avoid too F03 165 much reference to yourself and limit the use of the word 'I'.

F03 166 <*_>bullet<*/>Don't write numbers (ie figures) into your F03 167 speech. Write them out in full. For example, 1,797,021 is much F03 168 easier to say if you write one million, seven hundred and F03 169 ninety-seven thousand and twenty-one. (There will be more on using F03 170 facts and statistics in point 10.

F03 171 <*_>bullet<*/>Keep sentences short. They have more impact. They F03 172 are more forceful. People cannot (can't) remember long F03 173 sentences.

F03 174 <*_>bullet<*/>If in doubt, write as if for a reader of The F03 175 Sun not The Times.

F03 176 This brings us onto point number two - the question of sentence F03 177 construction.

F03 178 2. Use short sentences and vary the structure

F03 179 A sentence consists of a number of words strung together with a F03 180 subject and a verb. Generally, sentences do one of the following: F03 181 make a statement, make a wish, ask a question, instruct or command, F03 182 or make some kind of exclamation. How you arrange the words is F03 183 called syntax - and the order can completely change the F03 184 meaning.

F03 185 What should we consider when writing sentences for speech?

F03 186 <*_>bullet<*/>Sentences should normally be short.

F03 187 Forget about sub-clauses and long sentences. Where you would F03 188 normally write one long sentence, speak it in three short ones. For F03 189 example, here is a perfectly constructed sentence with a F03 190 subordinate clause:

F03 191 'The cat, which had just licked its saucer of milk clean of F03 192 every final scrap, curled up into a fluffy ball of ginger fur, F03 193 licked its lips and fell asleep on the mat.'

F03 194 Translated into spoken English, this would read: 'The cat F03 195 licked its saucer clean of milk. It curled up into a ginger fluffy F03 196 ball. And finally, it licked its lips and fell asleep on the F03 197 mat.'

F03 198 Go back to the extract on Chemistry. This will be easier to F03 199 read if rewritten as:

F03 200 'Superficially it is fairly easy to imagine the earth in terms F03 201 of basic chemical concepts. The earth is an apparent equilibrium F03 202 between three phases. These are - solid, liquid and vapour. The F03 203 three phases are surrounded by space and supplied with energy from F03 204 the sun.'

F03 205 <*_>bullet<*/>Sentences should vary in length

F03 206 Try and keep your sentences to between 5 and 15 words as a F03 207 general rule. Longer sentences can work but only if they run F03 208 before or after short sentences.

F03 209 Consider this example from a speech by Victor Hugo on the F03 210 centenary of the death of Voltaire:

F03 211 "A hundred years ago today a man died. He died F03 212 immortal. He departed laden with years, laden with the most F03 213 illustrious and fearful of responsibilities, the responsibility of F03 214 the human conscience informed and rectified ..."

F03 215 <*_>bullet<*/>Put the key words at the end of a F03 216 sentence

F03 217 This will make the audience anticipate your key word or point. F03 218 Take these two sentences:

F03 219 'The National Westminster Bank in the City of London is the F03 220 tallest building in Britain.'

F03 221 This would have more impact if rephrased as: 'The tallest F03 222 building in Britain is ... the National Westminster Bank in the F03 223 City of London.'

F03 224 <*_>bullet<*/>Make use of parallelism, antithesis, inversions F03 225 and balanced construction, where appropriate

F03 226 Constructing a sentence with two distinct halves can make an F03 227 impact. Here are some examples:

F03 228 "It is nothing to die; it is frightful not to F03 229 live." Victor Hugo).

F03 230 "Life is rather like a tin of sardines - we're all of F03 231 us looking for the key." (Alan Bennett in Beyond the F03 232 Fringe).

F03 233 "Life is a tragedy when seen close-up, but a comedy in F03 234 long shot." (Charlie Chaplin).

F03 235 "Ask not what your country can do for you. F03 236 F03 237 F04 1 <#FLOB:F04\>NEW ANGLICAN CHURCHES IN NINETEENTH CENTURY F04 2 BRISTOL

F04 3 Much has been written on the history and architectural merits F04 4 of the many churches built in Bristol in the nineteenth century, F04 5 but the question of how these forty-seven churches came to be F04 6 built, their origin and funding, has generally been ignored. It has F04 7 to be admitted, however, that the evidence for it has not been easy F04 8 to handle. Because of the interest and neglect of the subject we F04 9 wish to tackle it in this pamphlet.

F04 10 By the early nineteenth century the population of Bristol had F04 11 spread far beyond the ancient city, and its medieval parishes of St F04 12 Augustine, St James, St Michael and St Philip & Jacob had greatly F04 13 increased. As a result of the development of Hotwells, Clifton was F04 14 becoming a large and fashionable suburb; in contrast there was F04 15 rather a denser growth in the Bedminster area and east Bristol, F04 16 where a number of streets had sprung up to house the working F04 17 classes.

F04 18 In 1801 the first census ever attempted in England gave the F04 19 population of Bristol as 40,800, and twenty years later it had F04 20 increased to 59,070. This figure did not include the residents of F04 21 the parishes of Clifton (8,811), St Philip & Jacob Without (11,824) F04 22 and Bedminster (7,979), which were outside the jurisdiction of the F04 23 City and County of Bristol, in whose shadow they had developed. F04 24 However, in 1835, the boundaries of the city were extended to F04 25 include these parishes as well as St James and parts of F04 26 Westbury-on-Trym. The boundaries remained unchanged until almost F04 27 the end of the nineteenth century, while the population of Bristol F04 28 increased rapidly. The census figures of 1861 with a population of F04 29 154,093 show that Bristol was the sixth largest provincial city in F04 30 the country. The needs of this expanding population could only be F04 31 met by suburban development and so the city sprawled outwards, F04 32 particularly in the east part of Bristol. By the end of the F04 33 nineteenth century the population had increased to 328,800, that F04 34 is, eight times greater than it was at the beginning of the F04 35 century. Therefore, it is not surprising that during this period, F04 36 from the 1820's to the close of the century, forty-seven new F04 37 Anglican churches were built, to say nothing of the many F04 38 non-conformist churches built in the same period.

F04 39 The eighteenth century had been a period of apathy during which F04 40 there was little building or rebuilding of churches, and this was F04 41 so in Bristol, although at the time the city was rich and F04 42 prosperous. Christ Church (City), St Michael, St Nicholas and St F04 43 Thomas, having become ruinous, were rebuilt during the last two F04 44 decades of the eighteenth century. All were paid for either by a F04 45 church rate, the vestries or by patrons. Many of the city churches F04 46 had closed vestries which were responsible for properties belonging F04 47 to the parish, as in the case of St Thomas. When the church was F04 48 rebuilt in 1790, the cost of rebuilding was met by the Church F04 49 Vestry appropriating pounds1,470 from parish funds, borrowing F04 50 pounds700 on security of property and raising pounds 3,500 by a F04 51 special rate. Christ Church (City) was rebuilt in 1786 at a cost of F04 52 pounds4,200 of which about one half was raised by church rates. The F04 53 Bristol Corporation gave pounds2,000 towards the Endowment.

F04 54 Building new churches and providing them with parishes of their F04 55 own was much more difficult because it interfered with the legal F04 56 and financial rights of the incumbent clergy and the patrons of the F04 57 parishes. A substantial part of the incumbent's income came from F04 58 fees for weddings and funerals. A reduction in the number of their F04 59 parishioners meant that there were fewer fees. An Act of Parliament F04 60 was required to divide a parish, and that involved considerable F04 61 expense. When it was recognised that the parishes of St Philip & F04 62 Jacob and of St James had become so populous that they needed more F04 63 churches, the patrons, who were the Corporation of Bristol, took F04 64 the initiative. In the case of St Philip & Jacob, having obtained F04 65 the Act they appointed a number of Commissioners who met at the F04 66 Lamb Inn, Lawford's Gate to consider and approve the plans. Each F04 67 Commissioner agreed to pay pounds50 and later every subscriber was F04 68 expected to contribute pounds50 or upwards. In addition to paying F04 69 pounds300, the cost of obtaining an Act of Parliament, the F04 70 Corporation contributed pounds250 towards the building of St F04 71 George. The City Chamberlain kept the accounts, which show that the F04 72 church and vicarage cost pounds2,854. When in 1784 St Paul, F04 73 Portland Square was built in the parish of St James, the Bristol F04 74 Corporation undertook to pay for the Act of Parliament, to grant F04 75 pounds1,000 towards the building fund and to provide pounds400 F04 76 towards the endowment of the stipend. To raise the rest of the F04 77 money required, the parish was burdened with a rate of 1s.8d in the F04 78 pound for the next twenty years.

F04 79 The Corporation of Bristol supported the Anglican Church and F04 80 gave generously to any appeal from the city churches. It held the F04 81 patronage of twelve advowsons, which gave it the right to nominate F04 82 the incumbents to twelve livings. The right then carried with it F04 83 financial responsibilities. When in 1835 the Municipal Corporations F04 84 Act was passed the Corporation was compelled to sell the advowsons F04 85 and was statutorily forbidden to spend corporate funds on the F04 86 church.

F04 87 Until the nineteenth century the building of new churches and F04 88 the rebuilding of old ones was financed largely or in part by a F04 89 compulsory church rate, a sort of local tax, but church rates were F04 90 becoming increasingly unpopular, especially amongst the F04 91 non-conformists, and their enforcement more difficult. F04 92 There was a protracted struggle to get Parliament to abolish church F04 93 rates, which went on until 1868, but long before then fewer and F04 94 fewer churchwardens felt it was worth the trouble and effort to F04 95 attempt to levy one. The last time a Dissenter was taken to court F04 96 in Bristol for refusing to pay was in 1837. There was a public F04 97 meeting in Bristol in 1861 to support a Parliamentary Bill for the F04 98 abolition of church rates at which it was revealed that only three F04 99 parishes in Bristol continued to raise them St Augustine, St F04 100 George, Brandon Hill and St Andrew, Clifton. The only new church in F04 101 Bristol which was built in part by a church rate seems to be Christ F04 102 Church, Clifton. In 1844 St Andrew's the mother church levied a F04 103 church rate.

F04 104 In the eighteenth century many churches were maintained to some F04 105 degree by renting out some of the pews, and when proprietory F04 106 chapels were built by speculators to supplement the number of F04 107 parish churches, or to cater for the religious tastes of F04 108 dissatisfied parishioners, pew rents were charged to repay the F04 109 capital and provide an income for the owners. Surprising as it may F04 110 seem, collections were not normally taken in churches except for F04 111 special causes. Weekly collections were introduced in the course of F04 112 the nineteenth century. Renting out pews was an obvious way to F04 113 maintain new churches and to provide an income when there was F04 114 little or no endowment, and most of the churches in Bristol F04 115 resorted to this practice, although it was increasingly questioned F04 116 and was believed to deter the poor from church attendance. The F04 117 offer of a pew in return for a contribution of a certain size was F04 118 also an obvious inducement to attract subscribers to a new building F04 119 project. It was a method used with some success in Cheltenham for F04 120 example. It had its danger, however, as the case of St Andrew, F04 121 Clifton illustrates. The ancient parish church of Clifton had been F04 122 rebuilt at the time of the Commonwealth but at the end of the F04 123 Napoleonic wars it was decided that it needed to be replaced again. F04 124 Much difficulty was experienced in raising the necessary funds, so F04 125 an Act of Parliament was obtained which provided for the granting F04 126 of pews in perpetuity to those who contributed a certain sum and F04 127 the raising of a parish rate of one shilling in the pound, by which F04 128 pounds2,000 was raised. The majority of pews in the best positions F04 129 were allocated in this way. The trouble was that their owners F04 130 treated them as a freehold property and when they left the parish F04 131 they put them up for auction. A good family pew fetched anything F04 132 form pounds100 to pounds150, whilst others were let at large rents. F04 133 in 1863 more money was needed for the upkeep of the church and a F04 134 rate was discussed, but about eighty of the pew owners refused to F04 135 pay, including one who owned thirteen pews. Later in the century F04 136 when it was proposed to re-seat the church, many pew owners opposed F04 137 the plan. The only solution was to buy them out and about F04 138 pounds3,000 had to be raised to do so. In 1940, when the church was F04 139 destroyed by enemy action, there was still one proprietory pew F04 140 left.

F04 141 To provide churches adequate for the wants of the inhabitants F04 142 was felt to be beyond the ability of private or parochial F04 143 contributors - Parliament alone could do it. Through the enthusiasm F04 144 and energy of John Bowdler and a few of his friends, in 1814 F04 145 petitions were presented to the Bishop of London and the Prime F04 146 Minister, Lord Liverpool, calling on Parliament to provide the F04 147 necessary funds. At the time Parliament, although sympathetic, felt F04 148 compelled to postpone the matter, and so in 1818 there was F04 149 established a voluntary body, the Church Building Society, which in F04 150 1828 became the Incorporated Church Building Society. At the same F04 151 time the Prime Minister, prompted by Joshua Watson, secured the F04 152 passing of the Church Building Act of 1818 by which Parliament F04 153 granted pounds1,000,000 and a further pounds500,000 in 1824. A F04 154 Board of Ecclesiastical Commissioners was appointed, of which F04 155 Joshua Watson was one. The Commissioners administered the Fund and F04 156 laid down certain rules: Commissioners' churches were not to cost F04 157 more than pounds20,000 each; contributions were to be sought from F04 158 the parishes; an agreed number of seats were to be free and F04 159 ministers were to be paid by pew rents.

F04 160 The first church in Bristol to receive a grant was St George, F04 161 Brandon Hill. The site cost pounds2,400, which was paid for by a F04 162 church rate, and the Parliamentary Commissioners eventually agreed F04 163 to pay the entire cost of the building, which was pounds10,042.

F04 164 By 1855 the Commissioners had contributed over pounds25,000 F04 165 towards the building of eight churches in Bristol, all of which F04 166 were on the east side of the city with the exception of St George, F04 167 Brandon Hill. In 1857 the Commissioners' powers were transferred to F04 168 the Ecclesiastical Commissioners.

F04 169 As has already been noted the Incorporated Church Building F04 170 Society was established in 1818 "for promoting public F04 171 worship and by obtaining additional churches for the middle and F04 172 lower classes". While the Board of Ecclesiastical F04 173 Commissioners was building churches, the Society avoided F04 174 overlapping by devoting its energies mainly to enlarging existing F04 175 churches, but when the Exchequer grant began to run dry the Society F04 176 increased its grants and gave advice to those who built new F04 177 churches. In Bristol the Society made grants to twenty-four new F04 178 churches, amounting to pounds6,440. While the Society made F04 179 contributions to almost all the new churches in Bristol, it F04 180 indirectly stimulated a strong feeling in the minds of individual F04 181 churchmen to build independently of financial assistance from the F04 182 Society. Local initiative was taken in many dioceses by the F04 183 establishment of Diocesan Associations, which worked in F04 184 co-operation with the Incorporated Church Building Society. Such an F04 185 Association was founded in Bristol through the enthusiastic work of F04 186 Bishop Gray.

F04 187 The Bristol Diocesan Association was formed in 1827 when a F04 188 meeting was held in Bristol Cathedral to aid the Incorporated F04 189 Church Building Society. In the Spring<&|>sic! of 1827 a public F04 190 appeal was made to the people of Bedminster to build a new church F04 191 (St Paul). The Parliamentary Commissioners had promised F04 192 two-thirds towards the cost, which was estimated as F04 193 pounds9,796, and the sum of pounds1,104 was received from private F04 194 subscriptions.

F04 195 Encouraged by this generous response, the Bishop of Bristol F04 196 convened a further meeting. It was decided that the Diocesan F04 197 Association for Promoting <}_><-|>Christain<+|>Christian<}/> F04 198 Knowledge should collect the annual subscriptions, which should not F04 199 be less than ten shillings and sixpence, and that until local wants F04 200 had been supplied only one quarter of the annual sum collected F04 201 should be transferred to the parent body. F04 202 F05 1 <#FLOB:F05\>Children in Sport

F05 2 Misia Gervis

F05 3 As parents become more conscious of health-related fitness, F05 4 there is more reason to get their children off the sofa and into F05 5 the gym. This has resulted in a change in the image of sport and F05 6 also in the expectations of parents. The question that needs to be F05 7 addressed is how can we ensure that children experience a positive F05 8 and pleasurable involvement in sport which will continue past their F05 9 teens and into adult life?

F05 10 The aims of this chapter are threefold. First, to explore sport F05 11 from the child's perspective, to understand the potential sport has F05 12 for the constructive development of young people, and to highlight F05 13 the possible pitfalls that participation in sport can create. F05 14 Second, to evaluate sport from the parental perspective. Why should F05 15 parents encourage their children to be active in sport? What is the F05 16 role of the coach in encouraging parents to be supportive? And F05 17 third, we will be looking at the part a coach plays in the creation F05 18 of a good atmosphere during training, and the relationship that the F05 19 coach has with parents of young athletes. Clearly, the relationship F05 20 between the young athlete, parents and coach is crucial. F05 21 Consequently, we shall explore the integration of these roles.

F05 22 Sport from the Child's Point of View

F05 23 Ideally a child taking part in organized sport will be able to F05 24 develop skills and abilities which will be of use in adult life. F05 25 Such skills are often referred to as 'character builders' but the F05 26 way in which they are acquired is now being questioned. It is no F05 27 longer acceptable to expect children's sport to mirror in every F05 28 detail adult sport. Children are qualitatively different from F05 29 adults, and thus their expectations and needs from sport will F05 30 differ considerably. Also all children should have the right to F05 31 participate in sport at a level that is commensurate with their age F05 32 and ability. This is the first crucial element that should be F05 33 considered when viewing sport from the child's perspective.

F05 34 The majority of sport that people are exposed to is through the F05 35 media, where the athletes are generally professionals, and F05 36 consequently their behaviour will reflect this. Too often adults F05 37 involved in children's sports, whether they be coaches, parents or F05 38 officials, expect children's behaviour to mirror that of adult F05 39 sport. Clearly this is inappropriate as it does not allow the F05 40 children personal growth, but rather forces them to be adults too F05 41 soon.

F05 42 In professional sport there is the element of the entertainer - F05 43 athletes have a job to do that often extends beyond the football F05 44 pitch or track. It is all too easy for adults to expect children to F05 45 behave in a similar way, but young athletes must be allowed to play F05 46 as children for their pleasure, not for the entertainment of F05 47 adults.

F05 48 The majority of the young people who take part in sport will F05 49 not become champions, even if their parents and coaches want this F05 50 to happen. Most children have a wide variety of motives for taking F05 51 part in sport, most of which are not related to winning but sheer F05 52 enjoyment.

F05 53 The way in which children feel about themselves is referred to F05 54 as self-esteem. High self-esteem describes children who feel able F05 55 to cope with the pressures around them. Low self-esteem is often F05 56 associated with under-achievement and a poor self-image. This can F05 57 develop if the coach is unaware that everyone in their training F05 58 session needs to feel successful, and modifies sessions towards F05 59 this end. Remember that children enjoy being able to master skills, F05 60 and feel competent. They also enjoy doing new and exciting skills. F05 61 Sport provides ample opportunity to do both.

F05 62 Children also become involved in sport for social reasons. F05 63 Their friends might invite them to a sports club, and they may F05 64 enjoy participating in team games. Consequently sport provides the F05 65 forum for the development of leadership skills and relationships, F05 66 involving team mates and coaches.

F05 67 All are valuable skills to learn as they are necessary for F05 68 success in adult life. However, these qualities can only be F05 69 nurtured within the right sporting context. It is therefore F05 70 important that we understand how sport can be used constructively F05 71 to aid children. Obviously the key person in ensuring that there is F05 72 a positive, healthy atmosphere is the coach. The coach is often F05 73 instrumental in determining continued participation by young F05 74 athletes. Consequently, the coach needs to be aware of factors F05 75 which can make physical activity enjoyable.

F05 76 Helping Children Take Part

F05 77 As we have already pointed out, children must be treated F05 78 differently to adults. There are a number of ways in which coaches F05 79 can make it easier for children to participate. For example, F05 80 modification of rules and equipment might ensure that there is a F05 81 greater playing time, and reduced frustration. For example, by F05 82 lowering the height of a basketball hoop, small children will be F05 83 more likely to score a basket, or by reducing the playing area in a F05 84 game of football, children will not get so tired, and therefore F05 85 will be able to concentrate more on their skills. In both these F05 86 situations, they will gain more satisfaction. Most governing bodies F05 87 of sport have now become alerted to this fact and are developing F05 88 mini versions of their sport, which are well worth F05 89 investigating.

F05 90 Types of training and the length of a session can also be F05 91 modified to children's needs. So, for example, with the very young, F05 92 practice sessions need to be short but full of variety. As the F05 93 children become older and more experienced, they can be longer and F05 94 can focus on specific elements of performance. There are many F05 95 simple practical things that coaches can do with a little F05 96 creativity, which will increase the activity time for children. F05 97 After all, children like to be active, and if they are not doing F05 98 something, they can easily become bored and often drop out of sport F05 99 altogether. By re-evaluating the sessions, coaches can develop very F05 100 happy and skilled young athletes.

F05 101 Children and Competition

F05 102 There has been a lot of concern recently that there is too much F05 103 emphasis on competition in children's sports to the detriment of F05 104 the participants. Critics maintain that we should completely F05 105 eliminate competitive sports because of the stress placed on F05 106 participants. They would rather see co-operative sports where there F05 107 are no winners or losers.

F05 108 The underlying belief here is that competition leads to F05 109 hostility and frustration, whereas co-operation encourages and F05 110 develops trust and friendships. However, the situation is more F05 111 complex than this and it is the way competition is used within the F05 112 context of children's sport that is important.

F05 113 In its simplest form competition merely provides us with a F05 114 means of assessing and comparing our own abilities against others, F05 115 something which occurs constantly in everyday life. However, the F05 116 emphasis is on how we compete. The problems often emerge when there F05 117 is an overwhelming emphasis on the outcome or winning in sport. F05 118 This is a limited view of competition which alienates many people. F05 119 The real pleasure in competition is the striving for success.

F05 120 Without wanting to win people would probably not participate in F05 121 competition. Should we therefore embrace the ideal that winning is F05 122 not the only thing, but that striving to win is very important? F05 123 Another important factor is that the achievement of goals in F05 124 training and practice are often more fulfilling than the F05 125 competition itself. That is why you find young ice skaters on the F05 126 ice at 5am, and runners putting in hundreds of miles in F05 127 training.

F05 128 Clearly, success must be forthcoming through these gruelling F05 129 training times. But we must remember that success is not the same F05 130 as winning. This is the message that must come across clearly from F05 131 sports educators and parents. Evidently, this goes against what F05 132 children experience about winning from watching television and F05 133 often from ill-informed coaches and parents.

F05 134 Another idea that needs to be rejected is the belief that you F05 135 can only be a success at someone else's expense. The fact F05 136 <}_><-|>that that<+|>that<}/> there are very few winners but an F05 137 awful lot of losers, does not mean that most children cannot be F05 138 successes. Being a success means achieving more than you did last F05 139 time, or attaining personal goals rather than simply focusing on F05 140 the outcome. In simple, practical terms this can mean swimming a F05 141 lap one second faster than last month; sticking that vault in F05 142 competition in the same way as in training; or making sure that you F05 143 talk to your teammates on the pitch. If a young athlete has F05 144 achieved a personal goal, then they will feel successful, which is F05 145 the primary objective. A gold medal is not the one and only F05 146 objective.

F05 147 It is important that this distinction is recognized and fully F05 148 appreciated by the adults who work with children in competitive F05 149 sports. As we have already mentioned, children feel good about F05 150 themselves when they have a positive self-image, and sport can F05 151 provide this if the competitive element is handled well.

F05 152 Let us now examine some of the potential problems associated F05 153 with children, and how many of them can be minimized.

F05 154 Competitive Stress

F05 155 The following are the factors that make competition potentially F05 156 stressful for young athletes.

F05 157 Environment F05 158 These are factors that relate to the situation or environment F05 159 of the competition, for example:

F05 160 1. The number of people watching the competition; large crowds F05 161 are perceived as being more threatening than small crowds.

F05 162 2. Playing at home compared with playing away. This problem can F05 163 be magnified if the competition is taking place in a foreign F05 164 country.

F05 165 3. Playing in freezing cold conditions, or alternatively, F05 166 playing in very hot weather.

F05 167 These are all factors which might contribute to an athlete's F05 168 fears and worries about the forthcoming competition.

F05 169 People F05 170 These are factors that are related to the people who are F05 171 involved with the athlete either before, during, or after the F05 172 competition has taken place. Often the attitude of these people F05 173 towards the athlete and the competition can have a big influence on F05 174 stress. The people concerned are: the coach, teammates, friends, F05 175 other competitors, and PARENTS. So, for example, a coach stressing F05 176 the importance of victory at all costs might very well add to F05 177 feelings of stress.

F05 178 Athletes F05 179 These are the factors which relate to the athletes themselves. F05 180 Such factors are internal and include the level of self-esteem, the F05 181 level of importance they place on the competition, F05 182 pre-disposition to anxiety (in level of trait anxiety), and F05 183 their own expectations of success.

F05 184 All these different factors contribute to the perception of F05 185 competitive stress, and can be summarized in the following way:

F05 186 chart F05 187 It is clear that every athlete will view each and every F05 188 competition differently. Consequently what is potentially stressful F05 189 for one child will not be a problem for another. Nevertheless, F05 190 there are similarities felt by all participants. The question is F05 191 how can competitive stress be reduced?

F05 192 One of the key factors in reducing stress is to shift the F05 193 emphasis away from the outcome of the competition towards the F05 194 performance. Children need constant recognition of their own F05 195 abilities, and they should not be left to compare themselves to F05 196 other athletes. By giving the athlete feedback about the positive F05 197 element of their performance, and eliminating negative thoughts, F05 198 the athlete will feel more confident.

F05 199 Confident athletes feel in control of themselves, and therefore F05 200 less stressed. Fear and self-doubt are often the fuels for F05 201 competitive stress. Coaches can work on this approach to their F05 202 sport in training and in competition. Another important factor that F05 203 coaches can work on to reduce stress, involves ensuring that both F05 204 they and their athletes have realistic expectations. If young F05 205 athletes are not realistic about their own ability, it can lead to F05 206 disappointment.

F05 207 Children often get false ideas of their potential from adults. F05 208 Sometimes the parents have inflated expectations, and sometimes the F05 209 coaches. Either way it can be a potential source of stress for the F05 210 child if they can't live up to these expectations.

F05 211 And finally, the fun element must be constantly emphasized. F05 212 Children must enjoy competing in sport to ensure their continued F05 213 participation.

F05 214 F05 215 Exercise 26

F05 216 Consider the following examples and try to predict how the F05 217 parents' values might be reflected in the young athlete's attitude F05 218 towards their sport:

F05 219 F06 1 <#FLOB:F06\>'A Good Man Is Hard to Find'

F06 2 How true this is! However, before we go any further, we had F06 3 better say what we mean by 'a good man'. There are several aspects F06 4 to the word 'good'. First, it doesn't stand by itself. Whenever we F06 5 see the word 'good', a question arises in our minds: 'good' for F06 6 whom? Or 'good' for what? If something is good, it must be good F06 7 for some person or some purpose. It follows that, from your F06 8 point of view, a 'good' man is a man who is 'good for me'; not one F06 9 who your mother, or father or girlfriend thinks is good for you, F06 10 but one who you decide is good for you - someone you feel you F06 11 can trust; someone you feel comfortable with; someone who shares F06 12 your deepest values; someone who treats you the way you want to be F06 13 treated. Later on in this book we'll offer you some suggestions F06 14 about the qualities of mind and character you might like to F06 15 consider if you are looking for a long-term relationship with a F06 16 member of the opposite sex. Not that you have to have a F06 17 relationship with a man! Some women prefer their own company; F06 18 they're quite happy to live without a man in their lives. Or you F06 19 might love domestic animals and want nothing more than to spend F06 20 your life looking after them. Others again may prefer the company F06 21 of other women and may enjoy, and intend to maintain, an ongoing F06 22 intimate relationship with some similarly inclined partner of the F06 23 same sex. If that is your particular cup of tea, fine. It is not F06 24 part of our brief to try to change your preferences. It seems, F06 25 however, that the majority of women prefer to have a man in their F06 26 lives, and while we obviously write with their interests in mind, F06 27 this by no means excludes those of you who hold different ideas. F06 28 Almost anybody can experience emotional difficulties in their F06 29 personal relationships, regardless of their sexual orientation or F06 30 lifestyle. Whether or not you have a man in your life and whether F06 31 or not you want one, you may find that what we have to say in this F06 32 book can help you, perhaps in unexpected ways, to get on better F06 33 with those people or partners you do choose to live with on an F06 34 intimate basis.

F06 35 Now, let's return to this question of what is 'a good man'. If F06 36 you return to Chapter 1 and reread what we said about rating F06 37 yourself, you will see that our remarks about giving oneself a F06 38 global rating are relevant to what we are discussing here. While F06 39 you may legitimately rate your acts as good or bad, you cannot F06 40 logically rate your entire self as good or bad; indeed, you cannot F06 41 measure it in any way. In other words, when you act well, that F06 42 doesn't make you a good person, because a 'good person' is someone F06 43 who is wholly good and cannot be anything else but good. Similarly, F06 44 if you rate yourself as a bad person on the basis of having F06 45 committed misdeeds, or having acted badly or unethically, you are F06 46 making the same mistake: evaluating your entire self or being on F06 47 the basis of your actions. The point is, very simply, that you F06 48 are not the same thing as your traits or behaviour. Can F06 49 you see now that describing someone as a good person, or as a bad F06 50 person, really amounts to giving that person a global rating?

F06 51 Which brings us back to what we pointed out at the beginning of F06 52 this chapter: a good man means 'good for me'. So, what might you be F06 53 looking for if you are in the market for a man with whom you could F06 54 seriously contemplate having a close, long-term relationship? Let F06 55 us now take a look at some important considerations involved in F06 56 finding a suitable partner, and also at some of the pitfalls to be F06 57 avoided.

F06 58 Obstacles to finding a 'good' man

F06 59 There are two main categories of obstacle confronting you, at F06 60 least potentially. You are unlikely to meet them all although you F06 61 could be unlucky and find yourself faced with them at some time or F06 62 other.

F06 63 Category 1: Social or societal obstacles

F06 64 The first category consists of obstacles created by the F06 65 particular society you were born and reared in. These comprise:

F06 66 Geographical obstacles

F06 67 If you live in a small village remote from larger centres of F06 68 population, and your mobility is restricted, you may find that the F06 69 number of potential partners for you is too limited, thus placing F06 70 too tight a restriction on your choice.

F06 71 Social obstacles

F06 72 Every society has its rules and customs governing what you F06 73 should and shouldn't do. Not all of them are necessarily enforced F06 74 by law, but even those that are not legally binding still exercise F06 75 a considerable influence upon individuals to 'toe the line' as far F06 76 as conduct with the opposite sex is concerned. You may think that F06 77 some of these social mores are outdated, a legacy perhaps of the F06 78 male-dominated past when women had far less freedom and equality of F06 79 opportunity than they have today, but they can still prove irksome, F06 80 even in today's partially improved climate, to modern, F06 81 independent-minded women who know what they want and have scant F06 82 regard for the cobwebbed rules of behaviour their mothers and F06 83 grandmothers lived by and took for granted.

F06 84 Cultural obstacles

F06 85 You may find yourself faced with restrictions imposed by your F06 86 culture. One of these is 'you mustn't marry outside the faith'. F06 87 This restriction is not necessarily a foolish one. You might easily F06 88 be attracted to someone with a different religion or with no F06 89 religion at all, but a clash of values is then possible, especially F06 90 if you marry and decide to bring up children. Having said that, we F06 91 are aware that happy marriages have taken place between individuals F06 92 of different faiths or religious backgrounds. In general, however, F06 93 we would not recommend forming an intimate partnership with someone F06 94 with fundamentally different religious convictions to your F06 95 own, if you both take your religion seriously. Having a common F06 96 religion doesn't necessarily lead to a harmonious relationship, of F06 97 course, but two different religions with conflicting values have F06 98 plenty of potential for causing problems in any relationship.

F06 99 Category 2: Emotional problems

F06 100 Unlike the first category of obstacles, many of which were in F06 101 existence before you were born and are relatively resistant to F06 102 change, the obstacles in this category are mainly the self-created F06 103 emotional disturbances we met in Chapter 1. In the next section we F06 104 will take a closer look at one of them - anxiety.

F06 105 Anxiety F06 106 As we discussed in Chapter 1, anxiety is really F06 107 over-concern about some possible future happening or outcome. F06 108 How does anxiety prevent you from going after what you want or make F06 109 you less effective in achieving your goal than you would be without F06 110 the anxiety? It can manifest itself in one of two ways, which will F06 111 cause you either to try too hard or not to try at all.

F06 112 There is a world of difference between preferring a man in F06 113 your life and needing one. Some women are unsuccessful in F06 114 finding the kind of man they want because they try too hard. Here F06 115 is why desperately looking for a man won't help you find a suitable F06 116 one.

F06 117 As soon as you convince yourself that you absolutely must F06 118 have something - such as the love or esteem of some man you've met, F06 119 and that you couldn't possibly be happy without him, you will tend F06 120 to do all the wrong things to achieve your objective. Why? Because F06 121 you will feel so anxious, so over-concerned about the possibility F06 122 of not getting what you so desperately think you must F06 123 have, that you will tend to act in foolish and exaggerated ways F06 124 instead of calmly using whatever social skills and natural charm F06 125 you may have to attract the attention of the individual whose F06 126 attributes you admire so much. You will be so anxious about making F06 127 a good impression upon this individual that your spontaneity and F06 128 ease of manner with him will be inhibited by your fear of saying F06 129 the wrong thing or giving him the impression that you are not too F06 130 bright, or even appearing a little naive. You saw in Chapter 1 how F06 131 Susan's anxiety over losing her fianc<*_>e-acute<*/>e to another F06 132 woman led her into an emotional turmoil which not only caused her F06 133 pain and unhappiness, but nearly precipitated the break-up or her F06 134 engagement.

F06 135 But anxiety can also cause you not to take any action at all to F06 136 win the esteem or interest of some man who really appeals to you. F06 137 This may happen if you have already lost out with some man you very F06 138 much wanted to get close to because of some mistakes you made in F06 139 the early stages of your relationship. The thought that you might F06 140 fail again with this new man, and how awful that would be, freezes F06 141 you into immobility. "How awful it would be if I screwed up F06 142 this chance! I couldn't go through that period of misery F06 143 again." This is what you tell yourself, and rather than F06 144 risk yet another failure, you do nothing, and let the chance of F06 145 winning this man pass you by. Perhaps you eventually settle for F06 146 some ordinary fellow who doesn't exactly inspire you but whom you F06 147 know you can easily attract, telling yourself that half a loaf is F06 148 better than no bread. That may be true in some areas of life, but F06 149 sadly, it doesn't apply in the game of love. "Alright, it F06 150 would be very nice if I could meet some attractive guy and feel at F06 151 ease while we got to know each other, but how do I avoid feeling a F06 152 bit anxious when I meet some really outstanding man?" you F06 153 might ask. Well, for a start, you need to become aware of how F06 154 anxiety is created.

F06 155 How we talk ourselves into feeling anxious

F06 156 If you really decide to go for what you really want in an F06 157 intimate long-term relationship with a man, how can you F06 158 overcome your anxiety, or, better still, not feel anxious at all? F06 159 The answer is to tackle your underlying insecurity. You will find F06 160 it helpful to use the A-B-C model of emotional disturbance which we F06 161 described in Chapter 1. This provides you with a framework with F06 162 which you can visualize how your anxiety (or any other disturbing F06 163 emotion) is created and what you can do to eliminate it. Before we F06 164 go into detail, let's set the scene by looking at a typical problem F06 165 experienced by some women.

F06 166 Linda, an attractive 30-year-old advertising executive, met F06 167 Geoff at a party. Of all the men present at that party, Geoff was F06 168 the one who attracted her the most. He was good-looking, charming, F06 169 amusing and considerate. She and Geoff got on together just great. F06 170 Linda was over the moon when, as the party drew to a close, Geoff F06 171 asked her for a date one evening the following week. For several F06 172 days before the date of their meeting, Linda was looking forward to F06 173 the event with eager anticipation. Perhaps he would turn out to be F06 174 the man she had been looking for over the past few years but had F06 175 yet to find! True, Linda had had a few boyfriends and had high F06 176 hopes of at least two of them resulting in the kind of close, F06 177 loving, long-term relationship she really wanted, but somehow it F06 178 didn't happen. After a short spell of dating, Linda's hopes would F06 179 be dashed as the men lost interest and drifted away. And to make F06 180 matters worse, Linda's mother was dropping remarks more often to F06 181 the effect that it was time her daughter was thinking of settling F06 182 down like so many other of Linda's friends had done by the time F06 183 they had reached Linda's age. "It was all too F06 184 much!" thought Linda. "Here I am trying my hardest F06 185 to find the right guy, while my mother carries on abut how I'm F06 186 wasting the best years of my life just playing around! Well, this F06 187 time I'll show her!"

F06 188 As the big day drew near, Linda's feelings of eager F06 189 anticipation changed to feelings of increasing anxiety. F06 190 F06 191 F07 1 <#FLOB:F07\>1

F07 2 Difficulties in Relationships

F07 3 Any relationship will at some stage go through a rough patch. F07 4 This is part and parcel of being close to another person. Provided F07 5 the foundation is solid and there is good communication between the F07 6 partners, difficulties can usually be resolved, and as a F07 7 consequence, the relationship grows stronger and closer.

F07 8 In the following chapters you will find descriptions of some of F07 9 the most common difficulties that can occur in relationships and F07 10 which can (but don't have to) lead to a rift that is severe enough F07 11 to bring about a split-up.

F07 12 As you are reading through the various examples, you may find F07 13 parallels to problems you are experiencing or have experienced in F07 14 your own relationship with your partner. Please remember that you F07 15 will still have to decide for yourself what you want to do about F07 16 these problems. If you feel the relationship is worth saving, then F07 17 the following chapters will help you become more aware of the F07 18 different facets of the problem, and this in turn will enable you F07 19 to tackle them more constructively. If, however, you feel the F07 20 relationship is past repair, you will have to make a move to F07 21 disengage yourself from your partner.

F07 22 Incompatibility F07 23 Opposites attract - or do they? There are various reasons why F07 24 people with opposing personalities and conflicting views will get F07 25 together, and the following are some examples for each case to F07 26 illustrate the point.

F07 27 'I adore you'

F07 28 Peter had fallen in love with Sharon - madly in love. She F07 29 seemed the most wonderful creature in the world to him. He told all F07 30 his friends about her and finally plucked up enough courage to ask F07 31 her out. He was overjoyed when she accepted. They started going out F07 32 and Peter was in seventh heaven; he finally had the woman of his F07 33 dreams! She did not seem to have a lot of time for him and could F07 34 only see him once a week, but Peter didn't mind. She also made F07 35 derogatory remarks about his friends and Peter himself, but he took F07 36 this as being her particular sense of humour; surely she didn't F07 37 mean it. He began to think seriously about marriage, and even when F07 38 friends told him that they had seen Sharon with another man, Peter F07 39 ignored the warnings. He decided it would be an insult to Sharon to F07 40 even ask her to comment on these rumours. To Peter, it was F07 41 impossible to contemplate that Sharon could have any faults or F07 42 shortcomings.

F07 43 Two months later she left him for another man. Peter was F07 44 heartbroken and unable to understand why she had broken off their F07 45 relationship all of a sudden ...

F07 46 Peter's case may be an extreme example, but it is by no means F07 47 an uncommon one. For some people, being in love has the disturbing F07 48 side-effect of anaesthetizing the rational mind to an extent where F07 49 the person floats through life on autopilot, hypnotized by the F07 50 object of their desire. They do not really see the other person, F07 51 they only see what they want to see; they are in love with a F07 52 figment of their imagination. They will neither see nor admit that F07 53 their love is one-sided because they automatically ignore any F07 54 signals that do not fit into their concept of adoration. Even when F07 55 incompatibilities are pointed out to them, they will sweep them F07 56 under the carpet or reinterpret them into an acceptable version, F07 57 finding all sorts of excuses to explain unpleasant behaviour with F07 58 which their partner confronts them. This is a bit like doing a F07 59 jigsaw puzzle and cutting the pieces with a pair of scissors to F07 60 make them fit - you will never get the true picture.

F07 61 'Marriage will change everything'

F07 62 You may be quite aware of some major differences between you F07 63 and your partner but still think that you can bring about a change F07 64 through the power of your feelings for the other person. This is an F07 65 idea that often precedes the wish to get married. Even though there F07 66 are things between you that don't work out you think that by F07 67 getting married you will feel better, your love will get stronger F07 68 and therefore your partner will change or you will be able to adapt F07 69 better to the things you could not cope with in the past. Let me F07 70 give you an example.

F07 71 Veronica had been married to John for two years and she was F07 72 beginning to be very unhappy with certain aspects of their F07 73 relationship. John's job involved a great deal of socializing in F07 74 the evenings, and Veronica was asked to come along to most of the F07 75 events, which she did. Veronica found it easy to talk to other F07 76 people and enjoyed going to these functions; the only thing that F07 77 marred her pleasure was the way John behaved when in company. F07 78 Usually he was a friendly and retiring man, but as soon as they F07 79 were at a party or an official function, he became noisy and always F07 80 tried to be the centre of attention, oblivious of the fact that he F07 81 often interrupted others or intruded on private conversations. He F07 82 appeared self-opinionated and always had to have the last word.

F07 83 This was, however, not a new thing. John had been like that F07 84 ever since Veronica had known him, and it had always bothered her. F07 85 She had attempted to point it out to John, without success. He F07 86 dismissed the issue, insisting that Veronica was overreacting and F07 87 that he certainly had not had any complaints from anyone else. F07 88 There had been frequent rows about this issue before their F07 89 marriage, but Veronica had been hoping that their new status as F07 90 husband and wife would alleviate tensions and either make John a F07 91 calmer and more considerate person or give her the poise she needed F07 92 to put up with his behaviour in a more gracious manner.

F07 93 None of this happened. John continued to be noisy at social F07 94 gatherings and Veronica grew more and more disgruntled. She felt F07 95 embarrassed whenever she had to go out with her husband and started F07 96 avoiding it. In the end, this rift proved to be irreparable.

F07 97 Why is it we think that marriage will work a sudden miracle on F07 98 our shortcomings? We still seem to hold this curious image of F07 99 marriage as a magical cure-all, the answer to all our interpersonal F07 100 problems, when really this is quite an unrealistic view when we F07 101 look at it in a detached manner.

F07 102 Marriage puts stress on a relationship because it is a F07 103 commitment, and if you are serious about your marriage vows, it is F07 104 a commitment for life. Even though outwardly nothing may change F07 105 (you may have lived together before anyway), saying 'I will' F07 106 changes things emotionally for you. Who can honestly say that they F07 107 were entirely untroubled by thoughts like, 'What if this is F07 108 all a big mistake'? during the time leading up to the F07 109 wedding?

F07 110 Emotional stress can be caused by negative events but also by F07 111 positive ones, and whatever category you will want to put F07 112 'marriage' under, the fact remains that it puts you under pressure. F07 113 Everything that was a problem before marriage is therefore likely F07 114 to become a more serious problem after marriage because F07 115 when you are under emotional stress you find it more difficult to F07 116 cope with problems. If things are seriously wrong during the F07 117 courting period while both partners are still on their best F07 118 behaviour, it is highly unlikely that the problems will vanish F07 119 after marriage.

F07 120 'I need you'

F07 121 Opposite personalities will also be attracted to each other F07 122 when the partners complement one another in their weaknesses. You F07 123 can, for example, have a constellation where one person is timid F07 124 and helpless and the other person has a tendency to tell others F07 125 what to do. When two personalities like that get together, they F07 126 often form a strong initial attachment because each of them gets F07 127 what they need: the timid person gets relief from anxiety because F07 128 they finally have someone who makes all their decisions for them, F07 129 and the domineering person can dominate and feel needed.

F07 130 Another combination of opposing personalities is the lazy F07 131 person and the workaholic, where the workaholic cannot stop busying F07 132 themselves with all sorts of chores and tasks, feeling needed and F07 133 important in the process, and the lazy person pursuing their F07 134 favourite pastime, namely doing nothing.

F07 135 On first sight, these 'odd' couples seem to be ideally matched, F07 136 but as time goes by, circumstances change and people change, and F07 137 one of the partners may overcome their weakness and outgrow their F07 138 partner, and all of a sudden, the other person is no longer F07 139 needed.

F07 140 Sonja had never been very happy at home. Her father was strict, F07 141 her mother overprotective. Sonja had been longing to leave home for F07 142 a long time, and the great day finally came after a year at F07 143 university. She managed to convince her parents that commuting to F07 144 and from university took up too much time, and her parents finally F07 145 agreed to let her rent a bedsit near the campus.

F07 146 Sonja finally had what she wanted, but after the first euphoria F07 147 had worn off she began to realize that she was now faced with F07 148 another difficulty: she did not know how to live in the outside F07 149 world. She had never learned how to handle money, how to make F07 150 decisions for herself and how to deal with being by herself. She F07 151 was frightened and getting more and more nervous which made her F07 152 even less capable of dealing with all the new challenges that came F07 153 her way, until, much to her relief, David appeared on the scene. He F07 154 was kind and understanding and told her not to worry, he was going F07 155 to look after her. He took troublesome decisions off her hands, F07 156 redecorated her little bedsit for her and filled her evenings.

F07 157 Sonja was blissfully happy; everything seemed to be going her F07 158 way, and the relationship became a steady one. She finally moved in F07 159 with David. With his help, she became more competent and gradually F07 160 lost her fear of problematic situations. As she grew more F07 161 confident, she needed David less and less. She had started F07 162 developing away from David, and he could not adapt to the new F07 163 status quo. He still wanted to tell her how to do things, but now F07 164 Sonja did not want to follow his advice any more. She felt she had F07 165 become a person in her own right and wanted to make her own F07 166 decisions. After three years, the relationship broke off.

F07 167 'Look at me - I'm interesting'

F07 168 This is something that happens often at the beginning of a F07 169 relationship where one or both of the partners transform into F07 170 miracles of wit, sagacity and eloquence. They confess to loving the F07 171 theatre, opera, ballet, cinema, art galleries and so on; in other F07 172 words, they are culture vultures par excellence. They F07 173 might even end up taking you to the cinema once or twice, until the F07 174 first euphoria has worn off and the true person comes out from F07 175 behind the glamour veneer. It's a bit like Superman, only the other F07 176 way around: you see him in his blue and red hero outfit first F07 177 and then he goes into a phonebox and turns around three times, F07 178 sparks flying, and you are left with a meek and F07 179 un-adventurous little man who likes to spend his Sunday F07 180 afternoons in front of the television watching cricket.

F07 181 This initial display of initiative and vivacity may even be F07 182 quite genuine and is not necessarily meant to purposely deceive the F07 183 other person. It is simply born out of a feeling of happy F07 184 excitement at going into a new and promising relationship. The only F07 185 problem with this is that it is only temporary, and if you have F07 186 picked your partner because you saw him as being compatible with F07 187 you, sharing your love for going out and doing things that do not F07 188 involve the television set, then it can be a major disappointment F07 189 when you find that your prince has turned into a frog after you F07 190 have kissed him a few times. You are then left with the options of F07 191 either continuing to make your own entertainment by going out with F07 192 friends or going out by yourself, but it is still frustrating if F07 193 you would have preferred to go out with your partner.

F07 194 F07 195 F07 196 F07 197 F08 1 <#FLOB:F08\>Chartering a vehicle for election success?

F08 2 Diana Sutton looks back on this year's Parliamentary session F08 3 and assesses the effects which the government's Citizen's Charter F08 4 will have on community care. She believes that John Major has F08 5 missed an opportunity

F08 6 No one could describe this year in Parliament as dull. The F08 7 historic resignation of the Prime Minster; the abandoning of a F08 8 fundamental pillar of Government policy -the community charge; a F08 9 rumoured November election; and a glossy Citizen's Charter have F08 10 certainly livened up recent months at Westminster. On the F08 11 legislative front, Parliament has seen the Disability Bill, the F08 12 Child Support Bill and the Criminal Justice Bill.

F08 13 For the disability lobby, the disability living allowance is a F08 14 far cry from a <}_><-|>comprehsensive<+|>comprehensive<}/> F08 15 disability income scheme, failing to address the fundamental fault F08 16 with the system - that people with identical disabilities and costs F08 17 receive largely differing benefits depending on age, cause of F08 18 disability, sex, race and national insurance contributions.

F08 19 One significant victory came from an embarrassing defeat in the F08 20 Lords and resulted in a U-turn on the Independent Living Fund, F08 21 guaranteeing payments at least for existing claimants. However, F08 22 those who become disabled after 1993 will have to take what their F08 23 local authority will provide - thus introducing a two tier F08 24 system.

F08 25 The Child Support Bill makes long overdue reforms in the system F08 26 of child maintenance by setting up the Child Support Agency to F08 27 pursue absent fathers for maintenance. Public debate has centred on F08 28 whether the woman should have to name the father of her child.

F08 29 The most significant victory has been the widening of the F08 30 exemption from the obligation to co-operate, to include situations F08 31 where the woman or her children would fear undue harm or distress F08 32 by naming. However, coupled with this has been the introduction of F08 33 one of the most punitive sanctions in the benefit system - a F08 34 deduction from income support for 18 months (20 per cent in the F08 35 first six months, followed by 10 per cent in the last twelve).

F08 36 This session has also seen John Major's Citizen's Charter. Its F08 37 section on social services is simply a restatement of the F08 38 government's community care reforms.

F08 39 The performance indicators suggested for the Social Security F08 40 Benefits Agency include standard times for callers to be seen. For F08 41 hospitals, guaranteed maximum waiting times for in-patient or day F08 42 care treatment are suggested. However no indicators are suggested F08 43 for community care, nor is there any concrete indication of exactly F08 44 how an individual's views will be central in assessment or of F08 45 rights to assessment or to services. It is a missed opportunity to F08 46 put performance standards for assessment and service delivery in F08 47 place and to ensure greater accountability to disabled people.

F08 48 Currently, the duty to assess and provide disabled people with F08 49 services under Section 2 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled F08 50 Persons Act 1970 is supposed to provide a watertight guarantee of F08 51 assessment. In practice, many disabled people find themselves put F08 52 on a waiting list either for assessment or for services, with some F08 53 being told that it will be 18 months before an assessment can be F08 54 made or a year before services become available.

F08 55 Attempts to enforce the 1970 Act revealed that in some local F08 56 authorities services were only provided as resources become F08 57 available, for example when another disabled person no longer F08 58 needed them. There was no real redress for the citizen, except by F08 59 using the Secretary of State's default powers, pointing out that a F08 60 local authority was in default of its statutory duties.

F08 61 This was done by one organisation on behalf of several disabled F08 62 people and two authorities waived their waiting list for telephones F08 63 for disabled people almost overnight. Although the new complaints F08 64 procedures will hopefully improve this, it must be coupled with F08 65 acceptable times for assessment and service delivery.

F08 66 Although the Citizen's Charter states that individuals have F08 67 rights to advocacy where necessary, this sits uneasily with the F08 68 Government's recent decision not to implement sections 1 and 2 of F08 69 the Disabled Persons Act 1986.

F08 70 Similarly Labour's charter although mentioning the Act merely F08 71 commits Labour to discussing it with the local authority F08 72 associations, despite the fact that its full implementation is F08 73 Labour Party Policy.

F08 74 A charter for community care also needs to include performance F08 75 indicators to show levels of user control and satisfaction with F08 76 services. Labour's charter states that everyone depending on F08 77 community care will be covered by a service contract tailored to F08 78 meet their particular situation, giving both the users and carers F08 79 clearly defined rights as to the quality of help they can rely F08 80 on.

F08 81 As a statement of principle, this is not dissimilar to the F08 82 Government's "individual care plan reflecting the F08 83 individuals<&|>sic! wishes as far as possible saying what services F08 84 will be available".

F08 85 However, neither charter shows a commitment to empower F08 86 community care users to control service delivery. Nothing, for F08 87 instance, is said about whether direct payments could be made to F08 88 enable disabled people to buy in their own community care services, F08 89 so that they are not dependent on services when and how the local F08 90 authority chooses to provide them, a system which could ensure real F08 91 user choice.

F08 92 Similarly, neither charter deals with the situation where the F08 93 carer's and the disabled person's needs and rights are in conflict. F08 94 For instance where a carer wants the disabled person to go into F08 95 residential care but the disabled person wants to remain in their F08 96 own home; or where the carer is no longer able, or does not want to F08 97 be, the main provider of care, but the local authority cannot F08 98 afford to provide support services.

F08 99 It goes without saying that a charter for community care would F08 100 need to be fully resourced and policed, the latter function could F08 101 be carried out by a committee of service users.

F08 102 Until some performance standards are introduced, the Citizen's F08 103 Charter philosophy of instant redress will seem an anathema to many F08 104 disabled people who are reluctant to criticise the service they get F08 105 in case it is withdrawn altogether.

F08 106 F08 107 Compulsory or by consent?

F08 108 Controversy over the use of sedatives to control the behaviour F08 109 of young people in psychiatric care is gathering pace. Mark Ivory F08 110 reports

F08 111 Pin-down caused a furore because young people were put in F08 112 solitary confinement for long periods in what was described by F08 113 Allan Levy, who helped investigate the regime, as a F08 114 "fundamental abuse of human rights".

F08 115 Since then, other young people have alleged similar treatment, F08 116 mostly in psychiatric rather than local authority care.

F08 117 In addition to 'exclusion', or solitary confinement, psychiatry F08 118 has an even more powerful method at its disposal - sedation.

F08 119 Hill End adolescent psychiatric unit in St Albans, F08 120 Hertfordshire, has recently been accused of excessive use of F08 121 sedatives, following similar allegations against Langton House, a F08 122 mental nursing home for children in Dorset, and St Charles Youth F08 123 Treatment Centre in Essex (News, 13, 27 June and 25 July).

F08 124 All of these institutions took referrals from local authorities F08 125 unable to look after the young people in council care homes because F08 126 they were too disturbed or too troublesome. Some were suicidal, F08 127 others violent.

F08 128 According to Mary Moss, spokeswoman for the National F08 129 Association of Young People in Care, the care system has failed F08 130 these young people. Psychiatric care has, she says, become the F08 131 "dumping ground" for society's most abused F08 132 children.

F08 133 She claims that four-fifths of adolescents sent to psychiatric F08 134 units would be better off in local authority children's homes, if F08 135 only they were properly resourced and supported by trained F08 136 staff.

F08 137 "The way sedatives are used in F08 138 <}_><-|>pychiatric<+|>psychiatric<}/> units is completely out of F08 139 order," Moss says. "They literally dose up young F08 140 people to keep them under control."

F08 141 Langton House was earmarked for closure soon after F08 142 Community Care revealed the allegations and St Charles F08 143 YTC is being shaken up by the DoH, but Moss says the use of F08 144 sedatives as a means of restraint remains widespread.

F08 145 Elaine Murphy, vice-chairwoman of the Mental Health Act F08 146 Commission, believes the use of drugs like Largactil and F08 147 Haloperidol - both anti-psychotic drugs with a sedative effect - to F08 148 control behaviour in non-psychotic patients is an F08 149 "extremely dubious" practice.

F08 150 "I can't imagine prescribing something of that potency F08 151 to control impulsive behaviour," said Murphy, who is a F08 152 consultant psychiatrist at Guy's Hospital in London.

F08 153 The crucial question arises over how often these drugs are F08 154 administered without consent. No consent is needed if the young F08 155 person has been sectioned under the Mental Health Act. But many of F08 156 those referred by local authorities are in psychiatric care F08 157 voluntarily and consent is normally required.

F08 158 There are two principal exceptions to this rule: when the life F08 159 of the patient or a member of staff is in danger and when the F08 160 patient is deemed mentally incompetent to give consent. Concern is F08 161 growing that some consultant psychiatrists may be using these F08 162 escape clauses too readily.

F08 163 Bill McIntyre, priority services manager in charge of Hill End, F08 164 says there are strict procedures for the use of sedation and F08 165 exclusion. "The unit makes it very clear to the parents and F08 166 the referring local authority that exclusion or sedation can be F08 167 used if that's the only way the situation can be managed," F08 168 McIntyre says. "Sedation is used for behaviour control if F08 169 it's required as a last resort."

F08 170 McIntyre, who describes Hill End as a "breath of fresh F08 171 air" in psychiatric care, says the unit seeks verbal F08 172 consent for these measures before the young person arrives.

F08 173 "When a child goes crazy and kicks a nurse, doctors F08 174 can't ask them permission to give a sedative injection," he F08 175 says. However, the alleged over-use of sedatives to control F08 176 behaviour, rather than as part of a structured treatment programme, F08 177 has led the father of a 15-year-old boy to contemplate legal action F08 178 against Hill End and Bedfordshire SSD, the referring authority.

F08 179 The boy's allegations, which included prolonged exclusion, are F08 180 being investigated by the Health Advisory Service.

F08 181 Bedfordshire social services director Tim Hulbert is concerned F08 182 about allegations that sedatives are used for restraint. F08 183 "It might be legitimate in some circumstances but our F08 184 anxiety is what safeguards there are," he says.

F08 185 Hulbert denied that Hill End had given him full information F08 186 about administration of sedatives, saying that he had agreed to F08 187 their use for treatment and not restraint.

F08 188 Both Hulbert and Murphy say there should be a clearer framework F08 189 of regulations and inspection to govern psychiatric units which F08 190 look after children.

F08 191 There are indications that some establishments, and even the F08 192 courts, are giving short shrift to the Mental Health Act code of F08 193 practice.

F08 194 The code spells out the rules governing consent but the ready F08 195 use of escape clauses by some psychiatric units appeared to win F08 196 support from a decision last month by the Court of Appeal.

F08 197 Subject to dramatic mood swings, a 15-year-old girl in an F08 198 adolescent unit had refused sedative drugs during one of her lucid F08 199 and rational periods.

F08 200 Despite the code's unequivocal assertion that an individual's F08 201 capacity to give consent can vary over time, the Appeal Court F08 202 clearly took a different view.

F08 203 It would be dangerous, said Lord Justice Farquharson, for the F08 204 court to refuse to authorise medication on the basis that a patient F08 205 was lucid on a particular day.

F08 206 Mental health charity MIND accused the judges of moving the F08 207 goalposts.

F08 208 MIND solicitor Adina Halpern said: "It now appears that F08 209 even though a young person is capable of giving consent, it's still F08 210 possible that a court can decide against his or her wishes to order F08 211 treatment."

F08 212 As the judges appear to back the view of some psychiatrists, F08 213 young people look increasingly beleaguered. Their only hope may be F08 214 regulations with sharper teeth than a mere code of practice.

F08 215 F08 216 New family training pack aims to disperse power

F08 217 BY CATRIONA MARCHANT

F08 218 New training materials to help social workers follow F08 219 Children Act principles of working in partnership with families has F08 220 been launched by the Family Rights Group.

F08 221 Jo Tunnard, FRG's director, said the pack, which has been F08 222 commissioned by the DoH, was the first of its kind.

F08 223 She said the training programme's case studies and F08 224 problem-solving tasks would help social workers to recognise the F08 225 experience of families.

F08 226 "The knowledge and expertise of families is not the F08 227 same as professionals but it is terribly important to complete the F08 228 jigsaw of getting the best outcome for the child," she F08 229 said.

F08 230 F09 1 <#FLOB:F09\>REBECCA GETHIN

F09 2 Dartmoor diary

F09 3 ... but where has all the water gone?

F09 4 Most of us have been thankful for the rains of the winter now F09 5 dying, but some more than others. As the heavens poured down in the F09 6 weeks before Christmas, Rebecca Gethin wrote from the smallholding F09 7 where she lives on the edge of Dartmoor.

F09 8 NOW WE CAN HEAR the River Dart thundering through the valley F09 9 more than a mile away. But the bed of our own little stream here is F09 10 still dry. It is a mosaic of leaves and rocks which stand out like F09 11 old bones. Even now there are people who are unable to have baths F09 12 or make use of water in the same way as the rest of us usually do F09 13 by simply turning on a tap. We have become so accustomed to the F09 14 convenience of tap water that we take it for granted, like F09 15 breathing. But people in some rural areas still rely on springs for F09 16 their water supply.

F09 17 Some streams, of course, never dried up at all and ran, less F09 18 torrentially, but still miraculously, throughout the summer of last F09 19 year. Many of the older farms or settlements were sited at points F09 20 where the slope of the hill changes from concave to convex. Here F09 21 the stream's flow is slowed and conserved. Such homes have not lost F09 22 water for farm or house. Others were not so lucky.

F09 23 The rivers, so sluggish during the summer, seem now to be F09 24 flowing with their customary exuberance. Our River Dart is F09 25 cheerfully turbulent once more, snaking its way from Dartmoor to F09 26 Dartmouth, but it is a very sensitive river: a few days without F09 27 rain and its pace noticeably subsides. R. J. Chorley, in his book, F09 28 Water, Earth and Man, points out that "the F09 29 sustained flow of rivers is truly remarkable, considering that F09 30 precipitation is an unusual event in most areas of the earth. F09 31 Localisation of precipitation in space or time is striking. Few F09 32 storms last more than a few hours, so that even storm days are F09 33 mainly rainless. Yet rivers flow throughout the year. The F09 34 sustaining source of rivers is effluent ground water ... The amount F09 35 of soil water is about 15 times the amount in channel storage F09 36 rivers."

F09 37 If a spring is a true, deep, ground-water emission, the water F09 38 may go on flowing even in a drought. If it dries up it will take a F09 39 long time to return, for the relevant soil layer has to be F09 40 resaturated. If the water is from a shallow source, it will dry up F09 41 much more quickly, but will return as soon as the rain falls F09 42 heavily.

F09 43 During the last two summers our spring dried up and it took F09 44 several weeks of fairly heavy rainfall for it to be replenished. F09 45 The stream runs along the back of the cottages on the edge of the F09 46 moor and then tumbles through our garden. It is a useful F09 47 watering-place for wild cattle and ponies: the nearest alternative F09 48 source of water is a long way away. In summer the mossy banks are F09 49 often crowded with bees loading themselves up with water to take F09 50 back to their hives. But here we are well into winter and the F09 51 spring, usually a continuous, gurgling bubble, still shows no sign F09 52 of life. The bed of the stream has been dry since August: the banks F09 53 are beginning to smooth out and the vegetation is changing.

F09 54 We humans are all right for, after the last drought about ten F09 55 years ago, the cottages were provided with mains water. A tank F09 56 below ground stores a fairly large amount and then pipes it to an F09 57 outside tap at the back of the houses. There has to be considerable F09 58 pressure in the system to enable this to happen. When I remember I F09 59 fill the kettle from the outside tap. Our children drink from this F09 60 tap, often preferring this water to juice or squash. Our goats F09 61 clearly prefer it to tap-water! It is absolutely delicious, and is F09 62 full of minerals and free of any polluting chemicals, for it is way F09 63 beyond the height of cultivable land. Admittedly, the odd small F09 64 spider or beetle appears but we are not complaining.

F09 65 The spring itself is a magical place of reeds and trees which F09 66 also provide shelter in the winter for moorland stock. In the F09 67 autumn the sound of flocks of birds feeding on the berries and F09 68 seeds by the spring is almost deafening. In old records the source F09 69 of the stream is noted, too.

F09 70 The National Rivers Authority has been notified of many such F09 71 springs and it is keeping records. They may well be useful in times F09 72 to come. There must be many others that are not heard about. The F09 73 NRA does not wish to speculate on the reasons for keeping these F09 74 records or on their implications for the future, but clearly it is F09 75 a response to two years of drought. There have never been two F09 76 consecutive summers of such dryness and such heat since records F09 77 began. Long-term figures show that usually this country's rainfall F09 78 is fairly evenly spread through the seasons.

F09 79 Our rivers are made up of many different streams and small F09 80 tributaries. If some of these are not feeding into the rivers then F09 81 the flow of water in the rivers will be less despite times of F09 82 rainfall and flood. The ecology of those small streams will be F09 83 changing already to cope with the erratic flow.

F09 84 We may all need to become more aware of how we use water, to F09 85 learn ways of managing and conserving supplies. Water-butts placed F09 86 so as to catch the run-off from roofs are a useful way of watering F09 87 lawns and gardens, replenishing garden ponds, even washing the car. F09 88 Ingenious folk might like to think of ways of providing F09 89 drip-irrigation for fruit-trees or for thirsty plants in the F09 90 greenhouse. Mulching ornamental plants and vegetables can save F09 91 labour as well as crops. Mulch can be anything from compost to F09 92 straw (not hay for it contains seeds), from shredded bark to old F09 93 newspapers. Mulches conserve moisture and moderate soil F09 94 temperatures very effectively and so you can slap on as much as you F09 95 like. Remember not to cover the ground when it is already bone-dry F09 96 for by then it is already too late! You could also build a garden F09 97 pond, fill it with oxygenating plants to keep the water fresher and F09 98 let the wildlife take over. Planting trees, even small ones in a F09 99 small garden, is also useful, for trees are a sort of biological F09 100 storage of water.

F09 101 To the bulk of the population our water supplies seem back to F09 102 normal: the panic is over. The grass is growing in the meadows and F09 103 the weeds are having a field day late in the year. But, a week F09 104 before Christmas, Burrator reservoir, on Dartmoor near Princetown, F09 105 was holding barely two-thirds of its capacity. So think twice F09 106 before you curse that hose-pipe ban that lingers even when the rain F09 107 is pouring down and the river is in spate.

F09 108 F09 109 LINDSAY CAMPBELL

F09 110 Duncan, the kenner

F09 111 DUNCAN IS FAMED in the Highlands for being a man of even fewer F09 112 words than most men of few words: if he says "Mhm", you F09 113 have caught him on a chatty day. But after all, you don't have to F09 114 say more than that to a sheep, or to a wise sheepdog who knows the F09 115 work as well as his master.

F09 116 Duncan is a hill shepherd, which by itself means he belongs to F09 117 a remarkable breed. But he is more than that; he is one of the F09 118 specially gifted shepherds known as kenners.

F09 119 Shepherds all learn to recognise certain individuals in their F09 120 flocks; the best sheep and the worst, the bottle-fed pets who stay F09 121 friendly all their lives, and the ones with unusual markings. Most F09 122 of all, like schoolteachers, they get to know the mischief-makers, F09 123 sheep who will stand and swear at them or run in any direction but F09 124 the right one.

F09 125 Every shepherd remembers sheep like these, but a kenner knows F09 126 every sheep in his flock of hundreds, and recognises her through F09 127 all the changing seasons of her life. It is a skill that can never F09 128 be taught in an agricultural college, and is worth more than any F09 129 that are.

F09 130 In a farming system where no written records are kept of F09 131 individual animals, a kenner will know the mother and have a shrewd F09 132 idea of the father of every sheep, so he will have a good F09 133 understanding of their potential. He will know who is likely to F09 134 have twins and benefit from extra feeding during the winter. He F09 135 will know who is liable to have difficulty lambing and need special F09 136 attention, and he will know who is proving a poor breeder and not F09 137 worth her keep.

F09 138 But Duncan is exceptional even among kenners. Sometimes it F09 139 seems he knows every Blackface sheep in Scotland. Nobody sells F09 140 another man's sheep if Duncan is in the market. Not that this is F09 141 often tried deliberately, because even in these corrupt days most F09 142 Highland sheep-men are scrupulously honest. But sometimes F09 143 one is in a hurry to sort out a bunch of fat lambs before the next F09 144 downpour, and sometimes the previous night went on a dram too long, F09 145 and it's easy to miss the notch in an ear, tucked behind a horn, F09 146 that means one plump wedder [wether] is a stray.

F09 147 Duncan never misses it though, even from the other side of the F09 148 market. The offending shepherd is led over to check his marks, and F09 149 dismissed with "Hm! Doesn't even look like your F09 150 sheep!"

F09 151 The highlight of the shepherds' year is the tup sales in the F09 152 autumn, when they go to buy young males for the breeding season. F09 153 This is how they hope to improve the quality of their flocks, and F09 154 competition is fierce for the best tup lambs. These are big fluffy F09 155 balls of white wool - or possibly yellow or orange, as many F09 156 breeders favour bathing them in coloured dip for the occasion. F09 157 Their black-and-white faces are glossy, their eyes big and shining, F09 158 and their elegant curving horns have been smoothed and polished.

F09 159 A few years later, when too many of their daughters are running F09 160 with the flock, many of them will be back in the market again. By F09 161 then, they will be great grizzled, battle-scarred warriors that F09 162 look like rocks walking. Their horns are big gnarled spirals and F09 163 the roots of them have met in a bony ridge across their brows. F09 164 Little blood-shot eyes glower out of lumpy, dusty, wrinkled F09 165 faces battered by years of hurling themselves at well-armed rivals. F09 166 Many will go to the butcher, but the best can still be a good F09 167 bargain for a farmer who can use them for another year or so.

F09 168 Some years ago a farmer in the area bought two tup lambs with F09 169 almost identical markings, but he paid pounds500 for one and only F09 170 pounds100 for the other. Four years later, the good tup was back in F09 171 the local market.

F09 172 "This is the tup that Mr McDonald bought in Stirling F09 173 for pounds500..." began the auctioneer, hoping for one of F09 174 the better sales of the day.

F09 175 "No, it isnae," said Duncan from the ringside. F09 176 The auctioneer was shocked, the seller furious, and the F09 177 ring-side crowd very, very interested.

F09 178 "It is so! I've the old sale-ticket here in my F09 179 pocket," McDonald protested.

F09 180 "Better check the number," Duncan grunted, and F09 181 retired from the dispute, exhausted from saying so many words in F09 182 one day.

F09 183 There was a concerted rush at the bewildered sheep while the F09 184 market men deciphered the original sale number burnt into the F09 185 cracked and flaking horn.

F09 186 It was the pounds100 tup.

F09 187 The farmer had got the two tup lambs mixed up on his way home F09 188 from Stirling. For years he had been selecting his best ewes to put F09 189 to the inferior tup, to improve his flock. Duncan, who had seen it F09 190 only once and fleetingly as a lamb, recognised it instantly.

F09 191 So far, perhaps, Duncan's achievements could be put down to a F09 192 phenomenal visual memory; but I see no way to explain away this F09 193 next example of his ability.

F09 194 F09 195 F10 1 <#FLOB:F10\>The Citizen's Charter: improving the quality of F10 2 the public services or furthering market values?

F10 3 David Farnham

F10 4 Portsmouth Polytechnic

F10 5 The Government's White Paper, The Citizen's Charter, F10 6 presented to Parliament by the Prime Minister in July, is the first F10 7 in a series of governmental initiatives which are aimed, it is F10 8 claimed, at making the public services more responsive to the needs F10 9 of their users and raising their quality of service overall. F10 10 Superficially, the White Paper is a glossy, colourful, user F10 11 friendly document, which is strong on presentation and layout, and F10 12 contains some sensible and pertinent proposals for producing higher F10 13 quality public services. An alternative view is that The F10 14 Charter, which is a complex and detailed document, is a subtle F10 15 marketing device, concealing a covert agenda aimed at furthering F10 16 market values in the public services. It clearly contains a mixture F10 17 of concrete proposals, political assertions and New Right ideology, F10 18 in varying proportions. But these raise more questions about the F10 19 intentions and implications of the Government's plans for the F10 20 public services than they seem to answer.

F10 21 The Charter applies to all public services such as F10 22 government departments, 'Next Steps' agencies, the nationalized F10 23 industries, the National Health Service (NHS), the courts, police F10 24 and emergency services and the local authorities, as well as to the F10 25 'privatized' public utilities. The purpose of this article is to F10 26 summarize the main provisions of The Charter and provide F10 27 an initial assessment of its provisions.

F10 28 AIMS, PRINCIPLES AND MEANS

F10 29 The stated aims of The Charter are: to raise the F10 30 quality of provision of the public services; to increase 'consumer' F10 31 choice for those using them; to increase competition within them; F10 32 to raise standards of public service performance; and to give F10 33 "value for money within a tax bill the nation can F10 34 afford". The Government argues that it wants to continue F10 35 upholding the central principle that essential public services must F10 36 be available to all, irrespective of individual means, adding that F10 37 "its consistent aim has been to increase choice, extend F10 38 competition and thereby improve quality in all services". F10 39 With many of Britain's key industries having been privatized during F10 40 the 1980s, the Government states that it is determined to drive its F10 41 "reforms further into the core of the public F10 42 services", by "extending the benefits of choice, F10 43 competition, and commitment to service more widely". As F10 44 such, it sees The Charter "at the heart of F10 45 government policy in the 1990s".

F10 46 Four main themes are stressed in the White Paper: quality, F10 47 choice, standards and value. The White Paper puts forward a F10 48 detailed programme for improving the quality of the public F10 49 services, with choice between competing providers being seen as the F10 50 best spur to quality. 'The Citizen', it is asserted, must be told F10 51 what public service standards are and be able to take action where F10 52 that service is unacceptable. Since the citizen is also a taxpayer, F10 53 it is stressed that the public services must give value for F10 54 money.

F10 55 As consumers of the public services, every citizen is entitled F10 56 to expect, it is argued, 'standards', 'openness', 'information', F10 57 'choice', 'non-discrimination', 'accessibility', and F10 58 redress 'if things go wrong'. Standards should be explicit, F10 59 published and displayed at points of delivery, with the presumption F10 60 that they will be "progressively improved as services F10 61 become more efficient". There should be no secrecy about F10 62 how public services are run, how much they cost, who is in charge, F10 63 and whether or not they are meeting their standards. Full and F10 64 accurate information, written in plain language, should be F10 65 available about what services are being provided. The public F10 66 services should provide choice wherever practicable, they should be F10 67 available "regardless of race or sex" and they F10 68 should be run "to suit the convenience of customers, not F10 69 staff". There should be well publicised complaints F10 70 procedures and serious problems should be resolved where they F10 71 arise.

F10 72 The means by which The Charter it to be implemented F10 73 include: more privatization; wider competition; further contracting F10 74 out; more performance related pay; local and national published F10 75 performance targets; comprehensive publication of information on F10 76 standards achieved; more effective complaints procedures; tougher F10 77 and more independent inspectorates; and better redress for the F10 78 citizen "when services go badly wrong". It is the F10 79 Government's intention to publish a new standard for the delivery F10 80 of quality in the public services. This is to be called the Charter F10 81 Standard, with a Chartermark, and will incorporate a number of F10 82 principles. These will include: publication of the standards of F10 83 service and of performance against those standards; evidence that F10 84 the views of those using the public services have been taken into F10 85 account in setting standards; clear information about the range of F10 86 service provided; courteous and efficient 'customer service'; well F10 87 signposted avenues for complaint where 'customers' are unsatisfied; F10 88 and independent validation of performance against standards. F10 89 "Only those who meet the Charter Standard will be able to F10 90 use the Chartermark".

F10 91 The White Paper states that The Charter will be F10 92 implemented locally and specifically. This is based on the F10 93 assumption that services "work best where those responsible F10 94 for providing them can respond directly to the needs of their F10 95 clients". This will be followed up by a programme of action F10 96 across all public services and by detailed charters for patients, F10 97 parents, passengers, taxpayers and others. The Prime Minister will F10 98 also appoint a panel of advisors on the Charter initiative. The F10 99 Government "will be taking immediate steps to encourage all F10 100 public services to adopt Charter principles and to apply them to F10 101 their own operations".

F10 102 SETTING STANDARDS OF PUBLIC SERVICE

F10 103 Separate charters are proposed for different areas of the F10 104 public sectors. There will be charters for patients, parents, F10 105 tenants and jobseekers. Measures are also to be introduced for F10 106 setting standards in transport, the Social Security Benefits F10 107 Agency, the Post Office, revenue departments, the police, and F10 108 criminal justice and the courts.

F10 109 Health F10 110 The White Paper claims that "the aims of the Citizen's F10 111 Charter lie at the heart of the NHS reforms". The F10 112 Government states that it "will build on the NHS F10 113 reforms", by publishing later this year patients charters F10 114 in England, Scotland and Wales. These national charters will set F10 115 out patients' rights to the following: good quality care; F10 116 information about the options available for their care and F10 117 treatment; involvement in their care and treatment; choice of GP; a F10 118 right to give or withhold consent to medical treatment; freedom to F10 119 participate or not in medical research and student training; F10 120 respect for privacy, religious and cultural beliefs; consideration F10 121 for people visiting patients; ability to comment on treatment F10 122 received; access to information held about them; and satisfaction F10 123 if these standards are not achieved.

F10 124 It is intended that local health authorities will produce F10 125 charters specific to their own services. Health authorities, for F10 126 example, will set standards for service in their contracts with F10 127 hospitals. "They will publish targets for how long their F10 128 residents will have to wait for admission for treatment". F10 129 The Government will also require standards to be set and published F10 130 for hospital outpatient appointments. It is intended that the F10 131 practice of calling large number<&|>sic! of patients for F10 132 appointments at the same time will cease. The NHS Management F10 133 Executive will set out the main areas in which local standards of F10 134 service will be set, monitored and published so that there is F10 135 consistency throughout the Country.

F10 136 In primary health care, it is intended to ensure that GPs give F10 137 good service to all patients. The Government wants the public to be F10 138 given clear information about the precise services offered by each F10 139 general practice to help people choose an appropriate GP. The F10 140 patients of dentists are to be entitled to clear information F10 141 too.

F10 142 Education F10 143 The Charter will also reinforce the Government's F10 144 recent reforms in the schools sector, by carrying them further. It F10 145 will provide for: school reports on the progress of all pupils, at F10 146 least annually; publication of the results achieved in schools; F10 147 comparison of results among schools; independent inspection of F10 148 schools; and "more information to parents to help them F10 149 exercise the choice that the education reforms have given F10 150 them". A parents' charter has already been published, F10 151 setting out parental rights in schools, the choices they can F10 152 exercise and information about schools, the choices they can F10 153 exercise and information about school performance. The Audit F10 154 Commission will be empowered to publish comparative tables, schools F10 155 and colleges will be required to publish their public examination F10 156 results in a common format and schools will be required to publish F10 157 truancy rates. Comparative information will be required to be F10 158 collected and published locally. All parents will receive a school F10 159 report on their child's progress, with all reports having to be up F10 160 to a minimum standard within 1991-92. The Government will lay a F10 161 duty on local education authorities to disseminate and publish F10 162 results in a standard format.

F10 163 Housing F10 164 For tenants, the Charter will mean: an improved tenants' F10 165 charter for local authority tenants; opportunities for tenants to F10 166 transfer out of local authority control; a stronger tenants' F10 167 guarantee for housing association tenants; and the extension of F10 168 competitive tendering into housing management. Strengthening F10 169 tenants rights will improve the rights of council tenants to the F10 170 repair of their homes, ensure that all tenants receive information F10 171 about the standards and performance of their local authority in F10 172 housing management and encourage tenants to exercise their right to F10 173 transfer to a new landlord. The tenants charter will also encourage F10 174 local authorities to introduce refurbishment contracts and to F10 175 delegate management to tenant bodies.

F10 176 The Charter states that "housing associations F10 177 will be the principal providers of new subsidized housing for the F10 178 1990s". As part of this, the Housing Corporation will issue F10 179 a stronger tenants' guarantee. It will add three new principles of F10 180 accountability. These are: performance information to be produced F10 181 and made directly available to tenants; regular consultation to be F10 182 provided through satisfaction surveys; and more active involvement F10 183 of tenant representative organizations to be promoted.

F10 184 The Employment Services F10 185 The Charter will reinforce the Employment Service's F10 186 aim of giving the unemployed the personal service they need, with F10 187 the Service publishing its own charter for jobseekers later this F10 188 year. The proposals include providing details of all services F10 189 offered in local offices and establishing national targets for F10 190 service delivery. Local targets will include: waiting times; how F10 191 quickly telephones are answered; standards for promptness and F10 192 accuracy; and information relevant to the local labour market on F10 193 performance against targets. Where possible, people coming to F10 194 Jobcentres for advisory interviews will see the same person on each F10 195 occasion. All full time Jobcentres are to open for a minimum of 36 F10 196 hours a week. National customer surveys will continue to be F10 197 undertaken annually, supplemented by customer surveys at local F10 198 level. "All offices will have easy to use complaints F10 199 arrangements".

F10 200 Transport F10 201 For transport, The Charter states that improving the F10 202 performance of British Rail (BR) "can only be achieved if F10 203 the way is opened to innovation, private investment, and F10 204 competition". That is "why progress towards the F10 205 privatisation of the railways is integral to the Citizen's F10 206 Charter". The 'passenger's charter' for people using BR F10 207 will set out clear commitments and rights. These will include F10 208 targets for performance, what to do if things go wrong, and what F10 209 compensation is available. BR already contracts out some catering F10 210 and cleaning services and intends to extend this to other F10 211 activities. Further, with pay increases for some BR staff directly F10 212 related to performance, "BR is discussing with the unions F10 213 further restructuring of packages for drivers, station platform F10 214 staff and other key groups".

F10 215 In London Underground (LU), the Government will be setting and F10 216 publishing tough new quality of service targets. Those using LU F10 217 will be able to expect quality of service including cleanliness of F10 218 trains, courtesy of staff and the quality passenger information. It F10 219 will encourage LU to accelerate its contracting out programme, F10 220 "to improve quality and value for money", and will F10 221 link a larger proportion of Board members' pay to the achievement F10 222 of these objectives. The Government wants "to see F10 223 performance-related pay extended to drivers, guards, signalling F10 224 staff and other grades".

F10 225 Social Security

F10 226 The Social Security Benefits Agency (SSBA), established in F10 227 April, will publish its own customer charter. It will incorporate: F10 228 published national targets for benefit services; published targets F10 229 of each district; a published annual report; clear procedures for F10 230 handling customer inquiries and difficulties; a programme to F10 231 improve service by telephone; clean office environments; more F10 232 flexible opening hours; and customers being dealt with by staff who F10 233 can be identified by name. F10 234 F11 1 <#FLOB:F11\>MAASTRICHT BLUES

F11 2 As the Euro state leader's summit concludes CHRIS F11 3 MYANT looks at the issues surrounding the deliberations

F11 4 The European Community faces a particular and peculiar problem: F11 5 it is dominated by politics. Its whole future is wrapped up with F11 6 the development of this political character, an inescapable fate F11 7 which is the direct consequence of the way it was created. But it F11 8 is a problem because the general world trend is to depoliticise F11 9 social life. This contradiction in the momentum of the European F11 10 Community has tripped up the right and left in British politics

F11 11 The contest over the issues at the Maastricht summit is just a F11 12 foretaste, not a conclusion. At the time of writing, we do not know F11 13 the final outlines of the agenda, let alone the results of the F11 14 arguments. But we know the context within which it is all being F11 15 fought out. And at the heart of it all are the twin issues of F11 16 democracy and the social responsibility of government.

F11 17 Stripping politics (and consequently whatever structures of F11 18 democratic accountability may exist) from social existence is a F11 19 deeply retrograde process, one that is in the interest of few F11 20 outside the upper echelons of private business power. Coping with F11 21 this process is complicated by the way in which key elements of F11 22 capital, the economy and society are now operating at a global and F11 23 European level. The further development of democracy cannot mean F11 24 simply restoring those elements of accountability or involvement F11 25 shed by Thatcherism in the 1980s. New structures must be built and F11 26 many of them need to operate at a European level.

F11 27 But who will provide the popular motive force and vision that F11 28 must lie behind any movement to achieve this? The left has so far F11 29 been divided or downright ignorant on Europe. Even though a F11 30 majority on the left no longer condemns European democratic F11 31 developments as a betrayal of the British people, it still needs to F11 32 make a meaningful examination of what must be done. Meanwhile the F11 33 flip media terminology that characterises the Euro debate does not F11 34 help. They talk about 'deepening' or 'widening' the Community: F11 35 'pro-' or 'anti' Europe, but this does not get to the heart of the F11 36 political problem.

F11 37 For what is happening in Europe is very different from that F11 38 taking place elsewhere in the world. Attempts to develop F11 39 supranational structures have either failed (as in Africa and the F11 40 Middle East) and left such a bad taste behind them that a retry is F11 41 not likely for a long while. In the case of the two huge F11 42 multinational state inheritors of empire, India and the Soviet F11 43 Union, disintegration, rather than re-integration on a new basis, F11 44 appears to be the rule.

F11 45 The contrast with Europe is most stark compared to the tensions F11 46 between Mexico, Canada and the US as they move toward their free F11 47 market. While European governments are worrying about what to build F11 48 across the Atlantic the question is how much to tear down.

F11 49 Washington has no intention of allowing Mexico's people F11 50 (nearing half the size of the US population, but growing at a much F11 51 faster rate) to acquire any potential levers over US policy whether F11 52 it might involve measures to significantly redirect wealth south of F11 53 the Rio Grande, or over foreign and military policy. Such a F11 54 possibility is unimaginable.

F11 55 Europe of the EC will be an embarrassing example to such F11 56 trading alliances for this is just the direction it is following, F11 57 and this is why there is such a struggle over it. And why the right F11 58 in Britain seeks to play on the history of popular anti-European F11 59 prejudice and left anti-EC attitudes to prevent any serious public F11 60 debate around the issues involved.

F11 61 And there are plenty of parallels between the situation of the F11 62 EC in regard to, say, Turkey and the former colonies in Africa, and F11 63 Washington's attitude to Mexico. The EC also recently extended its F11 64 customs union to include EFTA states into a European Economic Area. F11 65 However everyone understands that for all the EFTA states this is F11 66 only a way-station toward full Community membership.

F11 67 In addition, the development of Community-wide structures on F11 68 the environment or foreign policy does not necessarily mean those F11 69 arguing for them accept the need for proper popularly accountable F11 70 control. They do, however, entail the further development of new F11 71 structures of public authority which must inevitably engender F11 72 questions of public accountability and democracy. Part of this F11 73 contradiction shows in the British government's continuing attitude F11 74 of opposition to the development of EC structures on anything that F11 75 smacks of more politics or more social provision in contrast to its F11 76 eagerness for any of the apolitical measures of deregulation F11 77 involved in the post-1992 single market.

F11 78 As this new Community is being built from nation states, F11 79 support continues in most EC capitals for the further elaboration F11 80 of this Community structure. It may be that Germany, the most F11 81 sensitive European society to the lessons of World War 2, does not F11 82 want to see wage costs in its industrial base undercut; it may be F11 83 that Ireland, Portugal and Greece are determined to see a F11 84 redistribution of EC wealth in their direction; or that others see F11 85 the urgency of an EC-wide coordination of transport.

F11 86 The reason is less important than the result. For it is this F11 87 which impels further development along the path chosen by the F11 88 founders of the EC. It leads not just to a trading bloc but to a F11 89 new community, not to the end of control over the economy and F11 90 society by existing political structures, but to their merging, F11 91 reformulation, and even replacement.

F11 92 There are some jokers in this pack and growing racism is one. F11 93 It may erect some massive barriers in the way of democratic, F11 94 unifying political action. The grip the Common Agricultural Policy F11 95 has is another. It promises to mire whole populations in the trap F11 96 of backward farming policies, draining ever larger sums from F11 97 Brussels' public purse. Another joker will be the growing number of F11 98 member states. This will butt up against the burden of complexity F11 99 caused by so many official languages and different social F11 100 structures unless there is a radical shift in the methods of F11 101 exercising and distributing EC power.

F11 102 For such a shift there are essentially three choices. Europe F11 103 could try to reverse its post-1945 history and follow the road F11 104 Washington is mapping out for North America, which is F11 105 <}_><-|>prefered<+|>preferred<}/> choice<&|>sic! of the present F11 106 Tory leadership. Because of the especial needs of merging the F11 107 economies of these highly developed societies, and because of the F11 108 initial political impulsion given to the Community in the cold war F11 109 context of the Treaty of Rome, it is a choice only the most F11 110 committed Thatcherites are prepared to entertain.

F11 111 For the Community's other 11 governments this means being F11 112 prepared to muddle their way through keeping some politics, but F11 113 keeping them to a minimum. New EC power structures are going to F11 114 develop whatever London does. There will be a public structure of F11 115 decision taking supervising the evolution of a new European society F11 116 out of the existing national structures.

F11 117 And this raises the third choice, the spectre that is haunting F11 118 the Thatcherite vision of the European future. For the left it is F11 119 the crucial question. Can there be a decisive leap into democracy, F11 120 finding open accountable, political structures at EC, national, F11 121 regional and local levels; or appropriate to different EC-wide F11 122 sectors such as transport, energy, and the environment? Have we the F11 123 political capacity to elaborate structures which avoid complexity F11 124 and achieve efficiency but are also genuinely democratic?

F11 125 Given who is attending, Maastricht will once again, thankfully, F11 126 register plenty of opposition to the first choice, but it will F11 127 prefer to perpetuate the present muddle rather than take the F11 128 third.

F11 129 The EC will continue to grow and it will continue to deepen. F11 130 And the tension will continue to increase between the reality of a F11 131 growing Community and the way this politicises every action it F11 132 takes on the one hand, and the lack of democracy on the other. If F11 133 the British left finally sheds all its anti-European and anti-EC F11 134 prejudices this tension could offer a fruitful source of ideas, F11 135 allies and mobilisation. Judging by the very limited ideas for F11 136 democratising Europe offered this autumn by Labour and other we F11 137 still have an awful long way to go.

F11 138 F11 139 TRADES UNIONS AND THE EUROPEAN CHALLENGE

F11 140 After Maastricht Cyril Claydon takes a long look at F11 141 the issues involved in European legislation for working F11 142 people.

F11 143 By the end of 1992 the 12 countries of the European Community F11 144 are due to become a single economic unit. Nearly all artificial F11 145 barriers to the 'free movement' of capital, labour, goods and F11 146 services between the 12 will have been abolished, although passport F11 147 controls on individuals may take longer to go.

F11 148 A major reason for the Single European Act which initiated the F11 149 legal process of economic unification and which was agreed by the F11 150 12 governments in 1986 was to enable European industry to compete F11 151 successfully with the two most powerful economies, the United F11 152 States and Japan. With larger markets, greater economies of scale, F11 153 tougher competition and bigger incentives to innovate and F11 154 modernise, it is hoped to stimulate economic growth, and reduce F11 155 production costs and prices.

F11 156 The Cecchini report 'The Economics of 1992', named after the F11 157 chair of an EC working party, claims that the single market may F11 158 result in about six years in a 7% growth in community output, a 45% F11 159 cut in prices and the creation of 5 million jobs, cutting F11 160 unemployment in the community by about one third. But the report F11 161 admits that in the first two years there is likely to be an F11 162 increase in unemployment, which means 525,000 job losses in the F11 163 first year.

F11 164 But there are big problems connected with the Europeanisation F11 165 of industry a process which started before 1986 but is being F11 166 speeded up by the implementation of the Single European Act. The F11 167 massive restructuring of industry required to meet the needs of the F11 168 larger, more competitive market is likely to result in many F11 169 closures and job losses. For example, in reference to the F11 170 pharmaceutical industry, the Cecchini report says the effect will F11 171 be "to make the strong stronger and the weak F11 172 weaker." It speaks of the "elimination of marginal F11 173 companies."

F11 174 Will 'making the strong stronger, and weak weaker' apply to F11 175 many other sectors of industry? It remains to be seen. The giant F11 176 firms, already with well-established branches in several countries, F11 177 with the biggest capacity for new investment and Euro-wide F11 178 marketing and the ability to benefit from economies of scale are F11 179 well placed to gain from the single market. Yet of the top 25 F11 180 manufacturing companies operating in Europe only two are British; F11 181 and one, Unilever, part-British. Many smaller and less efficient F11 182 firms may go to the wall. Sir John Harvey-Jones, former chair of F11 183 ICI, forecast that within 10 years half of Europe's factories would F11 184 close and half its companies would disappear or be taken over.

F11 185 On the other hand, the EC's competition and F11 186 anti-monopoly policy may be used to prevent mergers and F11 187 takeovers, and to diminish the concentration of economic power in F11 188 the hands of giant firms like Philips and GCE, which have done very F11 189 well on government contracts. Public awareness of the problem and F11 190 pressure on EC institutions may have some effect on the way the F11 191 anti-monopoly policy is used.

F11 192 The TUC warns that there will be a tendency for industrial F11 193 development to be concentrated in the central area, around major F11 194 continental cities, while peripheral areas such as Northern F11 195 England, Scotland and Southern Italy will lose out. But alongside F11 196 this, labour-intensive industries not requiring high technology F11 197 could move to cheap labour areas such as Portugal and Spain. Both F11 198 these tendencies would be bad for Britain.

F11 199 Taking a wider view, the concentration on economic growth, F11 200 unless carefully controlled and accompanied by a responsible F11 201 attitude to world problems, can only heighten economic rivalry, add F11 202 to the pollution of the planet and worsen the disparity between the F11 203 advanced countries and the Third World.

F11 204 It is widely recognised in the European community, though not F11 205 by the British Government that the single market on its own, F11 206 unaccompanied by social measures, will benefit capital much more F11 207 than working people, who may suffer unemployment and insecurity, F11 208 and that the effect of the single market may well increase F11 209 inequality between countries and regions. F11 210 F12 1 <#FLOB:F12\>Supermarkets Squeeze the Long-Suffering F12 2 Shopper!

F12 3 by Steve Brady

F12 4 FEWER AND FEWER, bigger and bigger supermarket chains are F12 5 squeezing more and more out of the British shopper. While the giant F12 6 store combines are among the most profitable in the World, British F12 7 shoppers pay up to twice as much for basic necessities as their F12 8 counterparts in other Western countries.

F12 9 A recent study found that the real prices of basic F12 10 foodstuffs, allowing for differences in purchasing power between F12 11 countries, were almost twice as high in leading British supermarket F12 12 Tesco's as in equivalent stores in Germany and America. The cost of F12 13 British food has risen by one third since 1985, compared with rises F12 14 of 18% in France, 10% in Germany and 9% in Belgium, according to F12 15 figures supplied by the Common Market Commission in F12 16 Brussels.

F12 17 These massively higher British food prices are the result F12 18 of massively higher British supermarket profits. British F12 19 supermarkets' profit margins are four times the European average F12 20 and eight times that in the USA.

F12 21 These profits are squeezed out of the housewife's purse by F12 22 staggering mark-ups extorted on food by the supermarkets.

F12 23 <*_>star<*/>On tomatoes, for example, British supermarkets F12 24 charge an average of 66% more than they paid for them. American F12 25 ones charge half that mark-up, 32% and Germans a twentieth, F12 26 3%.

F12 27 <*_>star<*/>Bananas here are marked up 97% - you pay F12 28 nearly twice what they cost the supermarket! - compared with 47% in F12 29 the USA and 22% in Germany.

F12 30 <*_>star<*/>Rump steak is marked up 73% here, but 61% in F12 31 Germany and 26% in the US.

F12 32 <*_>star<*/>Frozen chips cost you 82% more than they cost F12 33 the supermarket selling them, while a German pays 18% and an F12 34 American just 9% more.

F12 35 <*_>star<*/>Pork chops are marked up an incredible 156% by F12 36 British supermarkets. German ones sell them at a 6% loss to attract F12 37 custom.

F12 38 Over a basket of ten basic items, mainly fresh meat, fruit and F12 39 vegetables, the average mark-up in British supermarkets was 61%, F12 40 compared with 42% in America and 22% in Germany.

F12 41 RIP-OFF F12 42 Under the Capitalist 'free market' theory, now being foisted on F12 43 the Russians, this sort of rip-off isn't supposed to happen, F12 44 because 'consumers' simply shop around for lower prices. But under F12 45 Capitalist reality they can't. They have less and less choice to F12 46 shop around between. The Big Five supermarkets - Sainsbury, Tesco, F12 47 Safeway, Asda and Gateway - now control 60% of sales by value in F12 48 the pounds40 billion a year grocery market. That enables them to F12 49 spend pounds20 million just to open one new store, buying up all F12 50 the best sites and selling at a loss until they have bankrupted F12 51 surrounding competition.

F12 52 Small family grocers are now closing at the rate of 30 a week! F12 53 Leaving the housewife a 'choice' of five huge conglomerates, all F12 54 extorting huge profits. The old family grocers, giving good quality F12 55 at value-for-money process, are being systematically exterminated F12 56 commercially by the Big Five.

F12 57 Then, as even Tory MP Ann Winterton admitted on August 17th, F12 58 "My fear is they will get bigger and bigger, then F12 59 amalgamate, and there will be less choice for the F12 60 customer". Consumers' Association policy director F12 61 Stephen Locke, pointing out that "Food accounts for F12 62 20% of the average family budget", demanded Government F12 63 action.

F12 64 But Tories, Liberals and now even Labour are reluctant to F12 65 "interfere with the market". Especially when some F12 66 of its biggest profiteers, like Lord Sainsbury, bankroll their F12 67 parties.

F12 68 SQUEEZED F12 69 But "the market" means that British shoppers, F12 70 including the unemployed and poor with children to feed, have F12 71 extortionate profits squeezed out of them for the food they and F12 72 their children need to live, whilst extortioners and legalised F12 73 thieves wax fat on bread stolen from British babies' mouths.

F12 74 The Sainsbury clan alone have squeezed the fourth biggest F12 75 fortune in Britain out of their rip-off profits and F12 76 supermarket monopoly. They are worth at least pounds1.8 billion. F12 77 Some of which they have used to fund Liberal politicians. (No F12 78 wonder the Liberal Democrats have just announced their conversion F12 79 to the 'free market'!)

F12 80 Monopoly, the ruin of traditional family grocers and the F12 81 extortion of vastly higher food prices from the many to make F12 82 immense fortunes for the few may be the establishment parties' idea F12 83 of a 'free market'. But they aren't ours. We would break up the big F12 84 supermarket chains, encourage small British family grocers and give F12 85 our housewives and shoppers real choice and real value at a decent F12 86 price.

F12 87 F12 88 Tories<&|>sic! Dream Becomes a Nightmare

F12 89 Home Owners Were Really Home Loaners!

F12 90 HOME REPOSSESSIONS HAVE soared to record heights as slump, F12 91 redundancy and extortionate interest rates combine to make a F12 92 mockery of the Tory illusion of Britain becoming a 'home-owning F12 93 democracy'.

F12 94 Moneylenders - banks and building societies - repossessed F12 95 a record 36,610 homes in the first half of this year, twice as many F12 96 as last year, itself three times worse than 1989. 280 families are F12 97 driven from their homes by repossession orders ever working day. By F12 98 the end of June, 53,000 repossessed homes were waiting to be F12 99 sold.

F12 100 There is worse to come, according to Mark Boleat, Director F12 101 General of the Council of Mortgage Lenders. By the end of June, F12 102 there were 162,210 mortgages behind in payments by between six F12 103 months and a year, up 84% on last year. Despite the fact that many F12 104 loans more than a year in arrears tend to be repossessed those that F12 105 have not yet been were up 176% on June 1990. More and more F12 106 'homeowners' are getting into trouble with their mortgages. F12 107 Research commissioned by the Bank of England revealed that in March F12 108 this year 269,780 loans were two months in arrears and 305,500 F12 109 three months. A total of 784,000 families were behind with mortgage F12 110 repayments - 8.3% of the total who have mortgages.

F12 111 The debt disaster is hitting hardest at the part of Britain F12 112 least equipped by experience to bear it - the traditionally F12 113 prosperous South-East. Annual repossession court orders have more F12 114 than doubled in the South-East during the last five years, while F12 115 the national total has only gone up by a third. The South-East now F12 116 accounts for 42% of court orders. This is not surprising. The F12 117 region has suffered an 82% rise in unemployment since 1989. More F12 118 than five times the rise in the North. While houses<&|>sic! prices F12 119 have fallen by 15% in the South-East, compared with a 19% increase F12 120 in the North.

F12 121 The fall in house prices means families who fall into mortgage F12 122 arrears can't simply sell up to cover the arrears and move F12 123 somewhere cheaper, as in the past. It take<&|>sic! months to find a F12 124 buyer, while they sink deeper into debt. By then they are so far F12 125 down the gullet of the loan sharks the price they get can't cover F12 126 the outstanding debt, so they get repossessed anyway. The more so F12 127 as the bank and building society sharks, unlike their victims can F12 128 recoup any losses due to depressed house prices because their loans F12 129 are insured. That often leads to them not giving their victims a F12 130 chance to sell. They just slam in a repossession order to get them F12 131 out. Then they sell cheap and quick and put in a loan insurance F12 132 claim. In the process driving house prices further down, making F12 133 things worse.

F12 134 No wonder Sheila McKechnie, director of the homeless charity F12 135 Shelter warned recently "It is clear the worst is yet F12 136 to come. The first half of this year sees more people in mortgage F12 137 arrears than during the whole of last year. Unless action is taken F12 138 now, 1991 looks set to be the year of unprecedented misery for home F12 139 owners."

F12 140 At the height of the Thatcherite Fools' Paradise we warned that F12 141 it was all an illusion. The vast number of new 'home owners' were F12 142 actually 'home loaners'. They didn't own their own homes. The F12 143 moneylenders - banks and building societies - did.

F12 144 All they owned was a big debt. A debt, moreover, whose interest F12 145 rate was not agreed at the time of borrowing but could be hiked by F12 146 the loan shark institution whenever it felt like it. An arrangement F12 147 which rightly has been illegal throughout most of our country's F12 148 history, and ought to be illegal now. An arrangement which meant F12 149 that millions of families were hit when the Government deliberately F12 150 raised interest rates through the roof.

F12 151 They did it to curb imports when what they should have done was F12 152 bring in import controls; and to lower inflation by raising F12 153 unemployment, the rusty see-saw on which the British economy has F12 154 been swinging from crisis to crisis for fifty years and more.

F12 155 Economic nationalism would cure balance of payments and F12 156 inflation problems without throwing thousands of British families F12 157 onto the streets. Fixed rate, low interest loans, with interest F12 158 accrual and repayments suspended while the breadwinner was F12 159 unemployed or unfit for work, possibly provided by a State Bank, F12 160 would give British families a secure roof over their heads.

F12 161 F12 162 F12 163 FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO ENCOURAGE FAMILY LIFE!

F12 164 By Steve Brady

F12 165 ALL OVER EUROPE, the native White people are having fewer F12 166 and fewer babies. The number of young people is going down. The F12 167 number of elderly pensioners they must support is going up. The F12 168 population is going down. Our nations, our race, is dying out. We F12 169 Europeans are a dying breed.

F12 170 A death speeded by those liberals and multi-racialists who F12 171 use the falling native birth-rate to call for even more Coloured F12 172 Immigration "to keep up the numbers of the F12 173 work-force".

F12 174 Let's look at the situation across out White European homeland. F12 175 Remembering one vital statistic: each woman must, on average, have F12 176 2.1 children in her lifetime to keep the population constant. Any F12 177 less, and the numbers will fall. Until, if nothing is done, the F12 178 nation dies and the race becomes extinct, like the dodo or the F12 179 dinosaur.

F12 180 BRITAIN: F12 181 Average birth rate: 1.8 children per woman. In 1960 it was 2.8. F12 182 The number of third-born children has nearly halved, from F12 183 278,500 in 1960 to 140,400 in 1988. Meanwhile Bengali immigrants F12 184 have an average of 8.0 children per couple. By the mid-2060's F12 185 Britons will be outnumbered by Coloureds in their own country. On F12 186 30th July the London Independent called for more F12 187 Immigrants to be "attracted" to Britain to make up the F12 188 falling native numbers.

F12 189 FRANCE: F12 190 Average birth rate: 1.81 children per woman. In 1980 it was F12 191 1.95. In 1970 2.48. Millions of North African Immigrants have a F12 192 burgeoning birth rate. On July 29th, the French State statistics F12 193 and economic office, INSEE, revealing the latest fall in native F12 194 birth rate, recommended that the workforce be kept up by 142,000 F12 195 Immigrants a year between 2000 and 2009, 148,000 a year in the F12 196 following decade and 180,000 immigrants a year between 2020 and F12 197 2029. That was on current French birth rates. But INSEE went on to F12 198 point out that on current trends the birth rate would fall to 1.5 F12 199 children per Frenchwoman, so it called for 315.000 Immigrants a F12 200 year if so.

F12 201 GERMANY: F12 202 Average birth rate: 1.4 children per woman. "It is F12 203 a daunting prospect" said Hans-Peter Bosse of the F12 204 national statistics office in Wiesbaden, "as a nation F12 205 we are simply failing to reproduce ourselves." F12 206 According to Ulrich Mammey of the Federal Institute for Population F12 207 Research, Coloured Immigrants in Germany, notably Turks, have F12 208 bigger families. Currently 6.25% of the population, they will have F12 209 almost doubled to 10% in the next nine years. F12 210 "Obviouosly that is going to cause some F12 211 concern" warned Herr Mammey. "But if F12 212 Germans themselves are not reproducing in sufficient numbers we F12 213 will have to get more people from somewhere. Perhaps we will even F12 214 need an active Immigration policy".

F12 215 ITALY: F12 216 Average birth rate: 1.29 children per woman. The lowest in F12 217 Europe. Large numbers of North African Immigrants with a high F12 218 birthrate in the Country.

F12 219 SPAIN: F12 220 Average birth rate: 1.3 children per woman.

F12 221 PORTUGAL: F12 222 Average birth rate: 1.5 children per woman.

F12 223 GREECE: F12 224 Average birth rate: 1.5 children per woman.

F12 225 IRISH REPUBLIC: F12 226 Average birth rate: 2.1 children per woman. Population F12 227 therefore holding its own, but the birthrate is steadily falling. F12 228 Coloured Immigrants beginning to move into Dublin and other large F12 229 cities.

F12 230 RUSSIA: F12 231 Birth rate of Whites falling. Birth rate of Muslims in Central F12 232 Asian republics of the former Soviet Union is five time that of the F12 233 Russians. If the Soviet Union had survived, Russians would have F12 234 been an ethnic minority in it in nine years time.

F12 235 F12 236 F12 237 F13 1 <#FLOB:F13\>WOMEN AT WESTMINSTER

F13 2 A trip to the House of Commons may be a good way to stimulate F13 3 youthful political interest, but it might not encourage a young F13 4 woman with ambitions of becoming the next Margaret Thatcher or F13 5 Shirley Williams. Most of the women she would see inside the Palace F13 6 of Westminster would be serving food to male, besuited Members of F13 7 Parliament or typing their letters.

F13 8 It would be far better for a budding female politician to meet F13 9 some of Britain's women MPs. They want more women to swell their F13 10 ranks. They believe that more young women from all backgrounds F13 11 could and should consider entering politics -and bring to the work F13 12 of the House all the understanding and insight that their F13 13 experience as women will have given them. More women MPs, they say, F13 14 would mean that the women and the men of Britain would be F13 15 better served by their government.

F13 16 But the women who have fought their way into Parliament do not F13 17 underestimate the difficulties facing those who would like to join F13 18 them. Such hopefuls will have to fight for time away from work and F13 19 home responsibilities; sit through fearsome constituency selection F13 20 committees; withstand sexist and trivialising media comments and, F13 21 if they get into the House, deal with some chauvinist colleagues, F13 22 and a work environment which largely caters for men. But those that F13 23 succeed agree that it is worth all the effort.

F13 24 'The most exclusive gentlemen's club in the country' still has F13 25 only 43 women members. Amanda Seller asks six women MPs F13 26 how to get a seat in the House of Commons.

F13 27 EMMA NICHOLSON

F13 28 Conservative MP for Torridge and West Devon since 1987.

F13 29 EMMA NICHOLSON'S history belies claims that having the right F13 30 connections helps a political career. Her family has had members in F13 31 both the House of Lords and the Commons for many years - including F13 32 her MP father - but she was still rejected by 27 selection F13 33 committees before standing for one seat and then winning at F13 34 Torridge.

F13 35 But she believes the effort was worth it: "Being an MP F13 36 is very rewarding - although it's not easy in any respect. People F13 37 come to you as a last resort about terrible things that are F13 38 happening to them and very often you don't have the power to help - F13 39 you just try. You need imagination, resourcefulness and the belief F13 40 that what you are doing matters. Sometimes you make a difference to F13 41 someone, and then it's absolutely wonderful."

F13 42 It is on the grounds of improving the quality of decision F13 43 making that she would like to see more women MPs: "Women F13 44 are the main consumers in society; they go to the shops, the F13 45 schools, the child clinics. They can say what's wrong with their F13 46 services and say how they could be made better. More women in F13 47 Parliament would mean better representation not only of women, but F13 48 of everybody. A mixed team with a variety of skills and life F13 49 experience makes the best team - and that's what we just haven't F13 50 got at the moment."

F13 51 She does not think, however, that Parliament is so much F13 52 anti-woman as anti-family: "The hours are dreadful. My F13 53 father was an MP and I missed him terribly when I was a child. F13 54 There's a very high divorce rate in the House of Commons - so you F13 55 see the men suffer too but in a different way."

F13 56 The issue, predictably, that women MPs disagree most about is F13 57 the effect on women of Margaret Thatcher's leadership. Emma F13 58 Nicholson is very enthusiastic: "Of course Margaret F13 59 Thatcher has made a huge difference. She has completely turned F13 60 around the perception of whether women can perform politically at F13 61 the highest level. Even women who don't concur with her politics F13 62 should recognise that."

F13 63 Emma Nicholson wants young women to start thinking in political F13 64 terms at a very early stage: "Get involved and keep at it. F13 65 And always always <&|>sic! be honest about why you're interested in F13 66 this way of life. If you want to feed your ego or be famous then F13 67 that's OK, but admit it to yourself, because in politics you can't F13 68 conceal your true personality or motives. Your soul gets stripped F13 69 bare - remember that.'

F13 70 JO RICHARDSON

F13 71 Labour MP for Barking, Essex since 1974.

F13 72 "THERE ARE too few women in the Commons for the same F13 73 reasons that are too few women in all position of power. Things are F13 74 changing, but it's very slow."

F13 75 Like other women MPs, Jo Richardson believes that women have to F13 76 find the time to do the hard local political work: F13 77 "Politics is particularly problematic as a career because F13 78 women often have to support themselves by working, meet their home F13 79 responsibilities and then have this third life which is about F13 80 proving your political credentials. It's unpaid, it's demanding and F13 81 it's often thankless, but you have to do the dull, hard work. You F13 82 can't just waltz into a selection committee and say 'Here I F13 83 am'."

F13 84 She would like to see the Commons become more woman-friendly, F13 85 but she thinks that women already there are achieving a great deal F13 86 despite the difficulties: "Most men have some sort of F13 87 support at home which makes a political career possible. Women F13 88 often don't have that. And of course politics can be very F13 89 expensive. Getting nominations, travelling a lot, canvassing. It F13 90 would be untrue to say that anyone could afford it."

F13 91 Jo Richardson advises interested and motivated young women to F13 92 join a local party: "Join a women's section, work hard, be F13 93 yourself, but above all do it because you want to change things for F13 94 the better, not because you want to be an MP. Women have to be F13 95 involved to represent women, to present the feminist perspective. F13 96 Then the country's women will be properly served by government. It F13 97 may take a long while but we'll get there."

F13 98 MARION ROE

F13 99 Conservative MP for Broxbourne, Herts since 1983.

F13 100 MARION ROE is a rare kind of politician. While some women MPs F13 101 have reluctantly foregone having children in order to enter F13 102 politics, Marion Roe took the opposite approach. She stayed at home F13 103 with her children until they were teenagers and then began - at the F13 104 age of 39 and with no experience - her political career.

F13 105 "I'm not a feminist, but I do think you need to hear a F13 106 balanced view of matters. Very often women in politics are without F13 107 families and I wanted to represent all those ordinary women who F13 108 have children like me. My friends thought I was raving mad when I F13 109 told them what I wanted to do, but when I finally stood as an MP at F13 110 Broxbourne I got one of the highest Conservative majorities in the F13 111 country."

F13 112 This was after she had spent several years learning about F13 113 politics as a councillor on the GLC: "It's important to get F13 114 experience at that level as well, I think - and it's very important F13 115 work." She waves at Ken Livingstone as he passes us in the F13 116 lobby. "I had some awful rows with Ken at the GLC - real F13 117 cat and dog. But when I got here he was one of the first to shake F13 118 my hand and say hello. That's one of the really good things about F13 119 politics that people outside don't often understand. We can tear F13 120 each other apart in debates, but we all support the way the system F13 121 works - we're comrades."

F13 122 Marion Roe feels that any sort of woman can achieve in politics F13 123 if she is determined enough: "Just get in there and don't F13 124 get put down. If a selection committee turns you down and you think F13 125 it's because you are a woman then just get back in there and try F13 126 again. I actually think <}_><-|>woman<+|>women<}/> are ideal as MPs F13 127 - we're good listeners. Of course, this place has been male F13 128 dominated for a long time - and it does feel very male clubby, but F13 129 as more women come in it will change, gradually."

F13 130 Marion Roe prides herself on her 1985 Private Member's Bill F13 131 which outlawed female circumcision: "Even if that's the F13 132 only thing I ever achieve in Parliament I'd think all the battles F13 133 and hard work were worth it."

F13 134 CLARE SHORT

F13 135 Labour MP for Ladywood, Birmingham since 1983.

F13 136 NO-ONE seems angrier than Clare Short about the male domination F13 137 of the Commons, but she doesn't let it stop her doing her job: F13 138 "There's so many silly things about the Commons. Of course F13 139 there are rude men and rotten toilets, but you'll find silly rude F13 140 men anywhere you go. Women deal with them and get on with their F13 141 lives. It's like that here."

F13 142 Like many women MPs she wants to point out the things that are F13 143 wrong with the system, but she doesn't want women to be put off F13 144 politics: "It's a winner's situation now. The more women F13 145 who join, the more human and attractive the place will become. And F13 146 hopefully some of those silly traditions like the 'Honourable F13 147 Gentlemens'<&_>sic!<&/> will disappear. Not that they get in the F13 148 way of getting things done. You get the hang of them in a couple of F13 149 weeks like starting any new job."

F13 150 Clare Short firmly believes that women should not see politics F13 151 as a career like any other: "It's a bad thing to be eaten F13 152 up by ambition in politics. You have to get involved because you F13 153 care - because you want to change things. I certainly didn't start F13 154 out to be an MP, I just ended up here."

F13 155 She believes that "the so-called womanly qualities - F13 156 like listening and supporting - make for ideal MP's. Those are F13 157 qualities that she feels Margaret Thatcher lacks: "I think F13 158 it's an absolute tragedy that she was the first woman Prime F13 159 Minister. She's done nothing for women and is so unwomanly, so F13 160 uncaring. She's a role model for politics that young women F13 161 shouldn't follow.'

F13 162 Clare Scott is very optimistic about today's generation of F13 163 young women: "When I go round schools now the 14 and 15 F13 164 year old girls are so advanced, so articulate. I think many of them F13 165 could be joining us in 20 or even 10 years time."

F13 166 ANN WIDDICOMBE

F13 167 Conservative MP for Maidstone, Kent since 1985.

F13 168 ANN WIDDICOMBE thinks that women MPs who whinge about the F13 169 behaviour of their male colleagues are doing themselves a grave F13 170 disservice: "We should concentrate on being good MPs rather F13 171 than just women MPs. We are here to represent all our F13 172 constituents."

F13 173 This does not mean, however, that she thinks women are not F13 174 discriminated against: "They have to go through the F13 175 'selectorate' -those awful committees that won't say 'We don't want F13 176 a woman', but will say 'This is an industrial area and you wouldn't F13 177 understand the issues'."

F13 178 She argues that women are in fact an asset to any constituency F13 179 during an election: "The media love women candidates - F13 180 we're newsworthy - and research has shown that we never lose F13 181 votes - and sometimes win a few more."

F13 182 She would like to see more women applicants for seats: F13 183 "If you want to get into politics then get a track record. F13 184 Join a political party, join in and fight some lousy seats. Then F13 185 perhaps by the time your kids are grown or you've established a F13 186 career you'll be ready to fight a safe seat - and you'll be an F13 187 experienced and skilled member of society."

F13 188 Ann Widdicombe believes that one of the main reasons women F13 189 don't put themselves forward for politics is lack of confidence: F13 190 "MPs are ordinary people. I know women who could do this F13 191 job extremely well but it would never occur to them. I'd like every F13 192 woman to consider politics as an option."

F13 193 ANN CLWYD

F13 194 Labour MP for Cynon Valley, Wales since 1987.

F13 195 ANN CLWYD spent ten years trying to get selected for a seat: F13 196 "The key is persistence. Get your foot in the door, get F13 197 known. You have to believe in yourself, despite the difficulties. F13 198 And it will be difficult."

F13 199 Ann Clwyd is one of the women MPs who think that Parliament has F13 200 to change to meet women's requirements. She wants childcare F13 201 provision for women who work at the Commons, and she wants the F13 202 hours of work changed from the current 2.00pm through to 2.00am: F13 203 "I was a Euro MP before I came here and God, what a F13 204 difference! F13 205 F13 206 F14 1 <#FLOB:F14\>The Health of Our Hospitals

F14 2 By Virginia Bottomley MP

F14 3 Minister of Health

F14 4 The title raises an interesting question. How do you measure F14 5 the health of a hospital? By numbers of patients treated? By F14 6 numbers of staff? By its balance sheet? The NHS reforms give us a F14 7 radical new definition. In future, the health of hospitals will be F14 8 tied directly to their contribution to better health for all. F14 9 Remarkably, this has never before been the case.

F14 10 This transformation stems from the division of responsibilities F14 11 in the NHS between the providers of services - including hospitals F14 12 - and those who plan and purchase health care - health authorities F14 13 and, for a range of non-urgent treatment, GP fundholders. Hospitals F14 14 are now paid for the services they provide through contracts made F14 15 by health authorities and GP fundholders on behalf of local F14 16 people.

F14 17 'Money following the patient' has rightly become a familiar F14 18 phrase in the healthcare lexicon. Its impact is fundamental. For F14 19 the first time, hospitals have an incentive to adapt the services F14 20 they offer to what health authorities and GP fundholders want to F14 21 secure. In the past, the hospital 'cash-limit' provided no such F14 22 incentive. Priorities for funding were often determined by the F14 23 pecking-order among different clinical specialities, with little F14 24 reference to what services were actually needed locally. Lord F14 25 McColl, the Director of Surgery at the Guy's and Lewisham NHS F14 26 Trust, described what the new system means for his hospital, as it F14 27 does for all others:

F14 28 "The Guy's and Lewisham Trust is ... reviewing every F14 29 service and asking fundamental questions such as: 'Is this service F14 30 of high quality? Is it relevant to the needs of our local F14 31 population? How cost-effective is it? Are there some people who F14 32 could do the job a bit better?' ... We shall be driven by the F14 33 vision of producing for our local community the most relevant F14 34 hospital and community services to match needs and expectations for F14 35 the next 10 to 20 years and at a cost that is affordable by the F14 36 taxpayer."

F14 37 At last, hospitals are focusing on patients' needs first and F14 38 foremost. Inevitably, this brings more challenges than under the F14 39 old provider-dominated system. Far easier to go around with eyes F14 40 and ears closed. For easier to continue providing the same old F14 41 services. Hospitals now face the challenge of ensuring that F14 42 resources are targeted as efficiently and effectively as possible. F14 43 They are now having to address issues some have avoided in the F14 44 past. Has overmanning prevented resources from being channelled F14 45 towards essential maintenance work? Have staff been deployed in the F14 46 most effective way?

F14 47 The result, already, is a range of innovative approaches to F14 48 providing patient care. The Kingston Hospital NHS Trust is planning F14 49 to build a 'patient hotel', where NHS patients who do not require F14 50 medical care, but who are not well enough to go home, can be looked F14 51 after. Patients will benefit from a comfortable and relaxing F14 52 environment; the hospital will be able to make better use of F14 53 existing beds for those in need of more intensive care.

F14 54 In a number of hospitals, local managers and clinicians have F14 55 decided that fewer, more highly qualified and better paid staff are F14 56 an essential element in an overall package of improved service F14 57 provision. But others, particularly in areas of growing population, F14 58 are planning to recruit more skilled clinicians to improve quality F14 59 of service. It is naive to believe that service provision will F14 60 remain static now that users of services have a greater say. What F14 61 is important is that patient care should be the guiding criterion F14 62 behind change.

F14 63 Even more striking - and surely more relevant - is the evidence F14 64 of a drive to improve quality of care and responsiveness to F14 65 patients.

F14 66 Through NHS contracts, hospitals are committing themselves to F14 67 consistently high standards of care. For example, some have F14 68 undertaken to give a minimum of seven days' notice of in-patient F14 69 admissions in order to give people time to prepare for treatment. F14 70 At the East Somerset Trust, a consumer council is being set up to F14 71 allow patients to have their say about the service they receive. F14 72 The Bradford Hospitals NHS Trust has an Equity Committee, to ensure F14 73 that the local community's views are heard in decisions over F14 74 services.

F14 75 Of course, such initiatives build on existing best practice in F14 76 the NHS. What is new is that sensitivity to patients' needs is F14 77 now a prerequisite of success.

F14 78 The common factor linking these initiatives is a determination F14 79 to make the most of opportunities presented by the new NHS. F14 80 Devolution of responsibility for running hospitals under our F14 81 reforms has given local managers and staff the means to act.

F14 82 Managers are facing up to challenges which have been thrust F14 83 under the carpet for too long. Encouragingly, they are involving F14 84 hospital staff in decision-making. It is increasingly clinicians F14 85 who are taking the key decisions on how to run hospital F14 86 departments. Many ward sisters now have substantial ward budgets F14 87 which they deploy to get the best standards of service. The new F14 88 freedoms go furthest in NHS Trusts and it is there that we are F14 89 seeing some of the greatest progress. But all hospitals are now F14 90 enjoying more local control of resources and decision-making.

F14 91 I see NHS Trust status as the model of choice for our F14 92 hospitals. Stronger links with local communities, involvement of F14 93 staff, the power to take decisions locally are the way forward. It F14 94 is encouraging that over 100 hospitals and other units have now F14 95 published applications to join the 57 existing NHS Trusts. It is a F14 96 vote of confidence in our hospitals and in the opportunities F14 97 offered them by the reforms.

F14 98 The Opposition's criticisms of our reforms are revealing. Some F14 99 are misguided, some plain mischievous. Claims of NHS Trusts leaving F14 100 the NHS have been repudiated, forecasts of massive redundancies F14 101 have turned out to be greatly exaggerated. Sadly, the Opposition's F14 102 obsession with the status and manning of hospitals reveals an F14 103 inability to move away from a view of the NHS that measures its F14 104 effectiveness by the number of hospitals and numbers of staff. That F14 105 might have been relevant in 1948. The reforms make sure that the F14 106 NHS focuses its attention more firmly on improving people's health, F14 107 and links the health of hospitals to this. Satisfying people's F14 108 needs will always be demanding. But it is surely the best measure F14 109 of a successful and healthy hospital.

F14 110 F14 111 No To A Two Tier System

F14 112 By Harriet Harman MP

F14 113 Shadow Minister of Health

F14 114 The Government should listen to the mounting public concern F14 115 about the NHS and the lack of confidence in the Government's health F14 116 policies. So far, the Government has said it is determined to press F14 117 on with its reforms in the teeth of opposition from doctors, nurses F14 118 and other health workers and opposition clearly expressed in F14 119 successive public opinion polls.

F14 120 The Government say that people will learn to accept the NHS F14 121 changes and get used to them. But that is what they said about the F14 122 poll tax.

F14 123 The Government must recognise that it's not that the public F14 124 don't understand what the reforms are about. The public do F14 125 understand the reforms and they don't want them.

F14 126 Under the internal market, hospitals no longer get their income F14 127 directly from the Government (via the district health authority). F14 128 Instead they have to earn it by winning contracts to treat F14 129 patients. The contracts are placed by district health authorities F14 130 on behalf of people who live in their district, or by fund-holding F14 131 GPs who place contracts for the care of the patients on their F14 132 list.

F14 133 This is already causing problems for patients, through lack of F14 134 choice and freedom to refer, and inequalities in a two tier F14 135 system.

F14 136 For example, women will no longer have the choice of which F14 137 hospital to have their baby in. This decision will now be taken by F14 138 the district health authority manager who will place a contract for F14 139 maternity services.

F14 140 Health Authorities are required to keep a contingency fund to F14 141 pay for the treatment of residents who choose to go to a hospital F14 142 different from the one chosen by the health authority managers. F14 143 However, the amounts set aside are tiny and patient choice is set F14 144 to become another casualty case in the new NHS.

F14 145 The internal market is leading to a two tier system where F14 146 patients with non-budget holding GPs take second place to F14 147 patients with budget holding GPs.

F14 148 In Welwyn Garden City, the Queen Elizabeth II hospital is F14 149 offering fast track admission for cataract operations to patients F14 150 of GP budget holders. Meanwhile a local resident whose GP is not a F14 151 budget holder has been told she will have to wait two years - until F14 152 she is 75 years old - before she can get the operation.

F14 153 Competition in the internal market will be on cost rather than F14 154 quality.

F14 155 Opt out hospitals are to be the leading edge of the internal F14 156 market. They are to be the market leaders - in salesmen's F14 157 jargon.

F14 158 Where opinion has been tested the majority of people are F14 159 overwhelmingly against opt outs. The Government pressed on however F14 160 and made 56 hospitals into trusts. We have already seen the effects F14 161 of this in hospitals like Guy's which announced nearly 400 job F14 162 losses and is <}_><-|>taking<+|>talking<}/> about inevitable F14 163 reductions in direct patient care services.

F14 164 Over 100 hospitals have now been targeted for opt out in the F14 165 second wave. At the very least the Government should put on hold F14 166 the second wave of opt outs until they have sorted out the problems F14 167 of the first wave.

F14 168 Trusts are fragmenting the National Health Service. They are F14 169 not accountable to the local community - the first directors F14 170 appointed to the opted out hospitals are nearly all businessmen. F14 171 The primary focus of trusts will be to focus on the financial F14 172 survival of the institution rather than the services needed by F14 173 local people.

F14 174 That is why Labour will bring back opted out hospitals into the F14 175 local health service. We want our hospitals to work together for F14 176 patient care not competing for trade.

F14 177 The Government's review of the NHS was born out of national F14 178 concern about the underfunding of the service. These problems have F14 179 not gone away. The recent Health Select committee report on waiting F14 180 lists said that the human misery and financial cost of long waiting F14 181 lists are impossible to quantify. The National Audit Office has F14 182 reported on the appalling backlog of maintenance in the Health F14 183 Service. Hundreds of thousands of operations are cancelled each F14 184 year. Community health services are overstretched as people are F14 185 discharged more rapidly after operations.

F14 186 The present financial crisis in the Health Service developed F14 187 over many years and will take time to put right. To redress fully F14 188 the neglect of the past decade may well take at least the lifetime F14 189 of a parliament. Labour is determined to tackle this legacy of F14 190 neglect. The increasing number of very elderly people calls for F14 191 extra resources, as does the development of medical technology and F14 192 knowledge. Labour will invest in the modernisation of our hospitals F14 193 and tackle the backlog in maintenance and repairs although we F14 194 cannot expect to be able to put right overnight the neglect of F14 195 years. Labour will not cheat health authorities by agreeing pay F14 196 awards and then fail to fund them.

F14 197 What is needed is not the internal market to squeeze cost out - F14 198 but sensible investment matched by commitment to improve services. F14 199 Regions should allocate funds to districts on the basis of F14 200 Performance Agreements negotiated between regional and district F14 201 authorities. These performance agreements will reflect our strategy F14 202 to shift greater priority into health promotion and community based F14 203 service and will provide a statement of targets, priorities and F14 204 quality for the acute sector. We will empower patients with new F14 205 rights and have published a Charter of Patients' Rights. We will F14 206 establish a Quality Commission.

F14 207 Labour's 'Better Way to a Healthy Britain' sets out 30 F14 208 practical steps in an action plan for better health. In contrast, F14 209 the Government's recent Green Paper, The Health of the Nation, F14 210 contains no new proposals for Government action and includes F14 211 targets which are nothing more than pessimistic predictions of F14 212 current trends.

F14 213 On community care we will enable each individual to achieve as F14 214 full a participation as possible within the community. Spending on F14 215 community care should be clearly identified and ringfenced. F14 216 F15 1 <#FLOB:F15\>Military counsellors flooded by rising tide of F15 2 resistance

F15 3 SHELLEY ANDERSON

F15 4 "Mr Bush has delivered 452,000 US hostages to F15 5 Saddam Hussein. Now he wants them to fight their way out." F15 6 So read an advertisement placed by SANE/Freeze in the New York F15 7 Times, 26 December.

F15 8 During the Vietnam war there were hundreds of underground F15 9 newspapers and coffeehouses outside US military bases that F15 10 encouraged military personnel to oppose the war, many of them F15 11 organised jointly by peace activists and soldiers. Churches and F15 12 synagogues offered sanctuary to AWOL (absent without leave) F15 13 soldiers, and peace groups employed military counsellors to advise F15 14 soldiers about possible rights to discharge.

F15 15 The level of peace movement organisation is not now as high as F15 16 at the height of the Vietnam war, but already the number of US F15 17 military personnel applying for discharge as conscientious F15 18 objectors nearly matches its Vietnam peak, according to Michael F15 19 Marsh, who coordinates military counselling for the War Resisters F15 20 League.

F15 21 Military counsellors in the US and Germany are being flooded F15 22 with requests for help from US reservists and active duty personnel F15 23 who see no reason to fight in the Gulf. The Central Committee for F15 24 Conscientious Objection (CCCO), founded in 1948, is receiving over F15 25 100 telephone requests per day. The handful of counsellors F15 26 associated with the Military Counseling Network (MCN) in Germany F15 27 are receiving almost as many - by early December, MCN counsellors F15 28 had helped prepare 75 claims, many of them based on conscientious F15 29 objection. As of early December, over 2,000 applications for CO had F15 30 been filed in the US.

F15 31 The Military Counseling Network is a small group of US and F15 32 German peace activists who provide free legal aid to US GIs F15 33 (soldiers). Until the Gulf crisis, MCN had counselled a few dozen F15 34 people in its four year history. All that changed with the F15 35 announcement in November that 100,000 of the 250,000 US troops F15 36 stationed in Germany were being sent to Saudi Arabia. To handle the F15 37 increased demand, MCN arranged for five counsellors to fly over F15 38 from the US before Christmas.

F15 39 US applicants for CO status face a long and involved process. F15 40 They have to answer in writing a series of questions before having F15 41 interviews with a military chaplain, a psychiatrist and a 'hearing F15 42 board' (tribunal). This board then forwards the application within F15 43 90 days to a higher board in Washington DC, which makes the final F15 44 judgement. The whole process usually takes at least six months. One F15 45 application recently rejected was that of Erik Larsen (see November F15 46 Peace News), a marine reservist. Erik has yet to be F15 47 called out but has announced that he will refuse.

F15 48 US CO GIs go AWOL

F15 49 In sharp contrast to its usual policy, since 25 October, the US F15 50 Army is now refusing to accept CO application until the soldier is F15 51 actually in Saudi Arabia. "How will they process CO claims F15 52 in the middle of the Saudi desert?" asks Louis P Font, a F15 53 lawyer who works with Citizen Soldier, a group providing help to F15 54 military personnel. "Are they planning a battalion of COs F15 55 out there waiting to see what will happen with their F15 56 claims?"

F15 57 Out in the Gulf, soldiers will, of course, have a hard time F15 58 finding out about their rights and no support in making their F15 59 claims. One US commanding officer in Germany recently threatened to F15 60 court-martial a GI if he filed for CO status: the soldier F15 61 didn't know this threat was illegal.

F15 62 In mid-October, the US Congress also passed the STOP-LOSS Act, F15 63 which indefinitely freezes all discharges from the US military and F15 64 cuts off most legal ways a GI can leave the military. Consequently F15 65 the number of AWOLs is likely to rise. A member of DFG-VK F15 66 N<*_>u-umlaut<*/>rnberg (one of the German WRI sections), reports F15 67 that some 15 US soldiers have gone AWOL in the last few weeks (of F15 68 the 20,000 US troops stationed in the area, 12,000 have been F15 69 reassigned to Saudi Arabia).

F15 70 AWOLs face a harder time now than in the Vietnam war. NATO F15 71 countries have legislation obliging national police to hand US F15 72 AWOLs over to the US military and, unlike in the 1960s and 70s, F15 73 Sweden will not be a haven for AWOLs. The Swedish government has F15 74 revised its asylum policies anticipating a massive influx of Soviet F15 75 refugees. (Baltic draft resisters will, however, be given asylum in F15 76 Sweden following the sending of Soviet paratroops into F15 77 Lithuania.)

F15 78 Some WRI sections and other anti-militarist groups, F15 79 however, have already declared their intention of harbouring any F15 80 AWOLs or draft resisters who seek their help. A Swiss F15 81 anti-militarist group has declared Geneva a 'protection zone', F15 82 while IRG - the French-speaking Belgian section of WRI - plans to F15 83 set up a network of safe houses.

F15 84 Leonard Skversky, a Jewish conscientious objector stationed in F15 85 Germany, went AWOL in December after the army refused to consider F15 86 his claim until he was in Saudi<&|>sic!. A musician, he had been F15 87 doing off-duty volunteer work in a Jewish old people's home near F15 88 N<*_>u-umlaut<*/>rnberg. There he met survivors of the Holocaust. F15 89 "I had the opportunity to see the inhumane reality of what F15 90 blind patriotism to one's country can do to a race of F15 91 people", he wrote in his CO application.

F15 92 Another soldier, who went AWOL when he was denied CO status, F15 93 returned to base after he was promised he would not be sent to F15 94 Saudi Arabia. He was promptly handcuffed and placed on a plane to F15 95 Saudi Arabia.

F15 96 Many GIs in Germany first come into contact with the Military F15 97 Counseling Network through their German wives or girlfriends. F15 98 N<*_>u-umlaut<*/>rnberg DFG-VK has organised a support group for F15 99 these women which meets twice a week and a similar group is being F15 100 organised in Frankfurt. The women have leafleted and conducted F15 101 anti-war vigils outside military bases, placed ads in local F15 102 newspapers, and spoken out at demonstrations. At least one wife has F15 103 been harassed by Army officials because of such work.

F15 104 Also in the N<*_>u-umlaut<*/>rnberg area, a GI underground F15 105 antiwar newspaper has appeared.

F15 106 The first reports of resistance within the British Army also F15 107 came from Germany, and once again At Ease, the British independent F15 108 military counselling group, has a representative in Germany. The F15 109 main source of resistance in Britain came just after Christmas. The F15 110 UK Ministry of Defence appealed for reservists to volunteer for the F15 111 Gulf. When too few reservists came forward, it began to call up F15 112 reservists - all of whom were former professional servicepeople.

F15 113 At Ease was set up in 1974 in response to discontent in the F15 114 British Army in Northern Ireland. For the past 17 years, it has had F15 115 one session a week. Currently it consists of a rota of five F15 116 counsellors in London and five in other parts of Britain. Suddenly, F15 117 it faced an unprecedented demand, as did other peace organisations F15 118 (including WRI). MP Tam Dalyell made a rather misleading claim that F15 119 reservists could not be sent overseas, but he was referring to F15 120 obsolete legislation.

F15 121 The UK Ministry of Defence won't release figures for reservists F15 122 exempted from going to Saudi<&|>sic!: At Ease estimates there were F15 123 some 30 COs but some of these were exempted on other grounds F15 124 (medical, compassionate or career).

F15 125 Fears of conscription

F15 126 In both the US and the UK - countries without conscription but F15 127 with a heavy commitment in the Gulf - and now in Australia, fears F15 128 are growing of the reintroduction of conscription.

F15 129 Michael Marsh at War Resisters League's New York office says F15 130 most of the calls he gets about conscription are from mothers. He F15 131 points out that the US military is authorised to call up a further F15 132 million reservists but he doubts that anything like that number F15 133 could be incorporated into the military structures. In Britain and F15 134 now in Australia, anti-war parliamentarians and others have F15 135 reported that conscription papers are already being printed. In F15 136 view of the British establishment's pride in its professional army, F15 137 reintroduction of conscription is far less likely than the resort F15 138 to nuclear weapons - indeed some peace activists suggest the F15 139 rumours are being used to soften up public opinion for the use of F15 140 nuclear weapons.

F15 141 And what of Iraqi soldiers? An estimated 100 soldiers left Iraq F15 142 for Turkey during mid-November, when one Iraqi officer said that F15 143 perhaps half the army would desert if war was declared. By January, F15 144 the number in Turkey had reportedly risen to 500 - a bitter irony F15 145 considering the thousands of Turkish war resisters in exile. (In F15 146 Turkey the theoretical maximum penalty for draft resistance is F15 147 death.)

F15 148 The much-publicised defection of six Iraqi pilots complete with F15 149 their helicopters seems to have been an invention. Odd, then that F15 150 some 'newspapers' referred to them as 'top pilots', while others F15 151 had them confirming the reports of the execution of Iraqi officers F15 152 following the invasion of Kuwait.

F15 153 F15 154 Surviving the war at home

F15 155 KEN SIMONS

F15 156 How to respond to a war we didn't want? Coping with life F15 157 on the home front is a difficult challenge, both for people active F15 158 in the anti-war movement and for those who are merely trying to F15 159 come to terms with the enormity of what has happened.

F15 160 Following are some of the areas where a critical attitude can F15 161 be of major advantage in understanding and dealing with this F15 162 war.

F15 163 Lies and disinformation, and press censorship. We F15 164 were told a wagon-load of great big dirty whopping lies on the F15 165 first day of hostilities. A sample (I paraphrase from BBC news F15 166 reports): "The <*_>e-acute<*/>lite Iraqi republican guard F15 167 has been wiped out", "The entire Iraqi air force F15 168 was destroyed on the ground", "All their missile F15 169 launchers have been destroyed", "None of our planes F15 170 were lost", and "We only bombed military F15 171 targets".

F15 172 But the disinformation and censorship industry did not begin on F15 173 17 January. There had already been frequent calls - from the media F15 174 themselves - for self-censorship in order to 'protect our F15 175 boys'. This went far beyond merely keeping operational details F15 176 secret, encompassing also the suppression of bad news so as not to F15 177 give comfort to the enemy.

F15 178 During the phoney-war phase of 2 August - 16 January, this was F15 179 expressed as 'not sending Saddam the wrong message', was regularly F15 180 invoked against opposition politicians' statements on the military F15 181 buildup, and was even brought in as an argument against the F15 182 replacement of Margaret Thatcher as leader of the British F15 183 Conservative Party.

F15 184 Anti-Arab racism, including such official acts as the F15 185 imprisonment or deportation of Iraqi nationals, then Palestinians, F15 186 and next - who knows? Anyone from the Middle East? Any Muslim? F15 187 Already fears have been expressed that some of those now detained F15 188 could in fact be genuine refugees from Saddam's regime.

F15 189 On the more everyday level, schools have already been dealing F15 190 with cases of victimisation of Arab children, people in Middle F15 191 Eastern and Muslim dress have been harassed and assaulted, and F15 192 there have been bomb threats; in Britain, a Gulf-related firebomb F15 193 attack left a Bradford mosque damaged.

F15 194 Within the antiwar movement - which, in Britain as elsewhere, F15 195 includes many vehemently anti-Zionist groups - there was an F15 196 anti-Israeli and sometimes anti-Jewish flavour to some of the F15 197 slogans and positions taken, even before the involvement of Israel F15 198 in the conflict. We must counter this as vigorously as we counter F15 199 anti-Arab and anti-Muslim attitudes and acts.

F15 200 Children and war imagery. George Gerbner comments: F15 201 "The Persian Gulf story is not the contained and happy F15 202 violence to which we are accustomed... The pattern of screen F15 203 violence and victimisation presents a mean world which arouses F15 204 anxiety but also contains it..." But the Gulf war F15 205 "does not stop at the final commercial. It interrupts and F15 206 even preempts favourite programmes - clear sign of dire emergency. F15 207 Win or lose... there is no clearly predictable happy F15 208 ending."

F15 209 Gerbner goes on to recommend that war imagery should not be F15 210 placed out of bounds to children - to do so would serve only to F15 211 heighten the sense of things having gone out of control - but that F15 212 parents should view and discuss such material with their children, F15 213 so alleviating some of the most harmful consequences.

F15 214 Conscription. Not likely in Britain at present, we are F15 215 assured from a variety of sources. However, if it is a long war, F15 216 this issue will come up again. People concerned about this F15 217 possibility can contact Box CO, Peace News, 55 Dawes St, London F15 218 SE17 1EL; a project is under discussion to register objectors F15 219 regardless of whether or not conscription is introduced, and all F15 220 ideas are welcome.

F15 221 F15 222 F15 223 F15 224 F16 1 <#FLOB:F16\>Thought for the 'Silly Season'

F16 2 DON'T TRUST THE 'EXPERTS'

F16 3 One feels that in the affluent capitalist world of the G7 the F16 4 only growing industry is that of experts. As fewer and fewer people F16 5 dirty their hands producing the food we eat more and more experts F16 6 and consultants (employed by the ICIs and Fisons, the machine F16 7 manufacturers and the landowners' agents) descend on the remaining F16 8 farmers 'advising'/'instructing' them what to grow and how, to the F16 9 very last detail. And of course the advice/orders are influenced by F16 10 vested interests of those giving the advice or their masters. This F16 11 approach applies to all sections of industry and now even with the F16 12 public services.

F16 13 Let's face up to it, with some honourable exceptions, all this F16 14 growing industry of expertise is a racket! Unfortunately the media F16 15 are the worst offenders and have succeeded in brainwashing the F16 16 public with their own experts and 'authoritative' polls, into F16 17 accepting that a monopoly of the 'true facts' are held by an elite F16 18 who also know all the answers.

F16 19 In our so-called democracy we only have a capitalist national F16 20 press just as in the USSR they only had a Community Party press. We F16 21 call ours a free press and that of the USSR unfree. For F16 22 socialists and anarchists they are both unfree.

F16 23 If we overlook our mass circulation tabloids (which also have F16 24 their 'experts' but on sex problems rather than economies) the F16 25 so-called serious broadsheets all have their economics F16 26 correspondent/editor, their political commentators, their F16 27 industrial editors and of course the arts have their pontificators. F16 28 They are all presented to us, the serious reading public, as F16 29 experts.

F16 30 And last, but not least, we have the experts par F16 31 excellence, our politicians. They are modest experts in that F16 32 they surround themselves with the permanent experts in the civil F16 33 service, and a few freelance economists, journalists, business F16 34 tycoons, speech writers, make-up experts, speech therapists, F16 35 fashion experts (after all, politicians' main public exposure F16 36 nowadays is on television and your hair-do, dress, etc., are F16 37 essential PR attributes). Remember Michael Foot's image in anorak F16 38 and flowing white mane at the Cenotaph, of all places, lost him F16 39 thousands of votes say the 'experts'. All brainwashing balderdash F16 40 for which the media are responsible.

F16 41 Let us start with government ministers (and the shadow F16 42 opposition). Nowadays most of them are either lawyers or economists F16 43 which it might be argued is an excellent training for twisting the F16 44 facts.

F16 45 We have had in the past three weeks perhaps the perfect example F16 46 of the art in twisting the facts both from the politicians and the F16 47 experts in the media.

F16 48 The official figures for the June balance of payments showed a F16 49 swing by over pounds500 million compared with May to a slight F16 50 surplus of pounds23 million - the first since February 1987. The F16 51 right wing Independent (23rd July) whose economic F16 52 correspondent we quote refers to:

F16 53 Reflecting factors like weak home demand and a long F16 54 term improvement in exports of Japanese cars made in Britain, F16 55 manufacturing recorded a pounds117 million surplus - the first F16 56 since February 1984.

F16 57 The figures also disclosed that for the second time this year F16 58 Britain chalked up a small surplus in trade with the European F16 59 Community.

F16 60 And on another Business & City page of The F16 61 Independent the same author, Hamish McRae, makes sure in his F16 62 opening paragraph (rather like the pollsters and the weather F16 63 experts) that one cannot be sure of one month's figures - it can be F16 64 "a deeply misleading pointer to the underlying F16 65 trend".

F16 66 But then the poor man sticks out his neck and declares:

F16 67 But even allowing for the background noise in the F16 68 numbers, on the face of it the current account figures seem to F16 69 signal that the balance of payments problem is over, while the F16 70 retail sales figures signal that the recession is over. The first F16 71 conclusion is probably right and the second conclusion is probably F16 72 wrong.

F16 73 All the other experts on the serious press reported this F16 74 surplus in the balance of payments without question, though with F16 75 some surprise The Financial Times thought it F16 76 "remarkable and unexpected". It was a F16 77 "surprise" for The Daily Telegraph and F16 78 "far better than expected" for The Times F16 79 and The Guardian. But it was left to the editorial writer F16 80 of The New Statesman & Society (26th July) to drop a bomb F16 81 on the complacent economic hacks (experts) on the dailies. To F16 82 quote:

F16 83 What none of the quality financial commentators F16 84 cottoned on to was the fact that the trade figures would still be F16 85 in substantial deficit were it not for Britain's mercenaries' F16 86 endeavours during the Gulf war.

F16 87 In other words, the current quarter's 'invisible' earnings F16 88 include pounds1,200 million in contributions from Germany, Japan F16 89 and the Gulf States for Britain's mercenary forces' activities. And F16 90 as The New Statesman & Society puts it:

F16 91 For June, that adds up to a hidden pounds400 million F16 92 contribution to the trade balance - or the difference between F16 93 pounds23 million surplus and a pounds377 million deficit. War has F16 94 been good for the balance of payments.

F16 95 But for The New Statesman & Society looking at the F16 96 small print the expert economic hacks would have got away with it. F16 97 The Guardian's Victor Keegan in his 'Notebook' F16 98 acknowledges The New Statesman & Society's researchers F16 99 (not as generously as he should have) but otherwise no correction F16 100 has been made by the dailies or Sundays. So much for the integrity F16 101 of these experts.

F16 102 Another characteristic of the experts is that they are all so F16 103 well informed that they can leak the news. The Independent on F16 104 Sunday (28th July) now produced by the same staff as the daily F16 105 (for reasons of economy) splashed over its business supplement:

F16 106 picture

F16 107 Unfortunately for The Independent on Sunday the CBI's F16 108 quarterly survey of industrial trends according to The F16 109 Guardian the next day (29th July) was all doom and gloom.

F16 110 Meanwhile The Sunday Telegraph (28th July) in its F16 111 City & Business supplement has as its main headline: "UK on F16 112 the Up-Turn - Official"

F16 113 But who takes seriously the utterances of the politicians - in F16 114 particular government ministers? A "great F16 115 improvement" in the economy in the second half of the year F16 116 was predicted by the Prime Minister (The Guardian, 20th F16 117 July). A week or so later the Chancellor Norman Lamont claimed F16 118 "dramatic progress" in cutting inflation but F16 119 further dampened hopes of a sudden end to the economic recession F16 120 (The Guardian, 29th July).

F16 121 Then we had more 'sensational' news. The car industry had F16 122 exported a 'record' number in June (45% more than a year ago, said F16 123 The Independent on Sunday, 28th July). By Monday it was F16 124 being pointed out that this was just an exceptional month, that the F16 125 Germans were having trouble with their market and this was a F16 126 one-off. And to add to the gloom was the forecast by the Society of F16 127 Motor Manufacturers and Traders that it was expected that another F16 128 30,000 jobs would go in the next twelve months bringing the total F16 129 for the two year period ending next summer to 70,000.

F16 130 What is especially alarming for the white-collar employees and F16 131 professionals is that unemployment is now hitting them hardest:

F16 132 The human cost of recession in Britain's wealthiest F16 133 region was revealed today as the Employment Department announced F16 134 that 300,000 people in London and the South East have lost their F16 135 jobs in the last 15 months...

F16 136 But nowhere has been harder hit than London and the commuter F16 137 belt where unemployment had leapt by a record 88% since March 1990. F16 138 There are now 639,000 people out of work in the South-East - up F16 139 more than 25,000 on the May figure. Of the 299,600 who have joined F16 140 the dole queues since the figures started to rise, almost 137,000 F16 141 were in London. (The Evening Standard, 18th F16 142 July)

F16 143 And unlike the unemployed manual worker who can always make a F16 144 few pounds as a bricoleur (see The Employment F16 145 Question by Denis Pym, Freedom Press, pounds2), what can F16 146 unemployed bank or insurance company employees from managers F16 147 downwards, or shop assistants hope to find to tide them over until F16 148 their skills are again in demand? As all white collar jobs are F16 149 being mechanised and computerised (even management is being taken F16 150 over by computers) unemployment in this sector, in our opinion, F16 151 will continue to increase. Only last month IBM, the world's largest F16 152 computer company, announced that it was shedding 17,000 jobs, F16 153 presumably many of the jobs being taken over by more sophisticated F16 154 computers?

F16 155 In our modest opinion (since we do not presume to be experts in F16 156 capitalist economics - our only interest being to abolish the F16 157 system) the recession will not 'bottom out' in the near future for F16 158 one simple reason: that the existing industrial productive capacity F16 159 exceeds demand. Since 'demand' in a capitalist world depends on F16 160 means, and most of the world's people haven't the means to buy all F16 161 the 'goodies' that the consumerist society produces (and that the F16 162 third world is producing more and more of but not being able to F16 163 afford) the only salvation for capitalism is to make some gestures F16 164 for re-distribution of wealth towards the have-nots. Up to now F16 165 every government, Tory or Labour, has managed willy-nilly to ensure F16 166 that the rich have got richer and the rest poorer. The present F16 167 government in its twelve years has beaten all records for the F16 168 number of homeless, unemployed and social security claimants, not F16 169 to mention record 'crimes' against property - a sure indication of F16 170 real poverty (in spite of treating the forces of law and order most F16 171 generously).

F16 172 A future Labour government promises a minimum wage for the low F16 173 paid and to make the rich pay an extra 10% on their ill-gotten F16 174 gains as well as raising the limit on National Insurance. These are F16 175 peanuts and they know it.

F16 176 The politicians - all of them - are out for votes and power at F16 177 any price. The bosses - the CBI - are concerned with profits. Their F16 178 gloomy quarterly forecast ends with the expected demand for at F16 179 least a 1% reduction in interest rates. As Freedom has pointed F16 180 out time and time again, all this will do is increase their F16 181 profits. It will not influence investment in industry, nor in more F16 182 jobs. To give an example: ICI have announced higher than F16 183 anticipated profits, of pounds507 million. In the same breath they F16 184 are proposing to axe another for to five thousand jobs in addition F16 185 to the ten thousand already axed in the past twelve months. F16 186 Needless to say the top executives get their salary increases above F16 187 the inflation rate as well as bonuses even on trading results which F16 188 might have been worse!

F16 189 As anarchists we have no illusions that capitalism will stop F16 190 seeing profit as its guiding star. Neither do we have illusions F16 191 that starry-eyed socialists (most of them with large incomes) will F16 192 somehow tame the beast, or that the rich will willingly give up F16 193 their privileges and wealth for the common good. Alas, if we do F16 194 want to change society we must be prepared for struggle and F16 195 sacrifice. The underprivileged third world is setting the example F16 196 without much help from us in the West.

F16 197 We seem to have lost the power to protest in depth. 100,000 F16 198 people braved the rain in Hyde Park to hear (over loudspeakers) and F16 199 see (on video screens) the tenor Pavarotti, yet with three million F16 200 unemployed there has not yet been one mass demonstration against F16 201 the iniquities of capitalism. When will we wake up?

F16 202 F16 203 BIG DEAL

F16 204 The Government's Citizen's Charter (costing pounds8 million and F16 205 paid for by the taxpayer) is a pathetic propaganda exercise for the F16 206 Tories, and the critics could well ask how it is that it has taken F16 207 twelve years to produce, just in time for the next elections!

F16 208 It might be said that Major is not Thatcher. But the Charter is F16 209 so typically a consumerist document and Mrs Thatcher F16 210 epitomised the consumerist, confrontational society. Mr Major is F16 211 also committed to the privatisation of all the public services. F16 212 Various ministers have reiterated that railways, postal services F16 213 and the mines will be privatised at the earliest possible moment, F16 214 thereby clearly indicating that the Charter is a purely political F16 215 document quite unconcerned with the practical consequences of such F16 216 actions.

F16 217 Anarchists do not see nationalisation as a panacea or as the F16 218 only alternative to privatisation. F16 219 F16 220 F17 1 <#FLOB:F17\>Socialism and sovereignty

F17 2 Giles Radice

F17 3 How sovereign should the nation state be? Recent events have F17 4 underlined the continuing erosion of the principle of F17 5 non-intervention in internal affairs of sovereign states, which has F17 6 been the bedrock of international relations for most of the F17 7 twentieth century.

F17 8 Iraq has its nuclear facilities forcibly exposed by UN F17 9 inspectors. US Secretary of State James Baker pledges that genocide F17 10 such as occurred under Pol Pot will never again be allowed to F17 11 happen. The World Bank announces that its loans will henceforth be F17 12 conditional not only on economic policies, but also on social and F17 13 environmental policies and respect for human rights. As Frank Judd F17 14 and John Clark put it below, "old ideas of national F17 15 sovereignty must be tempered by agreed minimum standards of F17 16 governance and shared responsibility".

F17 17 To the internationalist Left, this emphasis on global community F17 18 must be welcome. Respect for the rights and dignity of the F17 19 individual should be upheld, whatever political entity that F17 20 individual lives under. Cultural relativism can have no appeal to F17 21 those who believe in fundamental freedoms. Yet there are dangers. F17 22 Nicholas Wheeler and Justin Morris point out that unless a F17 23 North-South consensus develops over what minimum standards should F17 24 be, the New World Order will be seen by the South not as F17 25 humanitarian enlightenment but as a new chapter in the history of F17 26 Western colonialism. Helping create this consensus is perhaps the F17 27 greatest challenge for the foreign policy of the next Labour F17 28 government.

F17 29 There are dangers too in underestimating the continuing appeal F17 30 of nationalism, as shown by the breakup of Yugoslavia and the F17 31 Soviet Union. While Western Europe forges ahead with integration, F17 32 centrifugal tendencies in the eastern and south eastern part of the F17 33 continent, as well as pressure from parts of the Community itself F17 34 to create a Europe of the regions, demonstrate that the principle F17 35 of self determination is as potent and problematical today as when F17 36 President Wilson enunciated it in 1918. Yet - Bruges group please F17 37 note - even those parts of the former Soviet or Yugoslav empires F17 38 pressing for independence are keen to pool their newly-won F17 39 sovereignty within the EC. They understand, as Calum Mcdonald puts F17 40 it, that "it is possible to be at the same time an ardent F17 41 devolutionist and a committed unionist; that is, to desire the F17 42 greatest possible degree of government decentralisation within the F17 43 widest possible political community. The question is where to draw F17 44 the line".

F17 45 With little over a month to go to the Maastricht Summit, where F17 46 to draw the line between the EC and the member states is the most F17 47 pressing issue facing Britain. The Conservative approach to the F17 48 question of sovereignty is, like so many of their policies at the F17 49 moment, incoherent. One day John Major is to be seen leading the F17 50 Commonwealth towards an interventionist approach to human rights. F17 51 The next day he is heard squealing with indignation at the F17 52 'interference' of the European Community in what passes for the F17 53 British government's environmental policy. Overriding Zambian F17 54 sovereignty, it seems, is fine, but overriding British sovereignty F17 55 is not.

F17 56 There are hard choices to be taken at Maastricht. How far F17 57 should the competence of the European Community be extended? It is F17 58 common ground (outside the British Conservatives) that currency F17 59 speculators, multinational companies and acid rain clouds are no F17 60 respecters of national boundaries - this is the rationale behind F17 61 the Labour Party's commitment to closer economic and monetary union F17 62 and a supranational approach to social and environmental policy. F17 63 Even within these broad policy areas, what should be the nature of F17 64 EC action? Should EC standards be set high, to drag up conditions F17 65 in Greece, Portugal and the other poorer states, or act simply as a F17 66 floor to prevent competitive down-bidding under the Single Market? F17 67 If they are high, how will this effect eastern European states F17 68 wishing to join? In other words, can we deepen as well as widen?

F17 69 Equally complex is the issue of the political arrangements F17 70 needed to govern the evolving Community. Can we accept a Community F17 71 in which the executive functions are carried out by appointees F17 72 rather than elected representatives? What role do we wish to assign F17 73 to the necessarily independent and unaccountable Court? Or to an F17 74 independent European Bank?

F17 75 Against this, as a Party committed to intervention where F17 76 necessary, we must seek to ensure that the Community's F17 77 institutional structure is coherent and effective, so that we can F17 78 regulate the free market and mitigate its effects in a way we no F17 79 longer can at national level. A Single European market requires F17 80 political action at a European level if it is to be more than F17 81 Thatcherism writ large <*_>black-square<*/>

F17 82 F17 83 Federation or union?

F17 84 Ben Cosin

F17 85 There seems to have been disproportionate sensitivity during F17 86 recent debates on Europe over a single piece of terminology, the F17 87 'F-word'. What should be the true socialist response to the F17 88 federalist approach to Europe?

F17 89 The current controversy is not just about whether federal F17 90 (English) is different from federal (German). It is also about F17 91 centralisation, bureaucracy, the relation between state and F17 92 society.

F17 93 In this, as so often, Mrs Thatcher has put her finger on the F17 94 issue, though as usual in a wrong-headed way. At the worst, F17 95 Brussels/Strasbourg will not be like the Soviet Union, but like a F17 96 more jaded version of the US. Strong judicial and administrative F17 97 organs, the French conseil d'etat writ large, F17 98 will make decision-making cumbersome, impeding the parliament and F17 99 the executive. The largest capitalist companies will not be too F17 100 bothered, they have the money, power and specialized agencies to F17 101 deal with any political set-up. All other groups will be put at an F17 102 administrative and political permanent disadvantage - to top up the F17 103 economic superiority already enjoyed by the monopoly F17 104 capitalists.

F17 105 The Brussels bureaucracy is cumbersome not in its size, F17 106 habitually exaggerated by its Poujadist opponents in the F17 107 'safeguards' movement and elsewhere, but in its scope and F17 108 potential. As it ingests more and more aspects of the life of more F17 109 and more nations, it will become tremendously complex and rigid. F17 110 Its wealth of regulations, tending to a wealth of regulatory F17 111 powers, are already evidence of this.

F17 112 Can countervailing forces come into play? Those forces cannot F17 113 be the independent power of the constituent nations; their F17 114 capitalists have already surrendered their 'independent' economic F17 115 power in the interest of greater, multinational power and profit. F17 116 It should not be the free play of market forces a la F17 117 1992, even within the loose framework of the Social Charter - what F17 118 is socialist or democratic about that?

F17 119 Eventually the supranational state will require a unitary F17 120 executive with some unfettered powers in reserve to deal with F17 121 emergencies; a state whose executive lacks such a reserve is not a F17 122 state at all. But at present, EC action is less in danger from such F17 123 a development than from an inability to concert action.

F17 124 All that is left with any serious chance of responsible and F17 125 progressive governmental development is the unity of the F17 126 legislature and the executive - the democratic and the sovereign F17 127 power. Such a unity is flexible enough to adjust to social F17 128 development so as to influence it, while permitting its independent F17 129 development. In the UK it is known as the Crown in Parliament. Its F17 130 peculiarity is that the legislature, important as the passage of F17 131 laws may be, is more important as the permanent electoral college F17 132 and constituent assembly which monitors the aptness of the F17 133 government to social life. Only if the active (not merely the F17 134 reserve) powers of the state are dependent on the legislature can F17 135 this flexible combination be achieved.

F17 136 But there are other conditions for its development - F17 137 constitutional as well as social. Here I focus on the F17 138 constitutional issue thrown up by the issue of federalism.

F17 139 Federalism centralises executive power more than do F17 140 confederation or alliance. But it also centralizes judicial and to F17 141 a lesser extent bureaucratic power more than any other system. For F17 142 by definition it divides governmental power permanently, on F17 143 principle and as of right, into at least two segments - that of the F17 144 central and that of the provincial governments (they may be called, F17 145 regional, national, Land, 'state' or whatever). That division and F17 146 its distinctions must be permanently policed. And the power that F17 147 polices them must be a power greater than any that can attempt to F17 148 blur them. Furthermore, it cannot be elected; otherwise the F17 149 distinctions it polices would not be principled and of right F17 150 (legal-judicial and constitutional). Federalism therefore puts a F17 151 supreme court above the government - and therefore above the people F17 152 that elect the government.

F17 153 That is not the sort of government that socialists can F17 154 tolerate, nor can consistent democrats. Liberals of all sorts, from F17 155 American federalists to advocates of Charter 88 can tolerate it F17 156 quite well. Democrats and socialists must oppose federalism for F17 157 this if for no other reason. They cannot do so in the interests of F17 158 'national independence'. They must do so in the interests of good F17 159 and progressive government on an EC scale. A unitary, not a F17 160 federal, EC supranational state, governed by an EC executive F17 161 responsible to the European Parliament, is the way forward for the F17 162 socialists in the EC.

F17 163 The Tories are tearing themselves apart on the issue of Europe. F17 164 It is time for us as socialists to say what our European beliefs F17 165 are. Thatcher has yet again put her finger on the crucial issue - F17 166 for or against Washington's dominance of the world. The answer is F17 167 obvious; the EC must be strengthened to provide the world with a F17 168 counter-weight to the USA. The Party Conference to be held in 1992 F17 169 on the EC will need to consider the balance of federation and F17 170 integration at the level of our parties and at the level of the F17 171 developing European State.

F17 172 F17 173 Postcard from the edge (of Brighton)

F17 174 Deborah Stoate

F17 175 You may be forgiven for having missed the Fabian Society stall F17 176 at Labour Party Conference this year, hidden as we were behind the F17 177 monolithic grey British Rail edifice complete with hi-tech and F17 178 sharp suits, and sandwiched between ten other socialist societies F17 179 as diverse as Poale Zion and the Christian Socialist Movement. It F17 180 took determination, a good map and sharp eyesight to find, however F17 181 many did and renewed old acquaintances, bought literature and F17 182 joined up.

F17 183 Fabian Conference News was - and this is said F17 184 impartially of course - a triumph organisation, production and F17 185 distribution. As one of that grim band of single-minded zealots, F17 186 who thrust their literature at passing delegates, I can say that F17 187 FCN was received with enthusiasm and sometimes even requested. F17 188 Despite mutterings about Amazon rainforests and the hilarity with F17 189 which "Getting excited", the first headline, was F17 190 greeted by a line of hard-bitten hacks, FCN kept the F17 191 Society's profile high amongst much-increased competition.

F17 192 I attended the first Fabian fringe meeting - Frank Field and F17 193 Janey Buchan (Bryan Gould was indisposed) discussing their kinds of F17 194 socialism, ruled either by head or by heart and vividly contrasted F17 195 in the style and content of their speeches - a contrast running F17 196 through Conference as we struggled to define or even distinguish F17 197 the Labour Party's kind of socialism.

F17 198 As PJ Barnum once remarked, and I paraphrase, it's impossible F17 199 to please all the people all of the time. This Conference F17 200 triumphed, in that respect, appearing at least to please most F17 201 of the people - constituency delegates, unions and even voters - F17 202 most of the time. For that compromise - or 'pragmatism' as it is F17 203 now known - may indeed win us the next election. It became F17 204 increasingly apparent that there was to be no big idea, merely the F17 205 rehearsal of (at most) rejigged policies, but this time stated with F17 206 passion. It was a Conference of sound bites, photo opportunities F17 207 and new model PPCs, but it is the old-fashioned rhetoric and F17 208 restatement of why we are socialists that I shall remember.

F17 209 For the first time in 15 years Labour felt like a party on the F17 210 offensive. We pretended we could win in 1987 but this felt F17 211 different. As they say in Alaska, 'If you ain't the lead dog the F17 212 scenery never changes'; now it would seem that, at last, we have an F17 213 unrestricted view of the horizon ahead.

F17 214 F17 215 Taking account of ethics

F17 216 There is a myth that corporate reports are only for F17 217 shareholders. F17 218 F18 1 <#FLOB:F18\>The irresistible rise of Jean-Marie Le Pen?

F18 2 Nick Robins reports from Paris on the ever-increasing F18 3 popularity and influence of the French neo-fascist leader.

F18 4 The visit to London earlier this month of Jean-Marie Le Pen, F18 5 president of the Front National (FN) is the latest chapter in a F18 6 political career of provocation and outrage that started with his F18 7 opposition to Algerian independence in the fifties. In France F18 8 itself, tension has grown in recent weeks with the publication of F18 9 the FN's '50 Propositions' to deal with the 'problem' of F18 10 immigration. F18 11 Drawn up by Bruno Megret, Le Pen's dapper number two, aptly known F18 12 as 'the Goebbels of the FN', the propositions include forced F18 13 repatriation, explicit discrimination in favour of French workers, F18 14 quotas for immigrants in the classroom, the repeal of laws banning F18 15 racist incitement and replacing residence with blood as the basis F18 16 of French nationality. The combined effect , according to Harlem F18 17 Desir, president of SOS Racisme, the country's largest anti-racist F18 18 movement, would be "to install apartheid in F18 19 France".

F18 20 Not surprisingly, the document has led to a wave of protests. F18 21 However, the rhetoric of <}-><-|>anti-facism<+|>anti-fascism<}/> F18 22 and anti-racism cannot hide the impotence and disorientation on the F18 23 Left as well as on the Right in the face of a political movement F18 24 that has climbed from 0.3 per cent of the vote in 1981 to 15 per F18 25 cent in current opinion polls. On the issue of immigration itself, F18 26 a recent poll suggested that 38 per cent of the French agree with F18 27 the FN's policies.

F18 28 While Le Pen draws on a deep well of racist and F18 29 ultra-nationalist ideology in France, his current success is linked F18 30 to the collapse of the two compass-points of post-war French F18 31 politics, Gaullism on the Right and Communism on the Left. In their F18 32 place has emerged a woolly consensus between President Francois F18 33 Mitterrand's Socialist Party (PS), Giscard d'Estaing's Centrists F18 34 and the pseudo-Gaullist Rassemblement Pour la Republique (RPR) on F18 35 the merits of rapid European integration, a hard franc and liberal F18 36 economics.

F18 37 Into this political vacuum has stepped Le Pen with his F18 38 insidious message linking all problems to a single issue, F18 39 immigration. At just over 6 per cent, the current percentage of F18 40 immigrants in the French population is the same as it was in the F18 41 thirties. The difference is that, whereas the immigrants of the F18 42 pre-war period were Italians and Poles, post-war immigration has F18 43 come increasingly from France's old colonies in Africa, in F18 44 particular from the Maghreb.

F18 45 Long a secondary concern, immigration surged to the F18 46 centre-stage of French politics in 1983 on the back of rising F18 47 unemployment and urban distress caused in part by the Socialist F18 48 Government's decision to adopt hard-line monetarist policies to F18 49 bring inflation in line with Germany.

F18 50 Since then, unemployment has never fallen below 8 per cent (it F18 51 is currently hovering at 10 per cent), social spending has been cut F18 52 back and income disparities have widened. The consequences for the F18 53 children of immigrants in the high-rise ghettos around Paris, Lyon F18 54 and Marseille have been particularly tough. High rates of crime and F18 55 recurrent rioting have followed.

F18 56 In April at Satrouville, hundreds protested against the F18 57 shooting of an 18-year-old boy by a supermarket security guard. As F18 58 one of his friends said after the killing, "If you're F18 59 called Mohammed you don't get a job. If you're called Robert you F18 60 do."

F18 61 But it is not just a question of jobs. France's republican F18 62 traditions based upon an almost mystical belief in the nation's F18 63 historical mission have been challenged by the growth of a large F18 64 non-white, non-Christian population. The furore in 1989 over F18 65 whether Muslim girls should be allowed to wear head-dress F18 66 at school highlighted the limits of the French policy of secular F18 67 integration.

F18 68 Many on the Left are still opposed to multi-culturalism, which F18 69 they fear threatens national identity and would lead to social F18 70 fragmentation on the American model.

F18 71 It is also important to recognise that support for the Front F18 72 National does not rely solely on its hard-line policies on race and F18 73 immigration. Le Pen has fed on the growing public distaste with a F18 74 political elite tarnished by scandals and rising concern about the F18 75 implications of a barrier-free Europe.

F18 76 As the French daily, Liberation, recently noted, French F18 77 politics is no longer divided horizontally between the Right and F18 78 the Left, but vertically between the 'insiders' and the 'outsiders' F18 79 - a term that Le Pen has taken as his own.

F18 80 In the face of this malaise, Le Pen's greatest political F18 81 victory has been to make immigration an increasingly accepted F18 82 scapegoat for unemployment and crime and to make race the prism F18 83 through which these problems are viewed.

F18 84 This year has seen Jacques Chirac, RPR leader, sympathising F18 85 with Parisians about the unpleasantness of 'smells' coming from F18 86 immigrant areas, the former President, Giscard d'Estaing, F18 87 describing immigration as an 'invasion', and the Socialist Prime F18 88 Minister, Edith Cresson, proposing to charter jets to expel illegal F18 89 immigrants en masse.

F18 90 The issue is no longer whether Le Pen will get into a position F18 91 of power to implement his policies, but to what extent his policies F18 92 will be carried out by others. Marie-Claude Mendes-France, the F18 93 widow of Pierre Mendes-France who was Socialist Prime Minister F18 94 during the fifties, has made a chilling comparison with the Vichy F18 95 regime: "The law against Jews was introduced on October F18 96 1940, before the Germans had imposed anything."

F18 97 To date, the official response from the Socialist Government to F18 98 Le Pen has been a combination of increasingly stringent checks and F18 99 high-sounding condemnation. But behind this lies a mixture of F18 100 powerlessness and cynicism

F18 101 Although the government has taken a number of useful F18 102 initiatives to tackle urban problems, it is constrained by the F18 103 continuing weakness of the French economy and its commitment to F18 104 monetary stability to restrain much-needed public spending on F18 105 education and training. By splitting the Right-wing vote, Le Pen is F18 106 a godsend for the Socialists, which they have not been slow to F18 107 exploit.

F18 108 Mitterrand has not forgotten the advantage he gained in the F18 109 1988 Presidential elections when Le Pen refused to advise his F18 110 supporters to vote for the Right's candidate, Jacques Chirac, in F18 111 the second round. The President is hoping to exploit these splits F18 112 further in the March regional elections and the parliamentary F18 113 elections in 1993.

F18 114 For the latter, Mitterrand is pressing hard for the F18 115 reintroduction of some form of proportional representation, which F18 116 would allow him to construct a coalition government with the F18 117 Centrists for the closing years of his second term. The presence of F18 118 at least 50 FN deputies in parliament would also give him a F18 119 constant focus for illuminating what he sees as the true face of F18 120 the Right.

F18 121 Outside government, there are increasing initiatives to F18 122 challenge the FN's ascendancy. Following its deep divisions during F18 123 the Gulf war, SOS Racisme is moving on to the offensive with a huge F18 124 rally planned for next month. Its posters for the event are F18 125 refreshingly to the point, with one showing in black and white a F18 126 couple of skinheads doing a Nazi salute, counterposed with a F18 127 multi-colour picture of youth from all races.

F18 128 In addition, a number of Socialist Deputies have launched a F18 129 'Manifesto Against the Front National', which has collected more F18 130 than 60,000 signatures to date.

F18 131 There is certainly no lack of innovative local projects, F18 132 ranging from anti-racist 'tupperware' parties to community business F18 133 schemes. What is missing is a strategy to create the appropriate F18 134 economic conditions and the political mood to help universalise F18 135 these good ideas across the country.

F18 136 Little can now be expected from Mitterrand, who has lost his F18 137 touch and looks increasingly like a lame-duck President. F18 138 Talk of forming a cross-party Republican Front against the FN only F18 139 risks fuelling support for Le Pen as the 'outsider'. Instead, hard F18 140 questions need to be asked about Government's record since 1981, F18 141 and the Socialist Party leadership's current lack of direction.

F18 142 A few parliamentarians, such as Julian Dray, a child of an F18 143 immigrant himself, are willing to speak of policy failures, nailing F18 144 poverty rather than race as the chief cause of France's problems F18 145 and welcoming the diversity that immigration has brought to F18 146 France.

F18 147 With only six points now separating the Socialist Party and the F18 148 Front National in the opinion polls, the Left urgently needs to go F18 149 back to basics and design a strategy that tackles the underlying F18 150 causes for the rise of Le Pen.

F18 151 Whether the Socialist's new party platform - agreed on December F18 152 14 at a special party congress - is up to the job will be put to F18 153 the test in the March regional elections. All eyes will be on the F18 154 south, where Le Pen is hoping to take control of the regional F18 155 council of Provence-Cote d'Azur. The Socialists have fielded a F18 156 non-party heart surgeon to head the defence. The fight is certain F18 157 to be close.

F18 158 Victory in Provence would further strengthen Le Pen's F18 159 legitimacy ( he is already a member of the European Parliament) and F18 160 give him a powerbase for the parliamentary elections the following F18 161 year.

F18 162 As the London visit showed, defeating Le Pen is not just a F18 163 national matter for the French. He has become the most influential F18 164 representative of Europe's new extreme Right. Mitterrand has a F18 165 responsibility to ensure that he does not go down in history as the F18 166 man who presided over the second outbreak of French fascism this F18 167 century.

F18 168 As one of his advisers said after his 1988 Presidential F18 169 victory, "The Verdict of the new term will be the score of F18 170 Le Pen: if he gets 6 per cent, Mitterrand will have won. If he gets F18 171 18 per cent, he will have lost." Sadly, the latter F18 172 currently looks the most likely outcome.

F18 173 F18 174 A boardroom farce.

F18 175 Labour's trade and industry spokesman, GORDON BROWN, attacks F18 176 the Government's stance on top director's pay.

F18 177 One of the central consequences of the Tories' privatisation F18 178 programme has been the extraordinary salary hikes granted to F18 179 chairmen, chief executives and directors of the newly privatised F18 180 companies. I have conducted a new survey of salaries, bonus F18 181 payments and share options awarded to the privatised boardroom F18 182 directors which reveals that this year's pay rises are at least F18 183 keeping pace with last year's excessive increases.

F18 184 This year the average top director's rise in the gas industry F18 185 is pounds57500; in electricity generation it is pounds73000; in the F18 186 water industry it is pounds16000 and the chairman of British F18 187 Telecom received a rise of at least pounds64000.

F18 188 Despite overwhelming public disquiet about this matter, F18 189 boardroom directors have continued to accept ever larger cash and F18 190 share option packages.

F18 191 The chairman of British Telecom had a pounds64000 rise in basic F18 192 pay to pounds450000 with provision for up to pounds175000 in F18 193 bonuses and share options which could now be cashed in for a total F18 194 of pounds700000.

F18 195 The chairman of British Gas had a pounds60000 rise in basic pay F18 196 to pounds340000 with share options now worth pounds99000.

F18 197 The chief executive of national power had a pounds164000 rise F18 198 to pounds240000 (a 217 per cent increase from the pre-privatisation F18 199 salary of pounds76000).

F18 200 The chief executives of both Northumbria and North West Water F18 201 had a 37 per cent rise to salaries of pounds82000 and pounds150000 F18 202 respectively.

F18 203 The chief executive of Scottish Power had a rise of pounds97000 F18 204 to pounds160000 (a 153 per cent rise since privatisation).

F18 205 These are startling figures and the Government's unwillingness F18 206 to do anything about them contrasts with its willingness to attack F18 207 the proposal for a minimum wage of pounds3.40 an hour for people on F18 208 poverty pay. Michael Howard in particular might reflect on the fact F18 209 that many of those benefiting from this boardroom excess will earn F18 210 more in a single day than some low-paid workers will earn in a F18 211 year.

F18 212 Of course, those in the top-paid jobs don't just count their F18 213 pay packets and share certificates. They can also tot up the perks F18 214 that quietly embellish the lifestyles of Britain's corporate F18 215 elite.

F18 216 In the newly privatised industries there has been no shortage F18 217 of generosity in this department. But the prize has to go to the F18 218 chairman of British Gas, Robert Evans. The refurbishment of his F18 219 rent-free London home included the installation of gold taps in the F18 220 bathroom, pounds25000 worth of gas fitting ranging from a tumble F18 221 dryer to an Aga cooker, all linked to the grid by a mile-long F18 222 private pipeline and, most lavish of all, the gas supply for his F18 223 garden amenities.

F18 224 F19 1 <#FLOB:F19\>The A.B.C. of Politics

F19 2 THE GRADUALISM OF THE REVOLUTION

F19 3 by Rosine de Bounevialle

F19 4 AS with Ian Smith, the verbal opposition of Mrs Thatcher to the F19 5 prevailing 'winds of change' in their respective countries has F19 6 conferred heroic status in the annals of Right-wingism everywhere. F19 7 They are both worshipped as political martyrs who did their best F19 8 against impossible odds. Anyone holding a contrary view is F19 9 dismissed as a prejudiced crank or, more gently, as one overdoing F19 10 the conspiracy theory of history through misplaced zeal. The F19 11 present writer figures in both categories, but remains of the same F19 12 opinion still!

F19 13 "It is all of a piece," as the cook said in F19 14 some forgotten thriller. The mysterious Power that purports to F19 15 establish universal hegemony in defiance of the Creator's Word F19 16 and will for fallen humanity's salvation and celestial destiny has F19 17 pursued that aim by much the same method since our first parents' F19 18 expulsion from Eden. Always the ultimate attainment has been F19 19 periodically frustrated, not by contemporaneous society but by the F19 20 wrath of God. So gradual and devious have been the recurring F19 21 campaigns of successive pawns of the Devil in pursuit of his F19 22 aspiration to world domination that nearly always "the F19 23 little victims play," ignoring the evidence of approaching F19 24 doom and disregarding any divinely inspired prophets sent to warn F19 25 them.

F19 26 Emerging Pattern

F19 27 In 1529 England was still a Catholic kingdom, despite Luther, F19 28 Calvin or whoever else set up as the latest light of the world. F19 29 Then the pattern began once more to emerge. The ambitions of a F19 30 lustful, profligate king and a cold-hearted wanton opened Pandora's F19 31 box.

F19 32 In pursuit of his desires, Henry VIII forgot that he, like F19 33 Pilate, would have no power if it "was not given him from F19 34 above." With his abrogation of the power given to the Vicar F19 35 of Christ on earth, he made the monarchy subservient, in the first F19 36 instance, to the receivers of the wealth stolen from the Church, F19 37 and subsequently to the bankers of those same receivers. He F19 38 murdered, more or less legally, the only two far-sighted enough to F19 39 visualise the end result of his abrogation: John Fisher, Bishop of F19 40 Rochester, and Thomas More, erstwhile Chancellor of England. The F19 41 unity of Christendom was shattered into myriad sects. Faith and F19 42 charity were in eclipse and even hope died at last.

F19 43 If all the bishops had seen what the dire result their F19 44 'patriotic' obedience (if that is what it was) would have, would F19 45 they have taken that first step on the long shuffle to the new F19 46 paganism? Alas, they saw no harm in accepting their king as head of F19 47 the Church in England. When in due time the Church in England F19 48 became the Church of England, it was too late. The lay F19 49 Catholics of England and the 'hedge' priests died for their faith F19 50 in their hundreds: the landed gentry were either martyred or fined F19 51 into exile or apostasy. The 'new rich' clung to their ill-gotten F19 52 gains through restorations and regicide, evolving into the die-soft F19 53 Tory 'opposition' of today. Usurers returned and by the end of the F19 54 seventeenth century had annexed the royal monopoly of the issue of F19 55 credit. The Money Power ruled again.

F19 56 It took four hundred years to turn Christendom into the F19 57 multi-religious and multi-racial stew that is Europe today. It took F19 58 rather less time to destroy the intervening imperial substitutes, F19 59 for the labourers in the colonial vineyards were quite as gullible F19 60 as their predecessors. If they survived the Money Power's tactical F19 61 wars, they were too bemused with phantom victories to do anything F19 62 other than bow before the 'winds of change' despite all the latter F19 63 day Fishers and Mores who told them to beware of the hurricane F19 64 behind the zephyr.

F19 65 The Message Of Fatima

F19 66 The last warning was given to three young shepherds in Portugal F19 67 more than seventy years ago. With the miracle of the sun to help F19 68 them, they did their best to persuade their fellow-countrymen to F19 69 obey the exhortation to "pray for the conversion of F19 70 Russia" and to believe the warning of the chaos that would F19 71 follow a failure so to do. Though one of the shepherds is still F19 72 living, the warning and the message have been shrouded in official F19 73 silence. Far from praying for the conversion of anyone, let alone F19 74 Russia, both pastors and people for the most part are busy acting F19 75 on the palpably false assumption that Man is doing very well for F19 76 himself, thank you. The unfortunate disorders today are merely F19 77 temporary hiccups on the progression to universal justice and peace F19 78 in the New World Order.

F19 79 So now we are on the last lap. Are professing Christians really F19 80 going to continue "doing their own (sectional) F19 81 thing" until they find themselves so helplessly corrupt as F19 82 to be fit for nothing but the slave quarters in this life and the F19 83 fires of Hell in the next?

F19 84 Surely not. There is still time. Remember: "the days F19 85 will be cut short for the sake of the elect."

F19 86 F19 87 THE RIGHT TO PROPERTY

F19 88 by Paul Matthews

F19 89 ONE hundred years ago, Pope Leo XIII issued an encyclical F19 90 letter called Rerum Novarum. It condemned the social F19 91 system under which "working men have been surrendered, F19 92 isolated and helpless, to the hard-heartedness of employers and the F19 93 greed of unchecked competition." In standing out against F19 94 the unbridled individualism favoured by Capitalism, he argued that F19 95 property should be widely diffused and the monetary system so F19 96 arranged as to facilitate the production, distribution and exchange F19 97 of goods and services. A return by the Church to this type of F19 98 traditional social teaching would provide precisely the kind of F19 99 effective spiritual lead that is missing from its pronouncements F19 100 today. In this article, the writer explores Rerum Novarum F19 101 and another social encyclical, Quadragesimo Anno.

F19 102 There is an argument put forward from time to time - by some F19 103 who know little, and others who ought to know better - that there F19 104 is a fundamental incompatibility between contemporary British F19 105 nationalism and Christianity. It is at once both more and less than F19 106 an argument: it is an assertion; and like all too many F19 107 assertions is really a mere assumption.

F19 108 It is an assumption that in the hands of the uninformed and F19 109 misinformed becomes a dogma held all the more dogmatically on F19 110 account of its shallowness.

F19 111 Mercifully, the subject is too vast to be dealt with in a F19 112 single article; but two facts emerge from and dominate it. The F19 113 first is that present-day radical British nationalism and F19 114 Christianity are not incompatible. The second fact is that in F19 115 certain areas - most clearly in economics and in opposition to F19 116 abortion - such nationalism is the only political option that is F19 117 truly compatible with Christianity. It is the aim of this article F19 118 to examine this compatibility in relation to aspects of F19 119 economics.

F19 120 Now before such a discussion can be set underway it is F19 121 necessary to clear away the possibilities of confusion by making F19 122 clear the route of advance; for this much must be accepted at the F19 123 outset: that there is as little unity in economics as in theology F19 124 amongst the many Christian sects, some of which indeed - most F19 125 notably those of Calvinist derivation - are strongly supportive of F19 126 capitalism, and even creative of it.

F19 127 This article will make no attempt to weave a way through such a F19 128 diversity, but instead takes to itself the liberty solely to pursue F19 129 the thread of Catholic teaching. It will take this course for two F19 130 reasons: firstly, because the writer, as a Catholic, knows a little F19 131 more about this than about Protestant teachings; and secondly F19 132 because whilst there is no one Protestant scheme of economics (but F19 133 a great deal of divergence amongst the many Protestant F19 134 denominations) there is a clear and consistent set of principles F19 135 advanced by the Catholic Church, which principles are succinctly F19 136 and powerfully set out in the two great Papal encyclicals F19 137 Rerum Novarum and Quadragesimo Anno. There is a F19 138 third reason: that a consideration solely of these two documents F19 139 makes possible an article short enough to make sense.

F19 140 THE WORKERS CHARTER

F19 141 It was in response to the growth of industrial capitalism and F19 142 Marxian socialism that Pope Leo XIII in 1891 addressed to the F19 143 Church his letter Rerum Novarum ('The Workers' Charter'). F19 144 In it he stated the problem in this way:

F19 145 "... The ancient working-men's guilds were F19 146 abolished in the last century, and no other protective organisation F19 147 took their place ... Hence by degrees it has come to pass that F19 148 working-men have been surrendered, isolated and helpless, to the F19 149 hard-heartedness of employers and the greed of unchecked F19 150 competition. The mischief has been increased by rapacious usury F19 151 ..."

F19 152 Having thus set the scene, the Pope went on to consider the F19 153 socialist remedy for this situation; and, after demonstrating its F19 154 necessary failure, proceeded to outline the remedy proposed by the F19 155 Church.

F19 156 The essence of the Pope's rejection of Marxism as a remedy or F19 157 the evils of capitalism lies in this: that it in no way benefits F19 158 ordinary working <}_><-|>poeple<+|>people<}/>; but, on the F19 159 contrary, enslaves them just as surely as does capitalism. Under F19 160 capitalism Big Business controls the State; under socialism the F19 161 State controls Big Business; they are just two different F19 162 perspectives of the same situation, expressed by the fact that F19 163 Marxian socialism is merely State Capitalism.

F19 164 Rerum Novarum thus isolates the following points in F19 165 condemnation of Marxism:

F19 166 (i) That Marxism does not improve the lot of the worker, since F19 167 it is in reality a more total form of capitalism;

F19 168 (ii) That it denies private property, such denial being F19 169 contrary to natural law: "For", the Pope says, F19 170 "every man has by nature the right to possess property as F19 171 his own:"

F19 172 (iii) That Marxism is destructive of the family; since it is, F19 173 by natural law, for parents - and not the State - to provide for F19 174 the needs and the future of their children; and

F19 175 (iv) That Marxism makes the State all-powerful, which F19 176 is a moral evil; since by natural law society - the small society F19 177 of a man's family, and the wider society of the national community F19 178 - take precedence over the State, for it precedes the State.

F19 179 Disposing thus of Marxism, Rerum Novarum proceeds to F19 180 the true alternative to capitalism:

F19 181 "The first and most fundamental principle ... must be F19 182 the inviolability of private property".

F19 183 Now private property is a thing entirely different from F19 184 capitalism, which may rather be called private enterprise: it F19 185 is different from capitalism, and in a death-struggle with F19 186 capitalism. Private property means possession: capitalism means F19 187 dispossesion. Private property means well-distributed property F19 188 privately held by the general public: capitalism means the public's F19 189 property being privately withheld, by millionaires if not by F19 190 generals.

F19 191 This championship of private property by the Church was no new F19 192 departure: on the contrary, it has been Her traditional teaching F19 193 (the great philosopher-theologian St. Thomas Aquinas wrote in the F19 194 13th century: "It is lawful for a man to hold private F19 195 property; and it is also necessary for human existence."); F19 196 and is supported by Holy Scripture. Its especial value is F19 197 threefold:

F19 198 1. It is the most efficient means by which the abundance of F19 199 nature can be made available for man;

F19 200 2. It is a necessary support to family life; and

F19 201 3. It is essential for man's liberty and independence from the F19 202 State.

F19 203 From this discussion on private property the Pope goes on to F19 204 consider the relationship between employer and employed, and F19 205 dismisses as perverse the Marxist doctrine of class-war:

F19 206 "The great mistake is to take up with the notion that F19 207 class is naturally hostile to class ... the direct contrary is the F19 208 truth ... in a State it is ordained by nature that these two F19 209 classes should dwell in harmony and agreement, so as to maintain F19 210 the balance of the body politic."

F19 211 The employee thus has a duty to <}_><-|>perfrom<+|>perform<}/> F19 212 his work with honesty and diligence; whilst the employer has a duty F19 213 to accord his workers respect and dignity in terms of wages and the F19 214 nature of the work to be done. It is from this section, largely F19 215 inspired by the great champion of British working folk, Cardinal F19 216 Manning, that the encyclical takes its English name: 'The F19 217 Workers' Charter'; yet although it is the response of the F19 218 Church to the growth of industrial capitalism in the last century F19 219 it is nevertheless an expression of the traditional teaching of the F19 220 Church, based on St. Thomas who 600 years earlier had taught that a F19 221 degree of material well-being is necessary for a person to F19 222 live a virtuous life.

F19 223 F19 224 F19 225 F20 1 <#FLOB:F20\>Turn Left from Dove Cottage

F20 2 Percy Jacobs visits How Top Farm

F20 3 OF the many thousands of visitors who make their obligatory F20 4 pilgrimage to Dove Cottage in Grasmere, only a few will turn left F20 5 when they leave the Wordsworth shrine, and walk further up the F20 6 narrow lane. Those who do will find, just at the top beyond the F20 7 duckpond, a charmingly situated, typical Lakeland farmstead.

F20 8 This is How Top Farm, where David Thompson and his wife Judy F20 9 have lived and worked for the past 25 years, after some years of F20 10 working for other farmers in the neighbourhood.

F20 11 A quick check in the Cumbria telephone directory showed F20 12 Thompson as the third most frequent entry - only Wilsons and Smiths F20 13 having a greater number.

F20 14 "Aye, there's plenty of us about," David agreed F20 15 and told me that his grandfather had farmed at Town Head, at the F20 16 other end of Grasmere, for many years. However, it seems unlikely F20 17 that the family tradition of farming will be passed on - Philip, F20 18 their son, is now a Senior Process Engineer with British Sugar plc, F20 19 whilst their daughter Alison has trained in hotel catering. David F20 20 is a true Grasmerian, having been born at Winterseeds Cottage in F20 21 the village.

F20 22 How Top Farm, built of large 'beck cobbles' dates from at least F20 23 as far back as the start of the Parish Register in 1612; like many F20 24 Lakeland farmhouses, it has walls three feet thick, low ceilings, F20 25 and a diversity of oak beams and partitions and old oak F20 26 cupboards.

F20 27 Across the yard from the house is an equally old 'bank barn' - F20 28 so called because the lower floor serving as a shippon (cow byre) F20 29 and stable have been built into the sloping bank of the fellside. F20 30 Later, the construction of the 'Wishing Gate' road has concealed F20 31 this pattern of building from the eye of the casual passer-by; F20 32 however the barn is still in use much as it was over three hundred F20 33 years ago.

F20 34 Currently, David stores hay for winter feed on the upper floor, F20 35 whilst eight of his herd of 19 cows are housed below. A 'hay hole' F20 36 in the floor allows food to be dropped through to directly feed the F20 37 animals. It seems that farmers in the old days were quite prepared F20 38 to develop labour-saving methods.

F20 39 Threshing also took place within the barn, when small doors F20 40 would be opened to allow a through draught to carry the dust and F20 41 chaff outside. The small out-building on the left of the F20 42 barn frontage is the original pig sty.

F20 43 The duck-pond opposite was originally the 'watering-place' for F20 44 the cattle, who would have to be let out to drink twice a day; a F20 45 time-consuming job and today they would be at risk from the F20 46 traffic. Traffic and labour costs are two of the reasons why the F20 47 farm has changed from keeping dairy cows to beef cattle the daily F20 48 movement of cattle along the roads for milking would be too F20 49 hazardous.

F20 50 David has grazing rights on Grasmere Common as far as the F20 51 skyline, and the farm lands include 200 acres of fields and intake F20 52 land for his flock of around 500 sheep both pure-bred Herdwicks and F20 53 Herdwick-Swaledale crosses. He has three working sheepdogs which F20 54 are becoming increasingly difficult to find. "A good dog F20 55 mustn't be afraid to bark at the sheep if necessary. You hear about F20 56 a dog 'having a good eye' but the old sheep have learned all about F20 57 that and tend to ignore the dog unless he (or more usually she) F20 58 makes a bit of noise. So you first have to find a pup with the F20 59 likely potential and then spend a lot of time training F20 60 her."

F20 61 I was talking to David having tracked him down on a lonely F20 62 piece of fellside. He was repairing a collapsed dry-stone wall - F20 63 "Totally unproductive work - all it's doing is keeping the F20 64 sheep in this field from going into that one, and vice-versa but it F20 65 has to be done."

F20 66 I asked if they had much trouble with visitors causing damage F20 67 or disturbance? "Not a lot - there's the odd crowd from the F20 68 cities - usually old enough to know better - who'll climb a wall F20 69 and pull the top loose, but it could be a lot worse. And of course F20 70 being near Dove Cottage we do sometimes get cars parked where they F20 71 shouldn't be." I remarked that as he was catching up on F20 72 wall repairs it must be a brief pause between the essential round F20 73 of farming jobs.

F20 74 "That's right - from January to March we try to F20 75 complete all the repairs and maintenance work that's built up - F20 76 then in April the season really begins when we fetch the sheep down F20 77 from the high fells, ready for lambing - which should begin about F20 78 April 18th.

F20 79 "In May we're dipping against flies and ticks and marking the F20 80 new lambs on the ears and with our red 'smit' mark before they're F20 81 returned to the fell. July is, of course, haymaking for winter F20 82 feed; and the clipping (shearing, to the uninitiated) which is the F20 83 only time we have some help."

F20 84 I'd been wondering how on earth two people, no matter how F20 85 experienced, could manage to run a farm such as this on their own. F20 86 "You get used to it - plenty of fell farms are run just by F20 87 the farmer and his wife, with one or two extra hands at clipping F20 88 and at haytime." I wasn't surprised to learn that David and F20 89 Judy haven't time to take in visitors for 'B&B' as is the case on F20 90 some farms.

F20 91 I asked David what changes, if any, had there been in the F20 92 pattern of fell farming since he began to run his own farm. F20 93 "Not a lot," he admitted. "Of course, we F20 94 didn't use helicopters in the old days, and the dipping and dosing F20 95 treatments have improved. Also we have the opportunity to produce F20 96 big bale silage, if the weather's too bad for haymaking - and, F20 97 overall, there are more sheep on the fells these days.

F20 98 There are too many changes in the village," he added. F20 99 "Everywhere you look there are new buildings, or extensions F20 100 to old ones. The shops are all directed towards the visitors - many F20 101 of whom have only an hour or so before their coach takes them away F20 102 again. Just time to look at the Wordsworth graves, go in one of the F20 103 numerous 'jumper' shops, drink a cup of coffee and go. That's no F20 104 way to appreciate a place like Grasmere."

F20 105 What was the outlook for the fell farmer in the future? David F20 106 thought for a moment "You see all those tall trees on the F20 107 hillside there?" He pointed to the heavily wooded slopes F20 108 above the duckpond. "When I came here you could sit on the F20 109 seats up there and see right over the lake. Now some of those trees F20 110 are thirty feet high and the views are gone. That's what the whole F20 111 of the Lake District would become in a few years if the fell F20 112 farming ceased and there weren't any sheep to keep the undergrowth F20 113 and young trees under control.

F20 114 "We're necessary for more than just keeping up the supply of F20 115 tender young lamb for your dinner - the Lake District would be a F20 116 sorry place without the fell farmers."

F20 117 Photographer on the Skyline

F20 118 W.R. Mitchell

F20 119 I meet Derry Brabb, who provided the colour photographs F20 120 for a series of books written by Wainwright. He tells me that he F20 121 took up mountain photography almost by accident. He is "not F20 122 too good" on heights, "which is bad news for F20 123 someone who is supposed to hang off the edges of cliffs by his F20 124 finger-tips."

F20 125 DERRY BRABB'S introduction to the Lake District was 'courtesy F20 126 of A.W.'. These, of course, are the initials of Alfred Wainwright, F20 127 guide-book writer extraordinary, whose death in January was widely F20 128 mourned. Derry, detecting a look of disbelief on my face at the F20 129 brevity of his own mountaineering career, added: "Really F20 130 and truly, until I got teamed up with A.W. I had not done any F20 131 serious walking. So it is entirely due to him that I have been F20 132 punished this way ..."

F20 133 I had first met Derry in Leeds at the launch of James F20 134 Herriot's Yorkshire, over 10 years before. Derry, a F20 135 Yorkshireman (born in Sheffield, 1947) had provided the many F20 136 stunning colour photographs of fell and moor, dale and sea cliff F20 137 for a best-selling book.

F20 138 His collaboration with A.W. began with Fellwalking with F20 139 Wainwright, published in 1984. Derry illustrated 18 of the F20 140 author's favourite walks in Lakeland. I asked him about the A.W. F20 141 Connection. After Herriot came illustrative work for two companion F20 142 books, relating to Wales (Wynford Vaughan Thomas) and the West F20 143 Country (Angela Rippon). There was also a book on the Thames.

F20 144 "I then wrote to Michael Joseph, the publisher, saying F20 145 that no one had done a decent book on the Pennine Way, and that as F20 146 it was coming up to the 20th anniversary of the official opening of F20 147 this long distance footpath crossing some of the most glorious F20 148 scenery in England, it seemed a shame that no work illustrated in F20 149 colour existed."

F20 150 Derry added the only books available were little pocket guides, F20 151 such as the one devised by Wainwright.

F20 152 Approach to Wainwright. Victor Morrison, managing F20 153 director of Michael Joseph, was a keen walker. He knew of F20 154 Wainwright's work and recommended to his senior editor, Jennie F20 155 Dereham, that he should be invited to write a book. And A.W. F20 156 agreed. "We met for afternoon tea at the Buxton hotel which F20 157 he was using as a holiday base," Derry recalls.

F20 158 After Fellwalking came Pennine Way and F20 159 Coast to Coast Walk, both photographed in good F20 160 conditions, though "I made the traditional error on Kinder F20 161 Scout, getting lost among the peat bogs. I think everyone has done F20 162 that. The most exciting part of the Pennine Way was the traverse of F20 163 the Cheviots, most of which are not easily accessible by F20 164 car." Of Coast to Coast Walk, Derry remarked: F20 165 "It epitomises all the English scenery in the North F20 166 Country."

F20 167 As a child, Derry often had a box Brownie camera in his hand. F20 168 His entry into landscape photography came after studying F20 169 photography for three years at Leicester Art College; he then did F20 170 commercial work, including advertising, in London. He moved back to F20 171 Yorkshire in 1973.

F20 172 The commission to provide the illustrations for the Herriot F20 173 book kept him busy for over a year. As Herriot wrote the F20 174 manuscript, Derry went out and illustrated it. He got on well with F20 175 Herriot. The same might also be said of his association with F20 176 Wainwright. "Once he knew that I could do what I was F20 177 supposed to do, and I was doing what he wanted, then the F20 178 relationship bonded."

F20 179 A.W. was in the habit of doing his own page layouts, typing out F20 180 the manuscripts and leaving spaces for photographs. "It has F20 181 made life very easy." The difficult bit has been securing F20 182 photographs of sufficiently high quality in a region where the F20 183 mountains do not always have sunlight upon them.

F20 184 "Light is the be all and end all. Look at any stone F20 185 wall or rock that has a piece of sunlight on it, and then look at F20 186 one that has no sunlight on it, and you will see that one piece of F20 187 rock is alive and the other is dead.

F20 188 "It is the same with the mountains. If you photograph in F20 189 sunshine, it means that the rocks give out their true colours and F20 190 textures, and all the cracks and crevices are well defined. If you F20 191 are photographing without sunshine on a relatively dull day, then F20 192 all those details are lost."

F20 193 Success also relates to being in the right place at the right F20 194 time - "knowing, for instance, that if you want to F20 195 photograph Bowfell Buttress it has got to be done in the morning F20 196 because that is the only time it will have strong light on F20 197 it." This is not easy for Derry; he lives at the village of F20 198 Nidd, near Harrogate, some 75 miles from the heart of Lakeland.

F20 199 The Smaller Format. All Derry's photography is done F20 200 on 35mm film. He is sparing in the use of colour filters but does F20 201 like to fit a graduated grey filter to his camera to bring the sky F20 202 into parity with the foreground. F20 203 F20 204 F20 205 F21 1 <#FLOB:F21\>Chancellor would be a fine thing

F21 2 How Lamont used all his energy to stage a Norman conquest

F21 3 Julia Langdon

F21 4 There was a time when Norman Lamont used to complain that he F21 5 was doing time in the Siberian salt-mines of the British F21 6 Government. It was in the first years of the Thatcher Government, F21 7 when he was one of the two Under Secretaries of State at the F21 8 Department of Energy and it was clear that his talents were F21 9 somewhat under used. Perhaps such a low-key job might seem F21 10 preferable now.

F21 11 That is only because so much to do with the Government's F21 12 fortunes and its future is now pinned on the Chancellor of the F21 13 Exchequer. It means that he faces a truly awesome personal F21 14 responsibility. Myself, I think I'd choose the salt-mines. But then F21 15 there are few people who have ambition comparable to that of Mr F21 16 Lamont.

F21 17 Although he denies it, he used to be just a little bit jealous F21 18 of his former fellow Under Secretary in the salt-mines, a Mr John F21 19 Moore. Lamont was moved on and upwards first, in 1981, and Moore F21 20 was left to languish for a further two years at Energy. But then, F21 21 before you could say 'Yes Margaret; No Margaret; Three Bags Full F21 22 Margaret' it was Moore who was in the Cabinet and being fingered F21 23 for the succession.

F21 24 John Moore was, of course, similarly ambitious - although he, F21 25 too, denies this now. Indeed, he not only denies ambition, he does F21 26 not accept that he was ignominiously sacked when Mrs Thatcher F21 27 rather latterly discovered that he perhaps didn't have what it F21 28 takes.

F21 29 He now tells people that it is not true that he was sacked; on F21 30 the contrary, he had told Mrs Thatcher some two months previously F21 31 that he wished to leave the Government at a time suitable to her. I F21 32 mention this merely as a matter of historical curiosity - not least F21 33 because the Moore version does not exactly correspond with the F21 34 recollection of those involved at the time (like civil servants in F21 35 the Department of Social Security) - and we have not yet, I F21 36 believe, been blessed with the official Moore memoirs.

F21 37 There was something therefore of the tortoise and the hare F21 38 about these two ambitious young politicians, and the fable has F21 39 certainly paid off in career terms for Lamont. Yet even he must be F21 40 surprised at finding himself just where he is in the Government now F21 41 - compared, say, to a year ago when he was Chief Secretary, a F21 42 relative Cabinet new boy and considered one of the few remaining F21 43 Thatcherite loyalists.

F21 44 The question that is being asked about the Chancellor, as well F21 45 as of him, is if he can be believed when he speaks of this promised F21 46 economic upturn. It's probably a question he asks himself, too. But F21 47 I will enter a note in his defence: he has been saying privately F21 48 for at least a year that the state of the economy would not permit F21 49 a general election in 1991 and that if the Tories were to have any F21 50 hope of holding onto power they would have to wait at least until F21 51 the Spring of 1992.

F21 52 In the meantime the Tories have to do their best to persuade F21 53 the public that life will be that much worse under the Labour F21 54 alternative. This is all right in principle but difficult in F21 55 practice. It is all very well for the Treasury to work out various F21 56 horror scenarios of the cost of Labour's spending plans - such as F21 57 they have been admitted - but it is difficult to alarm the Great F21 58 British Public about the prospects if their current economic sense F21 59 of well-being is still in question.

F21 60 There is a view around, however, that the reason that Labour's F21 61 lead in the opinion polls has fallen back in the last few weeks is F21 62 because of a recognition of the very real possibility of a Labour F21 63 Government. The Tories were actually doing so badly that the F21 64 electorate got quite scared. This has given F21 65 <}_><-|>risen<+|>rise<}/> to an adaptation of the motto of the SAS F21 66 ...'Who Scares Wins.'

F21 67 It is a matter of wonder what on earth President Gorbachev must F21 68 think of the British Parliament - not to mention the effective F21 69 workings of democracy - as a result of his visit to the terrace of F21 70 the House of Commons. In all politeness it has to be admitted that F21 71 the three Labour MPs he met - Dennis Skinner, Dennis Canavan and F21 72 Ron Brown - while all possessing, no doubt, distinctive personal F21 73 attributes, could never be described as representative of the F21 74 parliamentary Labour Party.

F21 75 Mr Gorbachev is likely to have been rather puzzled by the F21 76 warning from Mr Skinner that many of the people to whom he was F21 77 talking had been trying to bomb him to bits for the last forty F21 78 years and by the assurance from Mr Brown that there were still a F21 79 few socialists around in Britain. Was Mr Brown trying to get at Mr F21 80 Kinnock, for example? Or at Mr Gorbachev himself? The Soviet F21 81 President is, after all, trying to persuade his people to forsake F21 82 Marxism in favour of free enterprise at this very time.

F21 83 And then there were the Tories. Although Mr Gorbachev's visit F21 84 to the Commons had been arranged at the last minute and in top F21 85 secret, it caused little surprise that as he made his way down the F21 86 Terrace, two of the most unctuous Tory MPs, Sir Peter Emery and Mr F21 87 Patrick Cormack, were on the spot to smile and bow and shake the F21 88 famous hand.

F21 89 It had already been anticipated that Mr Anthony Beaumont-Dark, F21 90 who is no slacker in the self-promotion department, might have got F21 91 wind of the event - in which case it had been placed to divert him F21 92 with a cruelly false message that a television crew was anxiously F21 93 awaiting an interview with him outside the front of the Palace of F21 94 Westminster.

F21 95 The main concern of Commons' officials, however, was how to get F21 96 six huge Soviet Zils in and out of Speaker's Court without causing F21 97 a chaotic political traffic jam which might prevent Mr Gorbachev F21 98 either reaching his destination or, later, getting out again. The F21 99 Sovs insisted that he couldn't travel in less than six cars and F21 100 they got their way. The drivers just about had enough time to get F21 101 the cars turned round before the motorcade set off again.

F21 102 F21 103 On bended Japanese

F21 104 Now our most fierce competitor is laid so low it's time for F21 105 some serious schadenfreude

F21 106 Oofy Prosser

F21 107 Nobody could possibly accuse Oofy of xenophobia. Heavens, no. F21 108 I'm a businessman and in the modern world there is no room for that F21 109 sort of prejudice. I am just as keen to fleece foreigners as I am F21 110 my own countrymen.

F21 111 But I confess to a slight frisson at seeing how the financial F21 112 crisis is widening in Japan. Surely every UK businessman who has to F21 113 compete with the fiendish Japs will secretly be punching the air F21 114 with joy as he reads, over his cornflakes, of the mess in which the F21 115 financial community is now mired. There have not only been more F21 116 resignations at Nomura, one of the big four at the top of the can F21 117 of worms when it was opened but also reports about a score of F21 118 smaller securities houses having to reimburse clients for losses F21 119 made on trading. Let's face it, the whole system of theirs is, by F21 120 our standards - even by my standards - completely corrupt.

F21 121 With the Japanese now being given staggeringly generous F21 122 financial incentives by our own bloody Government to set up over F21 123 here and attack us directly in our home market, things are looking F21 124 pretty bleak on the Nip front at the moment.

F21 125 But I have good news. It is well known that the only way the F21 126 Japs can persuade any executive to move overseas is to site the F21 127 plant near a golf course. But the financial crisis has had its F21 128 effect on Japan's golf clubs. In under a year and a half, the index F21 129 of golf club membership fees (yes, they actually have an index) has F21 130 fallen by a third and shows no sign of levelling out, while one of F21 131 the biggest dealers in club memberships has just gone bust (can you F21 132 believe that it's the fourth biggest company failure ever F21 133 there?).

F21 134 With prices <}_><-|>plumetting<+|>plummeting<}/>, even quite F21 135 lowly Japanese management will now be able to afford to play golf F21 136 at home. They will no longer desire to take foreign postings and, F21 137 without management to run their overseas plants, the Japs will have F21 138 to shut up shop and go home.

F21 139 British industry's problems are solved. Indeed, if things carry F21 140 on the way they are, we should be able to set up over there before F21 141 too long, making sure that we join their golf clubs, wear silly F21 142 clothes and take all day over one round. How sweet is revenge!

F21 143 John-Boy has got it all wrong with his Citizens' Charter. He no F21 144 doubt thinks that it's an election winner, what with promising no F21 145 more than a two-year wait to have a leg off, name badges for public F21 146 sector employees, money back from British Rail when you buy your F21 147 ticket, league tables for exam results and all the rest.

F21 148 But all John-Boy has done is fashion a rod for his own back. F21 149 (Not having been to public school, that probably wasn't his F21 150 intention.) But let's look at what might happen. The chances are F21 151 that the whole thing will be a flop, like everything else the F21 152 Government tries to do to improve the lot of Joe Citizen. All it F21 153 will do is provide ammunition for the opposition to flay the Tories F21 154 at the election.

F21 155 Let us suppose, just for one far-fetched minute, that the crazy F21 156 thing works, that the trains begin running on time and that you can F21 157 have your hernia seen to next week. Do you suppose that British F21 158 people will be grateful? Not a bit of it. What on earth will there F21 159 be to grumble about if everything works properly. Complaining is F21 160 getting difficult for (and this has to be said) BT and British Gas F21 161 are not the crass utilities they once were. It's only the public F21 162 sector that offers any scope for complaint these days and, if that F21 163 is taken away, the British people will have lost their main sense F21 164 of purpose in life. Grumbling is the only thing we do really F21 165 well.

F21 166 Fortunately, the Charter looks like being a bit of a damp F21 167 squib. When my PA rang up for my copy, the phone was answered F21 168 straight away. Even for the dullest of privatisation issues, she F21 169 had to contend with days of engaged signals.

F21 170 You mark my words. People don't want everything to work F21 171 properly. The writing's on the wall for John-Boy and it'll be best F21 172 for him if the council wait a while before sending somebody round F21 173 to clean it off.

F21 174 Few private investors in this country seem aware that share F21 175 certificates may soon be a thing of the past. Despite assurances F21 176 from the DTI that investors will still be able to hold onto them F21 177 under Taurus, at least for a while there can be few of us who will F21 178 any longer give much credence to any statement from that particular F21 179 Government department.

F21 180 Sad to say, it isn't only in the UK that paper proof of F21 181 investments is disappearing. Merrill Lynch has just told its F21 182 clients that from September it will demand $15 a time from F21 183 investors who want certificates to go with their stocks or F21 184 bonds.

F21 185 I was worried enough about the effects of Taurus on private F21 186 investors. But after hearing recent tales of woe from some American F21 187 investors, I am concerned that one difficulty investors will face F21 188 in the future is in changing stockbrokers. Without certificates to F21 189 prove ownership, brokers might be able, as in the States, to drag F21 190 their heels with the paperwork. I am probably worrying F21 191 unnecessarily and being unduly cynical. Everyone in the financial F21 192 sector is honourable and believes the customer comes first, and F21 193 goes first. It must be my imagination that the banks are F21 194 occasionally less than helpful when a client wants to transfer his F21 195 business to a competitor.

F21 196 F21 197 F22 1 <#FLOB:F22\>A tragic period

F22 2 April 1991 turned out to be a disastrous month for the maritime F22 3 industry in Europe. In the early hours of 10 April there was a F22 4 collision in the English Channel between the Portsmouth-based F22 5 fishing vessel Wilhelmina J and the 8714gt Cypriot flag F22 6 cargoship Zulfikar. The fishing vessel sank and an extensive F22 7 air and sea search revealed only two empty liferafts, two F22 8 life-rings, an Epirb and some wreckage. There was no sign of the F22 9 six-man crew of Wilhelmina J.

F22 10 It is reported that the Zulfikar, which suffered no F22 11 damage, and did not stop after the collision, reported the incident F22 12 to Dover Coastguard almost two hours later when a radio aerial from F22 13 the stricken fishing vessel was found on her fo'c'sle. It is F22 14 thought that Zulfikar, which was carrying 13 000 tons of F22 15 sugar, was unaware that it had been in a collision until the F22 16 discovery of the aerial. It is understood that the Cyprus F22 17 Government is holding a full inquiry into the incident and is F22 18 co-operating fully with the UK's Marine Accident Investigation F22 19 Branch of the Department of Transport.

F22 20 About 24 hours later, an even greater tragedy took place off F22 21 Leghorn, Italy, when the ro-ro ferry Moby Prince, sailing F22 22 from Leghorn to Sardinia, collided in thick fog with the 186 500 F22 23 dwt tanker Agip Abruzzo which was at anchor. In this F22 24 collision, one of the Agip Abruzzo's cargo tanks was F22 25 breached and the cargo spilling from this tank ignited, surrounding F22 26 the ferry in flames. Of the 142 passengers on board Moby F22 27 Prince, there was only one survivor, a cabin attendant, F22 28 although all 28 crew of the tanker were able to escape in F22 29 lifeboats. One of the problems of this tragedy is that, because all F22 30 Moby Prince's officers lost their lives, it will never be F22 31 positively know how or why the collision occurred, although there F22 32 has been much speculation.

F22 33 The Ligurian Sea was the scene of another accident about 12 F22 34 hours after the Moby Prince/Agip Abruzzo disaster. This F22 35 time only one vessel was involved, the 232 163 dwt tanker F22 36 Haven, which suffered an explosion followed by a fire. This F22 37 raged for a few days before the vessel finally sank. Two bodies F22 38 were recovered, including that of her Master, while three crew F22 39 members are missing. A fleet of vessels of various types was F22 40 involved in fighting the fire and in anti-pollution measures to F22 41 contain the ensuing oil slick.

F22 42 On the night of Monday, 15 April, a fire broke out in the F22 43 engineroom of the Greek ro-ro/passenger ferry Rodos. F22 44 Fortunately, all 641 passengers and some of her crew were safely F22 45 evacuated to another vessel. The majority of the Rodos's crew F22 46 remained on board and successfully extinguished the fire.

F22 47 These events tended to overshadow the fact that another bulk F22 48 carrier has gone missing. This vessel, the 141 028 dwt Mineral F22 49 Diamond, sent out a brief message on 17 April to the effect F22 50 that she was having to reduce speed because she was experiencing F22 51 severe gale force winds. Mineral Diamond sailed from F22 52 Dampier, Australia, on 11 April, bound for ljmuiden with a full F22 53 cargo of iron ore. She had a crew of 27 and it is understood that F22 54 there have been no reports of any distress messages heard. On 22 F22 55 April, the tug Patricia B McAllister sank in the Gulf of F22 56 St Lawrence with the loss of five of her six crew. Apparently, she F22 57 was on passage to Pictou Industries Ltd's shipyard for an annual F22 58 survey and, when she failed to arrive, a search was initiated. Two F22 59 liferafts were found and there was one person rescued from one of F22 60 them; the other was empty. Four bodies were later recovered and a F22 61 fifth is missing. The one survivor had spent 36 hours in his raft F22 62 and was suffering from hypothermia.

F22 63 F22 64 Welin Lambie - ninety years old and still going F22 65 strong

F22 66 This year, Welin Lambie of Brierley Hill celebrates 90 years of F22 67 service and achievement in the field of marine safety.

F22 68 By any reckoning it is a remarkable record. Throughout an era F22 69 that has witnessed all the great technical advances in F22 70 shipbuilding, the company has remained steadfastly to the fore of F22 71 design development, establishing in the process a name that is F22 72 indelibly and synonymously linked today with state-of-the-art F22 73 marine equipment.

F22 74 The Welin company was founded in 1901 by an Anglo-Swede, the F22 75 late Axel Welin, CBE. A brilliant mechanical engineer who studied F22 76 at Kings College, the young Welin was to develop several F22 77 outstanding innovations in his field, among them a loading F22 78 mechanism for naval guns that is still employed today.

F22 79 It was at the request of his brother, a sea captain, that Welin F22 80 turned his attention to safety at sea. Subsequent study and F22 81 experiment resulted in his producing a unique design of davit that F22 82 was to overcome the heavy manual effort required to launch a F22 83 lifeboat in emergency conditions. The success of this new, safer F22 84 mechanical davit was sufficient to spawn a viable company in the UK F22 85 and, as a more direct consequence of Welin's enormous personal F22 86 energy, a network of agencies was set up worldwide, the particular F22 87 emphasis being on the European and American continents.

F22 88 It was a start in the right direction. The Welin enterprise was F22 89 to prosper still further with the company's expansion into lifeboat F22 90 construction, in its ensuing development of a range of automatic F22 91 handling systems for accommodation ladders and, subsequent to the F22 92 Second World War, in the production of inflatable liferaft F22 93 launching systems for ships of high freeboard.

F22 94 The bequest of these earlier activities is evident in Welin F22 95 Lambie's recently patented Carousel Liferaft Launching System. A F22 96 space-saving development, ideally designed for 'high density' F22 97 passenger ferries and cruise ships, it is already recognised F22 98 internationally as a significant contribution to the ongoing quest F22 99 for survival provisions. Indeed, in the system's stringent test F22 100 conditions, four 35-man liferafts were embarked in only 21 F22 101 minutes.

F22 102 It is a sad fact, however, that despite the good work F22 103 undertaken by maritime administrations - IMO in particular - it F22 104 takes great disasters at sea to focus attention on the need for F22 105 continuous vigilance.

F22 106 It was only after the Titanic disaster and the F22 107 subsequent 'boats for all' demand, (albeit for sound commercial F22 108 reasons), that Axel Welin's work was internationally recognised. F22 109 During world lecture tours, he received no fewer than seven gold F22 110 medal awards from naval architect and academic institutions in F22 111 Europe, America and Japan.

F22 112 Significantly, the Welin launching equipment fitted to the F22 113 Titanic was given full credit at the Official Enquiry for its F22 114 speedy and efficient embarking of the lifeboats, making possible F22 115 the rescue of 815 of the vessel's passengers and 688 of its crew. F22 116 As it transpired, Welin's design allowed for twice the number of F22 117 lifeboats deployed and, had more been carried on the F22 118 Titanic's fateful voyage, more lives would undoubtedly F22 119 have been saved.

F22 120 Despite the vicissitude of the shipbuilding industry, the F22 121 company has, in its 90 years, remained true to Axel Welin's F22 122 original aims for safety of life at sea.

F22 123 Scottish links were formed when Welin joined forces with naval F22 124 architect, Colin McLachlan who, after 12 years' service with the F22 125 Singapore Harbour Board, returned to his native land to develop the F22 126 now widely used inclined trackway gravity davit. Accepted by the UK F22 127 Board of Trade in 1923, the equipment was fitted in the same year F22 128 to the original Orient Line vessels Oriana and Oronsay. F22 129 For the romantically minded, this style of davit will best be F22 130 remembered for the almost unobstructed promenading space it F22 131 provided on the boat deck, a fact much used by film-makers. From a F22 132 more practical viewpoint, it heralded the formation of the F22 133 Welin-McLachlan partnership. Literally thousands of ships, merchant F22 134 and naval, were outfitted by the company in the great days of F22 135 British shipbuilding, when over 200 ships were on order in the UK F22 136 alone in one trading year.

F22 137 Mr McLachlan died and was buried at sea on 2 April 1954, being F22 138 succeeded by his son Donald. Axel Welin had by that time retired, F22 139 and died in his native Sweden in 1951, exactly half a century after F22 140 his founding of the Welin company.

F22 141 Midlands-based Welin had, in the early 1970s, established a F22 142 foothold in the UK lifeboat building market with the acquisition of F22 143 the Scottish boatbuilders, Hugh McLean Limited of Renfrew, a well F22 144 established supplier of lifeboats for many of the more famous F22 145 liners, including Cunard Queens. The yard also specialised in the F22 146 production of fire-fighting tenders, police launches, steel F22 147 trawlers and other species of small ship.

F22 148 An unexpected decline in fishing boat production, coupled with F22 149 high costs in the change-over to totally enclosed lifeboats for F22 150 tankers and offshore structures, brought about the closure of Hugh F22 151 McLean. Links were formed with other established boatbuilders who F22 152 were better geared to meet the development charges. (It should be F22 153 remembered that all research and development in the supply industry F22 154 was, and still is, undertaken from profits, unlike the financial F22 155 aid occasionally donated to a shipbuilding yard for social F22 156 considerations).

F22 157 On 2 May 1986, the Welin company joined with the F22 158 long-established lifeboat builders, Messrs Lambie Lifeboats, and F22 159 the company name was changed to Welin Lambie Limited.

F22 160 Over its lifespan, Welin Lambie has formed a number of F22 161 far-sighted and customer-beneficial associations with lifeboat and F22 162 liferaft manufacturers. Typical is the company's working F22 163 relationship with the Norwegian company, Harding A/S of Rosendal - F22 164 for many years world-leaders in the production of several types of F22 165 boat, including high-class cruise ship passenger launches and the F22 166 rapidly emerging 'freefall' lifeboats. It is interesting to note F22 167 that the Scottish partner of the original company, Colin McLachlan, F22 168 had visualised a 'freefall' type installation in the early 1920s F22 169 after seeing Portuguese fishermen lash a small dinghy to two F22 170 inclined planks which ran from the wheelhouse to the gunwale of F22 171 their boat. In an emergency, the lashings were severed by a blow F22 172 from an axe, safely releasing the small crew of three. Thus do the F22 173 'spirits of great events stride on before them'. Unfortunately for F22 174 Colin McLachlan, his commercial application was several decades F22 175 ahead of its time.

F22 176 Equally important is the present relationship that exists F22 177 between Welin Lambie and the French safety-equipment manufacturers, F22 178 ACEBI of Ancenis near Nantes, where a modern test rig facility F22 179 enables a wide range of jointly-designed equipment to undergo F22 180 research testing on site.

F22 181 Close links with France existed in Axel Welin's time and, F22 182 immediately after the Second World War, these connections were F22 183 revived to mutual benefit, since at one time a section of Welin's F22 184 London office designed exclusively for the French shipbuilding F22 185 market, with all design factors and drawing titles to suit.

F22 186 Today, thank goodness, the importance of safety at sea is F22 187 recognised far and wide by both the various international F22 188 authorities and shipbuilding industries alike.

F22 189 Having just completed 18 months of consolidation, since the F22 190 management buy-out in 1989, Welin Lambie is poised, ready to tackle F22 191 the future once again with initiative and enterprise.

F22 192 In a statement concerning Welin Lambie's 90 years, managing F22 193 director Norman Rose, announced: "Recent orders of davit F22 194 equipment for the British Antarctic Survey Vessel RRS F22 195 Bransfield, HMS Herald, Balmoral Glassfibre, and Viking F22 196 A/S Nordisk Gummib<*_>a-circlet<*/>dsfabrik of F22 197 <}_><-|>Esjberg<+|>Esbjerg<}/>, have raised our order book by more F22 198 than half a million pounds sterling. Now, with a century just F22 199 around the corner, we are looking for even better F22 200 results."

F22 201 F22 202 Scandinavian marine safety equipment

F22 203 The long seafaring traditions of the Scandinavian countries are F22 204 renowned throughout the world, and a look at the atlas will show F22 205 why. The rugged long coastline of Norway, the islands that make up F22 206 a major part of Denmark, and the combination of both these features F22 207 in Sweden, clearly illustrate the importance of maritime transport F22 208 to these nations.

F22 209 However, such voyages were not confined to their own waters and F22 210 the tales of the Vikings are legion. Examples of the marine F22 211 exploits and developments over the centuries are clearly seen at F22 212 the various maritime museums such as those in the Oslo area, Bergen F22 213 and at Esbjerg. All this has not been without cost in human life as F22 214 one can see, for example, at the fisherman's memorial at Esbjerg F22 215 where the names of the vessels from that port, and their crews, F22 216 which have been lost at sea are poignantly recorded.

F22 217 F23 1 <#FLOB:F23\>THE NEWEST NATIONS - MUSLIMS; MONTENEGRINS AND F23 2 MACEDONIANS

F23 3 The Muslims

F23 4 The term 'Muslim' in Yugoslavia is used to describe descendants F23 5 of Slavs who converted to Islam under the period of Ottoman rule. F23 6 Since 1971, they have been officially recognized as a distinct F23 7 'Yugoslav Nation' who make up about 9% of the population, mostly in F23 8 Bosnia-Hercegovina where they are the largest single group F23 9 constituting 39% of the population. They also constitute some 13.4% F23 10 of Montenegro's small population.

F23 11 Although the overwhelming majority of Muslims speak Serbo-Croat F23 12 there are some 40,000 or so Macedonian-speaking Muslims, often F23 13 called Pomaks. These are descendants of Macedonians, as opposed to F23 14 Serbs or Croats, who converted during the Ottoman period. Their F23 15 inclusion in the term is something of an anomaly and they have been F23 16 treated separately (see section on Muslim Macedonians). It should F23 17 be stressed that the term 'Muslim' does not refer to the Albanian, F23 18 largely Muslim, or Turkish, wholly Muslim, minorities.

F23 19 After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, the Muslim Slavs, F23 20 faced by pressure from both Serbs and Croats, organized themselves F23 21 into a political force, the National Muslim Organization, which F23 22 sought to protect both the religious and cultural life of the F23 23 community as well as the interests of the Bosnian elite which had F23 24 been islamicized in the 15th and 16th Centuries<&|>sic! and which F23 25 were the driving force behind the organization. It was not F23 26 persecuted by the <}_><-|>Hapsburg<+|>Habsburg<}/> authorities who F23 27 controlled Bosnia-Hercegovina but fell after 1878.

F23 28 After the creation of the new state in 1918, it tended to side F23 29 with those who would help defend its rights, and avoided outright F23 30 opposition to the authorities. Increasingly, it looked to the F23 31 Croats. After World War II and the communist victory, there was F23 32 considerable emigration of Muslim Slavs from Bosnia and especially F23 33 from the Sandzak region of southern Serbia which lasted until 1966. F23 34 This was in no small part due to the initially hostile attitude of F23 35 the new authorities.

F23 36 The Islamic community in Yugoslavia is divided into four F23 37 administrative regions: the Sarajevo region, which ministers to the F23 38 Muslims of Bosnia-Hercegovina and the small numbers of Muslims in F23 39 Croatia and Slovenia; the Pristina Region; the Skopje Region; and F23 40 the Titograd Region. The head of the Islamic community in F23 41 Yugoslavia, the Reis-ul-ulema, is based in Sarajevo. F23 42 Immediately after Tito's death, there were in the Sarajevo region F23 43 over 1000 mosques, over 550 mesdzids (smaller places of F23 44 worship), some 400 places of religious instruction, and two F23 45 madressahs (religious schools). The numbers<&|>sic! of F23 46 mosques has since grown considerably due to the large scale F23 47 building programme undertaken by the Islamic community. There are a F23 48 number of Islamic publications of which the most important is F23 49 Preporod, a fortnightly newspaper published in Sarajevo in F23 50 Serbo-Croat. However, unlike its Orthodox and Roman Catholic F23 51 counterparts, Pravoslavlje and Glas Koncila, F23 52 Preporod has avoided controversial social or political F23 53 comment. The Muslims are overwhelmingly Sunni, although the Dervish F23 54 order was introduced in Yugoslavia in 1974 and by 1986 numbered F23 55 50,000 followers. This order has so far proved to be more F23 56 attractive to Muslim Albanians than Muslim Slavs with, in 1986, 53 F23 57 of the 70 'monasteries' being in Kosovo, 10 in Macedonia and only F23 58 seven in Bosnia.

F23 59 The area of Bosnia-Hercegovina was the scene of many of the F23 60 worst atrocities committed during the civil war in World War II, F23 61 and the ethnic mix of Orthodox Serbs, Catholic Croats and Muslim F23 62 Slavs has historically been an explosive one with both Serbia and F23 63 Croatia claiming the territory for their own. In addition, F23 64 immediately after the war, an organization called 'Young Muslims' F23 65 was set up, ostensibly to protect Muslims in Bosnia from alleged F23 66 ill-treatment by the communist partisans. The Yugoslav authorities F23 67 outlawed this group which they described as a terrorist one.

F23 68 The republic of Bosnia-Hercegovina, which was created F23 69 specifically to find some form of modus vivendi for the three main F23 70 groups, well portrays the ethnic tangle in Yugoslavia as it is here F23 71 that the three main religions meet head on. In the Balkans, F23 72 religion has historically been one of the main differentiators F23 73 between different peoples. In the light of this, and the tendency F23 74 for both Serbs and Croats to claim the Muslim Slavs of Bosnia as F23 75 their own, the separate 'Muslim' category was introduced. The F23 76 ethnic tangle and competing rivalries resulted, until recently, in F23 77 Bosnia being somewhat notorious in the matter of human rights, with F23 78 individuals from all three ethnic groups persecuted for any F23 79 manifestation of nationalism not sanctioned by the ruling Communist F23 80 Party.

F23 81 Despite religious freedom guaranteed under the constitution, F23 82 religious practice, with its close correlation with a particular F23 83 national standpoint, has often been viewed with official distrust F23 84 (especially Roman Catholicism due to its centre of authority being F23 85 outside the country). This has especially been so in F23 86 Bosnia-Hercegovina and in Croatia. Also, any form of Islamic F23 87 fundamentalism has, until the great changes in 1989-90, been F23 88 severely treated as being a party to a conspiracy to make F23 89 Bosnia-Hercegovina an 'ethnically pure Islamic Republic'.

F23 90 The trial of 'the Sarajevo Muslims'

F23 91 The most important example of this attitude by the communist F23 92 authorities was the trial in mid-1983 of 13 Muslims accused of F23 93 "hostile and counterrevolutionary acts derived from Muslim F23 94 nationalism". The main defendant was Dr. Alija Izetbegovic, F23 95 a lawyer and retired director of a building company, then aged 59. F23 96 He was found guilty by the Sarajevo district court and sentenced to F23 97 14 years' imprisonment, reduced on appeal to 11 years. Four of the F23 98 13 on trial, Dr. Izetbegovic, Omer and Salih Behmen, and Ismet F23 99 Kasumagic, had been convicted in the late 1940s for membership of F23 100 the 'Young Muslims'. In the indictment Dr. Izetbegovic was accused F23 101 of claiming that Muslims had suffered considerably at the hands of F23 102 communists when the partisans entered their villages at the end of F23 103 World War II and that the Young Muslims and other similar F23 104 organizations were set up to counter this.

F23 105 The main charge centred on a 50-page treatise written by Dr. F23 106 Izetbegovic in 1970 entitled 'The Islamic Declaration.' Parts of F23 107 this treatise had been legally published in Yugoslavia some 10 F23 108 years previously. The prosecution maintained that it indicated a F23 109 desire to create an ethnically pure Muslim state out of F23 110 Bosnia-Hercegovina, Kosovo and other Muslim areas, and was F23 111 "the modernized platform of the former terrorist F23 112 organization, the Young Muslims". Dr. Izetbegovic and Omer F23 113 Behmen, however, stressed that the Islamic Declaration was F23 114 concerned with the general emancipation of Muslims, not with F23 115 Yugoslavia and Bosnia in particular, and that it was meant to apply F23 116 to countries where the overwhelming majority of the population was F23 117 Muslim. He also maintained that he had never uttered the phrase F23 118 "Islamic republic, ethnically pure F23 119 Bosnia-Hercegovina" and pointed out that it did not feature F23 120 in the declaration. He stated that he had given the declaration to F23 121 Omer Behmen and some Arab students in order to get their opinion of F23 122 it and that he had it translated because he felt that "the F23 123 Muslim world was turning into a third world power ... the F23 124 declaration offers the vision of a democratic and humanistic social F23 125 order". He denied that there was any link between the F23 126 declaration and the programme of the Young Muslims. Dr. Izetbegovic F23 127 and Omer Behmen were accused also of having written articles which, F23 128 according to the prosecution, contained falsehoods about the F23 129 position of Muslims in Yugoslavia including the following:

F23 130 "In the circumstances of the Second World War the F23 131 partisans emerged. They were in effect armed detachments of the F23 132 Yugoslav Communist Party which was imposing communist order in F23 133 Yugoslavia step by step. While the physical survival of the Muslims F23 134 was no longer in question, spiritual survival was now threatened. F23 135 The Islamic Religious Community was placed under the control of the F23 136 authorities. Supporters of the Communist Party and often even F23 137 members of the Communist Party were appointed leaders of the F23 138 community. The most severe losses were inflicted at the time by the F23 139 Communists on the Muslims when military units entered villages. All F23 140 potential opponents, mainly people of higher social standing and F23 141 intellectuals known to be [Muslim] believers, were simply put to F23 142 death without any judicial proceedings or F23 143 investigation."

F23 144 Members of the group were also accused of having links with F23 145 Iran, and one defendant, Melika Salihbegovic, was accused of having F23 146 written a letter to Ayatollah Khomeini in Iran which included the F23 147 following statement:

F23 148 "For 37 years I have been living in a Christian F23 149 milieu and in atheist Europe, where a handful of scared Muslims F23 150 live in an atmosphere of falsehood and hypocrisy. It is no wonder F23 151 therefore that my youth and that of thousands of my young F23 152 compatriots was spent straying along paths of ignorance; it is no F23 153 wonder that we are returning to Allah. If we are submissive, it is F23 154 our despair ..."

F23 155 Although the percentage of religious believers in F23 156 Bosnia-Hercegovina was not particularly high - at 17% it was lower F23 157 than Kosovo's 44%, Croatia's 33%, Slovenia's 26% and Macedonia's F23 158 19% - in an opinion poll in 1985, the attitudes expressed by the F23 159 'Sarajevo Muslims' for which they were so heavily penalized, F23 160 appears to have elicited strong support from the Muslim population F23 161 in <}_><-|> Bosnia-Herzegovina <+|> Bosnia-Hercegovina <}/>.

F23 162 Alija Izetbegovic was released early in November 1988 and when F23 163 the relaxation came to Bosnia-Hercegovina, as it came to other F23 164 republics, he founded in May 1990 the Party of Democratic Action F23 165 (SDA). Despite a split in the leadership of the SDA between F23 166 Izetbegovic and Adil Zulfikarpasic (a former leading figure of the F23 167 emigre Muslim community who returned to Yugoslavia but who fell out F23 168 with Izetbegovic over what he saw as the latter's "too F23 169 rigid Islamic approach" and instead founded a rival party, F23 170 the Muslim Bosniak Organization on 21 September 1990), the SDA F23 171 triumphed in the elections held December 1990 and became the F23 172 largest party with 86 of the 240 seats in both chambers of the F23 173 assembly. The voting was along national lines with 72 seats for the F23 174 Serbian Democratic Party and 44 for the Croatian Democratic F23 175 Community. In all there were 99 Muslims, 85 Serbs, 49 Croats and F23 176 seven declaring themselves as 'Yugoslavs' in the new assembly. F23 177 Alija Izetbegovic, similarly to Franjo Tudjman in Croatia, had F23 178 progressed from being a political prisoner under the old regime to F23 179 being president of the republic.

F23 180 This republic, however, is still a long way from becoming 'an F23 181 Islamic Republic', even if that is what Izetbegovic wants (which is F23 182 debatable). Despite much paranoia among some politicians and F23 183 members of other religious groups in Yugoslavia about the growth of F23 184 Islam in the country, a leading sociologist specializing in the F23 185 sociology of religion claims that statistical data disproves this F23 186 common fear, and that in fact, in relation to the country's F23 187 population, the percentage of Muslim believers in Yugoslavia is the F23 188 same as it was in 1921. The difference is in the growing F23 189 politicization of Muslims, not only in Bosnia-Hercegovina but also F23 190 in the Sandzak where they are in a majority and where there are F23 191 growing demands for autonomy. Sulejman Ugljanin, President of the F23 192 SDA for the Sandzak, in February 1991 accused the Serb and F23 193 Montenegrin authorities of denying rights to Muslims and tension F23 194 appears to be growing.

F23 195 The potential break-up of Yugoslavia poses great problems for F23 196 Bosnia-Hercegovina, and the old question of 'who are the Bosnian F23 197 Muslims?' appears to be as alive as ever. In 1989, a small Zagreb F23 198 publishing house brought out a 'Bibliography of Croatian Writers of F23 199 Bosnia-Hercegovina between the Two Wars' which included a number of F23 200 Muslims as 'Croatian writers'. The Muslims were outraged and F23 201 Preporod denounced the apparent Croatization of 38 Muslim F23 202 writers.

F23 203 In addition there is the age-old habit of Islam at times F23 204 transcending national divisions. Slav Muslims in Montenegro joined F23 205 in an electoral party with Albanians in the 1990 elections there F23 206 and the SDA appears sympathetic to the aspirations of fellow Muslim F23 207 Albanians in Kosovo. Similarly, in February 1990, Muslim F23 208 nationalist leaflets supporting Kosovo's secession and attacking F23 209 the Serb leader Slobodan Milosevic appeared in Novi Pazar in the F23 210 Sandzak. Further hostility between Slav Muslims and Serbs was F23 211 evident at a rally held by Vuk Draskovic's Serbian Renewal Movement F23 212 (SPO) in September 1990 in Novi Pazar, in the Sandjak<&|>sic!, F23 213 Serbia, when Muslims and SPO supporters had to be separated by F23 214 militia with armoured cars, tear gas and shots after Draskovic F23 215 accused Muslims of being closer to Tehran than to their Serb F23 216 neighbours. F23 217 F23 218 F24 1 <#FLOB:F24\>Chapter 2

F24 2 The Second World War

F24 3 A People's War

F24 4 All modern wars are People's Wars, in the sense that wars are F24 5 no longer fought between professional armies meeting each other in F24 6 pitched battles, the names of which are later enshrined in the F24 7 textbooks - one thinks, for example, of the great F24 8 eighteenth-century battles such as Marlborough's Blenheim, F24 9 Ramillies, Oudenarde and Malplaquet. Today's wars involve conscript F24 10 armies and all those unfortunate civilians who get in the way of F24 11 the fighting, or have their houses and possessions destroyed by one F24 12 side or the other, whether it is in, say, Vietnam or Afghanistan. F24 13 Yet some eminent historians, and in particular A.J.P. Taylor, have F24 14 described the British participation in the Second World War as a F24 15 "People's War". The term seems to have been used F24 16 first in left-wing periodicals in the dark days of 1940, but after F24 17 the war was widely used by historians writing about this period. If F24 18 this is an appropriate description, then it must be assumed that F24 19 the war had special characteristics which distinguish it from other F24 20 wars; and indeed the Second World War does form a very important F24 21 episode in the history of the working classes. It is not simply a F24 22 matter of the extent of casualties - they were far fewer in the F24 23 second war than in the first war, and in fact were extremely F24 24 limited for the first three years. In what ways then can the use of F24 25 the term 'People's War' be justified?

F24 26 The answer lies in a number of unique features of the Second F24 27 World War. In the first place, conscription for men applied from F24 28 the very beginning - conscription had actually been imposed some F24 29 months before war was declared in September 1939. Women were also F24 30 conscripted from 1941 onwards - single women between nineteen and F24 31 twenty-four, and later, from eighteen and a half to fifty - though F24 32 they were given the choice between serving in the women's services, F24 33 in civil defence, or in essential civilian jobs. By the end of the F24 34 war, nearly half a million women were serving in the women's forces F24 35 (the ATS, WAAF and WRNS), while five million men were in the men's F24 36 forces. So, for the first time in the country's history, both men F24 37 and women were called up for military service. Secondly, after the F24 38 disaster of Dunkirk (which the nation contrived to treat almost as F24 39 a victory, perhaps because the army was extricated almost intact, F24 40 and the casualties were relatively light), national unity increased F24 41 with the realisation that only the British remained to fight F24 42 Germany. An extraordinary mood, almost of elation, seemed to grip F24 43 the nation. Thirdly, this mood was intensified after the Battle of F24 44 Britain and the bombing of London and other cities, when it became F24 45 apparent that the German daylight attack had been beaten off, and F24 46 that the night bombing raids were also failing to force the nation F24 47 into submission. In the phraseology of the time, London could take F24 48 it, and so could the provincial cities. When Hitler prophesied that F24 49 he would wring Britain's neck like the neck of a chicken, Churchill F24 50 remarked, "Some neck, some chicken ..." For these F24 51 reasons alone, the war seemed to involve everyone, and the mood of F24 52 national unity and comradeship was strengthened as a result. As for F24 53 actual opposition to the war, it was very limited. Over six years, F24 54 2,900 conscientious objectors were given complete exemption, and F24 55 40,000 conditional exemption. By summer 1940, only 0.5 per cent of F24 56 those registering for services were COs. Some prosecutions were F24 57 also undertaken for spreading alarm and despondency, but these were F24 58 very few and far between.

F24 59 In contrast to what happened during the first war, there was F24 60 none of the feeling that fighting was going on in appalling F24 61 conditions overseas, while those at home in England went on F24 62 relatively comfortably with their lives, some of them actually F24 63 making fat profits from munitions. In fact, in the Second World War F24 64 there was more action on the home front after Dunkirk than abroad F24 65 for at least a year; in the first three years of war, more women F24 66 and children were killed than soldiers. The civilian population was F24 67 really in the front line at this time, and were to suffer further F24 68 attacks from the air even after D-Day on 6 June 1944. It should F24 69 also be said that from 1942 onwards following the publication of F24 70 the Beveridge Report, there was continual discussion of what F24 71 reforms were necessary after the war. This discussion was F24 72 positively encouraged by the Army Bureau of Current Affairs, which F24 73 issued valuable newsheets relating both to military developments F24 74 and to reform proposals such as the Beveridge Report itself; there F24 75 were even compulsory weekly discussions among the troops. Forces F24 76 newspapers were published in the different theatres of war, for F24 77 example, SEAC, for the South-East Asia Command. Towards the F24 78 end of the war, Brains Trusts and Forces Parliaments kept F24 79 discussion going on post-war reforms (the Cairo Forces Parliament F24 80 is a famous example). In all these ways, ordinary people were made F24 81 to feel that they were not being ignored, and that the winning of F24 82 the war would not mean a return to the dole queue, but to a better F24 83 life all round. This belief was also encouraged by the presence of F24 84 leading Labour politicians in the wartime coalition government - F24 85 Clement Attlee was deputy Prime Minister, Ernest Bevin was Minister F24 86 of Labour and Herbert Morrison was Home Secretary, all of whom F24 87 acquired valuable experience of office, and enhanced their image in F24 88 the public eye.

F24 89 For all these reasons, the idea that the Second World War was a F24 90 People's War has substance. Of course, class distinctions did not F24 91 vanish overnight, especially in the services, where it was deeply F24 92 entrenched in the hierarchy of ranks. Most officers spoke with F24 93 recognisably middle-class accents; George Orwell, the Old Etonian, F24 94 wrote defensively before the war about his own accent, and of the F24 95 need for the middle classes to join forces with the working F24 96 classes: "and probably when we get there it will not be so F24 97 dreadful as we feared, for after all, we have nothing to lose but F24 98 our aitches". A very different kind of writer, Evelyn F24 99 Waugh, was also well aware of differences in speech between the F24 100 classes. He antagonised his men on parade by mocking their accents F24 101 and their inarticulacy (he was a brave but very poor officer). His F24 102 post-war trilogy of novels about the war made it clear that the F24 103 life of an officer in a traditional regiment was still worlds apart F24 104 from the lives of the rank and file. Nevertheless, at home in F24 105 Britain the universal belief in the need to defeat the Nazis formed F24 106 a strong unifying bond, together with the comradeship forged during F24 107 the air raids and at work, and the equality of sacrifice enforced F24 108 by rationing and restrictions and shortages of all kinds. This F24 109 applied especially in the critical period 1940-1, the F24 110 "Finest Hour", as Taylor has called it. F24 111 Mysteriously and unexpectedly, for a time the British of all F24 112 classes talked to each other and became a united people; and so it F24 113 was indeed a 'People's War'.

F24 114 Military Service

F24 115 Military service in the Second World War was different from F24 116 service in the previous war, which was so heavily concentrated on F24 117 trench warfare in France. At first, there was very little fighting. F24 118 The great defensive fortifications of the Maginot and Siegfried F24 119 Lines seemed to rule out any major advance by either side, in spite F24 120 of the cheery optimism of the popular song of the time:

F24 121 We're going to hang out the washing on the Siegfried F24 122 Line

F24 123 Have you any dirty washing, mother dear?

F24 124 When the Germans attacked through Holland and Belgium in May F24 125 1940, it was soon over with the French and British armies. The F24 126 British Expeditionary Force was evacuated from Dunkirk, having F24 127 suffered casualties during May and June of 68,111 - a serious loss, F24 128 but not much more than the total casualties of the first day of the F24 129 Battle of the Somme in 1916. Thereafter British troops were not to F24 130 enter France again in force until D-Day in 1944. Meanwhile they F24 131 were in action from 1941 onwards in North Africa against the F24 132 Italians and then the Germans, and then again against the Japanese F24 133 in Burma. There was also continuous fighting at sea to keep open F24 134 lines of communication and supply, especially across the Atlantic F24 135 (the Battle of the Atlantic); and after the Battle of Britain in F24 136 September 1940 there was an ever increasing bomber offensive F24 137 against Germany. This was in remarkable contrast to the policy F24 138 adopted before the fall of France, when the RAF dropped propaganda F24 139 leaflets on Germany, not bombs. Taylor has it that the Secretary F24 140 for Air, Sir Kingsley Wood, was horrified by the suggestion that F24 141 German forests should be set on fire: "Are you aware that F24 142 it is private property? Why, you will be asking me to bomb Essen F24 143 next." In the course of time, Essen was duly bombed, many F24 144 times. The war experience of the working classes in the services F24 145 was gained therefore in a number of different theatres of war, and F24 146 thus was intensely varied, with the RAF playing a far greater part F24 147 than in the First World War.

F24 148 It would be impossible, of course, to sum up those experiences F24 149 in a few sentences. In the army, there was of necessity much F24 150 training and bullshit ("If it moves, salute it; if it F24 151 doesn't, paint it") before fighting began again in Africa, F24 152 Italy and Burma. In Africa, the predominant memory of many is of F24 153 heat, flies, sand and tank battles of unprecedented dimensions. In F24 154 Burma, there was again the heat, the jungle and a peculiarly F24 155 ferocious and cruel enemy. At sea, the war meant the constant F24 156 danger of attack from the air or from German U-boats, especially on F24 157 the notorious convoys to Murmansk. War in the air brought its own F24 158 hazards of destruction by enemy aircraft or anti-aircraft fire, or F24 159 of limping home sometimes mortally wounded. The casualty rate of F24 160 bomber aircrew was extra-ordinarily high, at least as high F24 161 as that of officers in the trenches in the Great War, when life F24 162 expectation was limited to a few weeks. For those on active service F24 163 in all branches of the forces, ways of getting killed were F24 164 infinitely various: one could be shot, blown up, drowned, roasted F24 165 alive in tankor aircraft, or starved or beaten to death as a F24 166 prisoner of war of the Japanese (those imprisoned by the Germans F24 167 stood a rather better chance of survival). These horrors are still F24 168 vivid memories of ex-servicemen alive today. Yet, even in the F24 169 services, many were lucky enough to escape actual combat, and may F24 170 even be said to have had 'a good war': office workers and F24 171 administrative staff, technicians and skilled workers, even ground F24 172 crew on air force stations in this country (understandably, F24 173 aircrews sometimes tended to regard ground staff as mere F24 174 civilians). In these many different ways, experiences in the six F24 175 years of the Second World War form an imperishable part of the F24 176 social history of the working classes. The names of those who were F24 177 killed are to be found on war memorials up and down the country, F24 178 and on the gravestones of the war cemeteries in France and further F24 179 afield. About 300,000 were killed in the armed forces, together F24 180 with 35,000 in the merchant navy.

F24 181 Air Raids and the Blitz

F24 182 Before 1939 it was anticipated that in any future war the F24 183 casualties resulting from air raids would be very heavy. The F24 184 general public was aware of the destruction wrought by bombing in F24 185 the Spanish Civil War, especially at Guernica, and the air-raid F24 186 scenes in the film version of H.G. Wells' Shape of Things to F24 187 Come contributed to the fear of aerial attack. The government F24 188 itself grossly overestimated the number of hospital beds necessary F24 189 to accommodate air-raid victims - the official figure was from one F24 190 million to three million beds, with 600,000 dead and 1.2 million F24 191 injured in the first sixty days - and this helps to explain why a F24 192 massive evacuation scheme was prepared well before the war. As a F24 193 consequence, about a million and a half children, together with F24 194 mothers under five, were moved principally from the cities to safer F24 195 areas, usually in the countryside. F24 196 F24 197 F25 1 <#FLOB:F25\>Introduction:

F25 2 Tiananmen Square

F25 3 Tiananmen Square, the heart of Beijing. The shimmering yellow F25 4 eaves of the imperial palaces fade gracefully north-wards F25 5 into the depths of the Forbidden City, where swallows swoop among F25 6 the trees. South, the Memorial to the People's Heroes stands dead F25 7 centre in a waste of concrete and paving-stones, bordered by the F25 8 giant, neo-Stalinist Great Hall of the People and the Historical F25 9 Museum. Imperial China and Maoist China meet in stark synthesis.

F25 10 In the spring of 1976 I was a junior diplomat stationed in F25 11 Beijing. The upper echelons of the Communist Party were locked in F25 12 silent struggle between the followers of the hard-left, the F25 13 notorious Gang of Four, and those sympathetic to the oft-purged F25 14 moderate, Deng Xiaoping. The death of Premier Zhou Enlai that F25 15 January had seen an unprecedented outpouring of popular grief for F25 16 the man who had sought to blunt the fanatical extremism of the Red F25 17 Guards during the Cultural Revolution. In early April 1976 citizens F25 18 from all walks of life marched into Tiananmen Square with paper F25 19 wreaths to honour their deceased Premier - and breathe defiance F25 20 against the leftists.

F25 21 On Sunday, 4 April I attended church in the small upper room in F25 22 Dongdan Street - the only Protestant church open in the whole F25 23 country. Three elderly Chinese pastors went through the motions of F25 24 public worship for the tiny congregation of resident diplomats, and F25 25 the odd visiting businessman. (In those days there were no F25 26 tourists.) No preaching was permitted, and at Easter and Christmas F25 27 plain-clothes policemen were stationed on the corner of the street F25 28 opposite the drab, unmarked building to deter any ordinary Chinese F25 29 foolish enough to enter the building. For twenty years the Chinese F25 30 church had been submerged by the tide of Maoism and many pastors F25 31 and priests were in labour camps. Beijing was full of derelict F25 32 church buildings. South of Tiananmen Square in the old diplomatic F25 33 quarter a former Catholic church was used as a primary school. A F25 34 cross hung lop-sided from the spire - one of the few the Red Guards F25 35 had left standing, presumably because it was too dangerous to F25 36 remove. That cross symbolised for me the situation of the church in F25 37 China. Sometimes, cycling through the narrow back-streets of F25 38 Beijing and coming across yet another church building used as a F25 39 school, a factory or simply left to decay, I would pray for Chinese F25 40 Christians. But was there actually still a Chinese church in F25 41 existence? With every street corner plastered with red and white F25 42 Maoist texts, and every Chinese one met obediently parroting the F25 43 Party line, it was hard to say.

F25 44 After church I wandered down to the square. The People's F25 45 Monument was surrounded by a sea of wreaths. Everything was F25 46 peaceful, with families with their children strolling in the spring F25 47 sunlight.

F25 48 But that night the authorities removed all the wreaths and F25 49 sealed off the monument with armed guards. The people reacted with F25 50 fury. The following day a vast crowd gathered in the square. F25 51 Vehicles were burnt, as was the Public Security building on the F25 52 south side of the square. For the first time since the Communist F25 53 victory in 1949 a popular demonstration had openly defied the F25 54 ruling Party in the centre of power.

F25 55 Such rebellion could not be tolerated. On the evening of 5 F25 56 April thousands of Workers' Militia armed with heavy staves cleared F25 57 the square, which was covered in blood. At least a hundred people F25 58 were killed. The Gang of Four were triumphant; Deng Xiaoping was F25 59 stripped of his posts and purged yet again. A heavy pall of fear F25 60 spread across the country.

F25 61 A little later, tens of thousands of workers and citizens were F25 62 dragooned into a demonstration of support for the Party's demotion F25 63 of the 'Capitalist roader', Deng. They trudged wearily towards F25 64 Tiananmen Square waving small paper flags - red, pink, yellow - F25 65 scrawled with suitable Party slogans. There was a distinct lack of F25 66 enthusiasm, and one man positively scowled when I took a F25 67 photograph. The masses were not amused.

F25 68 Then events followed each other at a dizzying pace. The great F25 69 Tangshan earthquake rocked North China, and was widely regarded by F25 70 the peasants as a portent of the fall of the dynasty - in this F25 71 case, of Mao's imminent death. The old man was rumoured to be F25 72 seriously ill with Parkinson's disease and virtually a puppet of F25 73 the Gang of Four, including his wife, Jiang Qing.

F25 74 Finally Mao died. I was visiting a factory in Shanghai at the F25 75 time of the announcement, on the afternoon of 9 September 1976. The F25 76 visit was hurriedly cut short and we were returned to our hotel. F25 77 That evening all the flags across Shanghai and the entire country F25 78 were lowered. The Gang of Four, fearing trouble, hastily despatched F25 79 Workers' Militia to guard all the main bridges. The country was F25 80 tense and fearful.

F25 81 One month later, on 6 October, the Gang of Four were suddenly F25 82 arrested in a lightning 'palace coup'. Two weeks later the streets F25 83 of Beijing erupted into a joyous celebration of their downfall, and F25 84 the hope of better times. People danced, young men beat gongs and F25 85 cymbals vigorously and fireworks exploded over Tiananmen Square. F25 86 For once the current 'Party line' coincided exactly with the F25 87 feelings of ordinary people.

F25 88 The following year the people hung small bottles in the trees F25 89 to express their support for Deng Xiaoping, China's hope for F25 90 reform, and an end to the nightmare of the Cultural Revolution. The F25 91 Chinese love puns, and in Chinese 'xiaoping' can also mean F25 92 'little bottle'. Sure enough, Deng returned to power, and the same F25 93 crowds who had been forced to denounce him the previous year now F25 94 poured dutifully, but more happily, out on the streets and marched F25 95 into Tiananmen Square to "celebrate the Party's glorious F25 96 decision to restore Comrade Deng Xiaoping to all his F25 97 posts". Reform was in the air, and high hopes of political F25 98 and economic change.

F25 99 In the spring of 1979 I returned to Beijing. China was now F25 100 opening to the outside world. All the hard-line policies of Mao F25 101 were rapidly being undone by Deng whose favourite saying was that F25 102 "it does not matter whether the cat is black or white, so F25 103 long as it catches the mouse" - in other words practical F25 104 economics should take priority over ideological niceties. As part F25 105 of the new 'open door' policy the Communist Party had decided to F25 106 allow a limited degree of religious toleration. With Party F25 107 permission, all over China churches, temples and mosques were being F25 108 re-opened after thirteen years of fierce persecution F25 109 (1966-79) when all religious expression was outlawed.

F25 110 I attended the church in Dongdan Street for three successive F25 111 Sundays shortly after Easter 1979, when ordinary Chinese were F25 112 allowed again to worship publicly. Each Sunday the congregation F25 113 grew a little bit larger. The atmosphere was electric. Elderly F25 114 believers who had suffered humiliation for years now quietly F25 115 whispered "Praise the Lord!" and F25 116 "Hallelujah!" to punctuate the prayers. During the F25 117 Communion service, many wept silently as they received the bread F25 118 and wine. For the first time I experienced the deep reverence and F25 119 seriousness with which Chinese Christians worship their Lord. I was F25 120 deeply moved.

F25 121 More than ten years have passed since these events. During that F25 122 decade the Chinese church has sprung up and blossomed. It has been F25 123 my privilege to travel to twenty different provinces, and visit F25 124 Christians and churches across a wide spectrum - pastors, elders, F25 125 evangelists, house-church leaders and believers. For F25 126 several years I did not return to Beijing. But then, almost F25 127 accidentally, while passing through to another province, I found F25 128 myself in Beijing, and in Tiananmen Square once again, at the F25 129 height of the student movement in May 1989.

F25 130 Tiananmen Square was filled with hundreds of thousands of F25 131 people. Students, workers and ordinary Beijing citizens processed F25 132 around the square denouncing corruption and calling for political F25 133 reforms. All was orderly. Many families had brought their children, F25 134 and the atmosphere was joyful, almost holiday-like. On 17 and 18 F25 135 May perhaps two million people came out into the streets. The F25 136 students I spoke to were serious and responsible, and hopeful that F25 137 the government would negotiate with them to initiate political F25 138 reform. Playful cartoons and slogans denounced the hard-line F25 139 Premier Li Peng, and called on Deng Xiaoping to resign, but all was F25 140 good-humoured. The wheel had turned full circle. Deng, the hope of F25 141 China for reform in the seventies, was now, at the end of the F25 142 eighties, seen as too old and too conservative to implement F25 143 political change. Here was the contradiction - and soon, the F25 144 tragedy - of China under Deng. Great strides had been made in F25 145 economic reform, but Deng was not prepared to give up one-Party F25 146 rule.

F25 147 But on that day in May the students and citizens of Beijing F25 148 were carried forward on a tidal wave of expectancy. The democracy F25 149 movement had spread across China to at least eighty other cities. F25 150 Workers from the factories came to the square by the lorry-load and F25 151 were cheered loudly. I even saw a few lorries filled with army F25 152 cadets openly demonstrating for the students.

F25 153 The scene was noisy with chanted slogans punctuated by the F25 154 harsh blaring of ambulance horns, come to administer first aid to F25 155 the many students on hunger strike who had collapsed from F25 156 exhaustion or heat-stroke. But then I heard a new note: the sound F25 157 of hymn-singing. Amidst the sea of banners coming into view in F25 158 front of the Great Hall of the People, the sign of the cross was F25 159 lifted high. The white banner with a large red cross proclaimed in F25 160 Chinese characters "God so loved the world". I F25 161 pushed through the crowd to investigate. About twenty students, all F25 162 Christians, were clustered round the banner. Their leader held high F25 163 a small wooden cross. They sang heartily, "I am a true F25 164 soldier of Christ". Then, with dozens of curious spectators F25 165 holding up tape recorders to catch this unique event, they launched F25 166 into 'Rock of Ages'. I joined in. For the first time in forty years F25 167 Chinese Christians were able to hold an open-air witness in the F25 168 heart of the capital in Tiananmen Square.

F25 169 A day later martial law was declared. I was able to get out of F25 170 Beijing as the tanks surrounded the city, and ordinary citizens F25 171 began to build barricades. Two weeks later the People's Liberation F25 172 Army crushed the people's hopes. Tiananmen Square and the F25 173 surrounding streets were red with the blood of 2000 to 3000 F25 174 students and citizens, according to reliable estimates.

F25 175 For the moment all hopes of needed political reform in China F25 176 have been cruelly dashed to the ground. The hard-line leftists in F25 177 the Party have steadily consolidated their control. It is against F25 178 the harsh backdrop of political repression and ideological F25 179 indoctrination that the Chinese church continues its witness.

F25 180 Now, across China, and overseas among the hundred thousand or F25 181 more Chinese scholars living in exile (few wish to return to their F25 182 homeland under the present regime), the future of China is being F25 183 hotly debated. The Christian faith is more and more being regarded F25 184 as a serious option. In China and overseas, thousands of students F25 185 and intellectuals are turning to Christ. Faith in the Communist F25 186 Party has been shattered. At a deeper level, traditional Chinese F25 187 belief in the intrinsic goodness of human nature has been severely F25 188 shaken by the Beijing massacre. The Christian message of sin and F25 189 redemption has new relevance and freshness to a people emerging F25 190 from the rubble of Marxism, desperate for true freedom and meaning F25 191 in life.

F25 192 The colossal growth of the Christian church in the Chinese F25 193 countryside, and now among students and young people, has seriously F25 194 alarmed the elderly Party ideologues. China stands at a spiritual F25 195 crossroads. The next decade will be crucial.

F25 196 This book looks in detail at the development of the Christian F25 197 church in China since the Cultural Revolution (1966-76). First we F25 198 examine the Cultural Revolution period itself, which witnessed both F25 199 extreme persecution and the embryonic growth of vigorous spiritual F25 200 life (chs 2-3). Secondly the new religious policy of the Chinese F25 201 Communist Party is analysed in depth from the original sources, F25 202 both at the national and local levels (chs 4-5). F25 203 F25 204 F26 1 <#FLOB:F26\>ANCIENT SPIRITS OF THE BLUE HOLES

F26 2 When Columbus first set foot in the New World, on the tiny F26 3 outlying Bahamian island of what is now San Salvador, he F26 4 encountered the Lucayan tribe, a branch of the ancient Taino F26 5 people. Twenty years later, this tribe had disappeared - apparently F26 6 without trace. Rob Palmer went to the Bahamas to find out where F26 7 they had gone.

F26 8 Five hundred years ago, Christopher Columbus was in the final F26 9 throes of planning his epic voyage across the Atlantic, in search F26 10 of what he hoped would be a short cut to the East Indies. F26 11 Meanwhile, on the other side of the ocean, the ancient culture of F26 12 the Taino was unwittingly entering its final phase.

F26 13 The Taino comprised a group of Arawak-speaking tribes whose F26 14 most northerly outposts were spread throughout the Bahama Islands. F26 15 Here, a tribe known as the Lukku-cairi (Arawak for 'island people') F26 16 - and more recently as Lucayan - had settled from the 7th century. F26 17 Their culture had strong similarities to Polynesian culture: it was F26 18 ocean-going, relied on inter-island trading, and existed in F26 19 relative harmony with its environment.

F26 20 Arawak-speaking peoples had spread northwards from the F26 21 northeastern coast of South America from about 500 BC. They F26 22 island-hopped up through the Antilles, colonising Cuba and F26 23 Hispaniola, and eventually arrived in the Bahamas. Their culture F26 24 was effectively stone age, but they made pottery, wove cloth and F26 25 rope, and constructed large canoes which they navigated across the F26 26 oceans. By 1450, they had colonised every large Bahamian island.

F26 27 Trade routes grew up with colonisation, and the northern tribes F26 28 were soon exchanging goods with the southern Taino in Cuba and F26 29 Hispaniola, which had become the main Arawak-speaking areas. There F26 30 were more than one million Tainos in Hispaniola, and around 40,000 F26 31 spread throughout the Bahamian archipelago. Artifacts found on F26 32 Lucayan sites suggest that trade links may have reached as far as F26 33 the North American mainland, making contact with Siboney and Calusa F26 34 Indians who had moved east instead of south during the great F26 35 migrations from Asia several thousand years previously. It is F26 36 possible that these tribes may even have settled in the F26 37 northwestern Bahamas before the Lucayans arrived there.

F26 38 The Lucayans lived in tribal communities ruled by a F26 39 caique (chieftain). Their thatched wooden huts they built F26 40 beside inland creeks, where they fished. They also hunted giant F26 41 iguana and <}_><-|>huita<+|>hutia<}/> - a large rodent the size of F26 42 a small dog that is now virtually extinct in the Bahamas. Some F26 43 crops were planted, including manioc, from which they made flour, F26 44 and tobacco - or cohiba. The word 'tobacco' comes from F26 45 the Arawak word, tobaco, for the pipe with which they F26 46 smoked it. Lucayans probably practised shifting cultivation similar F26 47 to that used in outlying Bahamian islands today. Areas of forest F26 48 are burned, and the resultant ash added to soils that lie in F26 49 pockets in the limestone ground. Crops are then planted. Once F26 50 exhausted, the land is left to regenerate and a new area is F26 51 cleared.

F26 52 The Lucayans were animist, believing that <}_><-|> F26 53 naturally-occuring <+|> naturally-occurring <}/> things had a F26 54 spirit, or zemi. Images of objects were made from wood, F26 55 cloth or shells, possibly in an attempt to control their spirits. F26 56 Some ceremonial zemi images have survived in the form of F26 57 duhos - carved wooden stools which often feature animal F26 58 forms.

F26 59 Caves featured prominently in Taino religion, both as F26 60 ceremonial sites and for burial. Lucayan chiefs would gather in F26 61 caves to make offerings to their gods and ancestral spirits. The F26 62 Lucayan believed that man first emerged from caves, and, from the F26 63 evidence of the many burial sites found in caves in the Bahamas, F26 64 they returned their dead there. A few burial sites have also been F26 65 discovered in underwater caves - or 'blue holes', as they are F26 66 called in the Bahamas - but their significance is unknown.

F26 67 Blue holes are deep openings into the limestone aquifers of the F26 68 Bahamian islands. Today, these holes are used for swimming and F26 69 washing. The Lucayans probably used them for similar activities, F26 70 but also, evidently, to bury their dead. In nearby F26 71 Yucat<*_>a-acute<*/>n, similar cenotes served a ceremonial, F26 72 sacrificial function, and the same may have been true for the F26 73 Bahamian blue holes. The Lucayans may have believed that the holes F26 74 were entrances to the underworld, to which the souls of the dead F26 75 must be returned. On a more practical level, they may have been for F26 76 the disposal of bodies of criminals or the diseased.

F26 77 In October 1492, Columbus and his ships arrived on the shores F26 78 of the New World, at the Lucayan island of Guanahani. Columbus F26 79 noted of the people: ".. they go about naked ... the hair F26 80 of some was thick and long like the tail of a horse, in some it was F26 81 short and brought forward over the eyebrows, some wearing it long F26 82 and never cutting it. Some are painted, and the hue of their skin F26 83 ... is neither black nor white." He also noted that F26 84 ".. in all the forehead is broad, more so than in other F26 85 people I have hereto seen". A broad forehead was F26 86 characteristic for Lucayans who, at birth, had a piece of board F26 87 bound gently to their foreheads as a means of beautification.

F26 88 Guanahani was probably what is now San Salvador, in the F26 89 southeastern Bahamas - although other islands lay less likely F26 90 claims to what, as the quincentennial of the landing of Columbus in F26 91 the Americas approaches, has become an occasionally acrimonious and F26 92 financially significant controversy.

F26 93 Columbus visited several Lucayan villages on his zig-zag route F26 94 through the southern Bahamas to Cuba, including what was the F26 95 Lucayan capital of Samaot, on what is now Crooked Island. This was F26 96 excavated in 1983 by the archaeologist Bill Keegan, and was found F26 97 to be six times larger than any other known Lucayan site of the F26 98 period.

F26 99 Over the next 20 years, the Spanish grip on the Caribbean F26 100 tightened and exploiters followed explorers. The Lucayans were F26 101 shipped in their thousands as slaves to the mines of Cuba and F26 102 Hispaniola, and to the pearl beds of Cubagua, off Venezuela. By the F26 103 time the Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon sailed through the Bahamas F26 104 in 1513 on his search for the fabled fountain of eternal youth, he F26 105 found only one old Lucayan woman on a small islet north of Grand F26 106 Bahama. However diligently subsequent slaving expeditions searched, F26 107 they could find no more of the Lucayan. Within two decades, F26 108 disease, slavery and suicide had apparently brought to an end the F26 109 island culture of the Lukku-cairi.

F26 110 But where did the last of the Lucayans go? Despite the F26 111 discovery of over 600 habitation and burial sites, very little F26 112 evidence of Lucayan civilisation has survived intact. Much F26 113 archaeological material was removed or destroyed in the 18th and F26 114 19th centuries, when plantation owners dug matter from cave floors F26 115 - largely composed of guano deposits - with which to fertilise F26 116 their land. Most Lucayan utensils were organic - woven nets, F26 117 baskets and cloth, or wooden tools - and decomposed over the years. F26 118 Only clay pottery and a few wooden or stone implements have F26 119 survived. Of the pottery remains, Palmetto ware, made from a clay F26 120 of rich red soil mixed with fine shell fragments, is found F26 121 throughout the Bahamas. On other sites, pottery originating in F26 122 Hispaniola dates from immediately before the Spanish arrival. The F26 123 only other clues about the early Bahamians are found in the diaries F26 124 of Columbus and other contemporary Spanish explorers. But in April, F26 125 a team of divers and archaeologists, headed by Neil Sealey of the F26 126 Bahamas Archaeological Team, went to the southern chunk of the F26 127 island of Andros to excavate Sanctuary blue hole, in the heart of F26 128 the jungle. Though the largest of the Bahamian islands, Andros had F26 129 been regarded as a Lucayan backwater since not many Indians remains F26 130 had been discovered there.

F26 131 From this hole were brought 13 human skulls, as well as many F26 132 other human bones - most well preserved. Tannic elements in the F26 133 cave water from organic matter which had fallen into the hole had F26 134 helped in preservation, while the lack of oxygen in the still water F26 135 had meant few agents of decomposition had been able to survive in F26 136 it. The bones lay in between 20 and 40 metres of water - probably F26 137 too deep to have been deliberately placed, despite the excellent F26 138 swimming skills of the Lucayans. Many had become dislodged since F26 139 burial, and were scattered on the slope below the cave mouth, F26 140 possibly as a result of dispersal during decomposition, or during F26 141 rock falls from the walls and roof of the cave.

F26 142 Bones of several animals were also present on the debris slope. F26 143 Some of these animals were probably co-existent with the Lucayans, F26 144 including small dogs, hutia, and wild boar - introduced to the F26 145 islands by the Spaniards and later settlers as a food source and F26 146 for hunting.

F26 147 The human remains, carefully recovered from the cave, have been F26 148 sent to the University of North Florida for dating and analysis. F26 149 They should provide much information on the Lucayans and their way F26 150 of life. Their condition may also shed light on whether such sites F26 151 were used as common burial grounds, or for ceremonial purposes. F26 152 After analysis, it is intended that the bones are returned to the F26 153 cave, as a mark of respect to the original Lucayans. Perhaps time F26 154 can make up a little for the ignominy the original Bahamians F26 155 suffered at the hands of the first Europeans on their shores.

F26 156 THE SCUBA OF THE FUTURE

F26 157 The diving gear used by the Andros blue holes excavation team F26 158 represents the greatest advance in self-contained underwater F26 159 breathing systems since the development of the aqualung by F26 160 Cousteau, Gagnan and others earlier this century.

F26 161 Computerised, close-circuit breathing systems, each carrying F26 162 only six litres of gas, enabled the team to remain at depths of up F26 163 to 40 m for up to eight hours, without the need for long F26 164 decompressions.

F26 165 The systems, known as 'rebreathers', recycle the gas that is F26 166 being breathed, and tailor the breathing mixture to provide the F26 167 most suitable blend of gases for use at whatever depth the diver is F26 168 at. They do this by altering the amount of oxygen in the gas to F26 169 maintain a constant partial pressure that does not vary with depth F26 170 as it would in a normal SCUBA set. Carbon dioxide is scrubbed from F26 171 the exhaled gas by passing it through a container of sodium or F26 172 lithium hydroxide, and three or more oxygen sensors constantly F26 173 check the level of oxygen present. Helium usually replaces nitrogen F26 174 in the breathing mixture to avoid the problems of nitrogen F26 175 narcosis, known as the 'raptures of the deep', which seriously F26 176 affects the functioning of the brain at depths of over 30 m, and F26 177 also eliminates the risk of a number of other nitrogen-related F26 178 problems. High partial pressures of oxygen in the mixture can both F26 179 reduce decompression times and extend the no-decompression limits. F26 180 For example, more than five hours can be spent at a depth of 20 m F26 181 without the need for decompression, whereas the limit on normal air F26 182 SCUBA would be one hour.

F26 183 The use of rebreathers in underwater caves was pioneered on the F26 184 Andros Project, a Royal Geographical Society-supported research F26 185 expedition to the Andros blue holes in 1987 led by Rob Palmer, who F26 186 was also responsible for the recent underwater recovery of the F26 187 bones.

F26 188 The latest rebreathers, from Carmellan Research, have F26 189 computer-controlled monitoring systems which not only F26 190 monitor the status of the rebreather and the progress of the dive - F26 191 acting as depth gauge, contents gauge, watch, and thermometer - but F26 192 which also store up to 4000 dive logs and download them to an F26 193 appropriate personal computer when required. Full decompression F26 194 information appropriate to the partial pressure in use can be F26 195 downloaded into the rebreather's computer, allowing a degree of F26 196 independence hitherto unavailable in remote location F26 197 deep-diving.

F26 198 With this technology, dives of up to 120 metres can safely be F26 199 made, even in remote locations, without the need for prohibitively F26 200 expensive back-up facilities at the surface. Divers can also extend F26 201 their stay at shallow stops with a degree of safety previously F26 202 unavailable. An added advantage is that rebreathers shed no F26 203 bubbles, except during ascent. During the Sanctuary excavations, F26 204 this meant delicate sediments on the walls and roof of the cave F26 205 were not disturbed. It also means that silent observation of F26 206 underwater wildlife is now possible. F26 207 F26 208 F26 209 F27 1 <#FLOB:F27\>JUDICIAL CORRUPTION IN EARLY MODERN ENGLAND

F27 2 I

F27 3 Great Britain's ambassador to Constantinople from 1746 to 1762 F27 4 believed that the "chief evil in Turkey" was the F27 5 "iniquitous administration of their laws, which are an F27 6 impending sword in the hand of corruption, ever ready to cut away F27 7 their lives and properties". "They tell F27 8 us", wrote Sir James Porter, "of some rare examples F27 9 in Turkey, of uncorrupt judges; I have heard of one, but none have F27 10 come to my certain knowledge".

F27 11 These were hardly original observations. Some 150 years F27 12 earlier, the traveller Fynes Morison had noted that the Turkish law F27 13 courts were "so corrupted with bribery, as the best cause F27 14 is in danger to be lost, if money be wanting, and where that is, an F27 15 ill cause may pass and the worst be excused".. But for F27 16 Porter and his contemporaries judicial probity was also a F27 17 significant hallmark of civic enlightenment. In the East, according F27 18 to the jurist Sir William Blackstone, litigants customarily F27 19 presented judges with gifts: "This is calculated for the F27 20 genius of despotic countries, where the true principles of F27 21 government are never understood, and it is imagined that there is F27 22 no obligation from the superior to the inferior". In F27 23 England, however, such conduct was proscribed as bribery, F27 24 "which is when a judge, or other person concerned in the F27 25 administration of justice, takes any undue reward to influence his F27 26 behaviour in his office". While severely punished among F27 27 'inferior officers':

F27 28 in judges, especially the superior ones, it hath been F27 29 always looked upon as so heinous an offence, that the Chief Justice F27 30 Thorpe was hanged for it, in the reign of Edward III ... And some F27 31 notable examples have been made in parliament, of persons in the F27 32 highest stations, and otherwise very eminent and able, but F27 33 contaminated with this sordid vice.

F27 34 Blackstone's implication is clear: unlike the benighted Turk, F27 35 eighteenth-century Englishmen were blessed with a judiciary of the F27 36 utmost moral integrity. This sentiment was widely shared. F27 37 "Our judges", wrote the Rev. Martin Madan, F27 38 "are not only respectable with regard to their office ... F27 39 but are so incorrupt as magistrates, that they are, what Caesar F27 40 said his wife ought to be - Not only chaste - but F27 41 unsuspected".

F27 42 Such claims may be regarded as part of a legitimizing rhetoric F27 43 common to both Court and Country in Hanoverian England. But was the F27 44 potent image of the stern-faced yet incorruptible judge (for George F27 45 Orwell "one of the symbolic figures of England") F27 46 successfully diffused and accepted through that society? The F27 47 ideology of the rule of law, which historians have credited with F27 48 both maintaining social stability and facilitating economic growth F27 49 during the century after 1688, certainly required that all legal F27 50 proceedings take place before a "bench that was both F27 51 learned and honest". Yet eighteenth-century England is also F27 52 often portrayed as a society shot through with corruption and F27 53 venality. How then did the judges avoid suspicions which must F27 54 surely have undercut their participation in the great symbolic F27 55 drama enacted on the assize circuits and at Westminster Hall?

F27 56 This question becomes more pressing when we reflect upon the F27 57 dubious public image of the later Stuart judiciary:

F27 58 The ambidextrous judges, bribed, rebrib'd

F27 59 And lesser gifts to greater still subscribed.

F27 60 Such unflattering portrayals continued well beyond the F27 61 Exclusion Crisis and the Glorious Revolution; in 1692 we read F27 62 of:

F27 63 Votes of scarlet judges bought and sold,

F27 64 If purchased by the mighty power of gold.

F27 65 All the evils of the legal system, wrote Richard Collins in F27 66 1698, occur "principally through the remissness, or rather, F27 67 gross corruption of the judges". If such assertions were F27 68 current at the end of the seventeenth century, how long afterwards F27 69 did they persist?

F27 70 And whatever the image, what were the realities of judicial F27 71 behaviour in early modern England? Needless to say, any attempt to F27 72 reconstruct the facts of corruption - crudely, who took what from F27 73 whom and to what effect - encounters formidable difficulties of F27 74 fact and interpretation. Given the nature of the subject, hard F27 75 evidence is inevitably scanty and its evaluation problematic. F27 76 Besides the need to distinguish past from present ethical F27 77 standards, it is not always obvious what the relevant norms were, F27 78 and are.

F27 79 Evidential and methodological problems notwithstanding, F27 80 perceptions of, and reactions to, allegedly corrupt judicial F27 81 behaviour can hardly be understood without reference to judicial F27 82 practice, and vice versa. So this article considers not only the F27 83 reputation, but also the actions of English judges, from the later F27 84 Middle Ages to the mid-eighteenth century. It focuses primarily on F27 85 the improper acceptance of gifts and other inducements ('undue F27 86 rewards') offered by and on behalf of litigants to judges sitting F27 87 in the superior courts of Westminster Hall (as distinct from civil F27 88 lawyers presiding in ecclesiastical and other jurisdictions, or F27 89 J.P.s and lesser magistrates).

F27 90 Of course 'bribery' and 'corruption' were elastic terms. Their F27 91 use could and did extend to the illicit sale of legal office F27 92 (because buyers might be tempted to recoup the purchase price in F27 93 bribes) and the subordination of the strict dictates of justice to F27 94 the interests of the government of the day, or those of a dominant F27 95 <*_>e-acute<*/>lite - indeed virtually any distortion of the public F27 96 good for private ends. How and why the sphere of what was held to F27 97 be judicial impropriety widened, as expectations of judicial F27 98 conduct became more stringent, is a major theme of the following F27 99 pages. They proceed in broadly chronological fashion: after F27 100 outlining what was formally required of medieval judges, and how F27 101 far those requirements affected their behaviour, I shall examine F27 102 the nature and causes of the rising concern about judicial F27 103 corruption apparent from the later sixteenth century, the F27 104 significance of mid-seventeenth-century reforms, and the extent to F27 105 which the eighteenth-century judiciary succeeded in F27 106 establishing an image of impartial incorruptibility.

F27 107 II F27 108 The spectre of judicial corruption haunted the West from F27 109 classical times onwards. Its immediate occasions, which Cicero F27 110 specified as gratia (favour), potentia (power, F27 111 coercion) and pecunia (cash, bribes), appear to have F27 112 changed little over the centuries. Following the short-lived F27 113 Provisions of Oxford (1258), which sought to ensure that the chief F27 114 justiciar "take nothing unless it be presents of bread and F27 115 wine, and such things, to wit food and drink, as have been used to F27 116 be brought to the tables of great men", the first F27 117 legislative expression of these anxieties in an English common-law F27 118 context was the oath admimstered from 1344 onwards to newly F27 119 appointed justices of the courts of King's Bench, Exchequer and F27 120 Common Pleas. By the statutes 18 Edw. III c. 4 and 20 Edw. III c. F27 121 1, all judges swore to "do equal law and execution of right F27 122 to all ... rich or poor", and not "take fee nor F27 123 robe of any man ... and ... no gift or reward by themselves, nor by F27 124 other ... of any man that hath to do before them by any way, except F27 125 meat and drink, and that of small value". Embodying F27 126 principles found in Roman law, although specifically intended to F27 127 hinder nobles from retaining royal justices as clients or F27 128 followers, this oath did not prevent judges receiving gifts of any F27 129 kind, even from parties to suits before them. Pace Blackstone, F27 130 foodstuffs and wine seem to have been routinely offered by F27 131 litigants, and accepted by judges, throughout the Middle Ages and F27 132 well into the early modern period.

F27 133 According to Sir John Fortescue, chief justice of King's Bench F27 134 from 1442 to 1461, in his celebrated eulogy of the laws of England, F27 135 the oath was rigorously observed. After describing the ceremonial F27 136 creation of a judge, Fortescue stated that "it hath never F27 137 been known that any of them hath been corrupt with gifts or F27 138 bribes"(aliquem donis aut muneribus fuisse F27 139 corruptum).

F27 140 This forthright assertion of perennial judicial probity is not, F27 141 apparently, a denial that judges took presents, but rather that F27 142 they allowed themselves to be influenced by such gifts. It is F27 143 therefore not necessarily inconsistent with the recent discovery, F27 144 in the accounts of an inveterate knightly litigant, of a F27 145 substantial disbursement on a robe of cloth of gold and crimson F27 146 velvet, intended for Sir John Fortescue C.J.K.B. Such a present was F27 147 plainly prohibited by both the letter and spirit of the judges' F27 148 oath. Yet even despite such seemingly damning testimony, successful F27 149 attempts to pervert the course of late fifteenth- and early F27 150 sixteenth-century justice may well have been far from common.

F27 151 Legal historians, perhaps not surprisingly, seem uncomfortable F27 152 with any harsher verdict. Half a century ago, Sir William F27 153 Holdsworth emphasized that the many accusations of judicial F27 154 partiality made in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries were F27 155 usually incapable of proof, since "trustworthy evidence is F27 156 scanty", although he conceded that Fortescue's claims on F27 157 behalf of his judicial colleagues past and present were "no F27 158 doubt unduly optimistic". More recently John Baker has F27 159 asked whether, when early Tudor judges declared the law, they were F27 160 indeed "wholly independent and uncorrupt?". On the F27 161 whole, he concludes, they were. The crown and the rich did not F27 162 always prevail, as they would have done if political pressure and F27 163 bribery had dominated the workings of the courts; nor is there any F27 164 "plain example of undue influence upon the judiciary F27 165 affecting a decision in a private matter", and further F27 166 "no serious allegations of corruption were made by F27 167 contemporaries".

F27 168 Although these pleas in mitigation may seem slightly strained, F27 169 the legal historians are right to caution us against granting F27 170 automatic credence to generalized accusations and complaints, often F27 171 made by demonstrably ill-informed or self-interested witnesses. Nor F27 172 is their reluctance to indict past generations of judges except on F27 173 the basis of evidence not merely that bribes were offered, but that F27 174 they were accepted and resulted in a plain miscarriage of justice, F27 175 necessarily misplaced. If for no better reason than fear of the F27 176 consequences, both in this life and the next, medieval judges F27 177 cannot usually have behaved in ways which directly contravened the F27 178 letter of their oath; there is no evidence that Fortescue actually F27 179 accepted the costly robe intended for him.

F27 180 Yet that oath did not altogether debar gifts from potential or F27 181 former litigants. Nor did it specify precisely the quantity or F27 182 quality of food and drink which judges might legitimately accept F27 183 from parties to suits in process before them. As Baker himself F27 184 points out, a whole barrel of sturgeon was thought an appropriate F27 185 present for the chief justice of Common Pleas in 1534, while the F27 186 fact that Lord Chancellor Sir Thomas More and Chief Justice Sir F27 187 John Fitzjames were both reputed to have refused all gifts from F27 188 litigants suggests "that such scruples were unusually F27 189 fine". The crucial question is whether the presents F27 190 routinely taken by their less scrupulous colleagues constituted the F27 191 kind of 'undue rewards' which were liable to pervert the course of F27 192 justice.

F27 193 It is impossible to believe that they never did, especially in F27 194 the light of the markedly more pessimistic assessments of late F27 195 medieval judicial probity presented by historians primarily F27 196 concerned with the use which the landed classes made of the law, F27 197 rather than the law's internal workings. In addition to legal F27 198 records, such historians employ a broad range of evidence, F27 199 including family papers and literary sources, and have no F27 200 disciplinary predilection for defending the reputation of the F27 201 courts or judiciary. At the same time, their distinctly harsher F27 202 verdicts are not wholly irreconcilable with the more defensive F27 203 judgements of Baker and Holdsworth, who do not deny the existence F27 204 of judicial corruption in late medieval England, but seek rather to F27 205 discount its influence on the everyday workings of the courts. If F27 206 both sides to a dispute customarily gave gifts and mobilized F27 207 whatever influence they might command with judges, jury and court F27 208 officials, such practices may often have had little net impact on F27 209 the eventual legal outcome, although whether this consideration F27 210 placated the losing party is another matter.

F27 211 Differences in cultural norms must also be taken into account. F27 212 In the Middle Ages gift-giving routinely accompanied many social F27 213 transactions, while abstract concepts of justice and injustice F27 214 arguably "coexisted with the different expectations of the F27 215 participants themselves about how disputes ought to turn out, F27 216 expectations that often had more to do with local, private patterns F27 217 of power than with our crude conceptions of right and F27 218 wrong". Yet having allowed the medieval judiciary every F27 219 benefit of the evidential and relativistic doubt, what are we to F27 220 make of the profusion of comment disparaging corrupt and venal F27 221 judges from contemporary moralists, poets and preachers? F27 222 F27 223 F28 1 <#FLOB:F28\>In their different ways, then, Freud and Marx both F28 2 believed that religion was a provocation of insight, a stimulus to F28 3 research. This provocative power lay in the enigmatic or deceptive F28 4 character of religion, as a mystification or a self-deceiving F28 5 transposition from an area of truth to an area of illusion. They F28 6 both believed that in certain respects religion held the key to F28 7 culture, it was the test case for the interpretation of industrial F28 8 and cultural phenomena.

F28 9 Although Marx and Freud believed in and practised the study of F28 10 religion they were contemptuous of religious education. This fact F28 11 need not surprise us. The religious education which they knew was F28 12 little more than a tame, domesticating activity of the religious F28 13 communities, a mere transmission of religious doctrine often in the F28 14 context of repetition and compulsion. It had few of the marks of F28 15 intellectual penetration and criticism which Marx and Freud F28 16 themselves brought to religion, and was, indeed, the very epitome F28 17 of the mystification and obsessiveness which they deplored.

F28 18 Nevertheless, there are some respects in which we may think of F28 19 both these great founders of the social sciences as being religious F28 20 educators. Freud, for example, liked to think of himself as being F28 21 similar to Moses, leading the Israel of an emancipated humanity F28 22 forward to the promised land free of inhibitions guided by the laws F28 23 of psycho-analysis (Meissner, 1984). He was undoubtedly a great F28 24 teacher, and took some of the models for his teaching activity from F28 25 his own Jewish background. In the case of Marx, we can at least see F28 26 how he drew much of his illustrative material from religion. F28 27 Several times in Capital we find the dry humour of these F28 28 analogies being used with considerable effect (Marx, 1957, pp. 41, F28 29 53, 75, 233, 355, 737, 779).

F28 30 Religious educators have often been urged to model themselves F28 31 on Jesus (Hubery, 1965; Jeffreys, 1969). The literature extolling F28 32 the virtues of Marx and Freud as models for the profession is F28 33 rather less extensive but perhaps its hour is come (Preiswerk, F28 34 1987). For the fact is that while Marx and Freud despised religious F28 35 education, they at the same time laid the foundations upon which it F28 36 may be reformulated. The influence of the two masters of suspicion F28 37 upon the social sciences lies first in their creation of this F28 38 particular kind of critical approach. Jurgen Habermas divides the F28 39 sciences into three groups: the sciences of measurement such as the F28 40 physical sciences, those of interpretation such as the humanities, F28 41 history and sociology, and finally the sciences of emancipation. F28 42 The first group seek for explanation, the second group for F28 43 understanding and the third group for liberation. In the third F28 44 group Habermas places Marxist economics and Freudian F28 45 psycho-analysis (Habermas, 1971). It is in this third group F28 46 I would like to place a reformulated religious education. The place F28 47 of religious education amongst the disciplines lies within the F28 48 social sciences, and here it is one of the disciplines of F28 49 emancipation.

F28 50 Freud and Marx, of course, believed that religion was that from F28 51 which one needed to be emancipated. They did not see religion as F28 52 being in itself an emancipatory discipline, although as we have F28 53 seen the ground work they laid for the critical study of religion F28 54 has prepared for this insight. It is religious education which must F28 55 take up this ambiguity and must proclaim itself as both subject and F28 56 object of the emancipatory process; it looks upon religion as both F28 57 disease and antidote, both bane and blessing.

F28 58 But before developing this in a little more detail, I must F28 59 pause to consider the mission of religious education. It is time to F28 60 reclaim the word mission, taken in the first place from the F28 61 homeland of religion, and made to sit down beside the alien waters F28 62 of Babylon and sing strange songs in the world of enterprise F28 63 culture. The mission of religious education is first to communicate F28 64 an understanding of religion to those who are not religious, F28 65 secondly, to communicate an understanding of themselves to those F28 66 who are religious, and finally, to communicate to all its students, F28 67 both adults and children, the benefits or the gifts of religious F28 68 studies. In all of these three tasks, which together comprise its F28 69 mission, religious education can be informed by the disciplines of F28 70 suspicion. In communicating an understanding of religion, it must F28 71 point out the ambiguity, the double-edged nature of religion. In F28 72 communicating a self-understanding to those who are religious, it F28 73 must cope with the way in which religion both deceives and F28 74 infantalises, together with the way in which religion may empower F28 75 and recreate. In communicating the gifts of the study of religion F28 76 to everyone, religious education will pass on a wide range of F28 77 skills and benefits, not all of which need necessarily be in F28 78 themselves religious (Grimmit et al., 1991).

F28 79 Let us see how the social sciences may create the foundations F28 80 of such a religious education within the context of modernity. The F28 81 work of Karl Marx in understanding the significance of religion for F28 82 society was brilliant but limited in its scope. Although he F28 83 described religion as the "general theory of the F28 84 world" that is, the world of human relations, the social F28 85 world, and as its "encyclopaedic compendium, its logic in F28 86 popular form" (Marx, 1963, p. 43) religion and the study of F28 87 religion continued to occupy but a marginal place in his work. This F28 88 must be attributed to the impact upon his systematic thought of the F28 89 mystification theory of religion which he adopted from eighteenth F28 90 century enlightenment rationalism (Larrain, 1979). He remained F28 91 influenced by the 'psychology of interest' view of religion which F28 92 suggested that religion was a cloak serving the interests of a F28 93 section of society. He never thus advanced to a full-scale F28 94 sociological understanding of religion, important though his work F28 95 is as a bridge between the psychology and the sociology of F28 96 religion. The purpose of religion, in the view of Marx, was F28 97 precisely to mystify, to numb the consciousness, to veil reality, F28 98 to offer a consoling hope, a comforting illusion to oppressed F28 99 people. That oppressed people should need to find such comfort, F28 100 should look for consolation from such a source, was in the view of F28 101 Marx highly significant, indeed symptomatic of a whole structure of F28 102 injustice. Nevertheless, religion itself possessed no particular F28 103 function in society as a whole. Its role was limited to being a F28 104 worn blanket which the weary body of suffering humanity could pull F28 105 up over itself. That religion could be much more than this, that it F28 106 could become the very foundation for an entire society, that it F28 107 could be the content for a total ideology of society did not seem F28 108 to occur to Marx, and this is why it remains somewhat marginal in F28 109 his thought. It remains a part of his contribution to the F28 110 psychology of politics, and particularly to the psychology of F28 111 domination.

F28 112 We must go on to Emile Durkheim to find a conception of F28 113 religion which views it as sufficiently powerful to carry the F28 114 entire weight of a society. Religion consists of "beliefs F28 115 and practices which unite into one single moral community all those F28 116 who adhere to them. Religion is thus an eminently collective F28 117 thing" (Durkheim, 1915, p. 47). Durkheim illustrated this F28 118 by studies of the structure of pre-European Australian society. By F28 119 studying the nature of religion in primal society we gain an F28 120 insight into its whole character. The concept of society and that F28 121 of divinity are different forms of the concept of totality. F28 122 Religion is thus based upon and expressive of the total nature of F28 123 our lives in society.

F28 124 Karl Marx was interested in the structure of industrial society F28 125 and in understanding the causes which had led to it, whereas F28 126 Durkheim in the work we have been considering was interested in F28 127 pre-European if not prehistorical society. Marx studied a society F28 128 which was deeply divided and saw in religion a factor or an aspect F28 129 of that division; Durkheim studied societies which were F28 130 totalitarian in their religiosity, societies based upon cult and F28 131 myth rather than upon economic and occupational distinctions. In F28 132 these primal societies, religion does not play a role on this side F28 133 or that because there are no sides, only many complex social F28 134 institutions all based upon the fundamental distinction between the F28 135 sacred and the profane. In modern societies religion has lost this F28 136 integrating force, and the occupational group has taken its place. F28 137 It would be possible for religion to come down out of the heavens F28 138 and from the world beyond death so as to occupy again its primal F28 139 place but that would require criticism of religion, and religion F28 140 itself would prevent such criticism (Durkheim, 1951, pp. 374 F28 141 ff.).

F28 142 In the earlier work of Durkheim we find religion as a sort of F28 143 tribal collectivity in which there is no access to alternative F28 144 world views. Human beings are social. There is no alternative to F28 145 society and thus no alternative to that religion which is the fibre F28 146 of society. This is the truth of religion and in this sense every F28 147 fundamental religion is true (Durkheim, 1915, p. 3). At the same F28 148 time, such societies are bound together in a sort of collective F28 149 falsehood, a false consciousness in which believers mistake the F28 150 essence of their religion (which is society) for something else, F28 151 something other than society. We may describe this united F28 152 social/religious world view as being 'non-dialectical', as F28 153 possessing no quality which permits a dialectic to take place. Thus F28 154 the primal religious society as described by Durkheim is the very F28 155 opposite of the plural societies which characterise modernity.

F28 156 For Marx, religion is a hindrance to the unification of a just F28 157 society; it is not only part of the antagonistic structure of F28 158 society but acts so as to conceal from those who suffer most from F28 159 the divisions of society the very nature of that antagonism. F28 160 Religion is thus a manifestation of social division which functions F28 161 in a way so as to stupefy people. This element of making people F28 162 slightly mad is also found in Durkheim's description, but the F28 163 madness does not matter because it is not antagonistic. Everyone is F28 164 equally slightly mad. No-one notices, there is no-one outside the F28 165 group who can take notice. In Marx, on the other hand, the F28 166 stupefying effect of religious belief upon the masses is all too F28 167 visible to the discerning critic. It thus becomes an abomination, F28 168 an outrage.

F28 169 We have now seen that Marx, Freud and Durkheim regard religion F28 170 as having an intrinsic connection with madness, but in different F28 171 ways. For Marx religion is a collective mystification, in Durkheim F28 172 a collective effervescence and in Freud a collective neurosis. F28 173 These contrasts take on particular relevance when we try to put F28 174 them together so as to create a theory for an emancipative F28 175 religious education. The techniques used for the study of religion F28 176 are often the same but the results are different.

F28 177 Some of the techniques which Marx used in his study of F28 178 ideologies are similar to those used by Freud (Freud, 1950). Like F28 179 ideologies, dreams invert reality, so that what we ourselves have F28 180 created appears to come to us as a given, from the outside. The F28 181 creative, constructive factors change places with the super-human, F28 182 transcendent factors so that although people believe they have been F28 183 made by the Gods the truth is that their Gods have been made by F28 184 them. Interpretative techniques such as condensation and F28 185 displacement are used by Marx in his analysis of the mystery of the F28 186 commodity and by Freud in his dream analysis. Freud's F28 187 interpretation of dreams, however, is unlike Marx's interpretation F28 188 of social ideologies in this respect: Freud seems to have little or F28 189 no interest in how these distortions and fantasies function against F28 190 the interests of the poor whereas this was the major interest of F28 191 Karl Marx. So it is that Freud speaks of "repression" where F28 192 Marx speaks of "alienation"; Freud diagnoses the sickness F28 193 of the individual whereas Marx diagnoses the function of the F28 194 illusions held by the poor; Freud deals with the place of religion F28 195 in the divided life of the guilty individual whereas Marx deals F28 196 with the place of religion in the divided structure of an F28 197 oppressive society. Durkheim, on the other hand, deals with F28 198 religion in a unified society, a society unified by a religion F28 199 which is false, yet innocent in its falsehood.

F28 200 F28 201 F29 1 <#FLOB:F29\>MARKET FORCES

F29 2 Carl MacDougall looks back on 1990 - a year which saved its F29 3 biggest sting of all for delivery in the calendar's tail.

F29 4 It is one of life's more interesting ironies that maxims which F29 5 trip easily off the tongue have a habit of taking on F29 6 hard-edged coinage - and simply trip up.

F29 7 So it was that Mrs Thatcher's insistent advocacy on behalf of F29 8 market forces saw that particular sword end eleven-and-a-half years F29 9 of her occupancy of Number Ten.

F29 10 Just two remarkable weeks in British political life witnessed F29 11 the inexorable, if clumsy and distasteful, removal from office of a F29 12 Prime Minister.

F29 13 The British public - honed to new horizons of employment F29 14 realism in the Thatcher era of privatisation and market forces - F29 15 seemed perplexed by the swiftness of it all. The miners, the F29 16 Scottish steel workers and the redundancy victims of takeovers, F29 17 company insolvencies and the short-term mechanics of the City F29 18 understood the process only too well.

F29 19 Not your average redundancy, though. Still, market forces had F29 20 prevailed - and turned a government on its head.

F29 21 Britain has a new Prime Minister in John Major, a new Cabinet, F29 22 a new set of promises to go with it - and a new respect for dead F29 23 sheep.

F29 24 This time last year The Wall was coming down and now the F29 25 Germans have been reunited with reports of anti-Semitism returning F29 26 and the crime rate rising. What we called Eastern Europe is now no F29 27 more and it looks as if the Soviet Union itself is disintegrating F29 28 into food shortages, riots and nationalist uprisings. President F29 29 Gorbachev has been given the Nobel Peace Prize for his F29 30 international achievements; commentators weekly predict his demise F29 31 because of failures on the home front.

F29 32 This time last year it took the Rumanians ten days to rid F29 33 themselves of their president.

F29 34 War in the Gulf is expected, indeed seems inevitable; only the F29 35 timing is in doubt. The deposed Kuwaiti ruler is without doubts. He F29 36 has been quoted as saying he would like his kingdom back now, not F29 37 tomorrow. At the time of writing, we live with the hope that his F29 38 wishes will not be the only considerations, though both sides are F29 39 digging in.

F29 40 This time last year some things were very evident and these, F29 41 indeed, have come to pass. The Poll Tax, or Community Charge, was F29 42 unpopular in Scotland. It is now unpopular throughout the United F29 43 Kingdom.

F29 44 And the fate of the present administration may rest with the F29 45 solutions mooted by the man who almost talked himself on to this F29 46 particular bed of nails - Michael Heseltine.

F29 47 Some things, however, do not change. The senseless killing and F29 48 maiming in Northern Ireland still goes on. Twenty-one years of F29 49 guerilla warfare in one part of the United Kingdom seems to have F29 50 been accepted as an inevitable fact of life. Public opinion has F29 51 become inured to the monstrous circumstances which prevail in F29 52 Ulster. Twenty-one years of bigotry transcribed into violence. F29 53 Twenty-one years - and no prospect of peace in the foreseeable F29 54 future. Nor Saddam Hussein to blame.

F29 55 The environment continued to deteriorate. The Government F29 56 produced a set of promises which impressed few and it was left to F29 57 primary schoolchildren, their sense of fairness and love of F29 58 animals, to shame us into sharing their concern. They also provided F29 59 an interesting role model, where media output was motivated by F29 60 consumer concern, rather than forming opinion.

F29 61 A book written by the editorial team of The F29 62 Ecologist, reasonably argued there were 5,000 days left to F29 63 save the planet from certain destruction. Their warning was largely F29 64 unnoticed.

F29 65 The four Guinness affair defendants were found guilty of F29 66 commercial criminality and sent to prison - but not banished from F29 67 boardrooms in the future. And British Rail still couldn't get the F29 68 Glasgow to Edinburgh service to run on time.

F29 69 Scotland lost Norman Buchan. Britain lost the Sunday F29 70 Correspondent. The world lost Leonard Bernstein - but not his F29 71 wonderful music.

F29 72 And the Clyde became a time machine, in a way, when the QE2 F29 73 made her memorable visit to Greenock during last summer.

F29 74 The SNP elected a new leader - with, it seems, a remarkable F29 75 absence of fuss.

F29 76 The Forth Bridge celebrated its centenary in a style some F29 77 Glaswegians may have envied. Their year as Europe's citizens of F29 78 culture gave the word a new interpretation. I should, in fairness, F29 79 declare a minimal interest in these events and break silence long F29 80 enough to say I have no intention of commenting.

F29 81 Scotland & Sport

F29 82 This time last year it was evident that the Scottish football F29 83 team would get gubbed in the World Cup, having qualified and been F29 84 gubbed in the first round of the finals many times before. Where is F29 85 history's place for the Costa Rican president who, commenting on F29 86 his country's defeat of Scotland in the first game, said, F29 87 "This is extraordinary. It is driving us crazy with F29 88 satisfaction."

F29 89 The national team's performance was equalled only by the new F29 90 level of football reporting on the Scottish television networks, F29 91 where we were made aware of how badly it was being done, because it F29 92 used to be done moderately well. The BBC brought tabloid standards F29 93 to the fray where more meant worse.

F29 94 Not that radio commentators had much to be complacent about. F29 95 Derek Johnstone was heard to comment on "Maurice Johnston F29 96 and his namesake Ally McCoist." This is symptomatic of the F29 97 ailment. We have people who cannot communicate telling us what is F29 98 going on - or speculating about what is likely to go on.

F29 99 Can normal viewing or listening be resumed as soon as possible? F29 100 Football enthusiasts across the country promise to forget it ever F29 101 happened.

F29 102 Here, it is worth remembering, most Scots do not go to football F29 103 matches; in fact, more people go to the theatre every year than F29 104 stand on the terraces.

F29 105 Scotland's Grand Slam victory was more than a compensation for F29 106 our Italian outing, certainly in terms of book sales. Publishers F29 107 whose Italia 90 books were remaindered could redress the F29 108 balance with pictures of the lads in the shower and of the Princess F29 109 Royal singing Flower of Scotland. Roy Williamson, the F29 110 anthem's composer, died last year.

F29 111 Interestingly enough, as we struggle to survive another year F29 112 where bacteria left the laboratory and entered the food chain, F29 113 where even the humble cling film which protects our food from F29 114 diseases is itself a cancer-bearing threat, the morality of food F29 115 production remained a debate.

F29 116 Pausing to reflect upon the voice of the pundits, who tell us F29 117 we are on the brink of a second Ice Age, a possible nuclear war and F29 118 ecological disaster, religious fundamentalism is also on the F29 119 increase.

F29 120 C'est la vie.

F29 121 Or, to paraphrase a political aside, it's been a particularly F29 122 unfunny old world in 1990 - hasn't it?

F29 123 F29 124 DUNDEE 800

F29 125 As Dundee reaches her 800th birthday, Rob Adams, a Dundonian F29 126 now living in Edinburgh, offers an objective - and occasionally F29 127 subjective - assessment of Scotland's 'largest village': the City F29 128 of Discovery.

F29 129 City of Discovery, Geneva of the North, The Radical Toun, The F29 130 Largest Village in Scotland; during the past 800 years Dundee has F29 131 had almost as many appellations as there are theories on the F29 132 derivation of the name Dundee itself.

F29 133 Among these, the pragmatic Don Daig, meaning 'hill of fire' F29 134 (the city nestles round a long-dormant volcano), suggests that a F29 135 settlement existed here long before the town became Donumdei, the F29 136 'gift of God' which saved from shipwreck the returning Crusader, F29 137 David, Earl of Huntingdon.

F29 138 Romantic though this latter notion may seem in the cold light F29 139 of the late 20th century, it was in gratitude for his brother's F29 140 rescue that King William the Lion conferred royal burgh status on F29 141 Dundee in 1191.

F29 142 Dundee craftsmen were quick to take advantage of the trading F29 143 rights of a royal burgh; woodcarvers and silversmiths and, later, F29 144 pistol makers and shipbuilders, all thrived, their far-flung F29 145 markets apparently contradictory to the received impression of F29 146 Dundonians as insular.

F29 147 Coincidental to Dundee's importance as a port came whaling F29 148 which peaked in the 1890s, leaving a legacy of street names (for F29 149 example, Baffin Street) and folk songs by the score, as well as the F29 150 enormous Dundee Whale skeleton in the local museum which, as a F29 151 small boy familiar with the fate of Jonah, used to give me the F29 152 willies.

F29 153 The Three Js

F29 154 At school we learned about jute, jam and journalism, an F29 155 industrial triumvirate which flourished into the 1960s. While F29 156 Keillor's marmalade factory (established 1797) had helped spread F29 157 Dundee's name and produce worldwide, it was jute which came to form F29 158 the backbone of the city's economy.

F29 159 Ironically the product of another shipwreck, which brought F29 160 Belgian flax spinners to the town, the clack-clacking, F29 161 musty-smelling jutemills provided sufficient wealth to give Dundee F29 162 more millionaires per square mile than Hollywood, and bought the F29 163 jute barons a major stake in ranches across America's Wild West. F29 164 But as more and more man-made fibres emerged jute fell into a slow F29 165 decline. Jam followed suit. Journalism, in the shape of the D. C. F29 166 Thomson empire, remains buoyant.

F29 167 The company which gave the world The Dandy and F29 168 The Beano is an enigma - respected within the industry F29 169 for its high training standards yet mocked from all sides for the F29 170 parochial, and ultimately dispiriting, nature of its reporting.

F29 171 The Thomson influence on Dundee is immeasurable. Not only is F29 172 the company the city's largest employer; it also holds a vice-like F29 173 grip on the citizen's reading habits. Over the years there have F29 174 been several attempts to establish an alternative editorial voice. F29 175 All have failed, the most recent amid allegations that, should they F29 176 stock the newcomer, newsagents faced forfeiting supplies of the F29 177 ubiquitous dailies, The Dundee Courier and The F29 178 Evening Telegraph.

F29 179 Thomson's long-running wrangle with the local council is one of F29 180 their more interesting campaigns. However, the city fathers' F29 181 reputation for graft and corruption, brought startlingly to F29 182 prominence in the late 70s, goes back even further than The F29 183 Courier, most notably to the tyrannical Provost Riddoch of the F29 184 late 17th century.

F29 185 Historically, Dundee's role has been that of a punchbag, having F29 186 been sacked and laid siege by everyone from William Wallace to F29 187 Oliver Cromwell. Small wonder, then, that Dundonians' attitudes to F29 188 national heroes has fluctuated greatly. The scene of Robert the F29 189 Bruce's proclamation as King in 1309 became the site of Winston F29 190 Churchill's nadir six centuries later as he lost heavily to an F29 191 opponent running on a temperance ticket - a bit cheeky from a town F29 192 which has consistently topped the licensed-premises-per-capita F29 193 league.

F29 194 But the damage done by Cromwell et al was as<&|>sic! F29 195 nothing compared to the civic vandalism which deprived Dundee of F29 196 its essential character in the 1960s. Wholesale demolition and an F29 197 implausibly prodigious car park programme robbed Dundee of such F29 198 gems as the old Overgate, a thoroughfare, easily comparable to F29 199 Edinburgh's Royal Mile, which gave way to a dreary - and not very F29 200 popular - shopping precinct.

F29 201 Vast chunks of tenement housing also were pulled down, and the F29 202 dispossessed shunted further and further out of town to housing F29 203 schemes which make concentration camps look attractive. In more F29 204 recent years the process has been arrested, but the results of this F29 205 programme of renovation only underline the original loss of quality F29 206 property.

F29 207 The 'largest village' tag is a double-edged sword. It F29 208 suggests that Dundee is cliquish, which it can be. Or friendly, F29 209 which it definitely is. It was President Ulysses S. Grant, an F29 210 apparently difficult man to impress, who, on crossing the F29 211 newly-completed railway bridge over the River Tay, F29 212 remarked: "That's a mighty big bridge for a mighty small F29 213 town." A year later, during a freak storm on 29th December F29 214 1879, Thomas Bouch's rather spindly-looking construction F29 215 tumbled into the seething waters, taking with it a train and 75 F29 216 passengers.

F29 217 One man who wasn't surprised by this tragedy was William Topaz F29 218 McGonagall. An Edinburgh man by birth but a Dundonian by F29 219 conviction, McGonagall was the living embodiment of the 'never a F29 220 prophet (or indeed profit) in your home town' adage. During his F29 221 lifetime, his poetry was publicly ridiculed and he was physically F29 222 assaulted in the streets. Nowadays, of course, he is accepted as a F29 223 genuine Dundee worthy.

F29 224 The two bridges which carry you across the Tay today afford a F29 225 view looking north which, despite the internal spoliation, still F29 226 lives up impressively to the name, Bonnie Dundee. F29 227 F29 228 F29 229 F30 1 <#FLOB:F30\>Thomas Paine's Rights of Man F30 2 1791-92

F30 3 A bi-centenary assessment

F30 4 H.T. Dickinson

F30 5 Born in 1736, the son of a poor Quaker corset or stay-maker, F30 6 Thomas Paine rose by his own efforts to become the most famous F30 7 political propagandist of the late eighteenth century and an active F30 8 participant in the American Revolution, the French Revolution and F30 9 the campaign for radical reform in Britain (1). In America he F30 10 wrote Common Sense (1776), the most famous and F30 11 widely-read tract on the crisis in British-American relations. In F30 12 France, soon after emerging from an alarming spell in a Parisian F30 13 goal, expecting execution at any time, he wrote The Age of F30 14 Reason (1794-95), the most notorious Deist onslaught on the F30 15 Christian churches and on the Bible as the revealed word of God. F30 16 For most Britons, however, both in his own day and ever since, his F30 17 best and most famous work was the Rights of Man F30 18 (1791-92), which remains as fresh and almost as widely read today, F30 19 200 years after its publication (2). With its bi-centenary F30 20 upon us, it deserves to be celebrated, but first its value needs to F30 21 be properly assessed.

F30 22 The outbreak of the French Revolution in 1789 found Paine back F30 23 in Britain after a dozen years active political service in America. F30 24 He welcomed the spread of revolution to France and the signs of a F30 25 radical revival within Britain. Shocked by Edmund Burke's violent F30 26 speech against the French Revolution, delivered to the House of F30 27 Commons on 9 February 1790, and aware that Burke was preparing a F30 28 substantial treatise on the subject, Paine set about preparing a F30 29 tract to defend the political principles which he believed F30 30 underpinned and justified the developments in France. Burke's F30 31 Reflections on the Revolution in France appeared in F30 32 November 1790. Working at some speed Paine completed his response F30 33 before he left for Paris early in 1791. He left the manuscript of F30 34 the first part of Rights of Man with a small group of F30 35 radical friends, including William Godwin, Thomas Holcroft and F30 36 Thomas Brand Hollis. The first publisher they approached produced a F30 37 small print-run in February 1791, but appears to have been too F30 38 timid to continue with the assignment. On 13 March another F30 39 publisher, J. S. Jordan, brought out a larger edition. The F30 40 Rights of Man was an immediate success and was widely regarded F30 41 by reformers as an effective riposte to Burke's Reflections. F30 42 Thomas Cooper promptly recommended it to James Watt:

F30 43 I regard it as the 'very jewel of a book: the finest F30 44 book in all the world that ever was or ever will be' - Burke is F30 45 done up for ever and ever by it - but Paine attacking Burke is F30 46 dashing out the brains of a butterfly with the club of F30 47 Hercules.

F30 48 The Society for Constitutional Information praised the F30 49 Rights of Man in their correspondence and helped to F30 50 distribute it to reform societies across Britain. It was rapidly F30 51 reprinted in London, and editions of it soon appeared in Ireland F30 52 and the USA.

F30 53 On his return to England in July 1791 Paine found himself the F30 54 hero of the reformers and the target for such conservative tracts F30 55 as Burke's An Appeal from the New to the Old Whigs F30 56 (1791). He set about producing Part Two of Rights of Man F30 57 and this duly appeared on 16 February 1792. This was even more F30 58 radical than the first part and a translation of it soon appeared F30 59 in France. It revealed a greater concern with the plight of the F30 60 poor and it advocated a primitive form of what today we would call F30 61 a welfare state. The Sheffield radicals declared:

F30 62 We have derived more true knowledge from the two works F30 63 of Mr Thomas Paine, entitled Rights of Man, Part the F30 64 First and Second, than from any other author or subject....resolved F30 65 unanimously, That the Thanks of this Society be given to Mr Paine F30 66 for the affectionate concern he has shewn in his Second Work in F30 67 behalf of the poor, the infant, and the aged.

F30 68 Edmund Burke, on the other hand, condemned it in the House of F30 69 Commons on 30 April 1792 as an 'infamous libel upon the F30 70 constitution'. Alarmed by the contents of Part Two and by the fact F30 71 that thousands of copies of cheap editions of the tract were F30 72 distributed among the lower orders by various radical groups in the F30 73 country, the government took action. Jordan, the publisher, was F30 74 threatened with prosecution in May 1792. He pleaded guilty to the F30 75 charge, but was never punished. On 21 May Paine himself was F30 76 summoned to appear at the Court of King's Bench on 8 June, charged F30 77 with being:

F30 78 "a wicked, malicious, seditious and ill-disposed F30 79 person, and being greatly disaffected to our said Sovereign Lord F30 80 the now King, and to the happy constitution of this F30 81 kingdom."

F30 82 On the same day, 21 May, a royal proclamation against seditious F30 83 writings and publications was issued. It called upon all loyal F30 84 subjects to resist attempts to subvert regular government and it F30 85 urged magistrates to make diligent enquiries to discover the F30 86 authors, printers and disseminators of seditious writings.

F30 87 At first the government's reaction did little to stem the F30 88 spread of Paine's ideas. Radicals throughout the country sought out F30 89 copies and it was the most discussed tract of the day. The London F30 90 Corresponding Society raised a subscription for Paine's legal F30 91 defence. When Paine appeared in court on 8 June 1792 his trial was F30 92 postponed until December. He was never in fact to stand trial in F30 93 person. After being elected to the French National Assembly in F30 94 September 1792 and after being warned by his British friends of the F30 95 danger he faced in England, he fled the country. He only narrowly F30 96 escaped capture by the authorities. He left behind him a printed F30 97 proof copy of his Letter Addressed to the Addressers on the F30 98 Late Proclamation (1792), in which he rejected the F30 99 constitutional policy of appealing to parliament to carry out F30 100 political reforms. Instead, he advised the radicals to call a F30 101 national convention and to draft a new constitution and to create a F30 102 republican form of government. He also defiantly declared that if F30 103 his arguments were libellous, then:

F30 104 let me live the life of a libeller, and let the name of F30 105 LIBELLER be engraven on my tomb!

F30 106 In his absence a special jury at the Court of King's Bench F30 107 condemned the Rights of Man as seditious libel on 18 F30 108 December 1792. In the same month a second royal proclamation was F30 109 issued in an effort to stem the dissemination of seditious writings F30 110 and the spread of radical societies. This elicited hundreds of F30 111 loyal addresses, many of them signed by hundreds, even thousands, F30 112 of ordinary citizens. Within a few months hundreds of loyalist F30 113 associations were established throughout the country. For many of F30 114 the associations, alarmed by the violence of the French Revolution F30 115 and by the rapid spread of radical societies in Britain, Paine came F30 116 to represent their deepest fears. His effigy, often clutching a F30 117 copy of the Rights of Man in one hand and corsets in the F30 118 other, was burned amidst great festivity in dozens of towns and F30 119 villages across Britain. In 1793 a government clerk, George F30 120 Chalmers, using the pseudonym 'Francis Oldys', produced a libellous F30 121 biography of Paine, while his principles were condemned in numerous F30 122 newspapers, pamphlets, sermons, poems and caricatures.

F30 123 The two parts of Rights of Man are reputed to have F30 124 sold 200,000 copies by the end of 1793. While this figure has been F30 125 repeated by many scholars, it has never been verified and it is F30 126 probably an exaggeration. None the less, since many copies might F30 127 have been read by more than one person and the work was abridged, F30 128 excerpted, reviewed and discussed in many newspapers and magazines, F30 129 there can be little doubt that the Rights of Man was the F30 130 single most influential work produced by the radical movement in F30 131 Britain in the late eighteenth century. It was at the very centre F30 132 of one of the most intense and profound ideological debates in F30 133 British history. It is also a work that has been constantly in F30 134 print this century and it discusses political principles that have F30 135 remained relevant throughout the last two centuries. Why has it F30 136 merited such attention?

F30 137 Perhaps the most significant aspect of Part One of the F30 138 Rights of Man was Paine's attempt to shift decisively the F30 139 British campaign for political reform from its appeal to history, F30 140 the ancient constitution and the traditional rights of Englishmen F30 141 to the more radical appeal to the natural, universal, and F30 142 inalienable rights of man. Previously, the majority of British F30 143 reformers had sought out historical evidence, much of it insecurely F30 144 based, to justify their demands for political reform. Paine had no F30 145 confidence in this approach. He rightly concluded that the F30 146 historical record did not justify the democratic rights of all F30 147 citizens, but he went on vigorously to deny that the authority of F30 148 the past could be used to define and restrict the political rights F30 149 of succeeding generations:

F30 150 there never can exist a parliament, or an description F30 151 of men, or any generation of men, in any country, possessed of the F30 152 right or the power of binding and controlling posterity to F30 153 'the end of time'.

F30 154 It was necessary therefore to escape from the dead hand of F30 155 history and from the tyranny of the past. Each age must be free to F30 156 reject the wisdom and decisions of the past. It was the living not F30 157 the dead who must exercise power and their actions should be guided F30 158 by universal principles and not restricted by previous F30 159 decisions:

F30 160 Every age and generation must be free to act for F30 161 itself, in all cases, as the ages and generations which preceded F30 162 it. The vanity and presumption of governing beyond the grave, is F30 163 the most ridiculous and insolent of all tyrannies.

F30 164 Instead of appealing to history, Paine based his claims to F30 165 liberty on the natural rights of all men. He was not, of course, F30 166 the first political propagandist to insist that all men were F30 167 naturally equal in the sight of God and that their maker had F30 168 endowed them all with the natural and inalienable rights to life, F30 169 liberty, and property. John Locke had made similar claims in his F30 170 Second Treatise, a century before, but Locke was not as F30 171 explicit as Paine in concluding that all men had the positive right F30 172 to vote and to play an active role in the political process. For F30 173 Locke, the people were sovereign only when the made or un-made F30 174 civil governments. While a civil government subsisted, it was the F30 175 legislature that exercised sovereign authority. It is possible, as F30 176 Richard Ashcraft has claimed, that Locke implied that all men had F30 177 the right to choose their legislators, but, unlike Paine, Locke F30 178 never made this claim clear and explicit. Richard Price and Joseph F30 179 Priestley also used natural rights arguments in the later F30 180 eighteenth century, but they too failed to take their assumptions F30 181 to their logical conclusion. Unlike Paine, they never condemned F30 182 monarchy and aristocracy, and they did not explicitly support F30 183 universal manhood suffrage.

F30 184 Paine was, in fact, the first political theorist to draw F30 185 genuinely democratic conclusions from his belief in universal and F30 186 inalienable natural rights. He rejected hereditary monarchy, F30 187 aristocracy or the mixed form of government Britain enjoyed in the F30 188 eighteenth century. Instead, he favoured a representative democracy F30 189 and a republican form of government. He insisted that the whole F30 190 people were the sovereign authority and it was their will which F30 191 created, sustained and, if necessary, brought down, civil F30 192 government. He regarded civil government as a necessary evil that F30 193 men accepted as the means of protecting their natural rights to F30 194 life, liberty, property and the pursuit of happiness. These natural F30 195 rights were not surrendered on the creation of civil society. On F30 196 the contrary, in order to preserve these natural rights, all men F30 197 consented to an original contract that created a written F30 198 constitution which converted these natural rights into civil F30 199 liberties and which established the necessary machinery of F30 200 government to protect these civil liberties.

F30 201 Paine assumed that popular sovereignty required universal F30 202 manhood suffrage so that all men would have the right actively to F30 203 participate in the affairs of civil society (3). In his view, F30 204 no man could claim a political role based on hereditary right. F30 205 F31 1 <#FLOB:F31\>APPENDIX 1

F31 2 Medical Explanations

F31 3 In the UK at present, 5 babies in every thousand are stillborn, F31 4 and 5 more die within the first four weeks of life. So, 10 in every F31 5 thousand babies, or one in every hundred, are stillborn or die F31 6 shortly after birth. This figure does not include babies who are F31 7 born dead or miscarry before twenty-eight weeks gestation, as these F31 8 babies are not registered and do not enter the statistics.

F31 9 Every time a baby dies perhaps the most urgent immediate F31 10 question is why? What could have caused the death? Could it have F31 11 been prevented? Sometimes a clear cause is found, but often parents F31 12 find that there is no satisfactory medical explanation, because F31 13 there is still so much that is not understood about pregnancy and F31 14 about the different things that can affect the development of a F31 15 baby. At the present time, no clear cause can be found even after a F31 16 detailed post-mortem for about half of all stillbirths. And even F31 17 when it is possible to say why a baby died during pregnancy or F31 18 labour, it is often not possible to explain what started the chain F31 19 of events that led to that death. In the case of a premature baby F31 20 who has died after birth, the final cause of death is more often F31 21 understood. But although doctors understand why some premature F31 22 babies die, they still do not always understand why some labours F31 23 begin too early. So, for a large number of parents, a full F31 24 explanation of their baby's death is simply not possible at present F31 25 and may never be.

F31 26 But all parents want and need to understand why, in medical F31 27 terms, their baby died, or at least they want to know as much as it F31 28 is possible to know. We hope that this chapter will confirm and F31 29 clarify for many parents what they have already been told by the F31 30 professionals caring for them and their baby. Other parents may F31 31 wish to go back to their doctors or other professionals to ask F31 32 further questions. We hope that this chapter will help them to do F31 33 this.

F31 34 Medical knowledge and professional judgement

F31 35 We have outlined what is known about why babies die before or F31 36 shortly after birth under the headings listed below. In some cases F31 37 the explanations are quite clear. In others they may seem F31 38 frustratingly unclear. This is because, despite extensive and F31 39 continuing research, there is still much that is not understood or F31 40 is uncertain about how a baby develops in the womb and what affects F31 41 this process.

F31 42 In these areas of uncertainty, doctors and midwives often have F31 43 to rely on their own professional judgement and experience when F31 44 caring for pregnant women and their babies. For this reason, there F31 45 can be major differences between the approach of one consultant and F31 46 another, even within the same hospital. There may also be F31 47 differences in hospital practice because of variations in F31 48 resources. Some hospitals are equipped with the latest high-tech F31 49 equipment for diagnosis and treatment; others are not. We have F31 50 tried to give the current views and practices of the majority of F31 51 obstetricians and paediatricians, but there will be some F31 52 professionals who disagree, both with our understanding of the F31 53 problem, and with our description of the treatments and preventive F31 54 measures that may be used.

F31 55 Doctors and midwives sometimes find it very difficult to say F31 56 when they are uncertain or simply do not know why something is F31 57 going or has gone wrong, especially in the highly-charged F31 58 situations of pregnancy, labour and neonatal care. Very often they F31 59 feel they should know.

F31 60 For parents too, until they have experienced the loss of a F31 61 baby, it can seem that medicine and science now have an answer to F31 62 all obstetric problems and can control pregnancy and its outcome. F31 63 More is heard about the successes of obstetric and neonatal F31 64 medicine than about the failures and continuing uncertainties. Many F31 65 tests can now be carried out during pregnancy to detect problems, F31 66 but parents may not have realised that often, once a problem has F31 67 been detected, little or nothing can be done to put it right. The F31 68 message often put across in antenatal clinics is that if parents F31 69 are obedient and careful they will be rewarded with a perfectly F31 70 healthy baby. All parents naturally want and expect certainty, F31 71 knowledge and a successful outcome, and it may be difficult to F31 72 accept doubt and uncertainty in the professionals they encounter. F31 73 But for bereaved parents, part of understanding the cause of their F31 74 baby's death, may be understanding what is not known or what is F31 75 uncertain or contentious.

F31 76 Medical Language

F31 77 In this chapter, we have included some of the technical terms F31 78 doctors and other professionals commonly use for their own F31 79 convenience and for precision when discussing symptoms, causes and F31 80 conditions. People who are not familiar with these terms can easily F31 81 be put off and may even come to feel, wrongly, that they are not F31 82 capable of understanding what is going on. This makes it difficult F31 83 for parents to believe that they are the key participants in the F31 84 situation, and that they are entitled to ask questions and to F31 85 clarify confusions.

F31 86 However, in most cases there is nothing particularly mysterious F31 87 or difficult about what is being described in medical terms. F31 88 Medical language is just a set of alternative words describing F31 89 ideas which we are usually familiar with and can understand quite F31 90 well. For example, pyrexia simply means a raised temperature, F31 91 pulmonary means to do with the lungs, hypoplasia means F31 92 underdeveloped and haemorrhage means bleeding. In most cases F31 93 it is not difficult for professionals to translate their message F31 94 into plain English and to fill in any gaps in our understanding of F31 95 the human body, but often doctors and others are no longer aware of F31 96 what is and is not easy for a non-medical person to understand.

F31 97 Parents have every right to ask for an explanation in language F31 98 they can understand. We hope that the medical terms we have used in F31 99 this chapter will help increase their confidence and encourage them F31 100 to ask - and to keep on asking - as many questions as they wish F31 101 until they feel they understand.

F31 102 The problems of simplification

F31 103 The human body consists of an extraordinarily complicated F31 104 combination of systems which all affect and are affected by each F31 105 other. In trying to outline different causes and effects, we have F31 106 focused on what we understand to be the most important and direct F31 107 chains of events and have left out many things that are going on at F31 108 the same time. This has enabled us to be fairly brief and, we hope, F31 109 clear. At the same time, it has inevitably involved judgements F31 110 about what is and is not significant, and has meant omitting a lot F31 111 of detail. Readers who would like to find out more about a F31 112 particular subject may like to speak to their own GP or consultant, F31 113 or to look at some of the books listed on page 243.

F31 114 They may also like to contact one of the many voluntary groups F31 115 offering information, advice and support for parents whose baby had F31 116 died and/or who are considering another pregnancy after a F31 117 bereavement. Some of these (for example, the Miscarriage F31 118 Association, the Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Society [SANDS] and F31 119 Blisslink/Nippers Bereavement Support Group) exist to provide F31 120 general support for parents whose baby has died. Others (such as F31 121 the Sickle Cell Society and the Association for Spina Bifida and F31 122 Hydrocephalus [ASBAH]) provide support and information about F31 123 specific conditions. Relevant voluntary organisations in the UK are F31 124 referred to in the text and are listed on pages 245-51.

F31 125 list

F31 126 Problems to do with the placenta

F31 127 The placenta, also called the afterbirth, connects the baby to F31 128 the mother's body. It grows with the baby and is implanted in the F31 129 lining of the mother's womb. The placenta acts as the baby's lungs, F31 130 kidneys and bowel while the baby is in the womb. It allows oxygen, F31 131 nutrients and antibodies (which protect the baby from certain F31 132 infections) to pass from the mother to the baby, and the baby's F31 133 waste products to pass back to the mother for disposal. The F31 134 placenta also produces hormones which are needed to maintain the F31 135 pregnancy.

F31 136 The baby has its own separate blood circulation system. Blood F31 137 passes round the baby's body, along the umbilical cord to the F31 138 placenta, and back again to the baby's body. The baby's circulation F31 139 system is quite separate from the mother's. This is essential to F31 140 ensure that the mother's immune system does not reject the baby in F31 141 the same way as a kidney patient's immune system sometimes rejects F31 142 a transplanted kidney. Although the mother's and the baby's F31 143 circulation systems are quite separate, they run very closely F31 144 alongside each other in the placenta, so that the baby's blood F31 145 vessels are surrounded in the placenta by the mother's blood. This F31 146 enables essential oxygen, nutrients and waste products to pass F31 147 between the two circulation systems through the very thin walls of F31 148 the blood vessels.

F31 149 The placenta is vital to the baby throughout pregnancy and F31 150 during labour, up to the time when the baby is delivered and can F31 151 begin to breathe for itself. Once the baby is born, the placenta F31 152 comes away from the wall of the womb, and is delivered through the F31 153 vagina.

F31 154 PLACENTAL INSUFFICIENCY AND PLACENTAL FAILURE

F31 155 Placental insufficiency is sometimes called placental F31 156 dysfunction. It occurs when the placenta is not working F31 157 efficiently, has not developed properly, or does not keep growing F31 158 with the baby. Placental insufficiency can also happen if the F31 159 mother's circulatory system is not working properly because of high F31 160 blood pressure or other chronic disease. As a result, the baby does F31 161 not get enough oxygen or nourishment, becomes weak and does not F31 162 grow properly.

F31 163 In severe cases the placenta is unable to provide the baby with F31 164 enough oxygen and the baby dies in the womb. This is often known as F31 165 placental failure. Placental failure is most likely to occur from F31 166 twenty-eight weeks gestation onwards when the baby's growth usually F31 167 accelerates rapidly. There may be little or no warning, and there F31 168 may be no history of placental insufficiency. The baby may simply F31 169 slow down and then stop moving. (See also Placental failure, page F31 170 220.)

F31 171 The causes of placental insufficiency and placental failure are F31 172 not yet fully understood. Known causes include maternal blood F31 173 pressure that remains high for some time (see High blood pressure, F31 174 page 197, and Pregnancy-induced hypertension, page 188) and F31 175 infections or blockages (infarctions) which affect the mother's F31 176 blood supply to the placenta.

F31 177 It is not always possible to diagnose placental insufficiency F31 178 but it may be suspected if the baby becomes less active or is not F31 179 growing as expected (also known as small for dates or intra-uterine F31 180 growth retardation - that is, delayed growth within the womb). If F31 181 placental insufficiency is suspected, the baby's growth may be F31 182 checked regularly by ultrasound scan. Wherever possible, the causes F31 183 of placental insufficiency are treated so that the baby's growth F31 184 improves, but often there is little or nothing that can be done to F31 185 help the baby grow, even after placental insufficiency is F31 186 confirmed.

F31 187 Babies who are born small for dates are at increased risk of F31 188 infection and other problems such as low sugar or calcium levels. F31 189 These risks increase further if a baby is also premature.

F31 190 Incidence: Placental insufficiency and placental failure F31 191 linked with pregnancy-induced hypertension (see page 188) are most F31 192 common in first pregnancies. They are less likely to recur in F31 193 further pregnancies with the same partner.

F31 194 Another pregnancy: If placental insufficiency is F31 195 suspected doctors will usually carry out regular ultrasound scans F31 196 to check the baby's growth rate. They may also carry out other F31 197 checks on the baby's health such as heart rate traces or Doppler F31 198 blood flow studies, which use reflected sound waves to examine the F31 199 blood flow through the umbilical cord and the placenta and check F31 200 how much oxygen is getting through. However, as mentioned above, it F31 201 is not always possible to do anything to increase a baby's rate of F31 202 growth.

F31 203 PLACENTAL DEGENERATION

F31 204 The placenta usually reaches its peak of efficiency near the F31 205 end of pregnancy. In some cases it begins to deteriorate too early F31 206 or too fast causing placental insufficiency or placental failure F31 207 (see above). F31 208 F32 1 <#FLOB:F32\>Extinction: bad genes or bad luck?

F32 2 Many more species have become extinct over the time than F32 3 survive today. Scientists have only just begun to ask why

F32 4 David Raup

F32 5 COUNTLESS species of plants and animals have existed in the F32 6 history of life on Earth. Estimates of the total progeny of F32 7 evolution range from 5 to 50 billion species. Yet, only an F32 8 estimated 5 to 50 million species are alive today - a rather poor F32 9 survival record. With, at the most, only one in every thousand F32 10 species surviving, what happened to the others?

F32 11 Even though approximately the same number of species have F32 12 become extinct as have originated during the progress of evolution, F32 13 scientists have given their attention almost exclusively to F32 14 origination. Why? It seems as silly as a demographer ignoring F32 15 mortality rates or a physiographer ignoring erosion. But whatever F32 16 the reason, we still know woefully little about the death of F32 17 species.

F32 18 A species can die outright when all its members die without F32 19 issue. This is called true extinction, and is typified by the F32 20 disappearance of dinosaurs in the late Cretaceous - whether that F32 21 extinction was completed in an afternoon or covered several million F32 22 years. But species can also disappear by evolving into something F32 23 different. The ancestral species becomes extinct only in the sense F32 24 of having been transformed out of existence. This is called F32 25 pseudo-extinction, and is of less concern here.

F32 26 The proportions of true and pseudo-extinction in the history of F32 27 life are not known. We can be sure, however, that true extinction F32 28 has been the fate of large numbers of species. Minimum estimates F32 29 came from groups of organisms that were once highly diverse but F32 30 died out completely. For example, the ammonites (swimming molluscs F32 31 of the Mesozoic) had thousands of co-existing species at the height F32 32 of their reign. Each species constituted a separate lineage - a F32 33 genome - and the ammonites left no descendants. So, regardless of F32 34 how many transformations and pseudo-extinctions occurred among F32 35 ammonites, the number of true extinctions cannot be less than the F32 36 number of separate species living at the time of the ammonites' F32 37 peak diversity. The same reasoning can be applied to the trilobites F32 38 of the Palaeozoic and to many other large groups documented trough F32 39 fossils. The inescapable conclusion is that true extinction of F32 40 species has been common in the history of life.

F32 41 Yet very little is known about the process. Standard F32 42 text-books on evolutionary biology and palaeobiology hardly F32 43 mention extinction. Much is said about the origin of species and F32 44 the evolution of species once they are formed, but discussions of F32 45 extinction are generally limited to casual references to the enigma F32 46 of the great mass extinctions. On causes of extinction, we are apt F32 47 to read vacuous statements like "Species become extinct F32 48 when population sizes drop to zero" or "Species die F32 49 out if they are unable to adapt to changing conditions". F32 50 The 1987 edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica says: F32 51 "Extinction occurs when a species can no longer reproduce F32 52 at replacement levels." These statements are true, of F32 53 course, but are virtually devoid of content.

F32 54 Will Cuppy, in his volume of essays entitled How to Become F32 55 Extinct, wrote: "The Age of Reptiles ended because it F32 56 had gone on long enough and it was all a mistake in the first F32 57 place." He followed this by noting: "Bats are going F32 58 to flop, too, and everybody knows it except the bats F32 59 themselves." It seems impossible to escape the implication F32 60 that extinction is a mark of failure - failure to compete with F32 61 better qualified species for resources or failure to adapt to F32 62 changing physical conditions.

F32 63 Extinction-as-failure is deeply embedded in Darwin's writings F32 64 and in neo-Darwinian theory. Although the central argument of F32 65 Darwin's On the Origin of Species was that of gradual F32 66 evolution within species by natural selection, he made frequent F32 67 reference to the importance of extinction and its constructive role F32 68 in evolution. At one point in On the Origins of Species, F32 69 he wrote: "The inhabitants of each successive period in the F32 70 world's history have beaten their predecessors in the race for F32 71 life, and are, insofar, higher in the scale of nature."

F32 72 Some observers even include selective extinction of species F32 73 (and higher groups) as part of the natural selection process - F32 74 although the purist restricts natural selection to changes within F32 75 species at the level of the breeding population.

F32 76 F32 77 Did the dinosaurs deserve to die?

F32 78 The proposition that extinction results from the failure of a F32 79 species is appealing and highly reasonable, perhaps so reasonable F32 80 that testing is not required. What could extinction be if not F32 81 failure? But we still must ask whether the victims of extinction F32 82 were, in fact, less well adapted than the survivors. Could we F32 83 predict victims and survivors?

F32 84 A case in point is that the extinction of dinosaurs and the F32 85 survival of mammals at the end of the Cretaceous. The two groups F32 86 had coexisted for something like 140 million years, yet all F32 87 dinosaur species died out, while enough meal species survived to F32 88 spawn the great diversification of mammals that led to the 4000 F32 89 mammal species living today, including Homo sapiens. Did F32 90 the dinosaurs deserve to die? Were they too large, too stupid, or F32 91 unable to control their body temperatures efficiently enough? There F32 92 are so many differences between reptiles and mammals that almost F32 93 any difference can be identified (and has been) as the cause of the F32 94 survival of one but not the other. But the sad truth is that there F32 95 is no hard evidence, other than the fact of the extinctions, for F32 96 the inferiority of the victims. Thus, although F32 97 extinction-as-failure remains highly plausible, we have no F32 98 independent confirmation and we are justified in exploring other F32 99 ways of becoming extinct.

F32 100 In these days of heightened concern about endangered species F32 101 and habitat destruction by humans, the fact that species become F32 102 extinct may seem unsurprising. Extinction, it seems, is 'easy'. And F32 103 if one subscribes to the view that a community of species depends F32 104 on an intricate and delicately balanced set of interdependencies, F32 105 then it follows that even minor disturbances will threaten members F32 106 of the community with extinction. The causes of extinction should F32 107 be as many and varied as there are things that can go wrong in a F32 108 community, ranging from the purely biological - the invasion of a F32 109 predatory species from elsewhere, for example - to the purely F32 110 physical - such as a severe frost or forest fire.

F32 111 This general line of thinking has led to the conventional view F32 112 that the causes of extinction are so complex and so varied that the F32 113 phenomenon defies scientific inquiry. Also, if extinction in the F32 114 natural world is so common (and 'easy'), why study it? There must F32 115 be more challenging research topics.

F32 116 The conventional view certainly applies in local areas where F32 117 species have tiny geographic ranges. In fact, the classic research F32 118 on islands by Robert MacArthur of Princeton University and E.O. F32 119 Wilson of Harvard University (published in their 1967 book F32 120 Island Biogeography) has shown how common extinction is F32 121 in small island communities. Wilson's student Daniel Simberloff F32 122 <}_><-|>folowed<+|>followed<}/> this up by monitoring changing F32 123 species on mangrove islands in Florida and found local extinction F32 124 to be a normal event. Few attempts have been made to find out why F32 125 or how particular species become extinct on small islands, simply F32 126 because the candidate causes are many and varied.

F32 127 But can this view of extinction be applied to the ammonites, F32 128 dinosaurs, trilobites and other organisms that flourished in the F32 129 past? I think not.

F32 130 About 250 000 fossil species have been found, described, and F32 131 named, but this is no more than one in every 20 000 species that F32 132 have lived (using the low estimate of 5 billion for total progeny). F32 133 So, the likelihood of any one particular species being preserved in F32 134 fossil form is negligible. It follows that the fossil record must F32 135 be strongly biased in favour of species that were abundant and F32 136 geographically widespread. They are not the tiny, localised species F32 137 that go extinct regularly on small islands.

F32 138 The average duration of fossil species is about four million F32 139 years. This is undoubtedly much longer than the average existence F32 140 of all species in the history of life. In ecological terms, four F32 141 million years is an incredibly long time, and suggests that these F32 142 species were well able to survive the normal vicissitudes of their F32 143 natural environments. Forest fires, unusual frosts or viral F32 144 epidemics might have killed off some breeding populations, but left F32 145 enough elsewhere for the species to survive. Survival for such a F32 146 long time suggests either that most successful species are adapted F32 147 to normal stresses or that they are protected from these stresses F32 148 by having wide and complex geographical distributions. In fact, F32 149 David Jablonski of the University of Chicago has shown that a large F32 150 geographic range correlates with the ability to survive for a long F32 151 time in marine molluscs of the Cretaceous prior to the mass F32 152 extinction.

F32 153 Another important aspect of the record of extinction is that it F32 154 is highly episodic. That is, extinctions are far more clustered in F32 155 time than would be predicted if each extinction were independent of F32 156 the others. The several large mass extinctions are obvious examples F32 157 - with two-thirds, or more, of species becoming extinct in a F32 158 geologically short time - but even the smaller pulses of extinction F32 159 are more than the chance coincidence of independent events. F32 160 Computer simulations that maintain a constant probability of F32 161 extinction through time do not yield the concentrated pulses of F32 162 extinction observed in the fossil record. The episodic nature of F32 163 extinctions divides the geological record into well-defined F32 164 'packages' bounded by short intervals when there was a rapid F32 165 turnover of species. It is probably this feature of the record that F32 166 made it possible for the geologists of the early 19th century to F32 167 define, in just a few decades, a fossil-based chronology that is F32 168 recognisable around the world.

F32 169 Pulses of extinction typically cut across ecological lines and F32 170 cover wide geographic areas. The mass extinction of the Cretaceous, F32 171 for example, devastated land vertebrates (all dinosaurs and a F32 172 substantial fraction of mammals), marine reef communities, pelagic F32 173 marine animals (ammonites and swimming reptiles), as well as F32 174 important species of marine plankton. Although some groups of F32 175 organisms survived on both land and sea, the main point is that the F32 176 extinction pulses recorded by fossils took place across a vastly F32 177 wider range of habitats than the localised extinctions that have F32 178 been studied in modern communities such as islands.

F32 179 F32 180 Stresses that are outside normal experience

F32 181 This suggests several things about the extinctions we see in the F32 182 fossil record. First, killing a successful species is not 'easy', F32 183 even though it is common on geological time scales. Secondly, the F32 184 stresses causing extinction must be outside the normal experience F32 185 of the species - the stresses must be so rare as to be beyond the F32 186 reach of the adaptive power of natural selection. And lastly, at F32 187 least some of the stresses causing extinction must simultaneously F32 188 affect many habits and modes of life.

F32 189 All this makes extinction of the type seen in the geological F32 190 past very difficult for the biologist to study. The F32 191 present-is-the-key-to-the-past approach that has worked so well for F32 192 geologists may not apply here - and may possibly be misleading. We F32 193 have been observing nature for a few thousand years, yet complex, F32 194 multicellular life goes back millions of years. It may be that, by F32 195 pure chance and good fortune, we have not observed the conditions F32 196 most responsible for the extinction of species. In fact, it is F32 197 rather arrogant for us to assume that our tiny slice of the Earth's F32 198 history includes a representative sample of that history.

F32 199 In colonial America, the heath hen (Tympanuchus cupido F32 200 cupido) was extremely common, with a range that extended from F32 201 Maine to Virginia. It was edible and easy to kill, leading to F32 202 extensive hunting by the expanding human population. The species F32 203 was so devastated by hunting that by 1870, the sole survivors were F32 204 on the small island of Martha's Vineyard, off Cape Cod. In 1908, a F32 205 1600-acre refuge was established there as a sanctuary for the F32 206 remaining fifty birds. Protection was successful to the extent that F32 207 by 1915, the heath hens occupied the entire island and numbered F32 208 about two thousand. Then, in 1916, the population suffered the F32 209 coincidence of several disasters: there was a fire spread by strong F32 210 winds that eliminated much of the breeding ground, an especially F32 211 hard winter immediately following the fire, an influx of predatory F32 212 goshawks and, finally, a poultry disease introduced from domestic F32 213 turkeys. F32 214 F32 215 F33 1 <#FLOB:F33\>Pride of the Clyde? - the debate goes on

F33 2 A pounds180m private 'medical complex' is to go ahead at F33 3 Clydebank, but the arguments about its effect on surrounding NHS F33 4 services continue. Barbara Millar listens to both sides.

F33 5 AFTER AN inordinately long gestation period - nine years F33 6 according to some observers - plans to build a private pounds180m F33 7 'international medical complex' at Clydebank near Glasgow are about F33 8 to come to fruition.

F33 9 Work on the complex, which will include a 260-bed intensive F33 10 care hospital plus a 150-bed residential annexe for patients and F33 11 their relatives, will start in September on a 47-acre site in the F33 12 Clydebank Enterprise Zone. According to the project's founding F33 13 directors, American physicians Dr Ray Levey and Dr Angelo Eraklis F33 14 of Health Care International (HCI), it will provide 1,800 jobs and F33 15 a further 2,200 spin-off job opportunities.

F33 16 The row over the Clydebank hospital reached a climax four years F33 17 ago when Labour MPs, the Scottish TUC, local health councils, the F33 18 Greater Glasgow health board, the Scottish National Blood F33 19 Transfusion Service, healthcare professionals and even other F33 20 private hospitals argued vociferously against the plans when they F33 21 were unveiled.

F33 22 Although many believe their original objections are still F33 23 valid, others have begun to adopt a more conciliatory tone.

F33 24 Back in 1987, the Greater Glasgow health board was concerned F33 25 that HCI's plan to recruit 80 consultants, 34 registrars and 590 F33 26 nurses would have a detrimental impact on the NHS.

F33 27 "We know there will be fewer nurses around in the 1990s F33 28 and we will both be competing in the marketplace for them," F33 29 said a board spokesperson at the time.

F33 30 Now, the same spokesperson insists: "We have been given F33 31 assurances by HCI that they will not pay their staff above the F33 32 going rate and that they will reimburse the NHS for any staff F33 33 training."

F33 34 Isabel Duncan, the RCN's chief officer in Scotland, agrees. F33 35 "In the past couple of years new hospitals have opened in F33 36 Lanarkshire, Ayrshire and Argyll, resulting in a reduced patient F33 37 population served by Greater Glasgow," she says. F33 38 "In particular, acute services have been cut back, and now F33 39 there are more nurses than jobs."

F33 40 But Miss Duncan still fears that, with HCI's plans to F33 41 specialise in major organ transplantation and cardiac, vascular and F33 42 thoracic surgical procedures, it will be trying to attract theatre F33 43 and intensive care nurses with highly specialised skills, already F33 44 in short supply in the NHS.

F33 45 "If they drain these nurses away from the NHS, the F33 46 service will not be able to staff operating theatres properly and F33 47 this will have a knock-on effect on waiting lists," she F33 48 warns.

F33 49 The Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service, another early F33 50 opponent to HCI's proposals, has also tempered its objections.

F33 51 Initially, its then medical director John Cash claimed the new F33 52 hospital's demands for blood would "destabilise the F33 53 service". But now its general manager David McIntosh does F33 54 not believe this to be the case.

F33 55 "The HCI project will have a major impact on the supply F33 56 of red cells to the private sector in Scotland. HCI's requirement F33 57 alone will greatly exceed all the current private hospital demands F33 58 put together," he points out.

F33 59 "However, given that the private sector only takes off F33 60 less than one half of one per cent of our volume, and this in blood F33 61 components - mostly red cells - that are not in short supply, the F33 62 overall effect on blood transfusion services in Scotland will be F33 63 minimal.

F33 64 "The Scottish blood transfusion service is required by F33 65 law to supply the private sector, without detriment to the NHS. We F33 66 are confident that we can continue to fulfil this obligation in F33 67 respect of HCI."

F33 68 HCI liaison officer David Macauley adds that as 80 per cent of F33 69 the procedures at the hospital will be for elective surgery, much F33 70 of the blood needed will be pre-donated.

F33 71 The hospital's publicity material makes some formidable F33 72 claims.

F33 73 "The state of the art HCI medical centre will attract F33 74 patients and consultants from all over the world and will F33 75 incorporate the most advanced features of US teaching hospitals F33 76 with a patient referral system throughout Europe, the Middle East F33 77 and North Africa," it says.

F33 78 "We will specialise in complex high-tech surgical F33 79 procedures supported by an international faculty of eminent F33 80 physicians and surgeons from North America and Europe. We are F33 81 committed to clinical research and plan to collaborate with F33 82 Scottish universities, medical schools and research F33 83 institutes."

F33 84 According to Andrew Gordon, HCI's finance and public affairs F33 85 director, the first links have already been forged with Glasgow F33 86 University. Yet Mike Brown, the university's information officer, F33 87 rejects this as "an empty claim".

F33 88 "No agreement of any kind exists between the university F33 89 and HCI," he says, adding: "I don't believe there F33 90 will be any stampede down the road from Glasgow to F33 91 Clydebank."

F33 92 The Independent Health Care Association also believes HCI's F33 93 plans to attract patients from overseas could run into difficulties F33 94 because the numbers of such patients are decreasing as their F33 95 indigenous healthcare systems improve.

F33 96 David Macauley remains confident. "An analysis of the F33 97 market suggests we will be able to fill these beds easily." F33 98 He also points to the financial backing HCI is receiving from many F33 99 banks including Cr<*_>e-acute<*/>dit Lyonnais, the Midland and the F33 100 Royal Bank of Scotland.

F33 101 "Banks are some of the most conservative institutions F33 102 known to man," he says, "and they have confidence F33 103 in HCI's plans."

F33 104 But the Scottish TUC is quick to draw attention to the F33 105 withdrawal of financial backing by a Japanese bank last year.

F33 106 Public money was pumped in to save the project from failure at F33 107 that stage, believes the STUC's assistant national officer Grahame F33 108 Smith.

F33 109 He and others, including the Clydebank and Milngavie NHS F33 110 Defence Campaign and the Greater Glasgow local health council, are F33 111 keen to find out just how much taxpayers' money has been put in to F33 112 keep the scheme afloat.

F33 113 "We believe several million pounds have been F33 114 spent," says Danny McCafferty of the NHS Defence Campaign. F33 115 "HCI has never had the capital to carry out these plans F33 116 itself and right up until the last minute it was hunting around for F33 117 money."

F33 118 HCI's Andrew Gordon acknowledges that the Scottish Office bore F33 119 the cost - believed to be pounds8m - of clearing asbestos from the F33 120 site where the hospital will be built.

F33 121 But Mr McCafferty says: "This asbestos had been buried F33 122 on the site for over eight years with no suggestion by the Scottish F33 123 Office that it was a public hazard."

F33 124 Mr McCafferty points out that HCI has also benefited from cash F33 125 ploughed in by the former Scottish Development Agency, now Scottish F33 126 Enterprise, and believes the company has been allowed to buy the F33 127 land it will occupy at a knock-down price.

F33 128 Andrew Gordon denies this, saying the company bought the land F33 129 at the going rate.

F33 130 David Macauley adds that any financial help given to HCI F33 131 through the Scottish Office's regional selective assistance and F33 132 enterprise zone benefits "is the same as it would have F33 133 received in any other part of the UK".

F33 134 "People are looking for the bogyman in this but the F33 135 company has not been offered anything more than what the F33 136 regulations state," he says.

F33 137 "Scottish Enterprise has not been given discretionary F33 138 powers to chip in millions of pounds of taxpayers' money simply F33 139 because they believe this project is a good F33 140 idea."<*_>square<*/>

F33 141 F33 142 Sticking a plaster on the housing disaster

F33 143 The government is bending over backwards to solve the housing F33 144 crisis. But, says Julian Dobson, its new initiatives for people F33 145 with a mental illness are creating more problems.

F33 146 FIND SOME homeless people, and almost immediately it seems F33 147 there's a government initiative to get them off the streets before F33 148 a cabinet minister trips over them on his way from the opera.

F33 149 To judge from the multiple launches of schemes for homeless F33 150 people during the past 18 months, the government is now bending F33 151 over backwards to tackle the crisis whose existence has been denied F33 152 for so long.

F33 153 Confronted the other week with demands for more money to help F33 154 homeless people with mental illness, junior health minister Stephen F33 155 Dorrell did not duck the challenge.

F33 156 He promised Shelter director Sheila McKechnie a meeting to F33 157 discuss the problem and held out the hope of more resources if F33 158 research proved they were needed.

F33 159 For the last year the Department of Health has had its own F33 160 pounds7.8m homelessness initiative. It's not as big as the one F33 161 launched at the Department of the Environment by former housing F33 162 minister Michael Spicer, and now expanded by Sir George Young, but F33 163 it is well aimed.

F33 164 Its target is homeless people in central London with mental F33 165 health problems - an estimated 34 per cent of people sleeping F33 166 rough.

F33 167 Health and housing agencies are excited by the potential for F33 168 helping people whose needs have been by-passed for F33 169 years.

F33 170 Look Ahead housing association opened the first DoH-funded F33 171 hostel for mentally ill homeless people in April.

F33 172 Association director Vicky Stark says: "We have seen F33 173 amazing things already this year with the homelessness initiative. F33 174 I have been working in homelessness for 10 years and have never F33 175 seen so much happening."

F33 176 The DoH initiative concentrates on seven London boroughs, F33 177 covered by eight health authorities: Parkside, Riverside, F33 178 Bloomsbury and Islington, City and Hackney, Tower Hamlets, West F33 179 Lambeth, Lewisham and North Southwark, and Camberwell.

F33 180 Community psychiatric teams, jointly organised by social F33 181 services and health authorities, operate in north west, east and F33 182 south east London. Experienced housing associations provide hostel F33 183 places for people contacted by the teams.

F33 184 After six months or so residents then move on, freeing hostel F33 185 places for newcomers. The Housing Corporation, the quango which F33 186 funds housing associations, has promised to make 450 homes F33 187 available when they fall vacant.

F33 188 First indications are that the community psychiatric teams have F33 189 been remarkably successful in making contact with a particularly F33 190 challenging client group.

F33 191 Sue Lipscombe, project leader with the Joint Homelessness Team F33 192 in north west London, says her team has made 190 'contacts' in six F33 193 months, and 53 per cent of those are suffering from F33 194 schizophrenia.

F33 195 Medical Campaign Project mental health worker Sarah Gorton says F33 196 meetings are now taking place with mental health unit managers to F33 197 tackle the 'revolving door' syndrome which leaves homeless people F33 198 to fend for themselves on the streets when discharged from acute F33 199 psychiatric care - exacerbating their distress and increasing the F33 200 likelihood of readmission.

F33 201 So far, so good. But such initiatives tend to discover new F33 202 needs, generating their own demands for extra resources.

F33 203 Among the problems identified already is the inaccessibility of F33 204 health services to homeless people.

F33 205 Liz Sayce, policy director for mental health charity MIND, says F33 206 the role of the GP as 'gatekeeper' to NHS services can place F33 207 obstacles in the way of homeless people - particularly when a GP F33 208 refuses to register them at all.

F33 209 The NHS reforms have also brought the problem of how to account F33 210 for homeless people who have no obvious 'district of residence'. Ms F33 211 Sayce fears there will be an increasing number of boundary disputes F33 212 over who pays for care.

F33 213 Another difficulty is ensuring people leaving acute psychiatric F33 214 care have somewhere to go. Only 11 of the 70 beds planned under the F33 215 DoH initiative are open. One hostel, in Westminster, has been held F33 216 up because of objections from local residents.

F33 217 But where the DoH initiative could really come unstuck is when F33 218 the planned hostels are full. Agencies involved in the scheme, F33 219 which have banded together to form the Joint Forum on Mental Health F33 220 and Homelessness, say another pounds87m is needed urgently to F33 221 prevent it "silting up".

F33 222 The figure is based on calculations by David Pashley of North F33 223 West Thames regional health authority's community care unit, who F33 224 argues that DoH estimates of the number of homeless mentally ill F33 225 people in central London are far too low.

F33 226 Mr Pashley says money is needed to house around 1,100 people in F33 227 central London alone - without taking into account the estimated F33 228 15,000 people in similar circumstances throughout the country.

F33 229 The joint forum says the DoH has also ignored the need for F33 230 continuing psychiatric care when people leave emergency hostels.

F33 231 The forum says this cannot be achieved simply by re-letting F33 232 housing association flats. "If after six months clients F33 233 were able to go into unsupported housing association tenancies, I F33 234 don't think we would be housing the right people," says Ms F33 235 Stark.

F33 236 F34 1 <#FLOB:F34\>A YEAR OF TRADITIONS AND CUSTOMS

F34 2 At first sight the everyday life of Scotland seems to have F34 3 swept aside the customs of the past. But look closer and these old F34 4 traditions can still be seen, sometimes as minor events, at other F34 5 times in various parts of the nation as a major diversion for a day F34 6 or so. Climbing to the high tops of the mountains at midsummer, F34 7 burning Viking longships, guisers round the door, fire festivals F34 8 and the special baking of rich cakes all play their part in a way F34 9 of life which echoes and acknowledges the old ways.

F34 10 Yuletide and Hogmanay

F34 11 Rise up, auld wifie, and shak your feathers,

F34 12 Dinna think that we are beggars;

F34 13 For we are bairns come out to play,

F34 14 Rise up and gie us our Hogmanay.

F34 15 The best-known festival, and one that is celebrated F34 16 nation-wide, is Hogmanay, the 31st December. The name is thought to F34 17 relate to the north French dialect word hoginane, meaning F34 18 'a gift at the New Year'. However, it has also been suggested that F34 19 it is French dialect au gui menez, meaning 'to F34 20 the mistletoe go' formerly cried by mummers; or, equally plausibly, F34 21 au geux menez, meaning 'bring to the beggars', F34 22 a reminder of the giving of gifts associated with this time of F34 23 year.

F34 24 Until very recently Hogmanay was probably the most important F34 25 celebration in the Scottish calendar, and for some Scots it still F34 26 is. At one time it all but eclipsed Christmas for many in Scotland. F34 27 Now, because of the mostly English-based broadcasting media as well F34 28 as high street stores UK-wide, Christmas is probably celebrated as F34 29 much north of the border as in the south, though the Scots tend to F34 30 hold a bit of their festive spirit back for Hogmanay.

F34 31 It is thought that the Scots' preoccupation with Hogmanay came F34 32 about because of the efforts of the Presbyterian church, after the F34 33 Reformation, to extinguish all Catholic holy days of which the F34 34 Feast of the Nativity - that is Christmas - was the principal. The F34 35 Hogmanay celebration of the passing beyond midwinter to a time of F34 36 lengthening daylight is surely grafted on to very early traditions. F34 37 The ancient Druid priests are said to have initiated the festival F34 38 of Yuletide, which in Scotland became 'the hallowed days of Yule' F34 39 of the balladeers, covering Hogmanay and the first week of January. F34 40 The Norse also had their own midwinter season of Jul, which F34 41 actually continued for 24 days and included the winter solstice. In F34 42 rural areas especially, up to the 1950s, possibly even more F34 43 recently, many factories and other work places stayed open on F34 44 Christmas Day, although all closed for the New Year. Children, F34 45 particularly in the east coast fishing communities, hung up their F34 46 stockings at Hogmanay, secure in the knowledge that Santa Claus F34 47 (never Father Christmas) would work a late shift especially for F34 48 their benefit.

F34 49 Hogmanay rituals

F34 50 Habits change with each succeeding generation. The stroke of F34 51 midnight on the 31st December once carried with it a great weight F34 52 of ritual which varied from place to place, and survives to varying F34 53 degrees. The household fire, the very symbol of life and warmth in F34 54 the long bleak nights of a northern winter, had to be tended so F34 55 that it was blazing brightly at midnight. This ensured sufficient F34 56 prosperity in the household to keep the fire lit for the next 12 F34 57 months. In some places the door of the household was opened to let F34 58 out the old year, then closed as the chimes of midnight died away. F34 59 In others, it was flung open to welcome in the New Year. Ships in F34 60 dock still sound their sirens as in former times, while in the days F34 61 of steam locomotives, any in steam at the depot at midnight were F34 62 likewise given a blast of the whistle.

F34 63 Other time-honoured practices included acknowledging New Year F34 64 by wearing something new and cleaning the house thoroughly to make F34 65 it look like new and so ready for the New Year. The custom of F34 66 'first footing' still survives. Ideally, the first visitor over the F34 67 threshold after midnight should be a dark and handsome male F34 68 stranger bearing gifts, particularly those connected with food or F34 69 the hearth. The dark complexion of the first foot is considered F34 70 important. Redheads are not considered a good omen, and women are F34 71 also thought unlucky. Sometimes the household resorts to pushing F34 72 out into the cold night any half-presentable male who happens to be F34 73 in the house just before midnight, re-admitting him with his F34 74 symbols of light and warmth. Peat (particularly in the Highlands) F34 75 and coal were commonly used as symbols of household comfort and F34 76 warmth; and some Scots keep the tradition alive today by solemnly F34 77 entering a household with a small, perhaps carefully washed, piece F34 78 of smokeless fuel.

F34 79 As for other symbolic gifts which first foots might bring, in F34 80 the east coast fishing communities this might well have been a F34 81 herring. This custom somehow transplanted itself to Dundee in F34 82 particular, where the fishy token might even be dressed up with F34 83 ribbons and lace and tied to the door of the visited house if the F34 84 occupants were out. Symbolically attired or otherwise, this humble F34 85 fish carried with it the token of prosperity.

F34 86 Cakes and Cake Day

F34 87 Food at New Year was also special and not just for its symbolic F34 88 content. The tradition of rich fare, of shortbread and especially F34 89 black bun (a rich fruit cake in a pastry crust), continues. Perhaps F34 90 it has always had an incidental function: to soak up the quantities F34 91 of liquid hospitality which have for so long been a part of the F34 92 Scottish Hogmanay. Even so, the best of ingredients would be F34 93 reserved for this most important occasion.

F34 94 Walkers of Aberlour bake black bun, shortbread and Dundee Cake F34 95 and thus remain in the mainstream of tradition, their quality fare F34 96 an important part of the Scottish way of celebrating Hogmanay. F34 97 However, some of the regional treats have been lost. In earlier F34 98 times, special cakes were baked in St Andrews in Fife for its own F34 99 version of Hogmanay called Cake Day. These cakes were given out to F34 100 children by local shops, a practice certainly not confined to St F34 101 Andrews. In fact, Scottish children would once have gone around the F34 102 neighbourhood 'asking for their Hogmanay' from households and F34 103 shops. In some places they dressed themselves in flowing sheets F34 104 (perhaps echoing the Druids), which were then folded to form a F34 105 large pocket or apron. As they went round the community they F34 106 chanted Yuletide rhymes, such as the one on page 116, or:

F34 107 Ma feet's cauld, ma sheen's din, shoes worn F34 108 out

F34 109 gie's ma cakes and let's rin. run

F34 110 When the pocket on each apron was full the children went home, F34 111 where the cakes proved a welcome bonus in many a poor household.

F34 112 Often cakes were (and still are) baked at home as well. In the F34 113 west of Scotland, for instance, an oat bannock was baked for each F34 114 child in the family. These particular cakes were given a patterned F34 115 edge and had a hole in the middle. They were also flavoured with F34 116 caraway seeds. If any broke during the baking this was considered F34 117 an ill omen for the child for whom it was intended. It is an F34 118 interesting footnote to this now-extinct custom that the cake's F34 119 wavy or patterned edge is also characteristic of shortbread rounds. F34 120 Some say this is a symbol of the sun and is perhaps a curious echo F34 121 of festive cakes baked for ceremonies or rituals connected with the F34 122 sun worship of the Druids. Modified and handed down over so many F34 123 generations, it can be difficult to interpret the original meanings F34 124 - particularly as although the Druids held their rites in public F34 125 their doctrines were secret and never written down.

F34 126 Fire festivals

F34 127 What can be made of the age-old tradition in Stonehaven, and F34 128 elsewhere, of swinging fireballs in the streets at New Year? When F34 129 midnight strikes, the fireballs are lit and swung round and round F34 130 by means of attached wires. Burghead, further along the coast from F34 131 Stonehaven and facing the Moray Firth, varies the theme by holding F34 132 its fire festival on 11th January - the old Hogmanay before the F34 133 calendar was changed in 1600. The event is known as 'Burning of the F34 134 Clavie' (the origin of this word is lost in obscurity). The Clavie F34 135 King and his men carry a flaming half-barrel mounted on a pole F34 136 along the streets of Burghead, following a traditional route. F34 137 Finally the flaming barrel is taken to nearby Doorie Hill. (In F34 138 former times each individual boat in the harbour was also visited F34 139 by the Clavie. In 1875 it is recorded that a new vessel was named F34 140 Doorie in a ceremony with the burning Clavie, which also involved F34 141 the sprinkling of grain on her decks.) After the Clavie is fixed to F34 142 the hilltop more fuel is added to the blaze, eventually leaving the F34 143 dying embers which become sought after good luck charms, credited F34 144 with bringing protection to the household for a year.

F34 145 In Comrie, in Perthshire, another fire ceremony survives. Here F34 146 the New Year is ushered in by the lighting of giant torches on F34 147 large birch poles, which are then carried in procession about the F34 148 town. The young men of Falkland in Fife still climb the East Lomond F34 149 Hill with their torches. Flames of one sort or another were, and F34 150 remain, a common feature of the Scots Hogmanay or New Year in many F34 151 parts of the country. In spite of the Church trying to stamp out F34 152 such pagan practices over the centuries, many hilltops used to be F34 153 lit with bonfires to welcome in the New Year.

F34 154 Handsel Monday

F34 155 Today, though some traditions have gone, the spirit of a new F34 156 start with renewed friendship and contact with neighbours is still F34 157 strong in Scotland. Gifts, especially of food, play an important F34 158 part. Another aspect of the week-long yuletide festivities survived F34 159 until quite recently: the celebration of Handsel Monday. This was F34 160 the equivalent of England's Boxing Day, but took place on the first F34 161 Monday of the New Year. Tradition demanded that presents should be F34 162 given as tokens of goodwill, especially to servants or to anyone F34 163 performing a service to the householder. This would even extend to F34 164 giving extra feed to working animals. A curious variation on F34 165 Handsel Monday which grew up in certain rural areas was that, F34 166 although gift giving was duly observed, it was considered unlucky F34 167 to handle money on Handsel Monday - which may have helped create F34 168 the national stereotype of the thrifty Scot.

F34 169 Although virtually forgotten now, Handsel Monday was another F34 170 highlight in the otherwise 'dreich' (dull and miserable) days of F34 171 January. How fortunate that Robert Burns was born on the 25th of F34 172 the month, thereby giving the Scots cause for another celebration F34 173 to keep them cheerful in the long nights. (Burns Suppers and the F34 174 poet himself have already been described in Chapter Six.)

F34 175 Up-Helly-Aa F34 176 It may not be a coincidence that Shetland, the most northerly F34 177 part of Scotland, and where the nights are longest, squeezes in an F34 178 extra deep-winter celebration. This is called Up-Helly-Aa and takes F34 179 place on 29th January.

F34 180 Up-Helly-Aa can be roughly taken to mean the end of the F34 181 holidays - a reference to the end of the 24-day period in the old F34 182 Viking festival of Jul. In common with other winter festivals, fire F34 183 played an important part in this season. Until the 1870s, the men F34 184 of Lerwick (the chief town of the islands) pulled burning tar F34 185 barrels through the narrow streets of the town on primitive sleighs F34 186 or stretchers at the end of this festival period. When the F34 187 authorities became nervous about damage to property and outlawed F34 188 the tar barrel, a torchlight procession was instigated. Then local F34 189 pride in the islands' Norse past resulted in the introduction of a F34 190 specially-made Viking galley in 1889. This made a spectacular show F34 191 when burned and the 'tradition' has continued ever since.

F34 192 The day of Up-Helly-Aa (which most Shetlanders consider the F34 193 most important in the festive calendar) starts with the Jarl Squad, F34 194 an elite group permitted to wear Viking costume, unveiling their F34 195 hand-built galley. Separately, at the market cross in Lerwick (the F34 196 islands' capital), a lengthy written discourse, known as 'the Bill' F34 197 is displayed. F34 198 F34 199 F35 1 <#FLOB:F35\>August was always the month of harvesting, first F35 2 the barley and oats, then the wheat. The workers were in the F35 3 cornfields from first light until nightfall when the weather was F35 4 dry, cutting, stooking, carrying, and making the cornricks. Now, as F35 5 soon as the percentage of water in the grain falls sufficiently the F35 6 combine harvesters are brought in, and the corn is cut and threshed F35 7 out of the straw in one noisy, diesel-fumed operation by huge, F35 8 florid machines, which cost as much as a house! Where is the F35 9 singing over that racket, the communal effort, the slaving in the F35 10 baking fields with only a cup of warm cider and a lump of bread and F35 11 cheese to sustain a fifteen-hour day? Neither method has the rural F35 12 charm that eighteenth century pictures of reapers in the field F35 13 evoke, the leisured cutting with rhythmically swinging sickles to F35 14 rustic tunes under a warm sky, with maids in low cut gowns F35 15 nurturing the heated workers with sweet pastries and cool ale. F35 16 However the corn is cut, European grain mountains notwithstanding, F35 17 it is hard work, and as the culmination of many a farmer's year, a F35 18 time of anxiety and concern.

F35 19 Crop Circles

F35 20 These days the golden fields are enriched by mysterious 'Crop F35 21 Circles' and flattened patterns in the standing crops. These are F35 22 proving a new and lucrative harvest for some people. All kinds of F35 23 explanations, from freak weather conditions, mating and playful F35 24 animals, helicopters and mysterious forces from under the Earth or F35 25 out of the sky have been suggested. Certainly reckless young F35 26 farmers may account for the appearance of some of these F35 27 increasingly strange designs, but in general their symmetry, and F35 28 the way in which something in the chemical structure of the crops F35 29 has been affected, cannot be explained. They are seen primarily in F35 30 the South of England, but a variety of similar strange formations F35 31 have been seen in Japan, America and Australia, where the open land F35 32 presents a similar surface.

F35 33 Although it was in the 1980s that these strange happenings F35 34 became more widely publicised, reports of areas of mysteriously F35 35 flattened plants were recorded back as far as the 1940s with rare F35 36 sightings possibly going back many hundreds of years. Tests on the F35 37 actual stems of the wheat seem to indicate that though they are F35 38 bent over, and laid flat on the ground in neat vortices, they are F35 39 still growing, but that some sort of change has been made to the F35 40 structure at the point of the bend. At present no one has seen a F35 41 circle being formed, except the fake ones, obviously, when those F35 42 involved must have seen their handiwork. There have been reports of F35 43 orange lights in the sky, and technicians investigating the F35 44 phenomenon have measured strange readings on their equipment, or F35 45 heard and recorded unusual noises.

F35 46 There are many places where such events have been seen, but one F35 47 of the factors which links these areas is that many of them have F35 48 ancient earthworks, tracks or mounds and barrows near them. Quite a F35 49 few of the fields near Silbury Hill and the Avebury complex have F35 50 had elaborate patterns made in them in the latter part of the F35 51 1980s, and one theory about these circles is that they are forming F35 52 over ancient ritual sites. Some of these might have been the F35 53 footings of circular dwelling huts, or dancing grounds, of F35 54 stockades, perhaps made with thorn bushes rather than with posts F35 55 knocked into the ground, as used to be common, but as yet no F35 56 archaeological investigations have confirmed this possible link. F35 57 There may indeed be some mysterious energy, which is sufficient to F35 58 bend over growing crops, manifesting from places which were once F35 59 sacred, as open air Temples to the Sky Gods, or gathering places of F35 60 the tribes. At present we don't know, but it is clear that the F35 61 patterns revealed are getting more complicated, and so even more F35 62 mysterious.

F35 63 Harvest Time Traditions

F35 64 To the Anglo-Saxons the start of August was known as F35 65 Hlafmas of Loaf-mass or, in Scotland, 'Lughnasad', the Feast F35 66 of the Celtic Sun God, Lugh, who was seen as a God of Light whose F35 67 spirit was the life of the growing corn. The Lammas feast was both F35 68 a celebration and a kind of remembrance of this energy which was F35 69 changed from a living force in the corn to a static one in the cut F35 70 sheaves. In Britain, during August, there used to be a public F35 71 holiday called 'Wakes Week' during which as many people as possible F35 72 were brought from their ordinary occupations to help with the F35 73 harvesting. Today, mechanisation has taken care of much of the work F35 74 but the holiday has survived as Bank Holiday Monday at the end of F35 75 the month.

F35 76 In the old days everyone was expected to help with the cutting, F35 77 binding into sheaves, stooking or carting, or by providing food and F35 78 drink for the workers, or perhaps joining in the rabbit hunts by F35 79 surrounding the area of uncut corn and catching as many of these F35 80 animals as possible as they were driven out of the standing grain, F35 81 on which they had no doubt been feeding. Rabbit Pie and Stew was a F35 82 valuable addition to the table of the hard-working reapers, F35 83 and there are lots of old recipes involving cooking rabbits with F35 84 cider or beer. This was not really a form of ritual sacrifice but a F35 85 way of getting rid of a pest. Sadly, today, many of the great F35 86 combine harvesters wipe out fieldmice in their intricate nests F35 87 woven in among the corn stalks, as well as rabbits, birds and all F35 88 kinds of wild creatures too slow, or too confused by these great F35 89 grinding machines, to escape.

F35 90 There is a tradition, which still survives as a local custom in F35 91 parts of Cornwall, called the ceremony of 'Crying the Neck', which F35 92 is a kind of sacrificial act, not performed on any animal, but on F35 93 the corn itself. Traditionally it was supposed to be unlucky to cut F35 94 the last sheaf of wheat, or to be the last farmer in the area to F35 95 complete the harvesting, so a kind of game was developed whereby F35 96 all the harvesters would gather round the last upright tuft of F35 97 corn, and standing back, take their small sickles and hurl them at F35 98 the base of the corn, so no one knew for certain who had cut down F35 99 the last stem, and so symbolically slain the Corn Spirit. From this F35 100 last sheaf the best ears of corn would be taken and woven into a F35 101 Corn Dolly. This would be placed in a special display, often over F35 102 the hearth, which in British homes acts as a king of altar, decked F35 103 with pictures of the family and loved ones, or favourite ornaments, F35 104 candlesticks and the like. Here it should stay, being admired all F35 105 the winter, until the spring sowing, when the corn would be shaken F35 106 out of the ears and added to the rest of the seed corn before F35 107 sowing, as this ensured that the magical fertility saved from the F35 108 last strands of the previous harvest was shared among the new F35 109 crop.

F35 110 The 'Crying the Neck' ceremony is blessed by church men in some F35 111 Cornish parishes, but prayers and charms are still spoken in F35 112 Cornish. There is a cry of "Yma genef! Yma genef!" F35 113 answered by "Pandr'us genes? Pandr'us genes?" again F35 114 answered with "Pen Yar! Pen Yar!" This means F35 115 roughly 'I have got it!' requiring the question, "What have F35 116 you got?" to which the answer is "Pen Year" F35 117 - literally a hen's head, rather than a 'neck' of corn. Maybe this F35 118 was some kind of bird offering: after all, the Glorious Twelfth, F35 119 when shooting game birds begins, is only days away. There may be F35 120 another sacred act here, though, for many of the forms of Corn F35 121 Dolly that are woven are in the form of the Earth Mother, the Corn F35 122 Queen, or the feminine Horn of Plenty. It is she who is fertile it F35 123 is her body, the Earth, which brings forth the grain in due season, F35 124 or she whose fertility that fails. Just as eggs appear as gifts of F35 125 the Sacred Hare at the Spring or Sowing Festival, may not the one F35 126 who laid those magical eggs be considered here as the Hen who is F35 127 cut down so that her bounty may be shared by the people along with F35 128 their new flour?

F35 129 The other colour especially associated with harvest is red. F35 130 Many of the different local variations of the Corn Dolly are tied F35 131 with scarlet ribbons. The horses once used on farms nearly always F35 132 had their manes plaited and bound up with red ribbons, and F35 133 sometimes garlands of field poppies and the blue corn flowers were F35 134 hung about the harvest, or set into the loads of sheaves as they F35 135 were carted from the fields to the barns or stackyards. in magic, F35 136 red has always been associated with the Life Force itself, because F35 137 blood is red. Red flowers are incorporated into bouquets presented F35 138 to some of the ladies who have a ceremonial part to play in these F35 139 seasonable gatherings. The representative of the Earth Mother, as F35 140 Lady of the Feast, as Maiden, or Harvest Queen, is offered floral F35 141 tributes in which the life-blood colour usually features. Red is F35 142 fire, energy, the heat of the Sun, and the few flowers in England F35 143 which are naturally bright red (the poppies and that poor man's F35 144 weathervane, the scarlet pimpernel being the most common) are F35 145 always thought special.

F35 146 This season was, by everyone's consideration, the most critical F35 147 in the entire year. To a certain extent it still is, although F35 148 modern growing methods tend to end up with a surplus of grain in F35 149 the world in the North, which is set aside and saved for years of F35 150 hardship, to trade with other nations less well endowed, or F35 151 exchange through world food markets for other commodities. The F35 152 all-important factor over which the farmers and growers have no F35 153 control is the weather. It could have been an excellent growing F35 154 season with ripening grain and other foodstuffs in every field, yet F35 155 a heavy rainstorm or hail stones can flatten, soak and ruin any F35 156 crop, making it impossible to harvest, or rain can make the fields F35 157 so wet that no heavy machinery can even go upon them for fear of F35 158 sinking in. High winds from uncommon directions can lay corn flat, F35 159 or affect parts of fields so that they will not stand and ripen F35 160 evenly, which is a far more critical problem with the use of F35 161 combine harvesters than it was in the old days. A combine must have F35 162 dry grain which can be knocked out of the husks within the machine, F35 163 whereas when corn was stooked until dry, as each area was ready it F35 164 could be carted for threshing by steam driven machinery.

F35 165 Some of the changes in the weather in recent years, brought on F35 166 by pollution and thinning of the ozone layer, are leading to more F35 167 periods of drought, the raised possibility of hurricane force F35 168 winds, which naturally occur about once in seventy-years, and F35 169 greater heat of longer periods of dryness. None of these will help F35 170 our kinds of plants and trees, nurtured in the traditional sorts of F35 171 wind or weather. We may have to start growing olives and expanding F35 172 our vineyards, and exchange our corn harvest for gathering maize. F35 173 Instead of specially brewed harvest ales we would have to try a F35 174 sort of Octoberfest which they have in Germany, in September, to F35 175 dance and sing as the grapes are picked. These things may come, if F35 176 the strange weather we have had for the last few years persists.

F35 177 Walking Week

F35 178 One of the older traditions around mid-August was not only F35 179 Wakes Week, but Walking Week, when those employed in factories and F35 180 mills took time off to walk in the countryside, or enjoy sea air, F35 181 long before package trips to the Costa Brava were dreamed of, or F35 182 the ubiquitous flight to the sun after an entertaining few hours or F35 183 days at the local airport! Some of these Walks had a religious F35 184 facet, in that they were a king of small pilgrimage. F35 185 F35 186 F35 187 F35 188 F36 1 <#FLOB:F36\>The Sweet Scent of Roses

F36 2 Clay Jones on the rose-breeders' quest for perfection

F36 3 THIS MONTH, in practically every garden in Britain, the air is F36 4 heavy with the sweet scent of roses and as their buds unfurl, great F36 5 sweeps of colour fill the landscape and we know that summer is F36 6 really here.

F36 7 Without question, the rose is beloved above all other plants F36 8 for its flowers and fragrance. So cherished and admired is this F36 9 doyen of the garden and so numerous are its species and varieties, F36 10 that we tend to forget that the modern rose sprang from humble F36 11 beginnings.

F36 12 Its present day excellence and prominence is due almost F36 13 entirely to the work and dedication of a comparatively small band F36 14 of rose breeders and growers who, over many years, have striven to F36 15 produce bigger blooms, better colours and stronger scents. They F36 16 have succeeded and still they continue their quest for perfection, F36 17 all of which is to our advantage.

F36 18 In any breeding programme the initial requirements are F36 19 attractive and different blooms and vigour coupled with good, F36 20 disease-resistant foliage. Finding these desirable assets is a F36 21 protracted exercise, demanding great patience and an even greater F36 22 degree of skill. The breeders produced thousands of seedlings and F36 23 consider themselves lucky if they find two or three of a F36 24 sufficiently high standard to merit a place in our rose beds. Very F36 25 occasionally a real winner appears by a combination of good luck F36 26 and even better planning.

F36 27 So it was in 1939, when Francis Meilland in France set eyes on F36 28 a seedling that appeared to be of exceptionally high quality. With F36 29 the intervention of the war years, it was 1945 before his great F36 30 discovery, we now know as the rose 'Peace', crossed over the F36 31 channel and became our best loved rose.

F36 32 Since then 'Peace', with its delicately perfumed, full blooms F36 33 of pink-edged, creamy yellow and deep green, glossy foliage, has F36 34 sold at least 100 million plants world-wide and all because F36 35 Meilland was an accomplished rose breeder and had an eye for a F36 36 promising youngster.

F36 37 CONTAINER GROWN ROSES

F36 38 It is our good fortune these days, that we can drive to a F36 39 garden centre and view a range of container grown roses in full F36 40 bloom. We can make our choice of colour and form, take the plant F36 41 home, ease it out of its container and plant it to give us instant F36 42 colour. With its root system intact, the plant will hardly notice F36 43 its move from pot to hole and it will grow, providing it has a F36 44 plentiful supply of water.

F36 45 After planting, give the soil a thorough soaking with 2 to 4 F36 46 gallons of water and top dress with a good thick mulch of any F36 47 organic material, that will serve to keep the roots cool and F36 48 conserve soil moisture. In prolonged dry spells your new rose will F36 49 probably need watering several times a week for at least a month, F36 50 until it has made new roots into the surrounding soil, and the F36 51 lighter the soil, the more often it will need watering.

F36 52 The next few weeks should be the hottest, driest time of the F36 53 year and where plants are concerned, water is a greater necessity F36 54 than food. In any case, they absorb their food in solution and F36 55 therefore in a dry soil they can neither slake their thirst nor F36 56 satisfy their appetites. This fact of plant life applies just as F36 57 much to roses as to anything else, and particularly to climbing F36 58 roses, even though they may be well established. The foot of a wall F36 59 is the driest part of any garden and any plant growing there may F36 60 need watering even after rain.

F36 61 NEW ROSES

F36 62 Returning to the rose breeders, they have transformed our F36 63 conception of the rose in recent years. Until fairly recently our F36 64 rose beds were occupied by either hybrid teas or floribundas and in F36 65 our borders you sometimes found a few of the old shrub roses. The F36 66 HTs and the floribundas still predominate and very lovely and showy F36 67 they are, but there are a whole lot of exciting newcomers.

F36 68 Of paramount importance is the new range of dwarf floribundas, F36 69 that have become popularly called 'Patio' roses. These little F36 70 beauties grow to an average height of 18 inches, although some will F36 71 go to 2 feet. All this means that they are just the thing for small F36 72 gardens and for growing in containers.

F36 73 I have also seen them in massed beds in large gardens and they F36 74 look superb. They flower throughout the summer and are compact with F36 75 dense, healthy foliage. The best varieties to look for are Angela F36 76 Rippon - salmon pink, Rugul - yellow, Snowdrop - pure white, Sweet F36 77 Magic - orange and Red Domino - crimson.

F36 78 For me, the old fashioned roses have great charm and beauty and F36 79 I have been content to enjoy their splendid but comparatively F36 80 short-lived, floral display. Things are changing, indeed, have F36 81 changed. In Albrighton, near Wolverhampton, David Austin has been F36 82 busy breeding a new race of shrub roses, which he has called F36 83 English Roses. These spring from crosses between the old roses and F36 84 the modern hybrid teas and floribundas. They retain the unique F36 85 charm of the 'Olds' with the ability of the 'moderns' to keep on F36 86 flowering over a long period and they have fragrance as well. They F36 87 are blessed with a bushy appearance, good colourful blooms and they F36 88 vary in size from medium-size shrubs to small bushes. Two F36 89 particularly good varieties of the shrub-type English Rose are the F36 90 clear yellow Graham Thomas and the rose-pink Mary Rose.

F36 91 Climbing roses are truly beautiful, but they can be an F36 92 embarrassment in small gardens. How does one cope with a climber F36 93 with a natural desire to climb to 20 feet up a 6 feet high wall? F36 94 With difficulty, but not if it is one of the new Miniature Climbers F36 95 such as the deep yellow Laura Ford, which is content to climb to 6 F36 96 feet or so and no higher.

F36 97 F36 98 Honey for Tea

F36 99 John Douglas got the buzz and now has his own private F36 100 reserve

F36 101 "HOW MANY have you got, then?" That's often the F36 102 first question I am asked when someone hears that I keep bees.

F36 103 "Oh, 40,000, give or take a few hundred," I F36 104 reply.

F36 105 There's a smile of disbelief. It's a joke, isn't it? But when F36 106 they realize that I'm serious, questions come thick and fast.

F36 107 What is so interesting about these dark, six-legged insects? F36 108 After all, you hardly notice them. They just get on with their F36 109 work. Unless you disturb them, they are unlikely to sting you.

F36 110 Is it their ability to produce that delicate and delicious F36 111 golden substance we call honey?

F36 112 Could it be their amazing community life? Some 30,000 to 40,000 F36 113 in one hive, with the queen laying up to 1,500 eggs a day and each F36 114 bee with its own job to do. Workers who act as royal attendants, F36 115 guards, nurses, cleaners, undertakers and foragers - not to mention F36 116 the drones, whose sole function is to fertilize the queen, then F36 117 die. A dear price for a life of leisure.

F36 118 Or is there an idea that you'll have something for nothing? F36 119 Persuade the little beggars to live in a special box and store F36 120 honey, then when it's ready you steal it! Well, we can knock the F36 121 free honey idea straight on the head. I fed my bees over 30 pounds F36 122 of sugar in September. That's hardly free!

F36 123 You need a veil, a hat and a pair of gauntlets as minimum F36 124 protection. With a smoker and a hive tool - indispensable items for F36 125 calming them down and opening the hive - and some wax foundation F36 126 for the frames, you can spend well over pounds50 before you even F36 127 risk a bee-sting.

F36 128 But, as a novice, I knew little about all this until two years F36 129 ago. For some time I had been interested, but then I just kept on F36 130 spreading my toast with honey from the local supermarket - marked F36 131 "produce of more than one country".

F36 132 It was during the spring that my friend Bill, a beekeeper for F36 133 more than 30 years, said, "If you're interested, come and F36 134 look at mine."

F36 135 It was warm and still - a perfect May afternoon. His bees were F36 136 flying and content. The air hummed with activity. Hatted and F36 137 veiled, with hands firmly in my pockets, I peered gingerly for the F36 138 first time into an open hive. Gently, Bill eased out one frame F36 139 after another full of honeycomb. Hundreds of bees were working on F36 140 them. I smelt the warm sweet scent of honey and wax.

F36 141 I had thoughts of breakfast toast spread with honey from our F36 142 own bees in our own garden. I was hooked.

F36 143 The intelligence network of the local beekeepers' association F36 144 resembles a benevolent MI5. Within days I possessed a F36 145 second-hand hive, awaiting an obliging swarm.

F36 146 I learnt my first lesson in bee-lore. 'A swarm in May is worth F36 147 a load of hay.' That is, a May swarm should settle into a hive and F36 148 produce honey for harvesting later in the summer.

F36 149 BILL is an official swarm gatherer. The police call him when F36 150 concerned householders report bees in their thousands settling in F36 151 the garden. But that year no swarm appeared in May.

F36 152 'A swarm in June is worth a silver spoon.' Still no swarm.

F36 153 'A swarm in July isn't worth a fly!' So the intelligence F36 154 network took over again. Old Jack was not well. He was cutting down F36 155 and selling some of his hives as going concerns. I bought one which F36 156 was considered by my friendly agents to be in good shape and F36 157 well-stocked. About 14 pounds of honey already stored, they F36 158 guessed.

F36 159 Late one evening we moved the bees. Sealed and clamped a hive F36 160 fits easily into a hatchback car. We set it up at the far end of F36 161 the garden, agreed as a suitable site so as to cause no trouble to F36 162 neighbours. In fact, ours had been interested and encouraging when F36 163 we had spoken with them.

F36 164 The intelligence agents were right. We were delighted to take F36 165 off 16 pounds of honey at the end of that first summer.

F36 166 Now I didn't actually go to listen, but tradition has it that F36 167 at midnight on Christmas Eve the bees, clustered in their hives, F36 168 hum praises in honour of Christ's birth. It is also said that F36 169 bought bees don't do well. But last year our hive yielded a F36 170 surprising harvest of 82 pounds.

F36 171 And if in early summer I am seen walking round the garden F36 172 noisily banging pans and baking trays together, I shall be F36 173 'tanging' - an old and tried custom to encourage a swarm to settle F36 174 quickly, not too far from its original hive. That's the theory F36 175 anyhow. My first swarm is my big practical test.

F36 176 F36 177 A DOG'S BEST FRIEND

F36 178 Jenny Jones tells the heart-tugging tale of a rescued dog's F36 179 first love

F36 180 THE FIRST thing I gave Bozo was a blanket. It was a big, F36 181 fluffy, pale blue affair, which somebody had donated for just such F36 182 an occasion and needy cause.

F36 183 He adored his blanket on sight, helping to place it carefully F36 184 in his bed, nudging it with his broad nose, patting it with F36 185 enormous feet. Then he sat on it firmly, with an air of F36 186 take-it-away-if-you-dare!

F36 187 I have no way of knowing if the blanket was the first thing F36 188 Bozo had ever owned, but he acted as if it was, and woe betide F36 189 anyone who thought to straighten it, move it, or worse still, wash F36 190 it.

F36 191 Bozo was an Old English sheepdog - but don't imagine something F36 192 like the famous paint dog, pampered and combed; rather, a rangy, F36 193 moth-eaten, greyhound-thin bundle of neuroses covered in F36 194 sparsely-tufted grey and white fur. Nine years of dog rescue had F36 195 inured me, I thought, to the sad sights and sorry stories of the F36 196 animals I cared for, but the tales of beatings, starvation and F36 197 abandonment I lived with paled in the light of Bozo's F36 198 circumstances.

F36 199 A windowless bathroom, with barely space to move between the F36 200 bath and loo, is no place to keep a dog, yet this had been Bozo's F36 201 lot for two whole years. During all that time he'd never seen F36 202 daylight, never been released from his cell, been fed only F36 203 intermittently, not known one kind word, and the small room had F36 204 never been cleaned out. F36 205 F37 1 <#FLOB:F37\>AUTUMNAL ANARCHY

F37 2 Simon Evans

F37 3 Remember, Remember the fifth of November,

F37 4 Gunpowder, Treason and Plot;

F37 5 I see no reason why Gunpowder treason,

F37 6 Should ever be forgot.

F37 7 This simple rhyme sums up for many of us what Bonfire Night F37 8 celebrations are all about, the commemoration of the failure of an F37 9 illegal plot to destroy our parliament in 1605. There is no doubt F37 10 that the thwarting of this deed was a momentous triumph but there F37 11 is also little doubt that the custom of bonfire is itself much F37 12 older. We only have to witness the spectacular celebrations of the F37 13 Sussex Bonfire Societies to realise that embodied in this practice F37 14 are remnants of something much older, a seasonal festival F37 15 stretching back into ancient times. These modern societies maintain F37 16 the custom of burning effigies of those who they wish to denigrate, F37 17 be they politicians or other public figures. It seems that the F37 18 Gunpowder plot was such a significant event that for most of us F37 19 that we have continued to express our disapproval by retaining Guy F37 20 Fawkes as the perennial baddie, even at the Sussex celebrations the F37 21 anti Papist sentiments survive. To this day the bonfire F37 22 celebrations in Sussex towns are such that many pubs and shops F37 23 board up their fronts and those pubs that do remain open remove all F37 24 the furniture from the bars and spread plastic sheets across the F37 25 floors to protect the carpets from beer and fireworks. There is no F37 26 doubt that festivities such as these were once enacted across the F37 27 country and our own county of Kent was no exception, in fact the F37 28 Edenbridge Bonfire Society is now the only one in the country with F37 29 a license to manufacture their own fireworks.

F37 30 Ever since pre Christian times the turning of the seasons has F37 31 been <}_><-|>puncuated<+|>punctuated<}/> by a major festival, the F37 32 mid winter Yuletide was complemented by mid summer celebrations. F37 33 The springtime change from winter to summer was celebrated by F37 34 Beltane and survives in a number of guises, from the Christian F37 35 Easter festival which still uses the egg as a symbol of fertility F37 36 to the May morning dances performed by morris men. The Autumnal F37 37 change is marked by what has become a confusion of celebrations, F37 38 but Halloween, Bonfire and All Souls are probably all variants or F37 39 remnants of the old Celtic New Year which fell on November the 1st. F37 40 It was a riotous affair and the anarchic celebrations that are F37 41 still strong in Sussex are probably only a shadow of how things F37 42 were years ago. A measure of its importance to people is F37 43 demonstrated by incidents that <}_><-|>occured<+|>occurred<}/> in F37 44 Dartford during the last century. It was felt that the festivities F37 45 were getting out of hand, the anarchic celebrations that are still F37 46 strong in Sussex being probably only a shadow of how the festival F37 47 was once celebrated. In a Dartford newspaper in November 1839 a F37 48 report was published of which this is an extract:

F37 49 "About 10 O'clock, amounting in the whole to about 150, F37 50 many with their faces blacked, and others wearing masks and crepe, F37 51 marched into the town from Crayford, calling at many houses, and F37 52 demanding fuel or money; which, if they failed to obtain, the most F37 53 gross outrages were committed. This party of ruffians then F37 54 proceeded to The Bull, marched up the yard with torches, fireworks, F37 55 etc., and demanded to be supplied with straw. Mr Potter, however, F37 56 resolutely refused to acceed<&|>sic! to their requests and F37 57 consequently the most violent threats were used against him - a F37 58 friend, unknown to Mr Potter, at length gave them money to depart. F37 59 They then proceeded to the bonfire, and commenced scattering it F37 60 around the house; and the greatest possible fears were entertained F37 61 for the safety of Mr Edwards, whose cellars were filled with pitch, F37 62 resin and other combustible articles. Some of the fire was thrown F37 63 against the premises of Mr John Wilding; which induced that F37 64 gentleman to make an attempt to put out the fire. He was known, and F37 65 most violently assaulted by the ruffians; and the town was kept in F37 66 a state of alarm during the great part of the night."

F37 67 This state of affairs obviously continued for many years F37 68 because a local solicitor who played a part in attempting to have F37 69 the festivities stopped came in for attention on November the 6th F37 70 1848.

F37 71 "There was a mob of 400 or 500 persons around my house, F37 72 they came several times during the night masked and in disguise, F37 73 they began throwing stones and breaking my windows. I went to my F37 74 door to remonstrate with them and was met by a shower of fireworks F37 75 that I was glad to beat a retreat. They continued to shout 'burn F37 76 him out' and 'pull it down', and such threats accompanied with F37 77 oaths at the same time throwing fireworks and lighted wood in my F37 78 house burning the sill of one of the windows and a carpet. There F37 79 were seventeen panes of glass broken, a chest of drawers injured by F37 80 the stones, a wire blind, a quilt and a carpet by fire and other F37 81 injuries sustained. A lighted tar barrel was rolled against my door F37 82 which was only prevented being burnt by the policeman rolling the F37 83 tar barrel into the water."

F37 84 This anarchy continued every year with lighted tar barrels F37 85 being rolled through the streets with any attempt to prevent the F37 86 celebrations being vigorously opposed. Opposing factions would F37 87 enter the town, rolling lighted barrels down East Hill and West F37 88 Hill, meeting in the centre of town opposite the Bull Hotel where F37 89 the fire would be lit amidst much rioting. One year the pub was F37 90 burnt down and the law continued to attempt to stop the F37 91 festivities, creating such tension between the Bonfire Boys and the F37 92 police that in 1863 the following words appeared on a poster around F37 93 the town:

F37 94 "Whereas, certain ill-disposed Persons have attempted F37 95 to prevent the lawful Festivities of the public on the fifth of F37 96 November - the anniversary of the infamous Gunpowder plot! This is F37 97 to give notice that a reward of ten shillings will be given for the F37 98 head of every Policeman and one pound for the head of every F37 99 inspector which shall be delivered at the Parish Pound to a F37 100 gentleman who will be there authorized to receive it, from 6 to 12 F37 101 pm. God Save the Queen!"

F37 102 Although many of the Sussex bonfire celebrations are still F37 103 rowdy affairs, they are largely good natured and it is good to see F37 104 the increase in communal bonfire celebrations. Many towns and F37 105 village now stage public bonfire and firework displays which bring F37 106 people together to celebrate the onset of the cold season. F37 107 Edenbridge is particularly worthwhile, with its massive bonfire and F37 108 superb firework display, locally made and always with a topical F37 109 theme. If you go, do get there early, the town is closed to traffic F37 110 from early evening with a procession of floats through the town, F37 111 accompanied by flaming torches and fireworks, but nowadays it is a F37 112 well marshalled and safe affair for all the family.

F37 113 Playford Dancing at Broome Park

F37 114 by David Stephens

F37 115 Broome Park at Barham, near Canterbury, once the home of Lord F37 116 Kitchener, has seen, over the last decade, the establishment of an F37 117 event known as the East Kent 'Playford Evening'. Playford is a name F37 118 synonymous with a form of country dancing from the 17th and 18th F37 119 centuries but which now includes dances of a similar style from the F37 120 19th and 20th centuries. Playford was not a dancing master but a F37 121 publisher whose house printed eighteen editions and many revisions F37 122 between 1650 and 1728.

F37 123 The evenings, <}_><-|>usualyy<+|>usually<}/> three a year, were F37 124 initiated by Ernest Eley of Ewell Minnis in F37 125 <}_><-|>albout<+|>about<}/> 1980 as an excuse to invite his back F37 126 two or three hundred years where they could enjoy eachother's F37 127 company and dancing. Ernest's personality was perfectly suited to F37 128 that era. When age and health <}_><-|>finalyy<+|>finally<}/> forced F37 129 him to give it up in the mid 80s the role of Master of Ceremonies F37 130 was taken up by Michael Spenceley of Canterbury until he moved to F37 131 Shropshire at the end of 1986. For a while Patricia Skelton of F37 132 Dover, a close friend and protege of Ernest Eley, ran the evenings F37 133 until in 1987 she handed over the reins to David Stephens of St. F37 134 Lawrence-in-Thanet, the current M.C.

F37 135 Since the evenings began dancers have been encouraged to wear F37 136 costume from the Playford era: and many do, F37 137 <}_><-|>therreby<+|>thereby<}/>enhancing both the visual aspect and F37 138 <}_><-|>everyones<+|>everyone's<}/> enjoyment. The tunes of the F37 139 dances published by Playford are a joy to listen to: but no dancer F37 140 could do just that and in recent years the music has been lead F37 141 mostly by Tina Young of The Rigadoons band.

F37 142 Let us hope that Playford dancing will be a F37 143 <}_><-|>featrure<+|>feature<}/> at Broome Park for many years to F37 144 come - and of course the more people that come from far and near F37 145 wearing their finery and contributing to the convivial atmosphere F37 146 the more <}_><-|>wew<+|>we<}/> can be sure that the event will as F37 147 <}_><-|>mcu<+|>much<}/> a part of our future as it has been our F37 148 past.

F37 149 DANCE IN YUGOSLAVIA

F37 150 In the picture the dancers can be seen linking hands and moving F37 151 slowly in a circle. This dance is called the Kolo, almost the F37 152 national dance of Yugoslavia. There are many variations of this F37 153 dance, which can also be danced in a line. Sometimes the Kolo was F37 154 danced to ward off evil spirits, or to bring fertility to a newly F37 155 married couple. It could also be used to bless the sowing or F37 156 gathering of crops in Spring or Autumn.

F37 157 Yugoslavia was overrun by Turks for five centuries, so the F37 158 Turkish influence is seen in the music used to accompany the F37 159 <}_><-|>dasnce<+|>dance<}/>. At first the Turks forbade music F37 160 altogether, so often the <}_><-|>peassants<+|>peasants<}/> danced F37 161 without it, just stamping their feet and clapping their hands to F37 162 the rhythm of the dance. The Turks were so hated that the leader of F37 163 the dance often clenches his right hand behind his back as a secret F37 164 symbol of defiance.

F37 165 Today every Sunday during the tourist season, dancers and F37 166 musicians dressed in their national costume meet and perform in the F37 167 village of Cilipi near Dubrovnik.

F37 168 contributed by Joan G Brown Maidstone FDC

F37 169 Annual Trawler Race in Folkestone.

F37 170 Although competition and gain are played down as primary F37 171 elements in our fields of interest, this annual event has, F37 172 predominately, an element of fun.

F37 173 It has been held regularly for eleven years on a Saturday in F37 174 August, (24th. August this year.) depending on the tide. It is a F37 175 pursuit race in which some thirty registered fishing trawlers, F37 176 drifters, liners or motor boats start from outside Folkestone F37 177 harbour at times dependent on individual handicaps allotted. These F37 178 aim to bring them all back to Folkestone harbour at about the same F37 179 time from the course round a yellow <}_><-|>bouy<+|>buoy<}/> laid F37 180 half way to Dover.

F37 181 From early morning on the day - the tide right and the weather F37 182 practical - the vessels competing, are being decorated overall. F37 183 They will assemble for judging in the harbour. Then, during the F37 184 morning, amid much bantering and teasing, flower bag slinging and F37 185 water squirting, each sets off eastward at its appointed time F37 186 according to handicap. The children, the rest of the families and F37 187 onlookers stay around the quay entertained by the old Dutch organ F37 188 and various other attractions. The whole course can be seen from F37 189 Copt Point and the high ground between the first Martello Towers F37 190 or, of course from the high cliff top above the Warren.

F37 191 Around midday the boats begin to congregate again off the East F37 192 Cliff on the final stretch and excitement increases as the winners F37 193 come in.

F37 194 Later at a lively party in the East Cliff Pavilion, the prizes F37 195 are awarded an another Trawler Race Day ends.

F37 196 (With thanks and appreciation for help to Mr. Paul James, F37 197 Umpire and Chairman of Folkestone F37 198 <}_><-|>Fishermens<+|>Fishermen's<}/> Association and Mr. Reg F37 199 Briggs, an old friend of Folkestone Yacht Club days.)

F37 200 "THE END OF THE ROAD"

F37 201 Simon Evans must be congratulated on his excellent F37 202 documentary on the life, culture and music of the Travelling people F37 203 in Kent as featured in BBC Radio 4's 'Kaleidoscope' programme F37 204 broadcast on Friday 7th September last.

F37 205 F37 206 F37 207 F38 1 <#FLOB:F38\>Bank-Fishing in April

F38 2 Most of the major reservoirs open for fishing on April 1 or F38 3 Good Friday, whichever is the earlier. When I'm standing in F38 4 icy-cold water, hands purple with cold, blustery showers spattering F38 5 my specs, on an all-too-typical Opening Day, I reckon the epithet F38 6 'April Fool' is well merited, but it only needs that magic pull F38 7 from the first trout of the season and any discomfort is F38 8 immediately forgotten as excitement takes over and the adrenalin F38 9 flows! If we are to make the best of the April fishing, we must be F38 10 prepared to accept whatever the weather throws at us - after all, F38 11 we can't throw it back! If your reservoir is situated so that F38 12 westerly, south-westerly, or southerly winds give suitable wind F38 13 directions for fishing the banks, you are indeed lucky. Luckier F38 14 still if those winds prevail during April, bringing mild cloudy F38 15 conditions. All too often, the reverse is the case and raw F38 16 north-easterlies create conditions where even newly introduced F38 17 stockies are reluctant to take.

F38 18 British weather being what it is, however, I've known several F38 19 Opening Days when the sun beat down and jackets were discarded in F38 20 air temperatures warmer than those of the following June. Even F38 21 after one of the comparatively mild winters we've been experiencing F38 22 during recent years, one thing is fairly certain - the main body of F38 23 water will still be very cold. The big reservoirs take many weeks F38 24 for the water to reach a comfortable temperature. It is only the F38 25 shallower water round the banks which warms up more quickly and F38 26 brings the trout into a situation where they become more active and F38 27 need to feed more positively. The bank-fisher should therefore F38 28 score over the boat-angler during this month because these more F38 29 productive spots are not usually available to the boat-fisher. F38 30 These band shallows are out of bounds for boats, because reservoir F38 31 rules usually prohibit them approaching within 50 metres of the F38 32 bank, so anchoring-up near the bank is 'out'. Drifting boat methods F38 33 are restricted to deep-sunk lures behind the boat, if allowed by F38 34 the rules, or Highspeed HiD line over the front, with a very slow F38 35 drift speed; loch-style fishing with floating line, covering as it F38 36 does the upper layers, is usually unproductive.

F38 37 Bank-fishers have the opportunity of enjoying the best of the F38 38 action, fishing the most likely locations round the reservoir, F38 39 places where fish are easily reached and where they are most likely F38 40 to be feeding. Use your thermometer, and measure the temperature F38 41 accurately. It's of little use just to dip your hand in the water. F38 42 Look for readings above 45<*_>degree<*/>F (7<*_>degree<*/>C) if F38 43 possible, at which trout will move quite well. You'll be amazed at F38 44 the difference between one shore and another.

F38 45 It is essential to remember that trout are cold-blooded F38 46 creatures in the exact sense of the word, with their body F38 47 temperature equalling that of the surrounding water. Body F38 48 temperature controls metabolism and activity. In temperatures below F38 49 45<*_>degree<*/>F (7<*_>degree<*/>C) the trout will be quite F38 50 lethargic. Within certain limits, the warmer the water, the more F38 51 active are the fish and the more likely they are to feed. F38 52 Discussing this point with Michael Leney, a trout farmer of very F38 53 long experience, he told me that 55<*_>degree<*/>F F38 54 (13<*_>degree<*/>C) is the optimum water temperature for trout. In F38 55 stewponds, doubtless spurred on by competition from the other F38 56 trout, they can take pellets in water which is only just above F38 57 freezing, but conversion of the food into body weight is virtually F38 58 nil at such temperatures. This is perhaps the equivalent of F38 59 shoaling stockie rainbows taking lures on a cold opening day?

F38 60 If recent and current weather conditions dictate that you fish F38 61 into the wind, it isn't always the chore some think it is. F38 62 Long-casting is rarely needed; often the trout are only a few yards F38 63 out, beyond any band of coloured water which has been stirred up by F38 64 the waves. Don't bother to fish really 'dirty' water, even though F38 65 it may be the warmest in the reservoir; you can't expect trout to F38 66 tolerate it, and even if they do, visibility is so poor it is F38 67 doubtful if they can see your offerings. Fishing into the wind, F38 68 remember to cut the rod-tip down through the wind to give the line F38 69 that extra impetus, and keep the leader length to a minimum, with F38 70 no more than two flies. A longer leader will just be blown back, F38 71 and the flies won't fish properly until you have taken up the F38 72 slack.

F38 73 Whether it's allowed or not, don't wade shores into which a F38 74 strong wind is blowing. Owing to the cloudy water, you often cannot F38 75 see the bottom, and could easily step into a deep hole. A heavy F38 76 wave can slop over the top of your waders, a mishap I try to avoid. F38 77 By the way, if your waders do get wet inside, when you get home F38 78 pack them with screwed-up newspaper, which will absorb much of the F38 79 moisture overnight; after removing this, finish the drying process F38 80 with prolonged use of a hair-dryer.

F38 81 If your reservoir isn't stocked with triploids or female F38 82 rainbows, and you want to avoid our-of-condition 'black' trout, F38 83 steer clear of shallows with a hard stony bottom. Such places are F38 84 often populated with male rainbows not worth catching. Similarly, F38 85 stay away from any spots where feeder streams or drainage trickles F38 86 enter the reservoir. Another 'no-go' area, though for a different F38 87 reason, is anywhere which dried out completely during the previous F38 88 season; all weed and insect-life will have been killed off and when F38 89 the reservoir is refilled the barren bottom will not sustain any F38 90 food items or offer shelter to hold trout there. The fish will tend F38 91 to be found where last season's marginal weed remains, often 40 or F38 92 50 yards out, and at that distance they are out of range to even F38 93 the expert shooting-head exponent. After a dry summer, and low F38 94 water-levels, this means you should concentrate on the deeper parts F38 95 where the bed slopes more sharply, and the weed is likely to be F38 96 within reach. If there's a side-wind, so much the F38 97 better.

F38 98 If the water is no more than 8 feet deep, I like to use a F38 99 floating line and long (say 20-foot) leader with a leaded point fly F38 100 to get down quickly. Deeper than that, use a WF sinking line, the F38 101 sinking rate of which is determined by the slope of the bed. A F38 102 gradually shelving bank, giving water 10-12 feet deep at 25 yards F38 103 out, could be tackled with a slow-sinker (sinking at around 2 F38 104 inches per second); a fast-sinker would need too fast a retrieve to F38 105 avoid snagging the bottom, and in cold water a very slow retrieve F38 106 is essential. Trout won't chase after anything moving fast. Even F38 107 lures should be moved slowly, so select those with mobile materials F38 108 such as marabou.

F38 109 Steeply-shelving bottoms or deep-water drop-offs require a F38 110 fast-sinker (sink-rate about 3 inches per second); very F38 111 deep water needs a very fast-sinking shooting-head, because you F38 112 must cast a very long way to compensate for the greater depth to F38 113 which the line must sink. Choice of shooting-head backing is then F38 114 important; braided monofil backing is unsuitable because it is F38 115 slightly buoyant and slows down the sinking rate of the set-up. I F38 116 prefer 30-lb-test Stren monofil in the fluorescent yellow colour; F38 117 this is thick enough to handle nicely and limp enough to resist F38 118 tangles, provided you stretch it thoroughly before every fishing F38 119 session. Join the monofil to the head with a needle knot finished F38 120 with a few coats of Vycoat to facilitate passage through the F38 121 rod-rings.

F38 122 A brightly-coloured shooting-head backing enables you to use F38 123 the portion between rod-tip and water surface as a take-indicator, F38 124 in the same way as the coarse-fisherman uses a swing-tip when F38 125 ledgering. Any deviation from its normal angle can mean that a F38 126 trout has taken the fly - you don't need to wait for the pull F38 127 before tightening. This visible indication of a take is equally F38 128 important when fishing a floating line; when I'm figure-of-eight F38 129 nymphing, there are many times when a slight lift of the line at F38 130 the rod-tip tells me that a trout has my fly. Waiting for the pull F38 131 might result in just a missed 'tweak'. Usually I do rely on a pull F38 132 to indicate a take, however, and simply lift into it firmly; you F38 133 will rarely hear a swish as I strike, because I don't strike with F38 134 terrific force like some people do.

F38 135 Lure-fishing at depth, using one lure only, requires a strong F38 136 leader-point, say 8-10lb, and the leader need not be longer F38 137 than 9 feet if a sinking line is used. The less-expert caster will F38 138 find that a knotless-taper leader turns over well. If you prefer to F38 139 fish nymphs or wet flies with a sinking line, you could increase F38 140 the length to 15 feet, decrease the strength to 5 or 6lb, and have F38 141 4-inch droppers spaced at 4-foot intervals. Fishing into the wind, F38 142 use no more than 10 feet of leader and no more than two flies.

F38 143 With any type of sinking line, one warning applies to all. Do F38 144 not attempt to back-cast until there are only a few feet of line F38 145 remaining in the water. Trying to lift a longer length of sunk line F38 146 could result in a broken rod, and at best makes life difficult. In F38 147 any case, fish often follow the flies up from the depths and take F38 148 as the fly is about to leave the water, so it pays not to lift off F38 149 too soon. Hang the flies at the surface for a few seconds - yes, F38 150 trout will take a static fly! If there is no take, roll-cast F38 151 the line into the air, back-cast, and then false-cast to work F38 152 outside the rod-tip the amount of line you need for the next cast; F38 153 if using a shooting-head of WF line, this must only be a couple of F38 154 feet longer than the head itself and the rest must be shot.

F38 155 Even if there is no sign of surface activity and no hatch of F38 156 insects, I like to start with nymphs if the wind isn't too strong. F38 157 In winds of 10 knots or more I fish a lure at this time of the F38 158 year. Any one method is rarely the complete answer, so although my F38 159 preference is always towards the imitative approach I'm not against F38 160 lures. Those who stick stubbornly to one method miss out sooner or F38 161 later. Be prepared to alter your technique according to F38 162 conditions.

F38 163 Having chosen your specific location on the bank, and the F38 164 method to be used, don't wade in straight away. Start fishing off F38 165 the bank itself. Usually the water is very clear in April, with no F38 166 development of suspended unicellular algae to give colour, so your F38 167 approach to the water should be cautious in order not to scare any F38 168 trout which may be close in. Cover the water with short casts at F38 169 first, each cast at a different angle so that you fish a fan-shaped F38 170 area. Lengthen the distance gradually until you are fishing at F38 171 almost the full extent of your casting ability. Give your flies or F38 172 lure time to sink to the appropriate depth before commencing the F38 173 retrieve. Count off the seconds until the fly touches bottom or F38 174 connects with weed on the retrieve, and knock off two or three F38 175 seconds next time; you will then know that you are fishing just off F38 176 the bottom, where the trout probably are.

F38 177 Takes in cold water can be really quite gentle, often feeling F38 178 almost as though you have hooked a bit of weed, so you must be sure F38 179 that every slight stoppage is a fish and not weed. In any case, a F38 180 fly festooned with weed or bits of bottom debris is most unlikely F38 181 to be taken.

F38 182 You may get takes as the fly is falling though the water ('on F38 183 the drop' is the term used). If this happens, note the number of F38 184 seconds' wait at which it occurred, and next time start the F38 185 retrieve at that moment because the indication is that this is the F38 186 depth at which the trout are moving. F38 187 F38 188 F39 1 <#FLOB:F39\>EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY THIMBLES

F39 2 Three main shapes characterize thimbles made in the eighteenth F39 3 century: in the early years, a short, round thimble was preferred; F39 4 gradually, tall, thin thimbles replaced these in popularity; but by F39 5 the end of the century, the beehive form was favoured. As the F39 6 century progressed, so the demand for sewing sets increased.

F39 7 By the end of the seventeenth century, the Dutch thimble F39 8 industry was beginning to lose its business to English and German F39 9 competitors. There were at least five German factories in the F39 10 valley of the river Lenne, in south Westphalia, the most notable of F39 11 which was owned by Johan Casper Rumpe who enjoyed the patronage of F39 12 Frederick the Great. Rumpe's basic method of production was casting F39 13 and then hand-finishing and his company specialized in inexpensive F39 14 well-made metal thimbles; they are still in production today.

F39 15 England had its own prospering brass trade by now and no longer F39 16 needed to import thimbles from over-seas. John Lofting's F39 17 mill continued production into the eighteenth century - finds of F39 18 his brass thimbles in the United States, England and the F39 19 Netherlands suggest that they were in great demand. Birmingham had F39 20 a flourishing trade in small brass toys (in the sense of trinkets), F39 21 such as thimbles, buckles and buttons, alongside that of its F39 22 silverware. Joseph Ashwell and Walter Davenport were registered F39 23 there in the trade directory in 1769 as thimble-makers. The same F39 24 year saw the patenting of an important invention for applying metal F39 25 ornamentation, John Ford's patent Number 935. Raised patterns were F39 26 formed on a sheet of metal which was pressed by machine between two F39 27 dyes (stamps), one dye being convex and the other concave. This F39 28 gave far greater scope for design on less expensive goods and F39 29 effectively foreshadowed the end of the hand-crafted metal thimble; F39 30 after a period of experimentation, mass-production of metal F39 31 thimbles became a reality.

F39 32 The collector's interest in base metal thimbles is obviously F39 33 not connected solely with the value of the materials from which F39 34 they are made or with aesthetic considerations, but with their F39 35 craftsmanship, antiquity, historical associations and so on. The F39 36 mass-production of thimbles therefore often renders them less F39 37 interesting to the collector.

F39 38 The eighteenth century saw the general diminution of the power F39 39 of monarchy and a corresponding increase in the power of elected F39 40 government. New industrial methods accelerated the number and range F39 41 of everyday and luxury goods produced and more people could afford F39 42 them. The eighteenth-century fashion for trifles, objets F39 43 de vertu, and galenterie (including thimbles) F39 44 which originated in France, took Europe by storm. Silver sewing F39 45 compendiums are a good example.

F39 46 Three main thimble shapes succeeded each other as the century F39 47 progressed. Needleworkers in the first half of the century F39 48 preferred the shorter rounder shape which then declined in F39 49 popularity in favour of a return to the tall, slim thimble with a F39 50 rounded top. The beehive form towards the end of the century was F39 51 the last of the three. Until the 1750s or so, thimbles were still F39 52 being made in two pieces - a top and a cylinder. A gentle widening F39 53 of the base in relation to the top as the century progressed was F39 54 accompanied by the addition of a border which often carried F39 55 decoration, followed by two engraved lines at the thimble's base F39 56 (in lieu of a rim). Indentations were small and round, retaining F39 57 the circular look prevalent at the end of the previous century - F39 58 the waffle indentations on the sides of the thimbles had ceased. F39 59 Occasionally tiny dots were used in between the circular F39 60 indentations. The thimble tops had both round and F39 61 waffle-shaped indentations but rarely any rims.

F39 62 In the second half of the century, metal thimbles began to be F39 63 made in one piece using a technique known as the 'deep drawn' F39 64 method. 'Deep drawing' shapes the thimble from a small, flat, round F39 65 disc which is hammered into a dye, or mould. This method of F39 66 production was largely responsible for pushing the trend towards F39 67 taller slimmer thimbles which needed in some cases to be F39 68 reinforced, for instance, with the introduction of steel tops. F39 69 Beehive thimbles were made in one piece, with indentations reaching F39 70 down to the border at their base. Thimble decoration certainly F39 71 changed to suit current tastes (for the Neo-classical and Rococo F39 72 styles), but not so drastically that working thimbles lost their F39 73 primarily functional raison d'<*_>e-circ<*/>tre. The more F39 74 restrained Neo-classical style prevailed on decorative thimbles F39 75 that had still to retain their full function; more extravagant F39 76 Rococo designs were favoured for elaborate chatelaines and etuis, F39 77 prized for their fine workmanship and expensive materials more than F39 78 for their utility. Exceptional workmanship is evident in certain F39 79 Rococo gold and tortoiseshell thimble cases and in gold thimbles. F39 80 The typically wavy, almost waisted outline, the chasing of tiny F39 81 flowers and leaves and even the use of a natural material such as F39 82 shell luxurious harmony with gold are all classic examples of the F39 83 Rococo style at its finest.

F39 84 THIMBLES AS TOYS

F39 85 Decorative thimbles and other 'toys' were also being introduced F39 86 alongside practical working thimbles. Silver compendiums, mainly F39 87 made in England, Germany and Italy are particularly interesting: a F39 88 compendium unscrews to reveal a thimble, a letter powderer, a F39 89 needle-holder and a letter seal. Ribbon-like interlacing and F39 90 chasing in Moorish patterns recurs frequently. Filigree (wire work) F39 91 was widely applied to sewing toys, and in the first half of the F39 92 century, decorative filigree thimbles were stubby in shape and had F39 93 rounded tops. Later filigrees are taller and slimmer, but both F39 94 styles had shields or ovals on which their owner's initials could F39 95 be marked.

F39 96 Various combinations were used in making later thimble toys, F39 97 the most famous being a thimble screwing on to a base containing a F39 98 miniature scent bottle as first seen in the preceding century. F39 99 Other variations included thimbles with a tape measure or a pin F39 100 cushion. Some had a finger guard that screwed on to a base F39 101 containing a tiny emery cushion; the guard was then covered by a F39 102 thimble, but is sadly, now almost always missing. The bases of F39 103 these toys often had engraved initials and are thought to have been F39 104 used to seal letters. Most of the toys that have survived are in F39 105 silver, gold or pinchbeck and command very high prices. F39 106 Contemporary porcelain thimbles are also highly sought-after: the F39 107 vital factor affecting their value is the painting on them. They F39 108 have the added charm of often being very colourful, with an air of F39 109 fragile delicacy.

F39 110 The eighteenth century was the great age of porcelain, a fine F39 111 ceramic ware, white, translucent and very delicate. It was first F39 112 developed and exploited in China and was named after its country of F39 113 origin, although the English word comes from the Italian, F39 114 porcellana.

F39 115 Unfortunately very few porcelain thimbles of the period exist, F39 116 and many of those that have come down to us are difficult to F39 117 attribute with any certainty. Because of this, accredited F39 118 eighteenth-century porcelain thimbles are highly sought-after and F39 119 consequently fetch very high prices at auction.

F39 120 MEISSEN F39 121 One of the first documented porcelain thimbles is recorded in F39 122 the list of the great Meissen factory (the first to manufacture F39 123 'hard paste' porcelain in Europe) in Germany in the early 1700s, F39 124 under the category Galanterien, which can be translated F39 125 in this context as 'fancy goods'. There is little pretence that F39 126 these porcelain thimbles were ever intended for practical work: F39 127 they were fashioned purely as decorative objects - as beautiful F39 128 gifts and keepsakes for wives and sweethearts - and for this reason F39 129 they have a very special place in the romance of thimble-collecting F39 130 (China thimbles do, however, have a specific use in needlework, as F39 131 their smooth texture makes them ideal for working with silk).

F39 132 Because most Meissen thimbles now exist in private collections, F39 133 it is very difficult to calculate how many actually survive, but it F39 134 would be a great surprise, given what we know, if there are more F39 135 than about 500 - of which only a handful are in public collections F39 136 and museums. At probably the most important ever auction of F39 137 thimbles, held at Christie's Geneva show-room in 1975, no F39 138 less than 103 Meissen thimbles went under the hammer, all of which F39 139 were fully authenticated, and many of which were, in addition, F39 140 accredited to individual craftsmen and painters. A world record F39 141 price of 21,000 Swiss francs was paid for a continuous seascape F39 142 thimble featuring offshore ships, attributed to Ignaz Preissler at F39 143 Breslau. This record price was broken in 1979, when Christie's F39 144 auctioned 10 Meissen thimbles, among them a small thimble from the F39 145 1740s depicting a harbour scene, which sold for a hammer price of F39 146 pounds8000.

F39 147 Landscapes and seascapes are popular Meissen subjects, as are F39 148 people fishing or hunting, and birds and flowers depicted in F39 149 oriental style. Many Meissen thimbles have a distinctive rounded F39 150 form, but the Cummer Gallery of Art in Jacksonville, Florida, has a F39 151 collection of eight eighteenth-century Meissen thimbles, the shapes F39 152 of which vary considerably. One has a waisted effect, tied around F39 153 with a painted blue bow on a plain white ground and with a gilded F39 154 interior; another is very small and squat, with two plain yellow F39 155 bands at top and bottom; and a third has a flat top, is tall and F39 156 slim, and is painted all over with <}_><-|> F39 157 many-colourd<+|> many-coloured<}/> F39 158 'Deutsche-Blumen' flowers. This Deutsche-Blumen pattern was F39 159 introduced c.1735, inspired by Chinese and Japanese work: it F39 160 shows stylized oriental flowers outlined in a darker colour.

F39 161 The trademark of Meissen consists of two crossed swords, F39 162 painted in underglaze blue, but this is not always present. Meissen F39 163 thimbles can usually be readily identified by the painting style, F39 164 which is always fine, and shows meticulous attention to detail: F39 165 gilding inside the thimble is also a good indicator, but again, F39 166 this is not always found.

F39 167 Meissen designs were heavily influenced by Chinese and Japanese F39 168 decoration on the costly items regularly imported to Europe from F39 169 the Far East at that time. Because of their great commercial F39 170 success, and the facility with which they reinterpreted oriental F39 171 hard paste porcelain, most of their contemporary European rivals F39 172 copied Meissen, though there is not here, as there is in other F39 173 thimble categories, much danger of confusion in attribution. These F39 174 competitors and imitators included factories at Furstenberg, F39 175 Ludwigsburg, Nymphenburg, and possibly H<*_>o-umlaut<*/>chst, in F39 176 Germany; Schooren in Switzerland; and Du Paquier in Vienna: but F39 177 documentation is incomplete, and in any case none of their F39 178 production can be said to rival Meissen either in artistry or scale F39 179 of output.

F39 180 Elsewhere in Europe, the Royal Copenhagen factory in Denmark F39 181 certainly produced some porcelain thimbles, but they lack the F39 182 refined elegance of their Meissen peers. Thimbles were also F39 183 manufactured at the Royal Factory in Naples, Italy, of which a F39 184 small number still exist, and at Mennecy-Villeroy, in France. F39 185 However, it is only in England that any genuine attempt was made to F39 186 compete with Meissen, certainly in quantity, if seldom in design. F39 187 It is ironic that the growth of the market for porcelain thimbles F39 188 in England came at a time when the Meissen factory had all but F39 189 ceased production.

F39 190 Generally, records for the earliest past of the eighteenth F39 191 century are vague, and though thimbles other than Meissen have come F39 192 down to us, attribution is difficult and mostly uncertain. Factory F39 193 documentation shows that porcelain thimbles were being manufactured F39 194 in quantity, yet relatively few examples exist: this may be due to F39 195 their fragility, or to the fact that they were damaged easily, and F39 196 so were discarded.

F39 197 In England in the late eighteenth century, the Chelsea factory F39 198 and the Worcester Porcelain Company (previously named Chamberlain F39 199 Worcester), all included soft past thimbles in their list of wares. F39 200 It was not until the nineteenth century that the fashion really F39 201 took hold, and the market was then quickly dominated by F39 202 Worcester.

F39 203 Porcelain had become a standard product by the end of the F39 204 eighteenth century: when Chamberlain (later to become Chamberlain F39 205 Worcester) commenced manufacture in 1790, there were fewer than 10 F39 206 porcelain producers in the British Isles, but by the 1840s-50s F39 207 there were nearly 100. One of the earliest pieces of evidence of F39 208 porcelain thimble manufacture in England is a thimble waster, or F39 209 mould, found in one of the store rooms of the Worcester Porcelain F39 210 Company dating from c.1785. F39 211 F39 212 F40 1 <#FLOB:F40\>KEEPING UP APPEARANCES

F40 2 The Heritage of London Trust is helping restore the 'grace F40 3 notes' of the capital's landmarks, writes Tony Aldous.

F40 4 What have the Dogs of Alcibiades, a gazebo at Twickenham, eight F40 5 19th-century cabmen's shelters and the intricately carved pulpit of F40 6 Sir Christopher Wren's church of St Stephen Walbrook in common? The F40 7 answer is, they have all been restored with the help of grants from F40 8 the Heritage of London Trust (HLT). These are just four of the more F40 9 than 150 conservation projects the trust has funded in its first 10 F40 10 years of existence.

F40 11 In doing so, the trust has brought to wider notice a number of F40 12 little-known architectural gems in the remoter parts of Greater F40 13 London. For example, it has three times given grants towards F40 14 restoration of the interior of the church of St Lawrence Whitchurch F40 15 at Stanmore, on the capital's unprepossessing northern suburban F40 16 edge. From the outside this looks like a decent Georgian church F40 17 with a 16th-century tower; inside the richly decorated Baroque F40 18 interior you could for a moment think yourself in the Tyrol or F40 19 southern Germany.

F40 20 Stanmore owes this unexpected treasure to the 18th-century Duke F40 21 of Chandos, who built a mansion, Canons, near by, and remodelled F40 22 the church to serve, in effect, as his private chapel. He sat with F40 23 his bodyguard in the west gallery under the tower, listening to his F40 24 30-strong concert of musicians playing music by his F40 25 composer-in-residence, George Frideric Handel. At ground level the F40 26 nave is filled with very English box pews, but above them rise F40 27 painted walls and a vaulted ceiling that ought to be in Austria, F40 28 filled with depictions of the virtues, evangelists and biblical F40 29 scenes by Louis Laguerre.

F40 30 At the east end the effect is quite theatrical: in front, the F40 31 altar; behind it, gilded organ pipes rising from a finely carved F40 32 case attributed to Grinling Gibbons; and, behind that, a F40 33 retro-choir with vaulted ceiling on which painted clouds swirl F40 34 across a blue sky. On the corresponding canopy above the Duke's F40 35 gallery is a dramatic copy by Antonio Bellucci of Raphael's F40 36 Transfiguration.

F40 37 St Lawrence, unique in Britain, has attracted funds from a F40 38 number of organisations to restore its interior. HLT's F40 39 contributions so far have been used to restore two of the ceiling F40 40 paintings (pounds12,000, of which pounds6,000 came from the Pilgrim F40 41 Trust); to restore the antechamber to the adjoining Chandos F40 42 Mausoleum in which are buried the Duke and his first two wives F40 43 (pounds5,000, plus pounds7,000 from Pilgrim); and repainting of the F40 44 Duke's colourful armorial hatchments.

F40 45 Sometimes the trust puts its money into restoring a room or F40 46 rooms in a building undergoing more general restoration. Thus at F40 47 Pitshanger Manor, Ealing, another little-known treasure which was F40 48 Sir John Soane's country house, its money is earmarked to restore F40 49 the principal bedchamber to the appearance Soane gave it in 1801. F40 50 The Heritage of London Trust's pounds6,830 grant is matched by an F40 51 equivalent sum from the Leche Trust.

F40 52 At Charles Dickens's House, No 48 Doughty Street, Clerkenwell, F40 53 one of HLT's earliest grants, of pounds10,000, returned the drawing F40 54 room to an early-Victorian state. Judged by present-day taste, it F40 55 may seem fairly indigestible, but Dickens and his contemporaries F40 56 considered it just the thing. The restorers had some difficulty in F40 57 tracking down an authentic carpet design, but eventually found the F40 58 King of Sweden possessed one of the right pattern.

F40 59 Buildings benefiting from the HLT's assistance range from the F40 60 prestigious to the obscure. Prestigious beneficiaries include the F40 61 Royal Academy of Arts (restoration of the Palladian F40 62 fa<*_>c-cedille<*/>ade of Burlington House); Lambeth Palace (return F40 63 of a 17th-century wooden screen to the chapel); English National F40 64 Opera's base, the London Coliseum (restoration of the original F40 65 Frank Matcham-designed entrance canopy); and St Bartholomew's F40 66 Hospital (Henry VIII Gate and courtyard fountain).

F40 67 Among the relatively obscure are repairs to the 130-year-old F40 68 spire of Christ Church, Cubitt Town; restoration of the Pelican F40 69 group of statuary in Coade stone at the Horniman Museum; F40 70 replacement of a statue on the pediment of the Hackney Empire F40 71 theatre; rebuilding a granary at Harrow's medieval Headstone Manor; F40 72 and the reinstatement of copper flower finials on the roof parapets F40 73 of public halls designed and given to South Norwood by local F40 74 inventor and industrialist William Stanley. The Stanley Halls grant F40 75 comes from a special fund given to the trust by Croydon Corporation F40 76 and earmarked for projects within its boundaries.

F40 77 Not all grants are for buildings or even for artifacts. In F40 78 continuing to support restoration of Hawksmoor's splendid Christ F40 79 Church, Spitalfields, the trust paid out pounds10,000 for a F40 80 research report and working drawings which could not otherwise have F40 81 been afforded. It has also backed an exhibition on Sir Christopher F40 82 Wren at Whitechapel Art Gallery in east London, and publication of F40 83 an architectural map of Covent Garden.

F40 84 Heritage of London Trust came into being in 1981 when the F40 85 Greater London Council decided that London should follow other F40 86 cities and countries in Britain by setting up a building F40 87 preservation trust. These operate primarily as 'revolving funds', F40 88 buying and restoring historic buildings, then selling them to F40 89 finance further projects. But for various reasons, not least the F40 90 nature of the London property market, the HLT has developed in a F40 91 very different way and instead has concentrated on two invaluable F40 92 functions.

F40 93 First, it provides grants to those engaged in conservation F40 94 projects for what may be called the 'grace notes' of restoration - F40 95 putting back a sculpted figure on a pediment, for instance, or F40 96 returning to working order the rusty, dismembered, 350-year-old F40 97 clock of Inigo Jones's St Paul's Church, Covent Garden. These are F40 98 the important details, reinstated to a very high standard, which F40 99 might have been omitted, postponed or merely patched up for want of F40 100 the extra few thousands - or even hundreds - of pounds required.

F40 101 The trust's second characteristic function is, in the words of F40 102 its director, Sir John Lambert, "to stimulate things, to F40 103 get projects off the ground". This it does not by using F40 104 financial muscle but by persuasion, influence in key places, and F40 105 'leverage' - offering its grants on condition others match them. F40 106 Furthermore, it can give the projects it supports credibility in F40 107 the eyes of bigger and wealthier grant-giving charities like, for F40 108 instance, the Pilgrim Trust.

F40 109 "We're like a little spider sitting in the middle of a F40 110 web of contacts - boroughs, charitable trusts and, above all, F40 111 English Heritage," says Sir John, whose previous post was F40 112 as Britain's ambassador in Tunis. "We operate in a quiet F40 113 way, but the pace has increased over the last two or three years. F40 114 We've got better known, and we've been jolly active."

F40 115 'We' chiefly means Sir John, his second-in-command, Diana F40 116 Beattie, and the trust's chairman, William Bell. Sir John and Mrs F40 117 Beattie operate three days a week from a tiny office (a former F40 118 stationery cupboard) at Chesham House, English Heritage London F40 119 Division's premises off Regent Street. English Heritage, set up to F40 120 look after historic buildings and monuments in England, took over F40 121 from the trust's original sponsor, GLC Historic Buildings Division, F40 122 when the GLC was abolished in 1986.

F40 123 It was Mr Bell who, in 1980, persuaded the GLC to set up the F40 124 Heritage of London Trust with a dowry of pounds50,000 and the F40 125 promise of pounds10,000 a year more if it raised pounds40,000. GLC F40 126 abolition knocked away that prop, although the London boroughs' F40 127 joint grants scheme supplies core funding to keep HLT ticking over. F40 128 However, the extra degree of independence has encouraged the trust F40 129 to stand on its own feet, and helps explain why in the past few F40 130 years its business has been booming.

F40 131 Though English Heritage's London Division owes HLT nothing, in F40 132 practice the two work in partnership. "It's a F40 133 two-way process," says Sir John. "People F40 134 tell us about possible projects, and we get English Heritage to F40 135 take an interest in them; English Heritage refer projects to us F40 136 where they think we might help."

F40 137 The trust leans very much on the expertise of its host's F40 138 professional conservation staff, and often helps to make a F40 139 restoration scheme practicable by matching English Heritage grants F40 140 with money from its own funds and from other trusts with which it F40 141 has close links. These include the Leche Trust, founded by Angus F40 142 Acworth, a leading campaigner for Georgian buildings and F40 143 furnishings, and Manifold, a family charitable trust set up by Sir F40 144 John Smith, whose Landmark Trust has restored scores of follies and F40 145 small buildings all over the UK.

F40 146 Sir John Lambert says that economic recession has made it F40 147 harder for the trust to raise the pounds100,000 it needs each year F40 148 to top up its working capital - and this just at a time when many F40 149 conservation groups, for the same reason, desperately need its F40 150 help. On the other hand, high interest rates linked with the F40 151 trust's tax-exempt status have worked to its advantage. The F40 152 trust has a useful pounds500,000 in its kitty, of which F40 153 pounds350,000 is committed in grants offered but not yet paid out. F40 154 "Our aim," Lambert explains, "isn't to F40 155 build up big reserves, but to be solvent, with a little put to one F40 156 side in case the right revolving fund project comes up."

F40 157 Lambert and his trustees are finding that donors increasingly F40 158 ask HLT to use their money for socially worthwhile projects, and F40 159 this matches the trust's preference for 'good end uses'. Examples F40 160 of these include work on the Trinity Centre, Tower Hamlets, used by F40 161 the Breakthrough Trust for the Deaf; restoration of important F40 162 sgraffito decoration on the old St Paul's Cathedral choir school, F40 163 now a youth hostel; restoration of chimneys and windows in F40 164 Mitcham's pretty 1829 Mary Tate Almshouses, converted to F40 165 high-standard sheltered housing; and restoration of the Georgian F40 166 billiard room at Tottenham's former Bell Brewery as the centre for F40 167 a disabled people's transport service.

F40 168 One very worthwhile exercise which could scarcely have happened F40 169 but for HLT's determined intervention was the rescue of F40 170 nursery-rhyme wall-tiles during demolition of a children's ward at F40 171 Moorfields Eye Hospital and their installation in other children's F40 172 wards at Moorfields and Great Ormond Street. Another was F40 173 restoration work at Lauderdale House, Highgate, badly damaged by F40 174 fire but now used as a community arts centre.

F40 175 A third and most unusual example is the restoration of, to F40 176 date, eight of the 13 surviving shelters built by a Victorian F40 177 charity to give cab-drivers somewhere warm and dry to rest and F40 178 partake of cheap, nourishing and non-alcoholic refreshment - which F40 179 they still do. VIP reopenings have featured the Duke of Westminster F40 180 at Grosvenor Gardens, the Duke of Gloucester (the trust's patron) F40 181 at Kensington Park Road and the Prince of Hanover at Hanover F40 182 Square.

F40 183 But what of the Dogs of Alcibiades? These are two marble dogs F40 184 atop brick piers in Victoria Park in the East End of London, whose F40 185 restoration the trust funded after they had been vandalised. Heads F40 186 raised and ears cocked as if some invisible benefactor were F40 187 offering them a succulent bone, they were first installed there in F40 188 1912, and are copies of a sculpture by the fifth-century-BC F40 189 sculptor Myron. This represented a dog owned by Myron's F40 190 contemporary, the Athenian politician-general Alcibiades, and were F40 191 given to the London County Council in 1912.

F40 192 Alcibiades had a chequered career: sentenced to death in his F40 193 absence after being blamed for desecration of the Hermae (ancient F40 194 statues in Athens); recalled to lead the Athenians to victory F40 195 against their enemies; finally murdered in Phrygia where he had F40 196 fled after the fall of the city. But whether Alcibiades's dog F40 197 barked when the murderer struck, or why he and his twin were F40 198 thought fit guardians for the park, is unknown.

F40 199 F40 200 CHESS MITES

F40 201 Twenty years ago England ranked 25th in the world of chess and F40 202 had no grandmasters. Now it is second only to the Soviet Union, F40 203 boasts 19 grandmasters and has a huge potential among the very F40 204 young. Is Britain at last nursing a world champion? Ted Nottingham, F40 205 a schoolmaster whose students are among the country's best young F40 206 players, and Bob Wade, English national coach, report on the F40 207 prospects. Photographs by Chris Cormack.

F40 208 Chess has recently become a highly popular game for British F40 209 children, and they seem to be starting younger every year. Now they F40 210 are learning the game at the age of five or six, and there are F40 211 champions of under eight. F40 212 F40 213 F40 214 F41 1 <#FLOB:F41\>Buying and selling: Successful F41 2 negotiating

F41 3 Outline F41 4 Negotiating skills are described and they include:

F41 5 <*_>bullet<*/> preparation

F41 6 <*_>bullet<*/> listening and questioning

F41 7 <*_>bullet<*/> trading concessions

F41 8 <*_>bullet<*/> avoiding misunderstanding

F41 9 <*_>bullet<*/> maintaining the momentum of negotiation

F41 10 The meaning of negotiation

F41 11 Negotiating involves recognizing situations where the terms of F41 12 trade can be changed to one's advantage. In the industrialized West F41 13 many buyers accept the authority of the price and wait for F41 14 temporary reductions, if they can. However, there is the case of an F41 15 immigrant from the Far East who settled in the West with his family F41 16 and visited the local family owned supermarket on a Saturday F41 17 morning to buy groceries. He filled his trolley and moved to the F41 18 check-out. To the cashier's surprise he did not just deposit his F41 19 purchases by the till and wait for them to be listed. Every time he F41 20 picked one of the groceries up he nominated a price that was below F41 21 the store's price. The cashier was astonished and rang her bell for F41 22 the owner, who arrived quickly. Then it was the immigrant's turn to F41 23 be astonished. He could not imagine a trading system where there F41 24 was no negotiation. Fortunately for him the owner entered into the F41 25 spirit of the occasion and the two began a weekly process of F41 26 negotiating over groceries. The owner quickly exploited his F41 27 strengths - the next supermarket was several miles away - and soon F41 28 achieved his usual profit margins, sometimes getting an F41 29 above-listed price sometimes below. The two became firm friends.

F41 30 Negotiating from ignorance

F41 31 Sometimes negotiating advantage can be derived from ignorance. F41 32 A chemicals company sent a highly qualified salesman to see a buyer F41 33 in a pharmaceuticals firm, to discuss a possible order for a bulk F41 34 chemical. The chemicals firm was not at that time a supplier but F41 35 hoped to become one. On the day the salesman arrived, the buyer was F41 36 ill and a senior chemist in the research and development division F41 37 was asked to see him instead. The salesman explained that he could F41 38 offer a substantial discount on the normal price for a first F41 39 shipment of 2 tonnes. The research executive was uninhibited by F41 40 purchasing experience and he asked for the same discount to be F41 41 applied for a two-year period, during which consumption of the F41 42 chemical would be 50 tonnes. The salesman asked to use a telephone F41 43 privately and came back into the room to say that his sales F41 44 director had agreed the discount for two years. The researcher was F41 45 disappointed to receive only a note of thanks from the head of the F41 46 buying department and not a salary bonus!

F41 47 Negotiating to overcome a refusal to sell

F41 48 There can be occasions when the potential buyer wants to buy F41 49 something that is not apparently for sale. He should take heart F41 50 from the experience of a businessman who decided that a particular F41 51 industrial site would be ideal for his business, even though there F41 52 was a busy workshop already there. He telephoned the owner and said F41 53 that he would like to buy the lease (having estimated that it was F41 54 worth pounds50,000). The owner replied abruptly that it was not for F41 55 sale, so the businessman responded: "Do you mean that if I F41 56 offered you pounds100,000 for the lease, you would not take F41 57 it?" The owner replied: "That is different"; and F41 58 the businessman countered by saying: "In which case it is F41 59 for sale and you and I are simply talking about the price." F41 60 Negotiations began and the lease changed hands for pounds48,000.

F41 61 Preparing for negotiation

F41 62 Before entering into a negotiating process, a general F41 63 appreciation should be made of the situation.

F41 64 <*_>bullet<*/> What are the comparative strengths and needs of F41 65 the parties in respect of this particular issue? This does not mean F41 66 that negotiation should not be attempted with a much larger firm. F41 67 It may itself be under pressure, perhaps to reduce its stocks, or F41 68 it may be a firm of commercial estate agents which has had a F41 69 property you want on its books for longer than its principals would F41 70 like.

F41 71 <*_>bullet<*/> How urgent is the matter, for you and for them? F41 72 By when do you need to conclude the matter and what deadline do you F41 73 judge they have in mind?

F41 74 <*_>bullet<*/> How important is it for you? Does it involve F41 75 enough money to make it worth your while negotiating? Negotiation F41 76 is a process which requires special preparation, so most small F41 77 businesses can only afford to pick out a few major sales or F41 78 purchases and approach them in this way. Such items might include F41 79 wage negotiations, a new lease for premises or a new machine for a F41 80 workshop.

F41 81 Consideration of these points should make it easier to decide F41 82 whether to try and negotiate. Negotiation occurs when two parties F41 83 have a mutual interest in agreement but differ as to the precise F41 84 nature of that agreement. If the maximum that one party is prepared F41 85 to offer is below the minimum that another party is prepared to F41 86 accept, there is no basis for an agreement. This situation F41 87 sometimes occurs in an industrial dispute and it drags on until one F41 88 or both of the parties alters its expectations and negotiations F41 89 begin.

F41 90 List the negotiating points

F41 91 The next task in preparing for negotiation is to list (often F41 92 mentally but written down if the list is a long one) the points F41 93 that one hopes to gain or the points that represent the limits to F41 94 which you will go. For a machine for a workshop, these might F41 95 include the following.

F41 96 <*_>bullet<*/> Total purchase price of pounds9000.

F41 97 <*_>bullet<*/> pounds7000 invoiced one month after delivery.

F41 98 <*_>bullet<*/> Remaining pounds2000 invoiced two months after F41 99 delivery.

F41 100 <*_>bullet<*/> Payment due 60 days after invoicing.

F41 101 <*_>bullet<*/> Supplier's engineer to assist with installation, F41 102 on day of delivery, and test run machine to customer's F41 103 satisfaction.

F41 104 <*_>bullet<*/> Two-year guarantee.

F41 105 <*_>bullet<*/> When guarantee expires, a labour and spares F41 106 maintenance agreement.

F41 107 <*_>bullet<*/> A two-hour response from the supplier in the F41 108 event of machine breakdown.

F41 109 <*_>bullet<*/> Evening delivery and installation so that the F41 110 daytime work of producing to meet customer orders is unimpeded.

F41 111 <*_>bullet<*/> Delivery on a date to be nominated by the F41 112 customer. Time is an important variable in any negotiation, witness F41 113 the employers who concede a percentage wage increase in return for F41 114 an agreement that it shall extend over 18 months rather than a F41 115 year.

F41 116 <*_>bullet<*/> Compensation if delivery delayed, of pounds100 a F41 117 day.

F41 118 <*_>bullet<*/> Change of specification.

F41 119 Anticipating the supplier's negotiating points

F41 120 In his sales presentation, the supplier may well have given his F41 121 terms and presented them as fixed. These could cover

F41 122 <*_>bullet<*/> total purchase price of pounds10,000;

F41 123 <*_>bullet<*/> 10 per cent deposit payable with order;

F41 124 <*_>bullet<*/> remainder of purchase price invoiced on delivery F41 125 and payable within 30 days;

F41 126 <*_>bullet<*/> one-year guarantee;

F41 127 <*_>bullet<*/> delivery date to be notified when deposit F41 128 payment completed.

F41 129 Other facilities that the supplier might be prepared to F41 130 consider have to be estimated. They might include

F41 131 <*_>bullet<*/> change of specification;

F41 132 <*_>bullet<*/> his best efforts to give more specific notice of F41 133 delivery;

F41 134 <*_>bullet<*/> annual service agreements when the guarantee has F41 135 expired.

F41 136 Determining the negotiating strategy

F41 137 The next stage of preparation is to decide the minimum that F41 138 will be accepted. This depends on

F41 139 <*_>bullet<*/> the ease with which an alternative source can be F41 140 used;

F41 141 <*_>bullet<*/> the loss of profit that might accrue from F41 142 delaying the purchase;

F41 143 <*_>bullet<*/> the time that can be spared from other tasks in F41 144 the business.

F41 145 Once this is completed, the customer is in a position to begin F41 146 negotiation. If possible he should do this in a situation, such as F41 147 an office, where he is less likely to be distracted. Negotiating on F41 148 home ground is usually an advantage, especially for a small F41 149 business person. Not only can you control interruptions but you can F41 150 begin negotiating when it suits you.

F41 151 Defeating intimidation

F41 152 Larger firms in particular have plenty of devices to make the F41 153 visiting negotiator feel at a disadvantage:

F41 154 1 Making you wait well beyond the appointed time, perhaps on F41 155 your own in a small room. There are various ways of countering this F41 156 tactic, such as:

F41 157 <*_>bullet<*/> taking work with you and getting on with it, as F41 158 if the delay is useful and not an inconvenience;

F41 159 <*_>bullet<*/> asking for a phone so that you can call your F41 160 business and talk to your employees;

F41 161 <*_>bullet<*/> asking for more information about the firm you F41 162 are visiting, such as the names of colleagues of the contact;

F41 163 <*_>bullet<*/> asking for the use of office facilities, such as F41 164 photocopiers.

F41 165 All these devices can give the impression of a busy and F41 166 successful business person who has a great deal to do in the F41 167 working day. They also have the advantage of preventing you from F41 168 sitting and worrying about the outcome of the negotiation. Your F41 169 confidence is enhanced and that confidence makes a successful F41 170 outcome more likely.

F41 171 2 Holding the meeting in a lavishly furnished conference F41 172 room.

F41 173 3 Alternatively, holding it in a small office and allowing F41 174 frequent interruptions from colleagues and taking all telephone F41 175 calls. This is no reason for you to deviate from your F41 176 objectives.

F41 177 4 Saying at the beginning of the meeting: "I can only F41 178 spare twenty minutes!" I was once subjected to this F41 179 treatment but took no notice and worked towards my objectives. The F41 180 meeting ended successfully and amicably an hour and a half later. I F41 181 reminded the big company executive of his original time limit. It F41 182 was obvious from his reaction that he had forgotten it and that it F41 183 was simply a negotiating manoeuvre.

F41 184 Listening and questioning

F41 185 Once the negotiations have begun the best general advice is

F41 186 <*_>bullet<*/> listen,

F41 187 <*_>bullet<*/> ask questions.

F41 188 Listening, particularly when the other party is summarizing its F41 189 position, gives the opportunity to hear if the other party is F41 190 changing its position, and they may well do so, simply because a F41 191 silent attentive audience prompts the desire to talk. Asking F41 192 questions means, apart from the obvious advantage of acquiring F41 193 information, using the best technique for dealing with unwelcome F41 194 propositions. Such questions can also be used to make the other F41 195 party think more about the implications of their position: F41 196 "Do you want our opinions of your machine to be based on F41 197 our testing it without one of your engineers being F41 198 present?" This question hints at a possible weakness in F41 199 their position, which they may not have considered.

F41 200 Some questions can require specific answers, such as asking for F41 201 the longest continuous running time any of their customers have F41 202 obtained from the machine. Others seek to strengthen a position by F41 203 asking for opinions: "Do you think your new machine will F41 204 wear as well as the last one?" The seller cannot deny that F41 205 he has less experience of it and less information and may be forced F41 206 to reply with a generality such as: "We have great F41 207 confidence in it", which does not improve his negotiating F41 208 stance.

F41 209 Sometimes the process of trading concessions can be compressed F41 210 by asking 'if' questions: "If we take only 30-days credit, F41 211 will you deliver by the end of next month?"

F41 212 Negotiating principles are not just for application in F41 213 complicated matters. A customer walked into an electrical shop and F41 214 asked to buy a new kind of telephone. The sales person went away to F41 215 the stock-room and returned with the information that the F41 216 product on display was the last in stock. The customer asked for a F41 217 discount as it was shop soiled. The sales person stood his ground F41 218 and explained that it was not policy to reduce the price of F41 219 displayed products, whereupon the customer said he was sure he F41 220 could find one in another store. The sales person hurriedly F41 221 returned to the stock-room and returned to say that he had found F41 222 one after all still in its package. By this time he was so anxious F41 223 to please this customer that he consulted the company price list F41 224 and said the price on display was incorrect. The customer left the F41 225 store with the product he wanted reduced in price by a quarter. By F41 226 keeping his mind on the objective of the best possible value for F41 227 money, he did much better than he might have expected if he had not F41 228 attempted to make his purchase in a negotiating frame of mind. The F41 229 detail of those negotiations and the surprising change of mind by F41 230 the sales person are less important than the result.

F41 231 Avoid objecting

F41 232 Never make flat objections. The object of the exercise is to F41 233 continue the negotiation until there is a reasonably satisfactory F41 234 outcome. F41 235 F42 1 <#FLOB:F42\>Noble Stock

F42 2 JOHN RADFORD TRACES THE ROOTS OF THE WORLD'S MOST POPULAR WHITE F42 3 WINE GRAPE VARIETAL TO 936 AD AND A GAUL NAMED CARDO

F42 4 EVERYBODY LOVES THE CHARDONNAY. UNLIKE MANY OF THE WORLD'S F42 5 GREAT GRAPES, WHICH RETIRE INTO MEAGRENESS and moodiness, when F42 6 transplanted from their native soil, the Chardonnay soldiers on F42 7 undaunted, from the sandy plains of Llerida to the baking vineyards F42 8 of Bilyara, the high-tech wineries of Sonoma to the experimental F42 9 nurseries of Surrey. It's a noble variety in the best tradition of F42 10 nobility: happy in all kinds of company, always willing to give of F42 11 its best, and at home all over the world.

F42 12 The origins of the Chardonnay, however, lie in the tiny village F42 13 (population 163) of the same name, west of the N6 from Tournus to F42 14 M<*_>a-circ<*/>con. The village, and the cave co-operative which F42 15 occupies its 16th-century ch<*_>a-circ<*/>teau, celebrated their F42 16 joint millenium in 1989: a thousand vintages in an unbroken line, F42 17 giving the distinct impression that the Chardonnay is certainly F42 18 here to stay.

F42 19 In the earliest records, the village and the vines which grew F42 20 wild among the local thistles are one. The Romans called the place F42 21 Ager Cardoniacensis which is traditionally F42 22 translated as 'the place of the thistles', as carduus is F42 23 the Latin for thistles. But the name could be derived from F42 24 cardo, which means a pivotal or axis point, bearing in F42 25 mind that M<*_>a-circ<*/>connais area occupies a strategic position F42 26 between the Alps and the Rhine - something the Romans might have F42 27 found quite important. Chardon, however, is the modern F42 28 French word for thistle and the plant plays a major part in the F42 29 local heraldry.

F42 30 In the third century what we now know as Burgundy was ruled by F42 31 the Romans, but largely inhabited by the Celtic Gauls and the F42 32 Germanic Franks. These people knocked each other about for a while F42 33 but united to fight the Huns, eventually becoming a united kingdom F42 34 in the sixth century under the first Frankish king called F42 35 Clovis.

F42 36 The Franks had been nomads for centuries, but settled in the F42 37 fertile pastures of eastern France and became farmers and herders, F42 38 so it is likely that they would have been the first to domesticate F42 39 the vine in a serious manner - and the first to give it a name. In F42 40 those days, names - whether of people, places, or things - tended F42 41 to consist of some descriptive or locational element, and it is F42 42 quite likely that they referred to the vine as the F42 43 one-from-the-thistles or something similar. The only written F42 44 language in the sixth century was Latin, so one-from-the-thistles F42 45 might translate as the genitive plural of carduus, which F42 46 is carduorum. Interestingly, the locals would probably F42 47 have still been speaking a Celto-Germanic dialect and might have F42 48 called it the Disteler or something similar.

F42 49 The first written reference (again in Latin) is from the F42 50 tenth-century Cartulaire de Saint-Vincent de F42 51 M<*_>a-circ<*/>con. It records that the village and its church F42 52 were given to the bishopric of Maimbod de M<*_>a-circ<*/>con F42 53 between 936 and 952 by L<*_>e-acute<*/>otald, Count of F42 54 M<*_>a-circ<*/>con. Note the Celtic character of the names: the F42 55 major French directory of place-names records that the village (and F42 56 its vineyards and, ultimately, its grape variety) took their name F42 57 from a Gaul named Cardo. Again, this is a Latin version of a F42 58 Celto-Germanic name, and we can only conjecture as to what he was F42 59 called locally. With the confusion between Cardo and F42 60 Carduus, Latin, Frankish dialects and the F42 61 Langue d'Oil it could have been anything from F42 62 de Cardus to Distel (no relation). F42 63 However, since, still, Latin was the only written language, the F42 64 lands owned by this mysterious Gaul were known as F42 65 those-which-belong-to-Cardo, and in Latin that's also expressed as F42 66 the genitive plural cardonis. In this way, the thistle F42 67 (carduus) and the pivotal point (cardo) become F42 68 one.

F42 69 It is interesting that Cardo is described as 'a Gaul' in the F42 70 French texts, especially since, by the tenth century, Burgundy had F42 71 a fairly well integrated population with origins from northern F42 72 Italy to the Rhine valley. Most of the Celtic Gauls had withdrawn F42 73 to the west, so whether this was a lone Gaulish nobleman who moved F42 74 in and founded the village, or whether his origins owe more to the F42 75 philosophies of M Chauvin than to those of the historian, we shall F42 76 probably never know.

F42 77 In any case between 956 and 986 the Cartulaire records a F42 78 vineyard in the village, and by 1304 the local ruling family was F42 79 headed by one Henry de Chardonnay (indeed, in 1990 there is a F42 80 Chardonnay family still living in the area). Even taking the latest F42 81 of the dates quoted by St Vincent, the vineyards of Chardonnay must F42 82 have been in place by 986, and so the vines would be comfortably F42 83 mature enough by 989 to produce a full vintage.

F42 84 'Yes, but,' I hear you cry, 'where did the grape actually come F42 85 from?' I have a book from a German publisher which explains F42 86 blithely that the Chardonnay is a mutation of the F42 87 Rul<*_>a-umlaut<*/>nder (Pinot Gris) which is itself a mutation of F42 88 the Riesling which just goes to show that all great (white) grapes F42 89 come from Germany. There are others who claim that it isn't a F42 90 member of the Pinot family at all. I respectfully submit that both F42 91 arguments are unprovable and irrelevant. Thanks to modern F42 92 techniques of propagation, clonal selection and the like, the F42 93 Chardonnay of 1990 is not necessarily even the same grape as the F42 94 Chardonnay of 1970, so what is likely to have happened in a F42 95 thousand years?

F42 96 The custom in those days was to plant what grew, and propagate F42 97 it if the results were good. The prosaic truth is probably that the F42 98 original Cardonni<*_>e-grave<*/>re was a fairly standard and F42 99 unexciting wild grape, pollinated anemophilously each year and F42 100 throwing up sports and mutations with every vintage. In the tenth F42 101 century growing a vine was no more an exact science than growing a F42 102 beard, and the vigneron, through a process of trial and F42 103 error, reproduced vines in any way he could until the results F42 104 fulfilled his expectations.

F42 105 The first written works naming the grape 'Chardonnay' - in F42 106 French rather than Latin - didn't appear until around 500 years F42 107 after the village's first vintage. Over those five centuries the F42 108 villagers had had plenty of time to breed an average grape into a F42 109 good one, and a good grape into a world-beater. Indeed, the F42 110 Chardonnay's transplantability and versatility shows that it must F42 111 have been hardy stock to start with (like all good weeds) and that F42 112 the toiling Cardonians husbanded it very well indeed.

F42 113 By the 16th century, of course, the grape's fame had spread F42 114 much wider than the borders of Burgundy: some of the local names it F42 115 carries are evidence of its progress northward (though not, F42 116 strangely, southward until somebody discovered that the F42 117 Ard<*_>e-grave<*/>che... but that's another story). It's known as F42 118 the Beaunois around Beaune, and the Aubaine in the Champagne-fringe F42 119 vineyards of the Aube. In Chablis they used to call it the F42 120 Fromenteau, ostensibly because the undersides of the leaves F42 121 are the colour of wheat (froment), but perhaps because, F42 122 like the one-from-the-thistles, it once produced F42 123 water-from-the-wheat...?

F42 124 Early in the last century, the fame of the white wines of F42 125 Burgundy had spread to such an extent that noblemen from Spain and F42 126 Italy, the Russias and the Far East, were importing vines to create F42 127 their own vineyards, their own Puligny, their own Meursault. Later, F42 128 Americans, Australians and others decided that their soils and F42 129 climates were pretty good, and that Chardonnay was worth a try. F42 130 Some succeeded better than others. The best are still with us F42 131 today.

F42 132 Chardonnay, the village, is also with us today. It's still F42 133 small, a good way from the main road, and dominated by the F42 134 Ch<*_>a-circ<*/>teau de Chardonnay and the Ch<*_>a-circ<*/>teau de F42 135 Montlaville, built in 1820, which will shortly open as a private F42 136 school. The village's own school closed last year, and its church F42 137 only opens occasionally for weddings and funerals. The village F42 138 laundry pool, however, still sees an occasional user, and there's a F42 139 tiny park with a commemorative millenium statue which is bedecked F42 140 with flowers in a riot of colours in the summer.

F42 141 The Ch<*_>a-circ<*/>teau de Chardonnay is mostly original: no F42 142 manicured museum-piece but a working building housing offices and F42 143 staff accommodation. It also has a big dog which barks loudly when F42 144 the gate is locked and licks your hand when you actually go in. The F42 145 winery is next door to the ch<*_>a-circ<*/>teau, with pallets and F42 146 forklift trucks and all the prosaic equipment of modern F42 147 vinibusiness. There are cars sporting Swiss and German number F42 148 plates among those which pull up at the door to buy Chardonnay de F42 149 Chardonnay at FF22,50 a litre and M<*_>a-circ<*/>con rouge for F42 150 FF17,00.

F42 151 The Cave Co-operative de Chardonnay has 135 members, of whom 70 F42 152 actually supply grapes at vintage time: a total of 15,000 F42 153 hectolitres (two million bottles) from 233 hectares of vines, 80% F42 154 white and 20% red (which are roughly half-and-half Gamay and Pinot F42 155 Noir). The red is simply M<*_>a-circ<*/>con Rouge and Bourgogne F42 156 Pinot Noir, of course, but the white may be Cr<*_>e-acute<*/>mant F42 157 de Bourgogne, M<*_>a-circ<*/>con Blanc (if it's from the co-op's F42 158 members outside the village) or M<*_>a-circ<*/>con Chardonnay (if F42 159 it's from inside the village). With Bourgogne Pinot Noir, the F42 160 epithet 'Pinot Noir' is the name of the grape; in the case of F42 161 M<*_>a-circ<*/>con-Chardonnay the epithet 'Chardonnay' is the name F42 162 of the village: confusing, possibly.

F42 163 The co-op's M<*_>a-circ<*/>con-Chardonnay is called F42 164 Ch<*_>a-circ<*/>teau de Chardonnay if it's made from grapes grown F42 165 in the Ch<*_>a-circ<*/>teau's own vineyards, or Chardonnay de F42 166 Chardonnay if it comes from elsewhere in the village. The wines, F42 167 however, are very similar: the 1,000th vintage showed a crisp, F42 168 wholesome nose with plenty of fruit on the palate, and yet backed F42 169 by a certain old-fashioned backbone and character, with good length F42 170 and lipsmacking finish. There is none of the voluptuous fruit and F42 171 seductive up-front blandishment of New World Chardonnay.

F42 172 Under the hands of chef-caviste Claude Chevalier, the F42 173 co-op ferments the must in stainless steel at low temperatures and F42 174 holds the finished wine in neutral deposits - no oak. But apart F42 175 from those concessions to modern methods, the style is very F42 176 traditional. "Almost artisanale?" I asked F42 177 the co-operative's general manager, G<*_>e-acute<*/>rard-Claude F42 178 Pallot. He thought for a moment. F42 179 "Rustique," he conceded at length. F42 180 "Chardonnay has been making wine for a very long time. We F42 181 look at every new development but we always respect the tradition F42 182 of the wine as it has been made in the past. And people seem to F42 183 enjoy it."

F42 184 Walking back past half a dozen cars, their owners clamouring F42 185 for a taste of the wine from the village which gave the world one F42 186 of its greatest grapes, I had to reflect that he was probably F42 187 right.

F42 188 F42 189 White noise, White papers

F42 190 CAN YOU TELL CALIFORNIA AND FRENCH CHARDONNAY APART? THEIR F42 191 MAKERS COULDN'T ALWAYS DO SO AT A 'FOCUS ON CHARDONNAY' CONFERENCE F42 192 HELD RECENTLY IN BEAUNE: TIM ATKIN MET THE WORLD'S EXPERTS

F42 193 LE BIEN PUBLIC WAS IN NO DOUBT: BURGUNDY F42 194 WAS HAVING ITS HOTTEST SUMMER FOR YEARS: AS LOCALS CAVORTED F42 195 half-naked in the fountains of Dijon, a group of internationally F42 196 famous wine-makers met in Beaune to discuss the minutiae of F42 197 the world's most celebrated grape.

F42 198 The occasion was the second Focus on Chardonnay, a week-long F42 199 round of tastings, lectures, meals and vineyard visits. The first F42 200 Focus was held four years ago at Sonoma Cutrer winery, when a group F42 201 of Burgundians were invited to compare notes with their Californian F42 202 colleagues. The event was an unqualified success; hence the return F42 203 match.

F42 204 The line-up of participants was impressive. Several F42 205 Californians had made the trip: Dick Arrowood of Arrowood F42 206 Vineyards; Zelma Long of Simi; Steve Kistler of Kistler Vineyards; F42 207 Dick Graaf of Chalone; Bill Bonetti of Sonoma Cutrer; Jed Steele of F42 208 Kendall-Jackson and Jerry Luper of Rutherford Hill.

F42 209 The French also put out their best team: William F42 210 F<*_>e-grave<*/>vre and Vincent Dauvissat from Chablis; Thierry F42 211 Matrot from Meursault; Jean-Jacques Vincent from F42 212 Pouilly-Fuiss<*_>e-acute<*/>; Louis Carillon, Vincent Leflaive and F42 213 G<*_>e-acute<*/>rard Boudot from Puligny-Montrachet; Aubert de F42 214 Villaine from the Domaine de La Roman<*_>e-acute<*/>e-Conti; and F42 215 Bernard Morey from Chassagne-Montrachet.

F42 216 Would the Americans hold their own? It was going to be quite a F42 217 contest, with opinions crossing the room simultaneously in two F42 218 languages. F42 219 F42 220 F43 1 <#FLOB:F43\>THE GREAT BRITISH Weekend

F43 2 Going away for the weekend is a British institution. In F43 3 Victorian times, the new railways made it easy for friends and F43 4 relatives to go to stay in the great Victorian country houses. The F43 5 house party was a special favourite of the Edwardian upper classes. F43 6 Today, most of us try to get away for a day or two at some time F43 7 during the year because a weekend break brings welcome relaxation F43 8 from work and city stresses. But where to go? Here's our first-hand F43 9 report of some great British weekend choices

F43 10 Champagne break in the Cotswolds

F43 11 Arline Usden

F43 12 From the first, it was apparent that the Lygon Arms puts great F43 13 emphasis on good service, as befits a recent member of the Savoy F43 14 Hotel Group. Set in Broadway, one of the Cotswold's loveliest F43 15 villages, the inn exudes the special charm of 450 years of English F43 16 history - it is, after all, one of the oldest and most famous F43 17 country hotels in England - and the tone of friendly hospitality F43 18 and care was set from the moment we arrived.

F43 19 The attention to detail was impressive: fresh flowers in our F43 20 room; a bowl of fruit; a built-in hairdryer; trouser-press; and F43 21 various sundries such as pincushion, cotton wool as well as F43 22 tissues, emery boards and cotton buds.

F43 23 The Daily Telegraph was delivered without asking F43 24 every morning, and a glass of sherry was served on a silver tray in F43 25 our room at 6pm each evening. The bath robes were indulgently F43 26 thick, and the television/radio had a remote control.

F43 27 We started off with a delightful tea on the patio, then had F43 28 drinks before dinner by the open log fire and studied the menu ... F43 29 eating is naturally an important part of a weekend break, so forget F43 30 dieting here, though slimmers can find less rich choices.

F43 31 Our first three-course dinner (pounds26.50) offered us F43 32 asparagus and spinach soup, smoked chicken with thyme and honey F43 33 dressing or a terrine of fresh salmon and smoked salmon with a F43 34 tomato relish, as a starter.

F43 35 I settled for a main course of grilled medallions of venison F43 36 with garlic flavoured lentils and fried celeriac, but I could have F43 37 had a panache of red mullet and turbot on an orange and anchovy F43 38 sauce or roast sirloin of Scottish beef with woodland mushrooms and F43 39 port, plus a selection of vegetables which included gratin of F43 40 potatoes and leek. In such a typically old-fashioned F43 41 English setting, we had to try the traditional pudding of the day: F43 42 baked syrup and marmalade tart with marmalade ice-cream. It was F43 43 delicious English food with a difference and superbly presented.

F43 44 Built of handsome Cotswold stone, furnished with antiques F43 45 collected by the Russell family - who originally owned the Lygon F43 46 Arms, having bought it at the turn of the century - and with real F43 47 log fires, this country hotel is a very special Cotswold jewel. F43 48 King Charles I conferred with his confidants here and Cromwell F43 49 actually slept at the inn.

F43 50 We were also pleasantly surprised to find we were driving down F43 51 empty country roads, when we got off the main route from London, F43 52 even though it was a Bank Holiday weekend.

F43 53 Broadway itself, of course, is full of delightful houses and F43 54 antique shops, and there's a long uphill walk to the Broadway F43 55 Tower, a folly, through fields of sheep, if you want to get some F43 56 exercise.

F43 57 But there was much to do inside, too, because a fine new F43 58 country club has been opened at the hotel, with well-equipped F43 59 gymnasium, galleried swimming pool and spa bath and a range of F43 60 excellent beauty treatments. I had a very good massage with F43 61 aromatic oils which chased all my tensions away.

F43 62 There is a splendid billiards room, and we could have played F43 63 tennis, but we settled for a walk in the delightful grounds, and F43 64 visited the famous gardens at Hidcote, and Sudeley Castle, the home F43 65 of Katherine Parr, Henry VIII's last and surviving wife.

F43 66 Stratford is just 15 miles away and other places to visit F43 67 include the Slaughters (see cover), Blenheim Palace, F43 68 Bourton-on-the-Water, and Chipping Campden.

F43 69 Fact File

F43 70 Champagne Weekend pounds195 per person, two nights to include F43 71 Friday, Saturday or Sunday. A chilled bottle of champagne is served F43 72 in your room when you arrive, and there is a table F43 73 d'h<*_>o-circ<*/>te dinner each evening, fruit and flowers in your F43 74 room, early morning tea with a complimentary newspaper, continental F43 75 breakfast and a gift to serve as a momento of your stay.

F43 76 If you can take advantage of a midweek break, minus the F43 77 champagne, you pay pounds185 per person. Golfing Break is F43 78 pounds225; a Clay Pigeon Shooting Break, pounds270.

F43 79 Contact: The Lygon Arms, Broadway, Worcestershire WR12 F43 80 7DU. Telephone: 0386 852255.

F43 81 F43 82 Canal Cruising in the Midlands

F43 83 Amanda Brooks

F43 84 Life on the ocean wave has always been a favourite pastime of F43 85 mine although it can be rather energetic, so I decided to plump for F43 86 a more relaxing weekend, although still on water.

F43 87 Arriving at Club Line Cruisers base in Coventry with parents F43 88 and dog in tow, we were shown to our accommodation: a 47-foot F43 89 Ace of Spades narrowboat.

F43 90 Modern conveniences were quite adequate and included a fridge, F43 91 gas hob and oven, bathroom and shower. The galley was stocked with F43 92 all the necessary utensils and had hot and cold water.

F43 93 Once we had unloaded the essentials such as bottles of wine and F43 94 bread and milk, a member of the company came to give us a brief F43 95 lesson on how to drive the boat, work the locks and grease the F43 96 stern gland.

F43 97 Safely through the first loch at Hawkesbury on to the Oxford F43 98 Canal, the scenery opened up ahead of us, complete with wild iris F43 99 growing on the banks, cows munching in fields of buttercups and F43 100 families of new born cygnets on the move.

F43 101 This really was enforced relaxation, travelling at four miles F43 102 an hour with no one else in sight and only the gentle rumble of the F43 103 engine coming between us and the canal life. On this type of F43 104 weekend you can do as much or as little as you want. We opted to F43 105 see as much as possible, and sample the local fare.

F43 106 Stopping at Ansty to explore we discovered Ansty Hall where F43 107 they do a superb lunch in very plush surroundings. On to Brinklow F43 108 where we found a delightful old-fashioned tea shop in the village, F43 109 and dinner at the friendly Boat pub in Newbold-on-Avon.

F43 110 Then the inevitable happened. Rain. In fact it was like a F43 111 monsoon. That really was the only complaint I have against F43 112 narrowboats. When it rains you have to stand outside to steer the F43 113 boat, there is no getting away from it.

F43 114 Canal life is far different from the rivers and sea in every F43 115 way.The boats are extremely colourful and the people on the whole F43 116 very friendly. Perhaps I could get used to this slow pace, it F43 117 certainly captivated us for a weekend.

F43 118 Fact File

F43 119 Weekend breaks are available all year round, departing on F43 120 Fridays at 3pm and returning to base on Sundays at 4pm. Rates start F43 121 at pounds130 for a two berth and increase to pounds310 for a 12 F43 122 berth (fuel included). Bedding is supplied at pounds2 per berth if F43 123 requested when booking.

F43 124 Contact: Club Line Cruisers, Swan Lane Wharf, Swan Lane, F43 125 Stoke Heath, Coventry, telephone 0604 258864.

F43 126 F43 127 Guernsey Gourmet Weekend

F43 128 Emma Bromidge

F43 129 Gentle Guernsey is an idyllic setting for a weekend away, F43 130 situated in the Gulf of St Malo off the Normandy coast of northern F43 131 France, 80 miles from England, but resolutely British. Here I hoped F43 132 to find a flavour of France without requiring a passport.

F43 133 The Air UK flight from Stansted took just one hour, so F43 134 very soon we were experiencing our first sights of Guernsey, with F43 135 its green fields, winding lanes, and glasshouses. As there are few F43 136 signposts it is best to take a taxi or hire a car and make good use F43 137 of a tourist map to reach your destination.

F43 138 We were staying at Guernsey's four-star St Pierre Park Hotel on F43 139 a special gourmet weekend break. This includes two nights luxury F43 140 accommodation, a full English breakfast, a five-course dinner at F43 141 the hotel's elegant Victor Hugo restaurant and use of the recently F43 142 refurbished Le Mirage health suite, which includes a F43 143 luxury 25-metre swimming pool.

F43 144 For informal eating we found the hotel's new F43 145 Caf<*_>e-acute<*/> Renoir was ideal, with views across F43 146 the lake to the nine-hole golf course beyond. Renoir spent a month F43 147 in Guernsey in 1883, and painted about 15 pictures of the island. F43 148 The artistic theme is used for the table decoration, service style F43 149 and menu. Each dish is described as a portrait to be observed and F43 150 enjoyed.

F43 151 I recommend the starter of deep-fried mushrooms served with a F43 152 garlic mayonnaise, or a tender melon boat lightly dusted with F43 153 sienna ginger. Main course specialities include fresh caught F43 154 Guernsey plaice, char-grilled and served with an F43 155 'appliqu<*_>e-acute<*/>' of melting herb butter. Aspiring F43 156 artists can compose their own still life study from the array of F43 157 colourful salad vegetables, or you may prefer to let the crispy F43 158 base of a pizza act as a 'canvas' for the chef's creative F43 159 talents.

F43 160 Sweets are served with a generous helping of fresh Guernsey F43 161 cream, and there is a 'private collection' menu of the hotel's F43 162 ice-cream specialities.

F43 163 But the highlight of our stay was the gourmet meal in the F43 164 Victor Hugo restaurant. We chose diamant d'asperges et F43 165 champignons des bois, a delightful puff pastry basket F43 166 filled with fresh asparagus and tasty woodland mushrooms to start, F43 167 a cassis sorbet, then for the main course, F43 168 tournedo de boeuf au vin rouge et confit F43 169 d'oignons, saut<*_>e-acute<*/>ed beef fillet served with F43 170 an onion marmalade and red wine sauce, accompanied by seasonal F43 171 vegetables and to drink, fine red wine. This was followed by a good F43 172 selection of French cheeses and a tarte du F43 173 cerise floating in Guernsey cream, coffee and special F43 174 petits fours. This was a meal worthy of the F43 175 attention of the great Victor Hugo himself!

F43 176 Daniel Malherbe, the executive chef, trained at Versailles and F43 177 has held senior positions at the London Waldorf and Kensington F43 178 Hilton hotels. He feels that he is lucky to be able to make use of F43 179 the island's abundance of fresh herbs and vegetables and local F43 180 fishermen provide him with excellent seafood.

F43 181 After eating alfresco at the hotel's Sunday lunch barbecue it F43 182 was hard to go. Guernsey, we were told, would be easy to get to and F43 183 difficult to leave. They were right.

F43 184 Fact File

F43 185 A Gourmet break costs pounds127 per person.

F43 186 Contact: St Pierre Park Hotel, Rohais, St Peter Port, F43 187 Guernsey, Channel Islands, tel. 0481 728282.

F43 188 We flew to Guernsey from Stansted's new air terminal, courtesy F43 189 of Air UK. A new Stansted Express rail link runs every half an F43 190 hour from London's Liverpool Street Station to give an efficient F43 191 service which links directly in with the new space-age terminal F43 192 coined the 'silent airport'.

F43 193 Air UK fly to Guernsey twice daily at 12.10 pm and 7.20 F43 194 taking about 1 hour-1 hour 20 minutes. The return fare is pounds95 F43 195 if you book 14 days in advance, otherwise pounds134.

F43 196 F43 197 Oxford Culture

F43 198 Sally Bodsworth

F43 199 Spend the weekend in Oxford, and immerse yourself in the finest F43 200 of British culture. For the first time, Oxford boasts a hotel that F43 201 is both upmarket and relaxed, and an ideal base from which to F43 202 explore and enjoy this lovely city.

F43 203 The 17th-century, Cotswold stone Old Parsonage Hotel is F43 204 situated off St Giles, Oxford's famous wide avenue of plane trees, F43 205 and looking across the hotel's delightful gardens to St Giles' F43 206 Church, it is hard to believe that the city centre is so close. F43 207 Leave your car in the hotel car park and you won't need to use it F43 208 again until the journey home. Two minutes walk takes you to the F43 209 city centre and all its attractions.

F43 210 Of course the colleges are beautiful and to step from the F43 211 hustle bustle of Oxford into their serene courtyards and gardens is F43 212 wonderful. New College has grand rolling gardens with a medieval F43 213 wall and magnificent Chapel. Merton College is home to England's F43 214 oldest library built in the late 14th century and Magdalen College, F43 215 as well as educating the notorious Oscar Wilde, has a serene deer F43 216 park in its grounds.

F43 217 F44 1 <#FLOB:F44\>A Bird On The Side

F44 2 In all his years with The Rolling Stones, Charlie Watts has F44 3 nursed a private passion - for jazz giant Charlie 'Bird' Parker. F44 4 Now, his secret love's no secret any more. John Fordham F44 5 reports.

F44 6 If there was a musical equivalent in rich eccentrics' hobbies F44 7 to the Howard Hughes wooden flying boat, it was Charlie Watts's Big F44 8 Band. An immense aggregation of three generations of British jazz F44 9 musicians (including a three-man drum section), it bulged the walls F44 10 of international jazz haunts in the 1980s. On a bad night it was a F44 11 mess, players of completely different allegiances getting in each F44 12 other's way as if simultaneously trying to get through a revolving F44 13 door. On a good night, though, it was a riot.

F44 14 Better known, obviously, as The Rolling Stones' drummer, F44 15 Charlie Watts is currently on the jazz beat again, one of his F44 16 oldest and deepest loves. The incentive is a strange one. Back in F44 17 the mid-'60s, Watts published a tribute to the jazz legend Charlie F44 18 'Bird' Parker, a book of drawings and a short but heartfelt F44 19 biography about a musician most of the Stones' fans of that time F44 20 would probably never have heard of.

F44 21 Now the book, Ode To A High Flying Bird, is F44 22 re-published, and an accompanying CD (featuring a quintet F44 23 with Watts in the drum chair) provides a soundtrack to it. Watts F44 24 had aimed to ghost the sound of the Parker quintet that included F44 25 the trumpeter Red Rodney and - a little unexpectedly - the music is F44 26 delicious. Peter King, one of the best saxophonists ever to have F44 27 developed in Britain and a man who preceded the 'jazz revival' by F44 28 25 years, wrote the arrangements and represents Bird's voice. F44 29 Gerard Presencer, a blazing teenage trumpeter, soars over the music F44 30 with almost as much certainty as King. Charlie Watts, though he F44 31 keeps his head down, plays with a soft, F44 32 <}_><-|>lissome<+|>lissom<}/> swing. In fact, this rich eccentric's F44 33 hobby-music gives off a surprising warmth.

F44 34 Charlie Watts prepares himself fastidiously for what is plainly F44 35 the taxing prospect of talking about a personal preoccupation: F44 36 Jermyn Street shirt studded and pressed to a razor's edge, tie F44 37 arching so decisively from between the jaws of his collar it could F44 38 have been whittled from timber, waistcoat as taut as he is himself. F44 39 "Don't like talking about myself," he mutters. F44 40 "Makes me paranoid." But start to turn the subject F44 41 around with him - Is all music the same?, Does jazz have a special F44 42 song?, Was this a slow-burn affair or an overnight rush?, F44 43 What was the '60s Soho jazz and blues scene like? - and he F44 44 stretches back on the sofa, inspecting the ceiling for the distant F44 45 sounds of the three or four bands a week he played in before he F44 46 joined the biggest rock'n'roll phenomenon ever.

F44 47 "Good rock'n'roll shouts what it is, and ends on a F44 48 shout, that's what I've always thought. It may be an old way of F44 49 looking at it, but the people I've always played rock with, they F44 50 just look in and stay there, and that's it. With jazz it's a much F44 51 looser thing, it breathes, it stretches. If you try to bring things F44 52 down in volume on the drums in a rock band like you do in jazz, it F44 53 just disappears. I always wanted to sound like the loosest F44 54 drummers, originally. Keith Moon used to say that he loved Gene F44 55 Krupa, but I never wanted to sound like that, I used to sound like F44 56 the first bebop drummer, Kenny Clarke. Kenny Clarke was the best F44 57 rider of the cymbals ... (Watts demonstrates here with a F44 58 lazy rocking of his wrist, making a noise like rain on a metal F44 59 roof) ... and the nearest to him is Billy Higgins, who has F44 60 the sweetest ride of anybody alive today, and that includes Tony F44 61 Williams. Tony's ride is an instrument in itself, but Billy's just F44 62 floats. That's jazz to me."

F44 63 When he was a kid, Charlie Watts made a saxophone out of rolled F44 64 up newspaper (and painted it bright orange) after he bought his F44 65 first horn record, an Earl Bostic blues set. Gerry Mulligan F44 66 followed, and the Bird: "I fell in love with it. I still F44 67 don't know what it was that got me, but if I play Just Friends now, F44 68 or Dancing in The Dark, anything like that, I just go cold and it F44 69 still means the same thing now as it did then. It's improvisation, F44 70 it's an amazing thing to do. I love the people who can do it, same F44 71 as I love being around painters and sculptors. They seem like F44 72 amazing things to do with your life."

F44 73 But Charlie Watts didn't do that with his life. He claims he F44 74 was never good enough, and the Stones picked him up and swept him F44 75 away before he ever got the chance to learn to be, though he worked F44 76 frequently with jazz musicians in the active all-night scene of F44 77 '60s Soho, in Alexis Korner's blues band, and in a group with Stan F44 78 Tracey's tenorist Art Themen. Believing it was impossible for any F44 79 band to last more than a couple of years, Watts kept his day job in F44 80 graphic design ("commercial artists, they called it F44 81 then"), sat in the flat he occupied on weekdays with Mick F44 82 Jagger, Keith Richards and Brian Jones, reading the jobs section of F44 83 Advertising Weekly while Jones crafted high-flown letters to the F44 84 music papers proclaiming how unbelievable the Stones were.

F44 85 But after a while, they all found that the band just couldn't F44 86 shake audiences off. "One week you'd play in a pub and F44 87 there'd be 10 people," Watts says. "Next week F44 88 there'd be 30. After a few years, 90,000. We never wanted for an F44 89 audience, whether they were laughing at us or clapping us." F44 90 Eventually it convinced Watts he could leave commercial art without F44 91 starving, but not before the skills of his apprenticeship had made F44 92 High Flying Bird possible. He was on his own in the Stones as a F44 93 jazz fan though, and still is. "Keith likes Louis Armstrong F44 94 because he's a great blues player, and he's got good ears so he F44 95 can't put any of the musicianship down. But basically I think Keith F44 96 would sum jazz up as toodly-toodly."

F44 97 Charlie is modesty itself when he discusses his book and his F44 98 record. ("I can't see many people playing it, but it was a F44 99 nice thing to do."). A big part of his motivation when he F44 100 put his '80s big band together was exposure for British jazz F44 101 musicians, some of whom (like bassist Dave Green, whom he's known F44 102 since he was 10) are his own age, some either side of it. The F44 103 record company suggested augmenting the band with Wynton Marsalis F44 104 when they went to the States, and Watts declined, insisting that he F44 105 was showing Americans what Don Weller, or Bill Eyden or Annie F44 106 Whitehead could do, not tell them something they knew already.

F44 107 The main satisfaction for Watts in making the Parker tribute is F44 108 the thought it might germinate more jazz lovers. "These are F44 109 just little cameos illustrating a book, though Peter put it F44 110 together beautifully, and put himself into it much more than I had F44 111 any right to expect. But if somebody likes it, then they might F44 112 listen to Parker and go on to other things. You know: Did he F44 113 really? Did he play like that? That would be the best thing F44 114 that could happen for me."

F44 115 Mr Chalk loves Mrs Cheese

F44 116 They seemed to belong to different worlds: the avant-garde F44 117 guitar boffin and the marmalade-haired Princess of Punk. Listen F44 118 awhile, as Mat Snow recounts the heart-warming tale of Robert Fripp F44 119 and Toyah - rock'n'roll's unlikeliest romance.

F44 120 Last year Toyah survived the most taxing performance of her F44 121 career. She played the title role in an adaptation of Zola's F44 122 Therese Raquin, and was on stage throughout. "Mad!" she F44 123 declares in authentic thesp style. "Manic!" And worse. F44 124 "There were, erm, explicit sex scenes ..."

F44 125 "They weren't that explicit ..." Her F44 126 husband, Dorset's most avant-garde guitarist, Robert Fripp, offers F44 127 mild reassurance.

F44 128 "They were for me!" Toyah has none of his F44 129 soft soap. "Every conceivable humping position! On every F44 130 piece <}_><-|>piece<+|><}/> of furniture!"

F44 131 "Gymnastic?" her swain euphemises hopefully.

F44 132 "Yes. Very gymnastic. Thank you." Toyah sniffs, F44 133 and is midway through one of those actressy explanations of how F44 134 portraying sexuality is "very challenging" when her F44 135 husband whispers something in her ear, and the pair quake into F44 136 conspiratorial giggles.

F44 137 "I came back from working abroad and had a seat in the F44 138 audience," Robert Fripp reminisces, beady glasses a-gleam. F44 139 "And indeed, the stage furniture did have certain, ahem, F44 140 demands put upon the strength of its construction. One of the F44 141 other actresses asked me afterwards what I thought of my wife in F44 142 this gymnastic scene, and I replied that it gave me an erection. F44 143 Why? she said. Does it excite you to think of your wife being in F44 144 this way with another man? And I said no - it was the thought of F44 145 me being with my wife!"

F44 146 The betrothal of shy, bespectacled rock guitar boffin Robert F44 147 Fripp to the marmalade-haired actress and former 'Princess of F44 148 Punk', Toyah Willcox, was surely one of those bizarre incongruities F44 149 which life occasionally throws up to amuse us. Only Kate Bush F44 150 leaping the broom with Vanilla Ice could have raised eyebrows F44 151 higher.

F44 152 He, of course, is Dorset-born and bred, rustic of accent, mild F44 153 of manner and so studious of his art that, even when his group King F44 154 Crimson were blowing minds back in 1969, he would insist on being F44 155 stool-bound throughout the show. In 1974 he broke up the band, F44 156 declaring that the future lay in being a "small, mobile, F44 157 self-sufficient unit." And so it has proved.

F44 158 She, meanwhile, is Birmingham-born and posh with it; her early F44 159 role as 'Mad' in Derek Jarman's punk film Jubilee blossomed into F44 160 real life rock stardom as an immodestly clad shocker whose strident F44 161 singles It's A Mystery and I Want To Be Free took her to dizzy F44 162 chart success and a standing invitation to represent Angry Young F44 163 Women on stage and on screen.

F44 164 If, as The Bible claims, in the Kingdom of Heaven the lion will F44 165 lie down with the lamb, then Mr and Mrs R. Fripp of Dorset offer F44 166 reassuring evidence that it can be done. Nor does their partnership F44 167 confine itself to the matrimonial arena. He has a hand in her F44 168 albums, of which the latest, Ophelia's Shadow, bears all those F44 169 characteristics - wrong-footed rhythms, algebraic melodies and so F44 170 on - that ensure Toyah's recording career will continue to diverge F44 171 from pop's mainstream.

F44 172 Conversely, when Robert is not instructing his furrow-browed F44 173 disciples in the finer points of fretmanship in the virtuoso F44 174 workshop they call The League Of Crafty Guitarists, he leads a F44 175 pleasingly accessible new quartet called Sunday All Over The World. F44 176 Their debut album, Kneeling At The Shrine, merges the old man's F44 177 thoughtful guitar with the drama school diction and adolescent F44 178 preoccupation of his bubbly spouse. (One also detects her influence F44 179 in the selection of his suits.)

F44 180 Clearly chalk and cheese can enjoy a meaningful creative F44 181 partnership. One is curious, however, about how this unlikely union F44 182 came to be. The Fripps, we learn, were brought together by Princess F44 183 Michael of Kent. The occasion was a fund-raising lunch held by the F44 184 great and the good of the UK rock industry in aid of Nordoff F44 185 Robbins Music Therapy; Toyah had just signed to the same management F44 186 as Robert, and was thus seated at the same table. But it wasn't F44 187 until the patroness of the trust, Michael herself, began working F44 188 the room that contact was made.

F44 189 "The three of us were introduced and the national press F44 190 descended to take pictures, and I smilingly walked F44 191 backwards," beams Robert. "But Princess Michael F44 192 extended her hand, caught hold of my jacket and pulled me into the F44 193 picture. It appeared the next day on page three of the Daily F44 194 Express - with me cut off the end. The next time Toyah and I met F44 195 was when we shared a taxi to the same event three years later. At F44 196 the time I was also raising money for a children's school in F44 197 America, and I said to Toyah, Would you help me make this charity F44 198 record? And she said yes. F44 199 F44 200