Friday, June 27, 2008

The Churchill Series - Jun. 27, 2008

(One of a series of weekday posts about the life of Winston S. Churchill.)

In yesterday’s post I asked if anyone knew about whom Churchill said: “If you wanted nothing done, he was your man.”

I thank a knowledgeable commenter who provided the answer:

On Conservative politician and Prime Minister 1902-06 Arthur Balfour: "If you wanted nothing done, Arthur Balfour was the best man for the task. There was no equal to him."
Balfour held a number of government offices including the premiership. We remember him today mostly for his issuance when Foreign Secretary in 1917 of what we call the Balfour Declaration, which promised Jews a homeland in Palestine.

The commenter provided a link to a Churchill site where you can find many Churchill quotes.

It was at that site I found the following:
On the deeply religious, teetotal, austere and clean living socialist Chancellor of the Exchequer, Stafford Cripps, after being told of Cripps's decision to give up smoking: "Too bad - that was his last contact with humanity."

And on another occasion: "He has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire."
From memory I’ll offer a few other barbs Churchill tossed Cripps way. I’ll put them in quotation marks and am confident of their substance, but I wouldn’t bet the ranch I have Churchill’s words exactly as he said them.

Nodding in Cripps direction Churchill once told a companion: “There but for the grace of God goes God.”

During WW II an equipment problem forced Churchill and his party to make an emergency landing at a remote airfield in the North African desert. Perspiring in the intense heat and surveying the desert landscape, Churchill remarked: “God, how Cripps would love this place.”

I hope you all have a nice weekend.

John

1 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sir SC had an unusual name, which caused some memorable moments.

US journalist/radio announcer, Lowell Thomas, tripped over his tongue when he once presented the British [Prime?] Minister Sir Stafford Cripps as "Sir Stifford Craps."