My dear Prime Minister,

I had a most interesting talk to-day with Dr. Drummond Shiels, the
Under-Secretary of State for India. He lunched with me to discuss
research problems as he has succeeded Walter Elliot [1] as
Chairman of the Research Grants Committee of the Empire Marketing
Board. We came down finally to a discussion of Philip Snowden's
[2] narrow free trade dogmatism and Shiels said he would try to
get as many members of the Party as possible to notify MacDonald
[3] of how much they disapprove of narrow Liberal tenets in Empire
matters. Shiels is, of course, muzzled so far as speeches go by
his office, but he will, I trust, prove useful in the House
lobbies.

BULK PURCHASE

I have completed a memo on Bulk Purchase, as you requested in your
last letter. [4] You will realise that I have not yet given the
matter much thought, but these appear to me to be the most
possible lines. I will try them on Graham [5] and Sir Sydney
Chapman [6] at Geneva and on a certain number of others and hope
in October to be able to let you have some of the reactions of the
Labour Party thereon.

POLITICAL

The general feeling here appears to be that Henderson [7] over
Egypt and more definitely Snowden at Geneva [8] have done a great
deal to improve the immediate prospects of the Government. What
intolerable fools the last crowd were to have all these loose ends
ready and waiting for their opponents to make 'kudos' from.

Amery [9], you will have seen, has in a speech in Canada,
definitely recanted over food taxes, or at least wheat taxation.

This, I'm sure, is all to the good for the flag of Protection
naked and unashamed held aloft in Amery's hands would have
attracted few converts and would have put back the clock. Amery's
recantation has, I think, come too late for his own purposes. I
hope and trust that the news Neville Chamberlain [10] gave me of
his own transfer from Local Government to Empire matters will
prove true.

PUNCH

I enclose a marked copy of 'Punch' with some amusing verses by
Evoe about the E.M.B. [11]

LION'S HOLD

I have posted to you by this mail a novel which will be published
next Monday. It is by a man I know and I feel sure you will find
it amusing, although the story itself is not well done and the
love motive pretty poor muck. The idea is that a Socialist
Government in 1933 decides to hand back the Tanganyika mandate to
Germany. The Tanganyika settlers arm, but send envoys to the
Dominions. A German expedition arrives secretly at Dar-es-Salaam
and simultaneously the Governor receives cabled instructions to
hand over. This transfer starts, when suddenly H.M.A.S.'s
'Canberra' and 'Adelaide' arrive and present an ultimatum to the
German admiral demanding the instant re-embarkation of the German
force in the name of the Governments of Australia and New Zealand.

You have not commented upon H. Blundell's 'Undertones of War'
[12], which I also sent you privately some time ago. It has
attracted a great deal of attention here.

IMPERIAL ECONOMIC COMMITTEE

I am enclosing the minutes of a recent meeting, as on that
occasion I elaborated some views which I believe you will find
interesting. I should be glad if you can find time to read the
minutes. The report on Pig Products [13] has now been signed and
it is, I think, a good workmanlike report, but contains little of
general interest. You will be receiving a cabled request from the
Committee for authority to present a General report based upon the
experience gained by the Committee during the last three years. I
have no doubt that you will agree, but I have some doubts as to
Canada's attitude.

Your letter of June 20th: After re-reading this letter I find that
in my last letter from Yorkshire [14] and in what I have already
written to you to-day I have covered all the principal points.

Yours sincerely,
F. L. MCDOUGALL