The first public reckoning of the economic cost of Eden's Suez policy hit Parliament like a splash of cold water, thrown by Chancellor of the Exchequer Harold Macmillan, whose sober demeanor seemed to say: in aqua frigida veritas. The jeers and roars that had greeted Selwyn Lloyd gave way to somber attentiveness when Macmillan gravely declared: "The customary monthly announcement on the gold and dollar reserves is being issued to the press today ... It shows a fall of $279 million in the reserves."
Low, involuntary whistles of dismay broke the silence. The drop...
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