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Plum For Astor— Most numerous family in Parliament is that of Viscount and Viscountess Astor and their related M. P.'s (a brother, son, son-in-law, brother-in-law, cousin). Only seven months ago the National Government landslide elected Hon. William ("Bill") Waldorf Astor, chipper young heir of Viscount Astor. During the campaign Hon. Bill would pop up through the sliding roof of his little sedan, harangue constituents, then pop down and off to the next gathering. He scored an outstanding win from a previously strong Labor candidate. Last week potent Clan Astor was overjoyed when Hon. Bill was picked by Sir Samuel Hoare to be Parliamentary Private Secretary to the First Lord, this sort of job under a minister with a future being the surest leg up in Britain to swift promotion for a smart young politician. Reputedly Hon. Bill attracted Sir Samuel's attention by his energy and gumption as private secretary to Lord Lytton on the commission which went to the Far East, reported on Japan's grab of Manchukuo (TIME, Oct. 10, 1932).
*Too dark a piece of presumptive skulduggery to be elucidated last week is the reputed presence in Portugal of Nazi insurrectionists from Germany. In the opinion of Portuguese secret police, these Nazis are deliberately seeking to upset the regime of Premier Antonio de Oliveira Salazar, who for seven years has run Portugal with such success as to give it one of the best records of any country during Depression. Given the fall of the Salazar regime, the way would be open to satisfy Adolf Hitler's land hunger by the passing into German hands, through purchase or otherwise, of Portuguese colonial territory in Africa. This has been vaguely discussed by London's leading newsorgans for months as though it would be a good thing, notwithstanding that Britain is the traditional friend and patronly ally of Portugal. In their jittery alarm last week, Portuguese hotly aired suspicions that Mr. Pirow is on close terms with the Nazis.