But the Beaverbrook campaigns perform a real public service by fixing public attention upon issues. I do not think the editorials convince--I have yet to meet a _Daily Express_ reader who confused the "leader" column with pronouncements from Sinai--but they encourage that discussion of public issues which is essential in a democracy. Of course the _Express_ newspapers' tactics annoy nice-minded people. But the tradition of a free press includes not only such august journals as _The Times_ but the rip-roaring, fire-eating crusaders as well. There is not much chance that the popular press in Britain will model itself on _The Times_, but if it did so, the result would be a loss to journalism and to the nation. And as long as the Beaverbrook tradition survives--as long, indeed, as Lord Beaverbrook himself is around to draw on his inexhaustible fund of indignation--one section of the popular press is bound to remain contentious and vigorous. The _Daily Express_, the morning paper of the Beaverbrook empire, is technically one of the best newspapers in the world. Its layout is admirable, and its headline-writers often show a touch of genius. In its writing and its presentation of news it has been much affected by such divergent American influences as _The New Yorker_ and _Time_. The _Express_ is brightly written (too much so at times), and its tastes in policies and politicians are incalculable. Along with a liberal helping of political, foreign, and crime reporting it offers two of the best features in British journalism: Osbert Lancaster's pocket cartoon on the front page and the humorous column of "Beachcomber" on the editorial page. "Beachcomber" and Lancaster are sharp and penetrating commentators on the daily scene. In many instances their references to the occasional inanities of the British society are more cogent than anything to be found in the editorial columns of the _Express_. The _Express_ successfully caters to the new middle class that has arisen since the war, especially that part of it which is involved in the communications industry. The young advertising manager from the provinces who has "arrived" in London may find _The Times_ too verbose and the _Telegraph_ too stodgy. The _Express_, with its bright features on the theater or London night life, attracts him. But, oddly, three principal features of the _Express_ cater to very different tastes. Osbert Lancaster's subject matter is drawn usually from the upper middle class--his Maudie Littlehampton, after all, is a Lady. The humor of "Beachcomber" appeals to tastes that reject the average in British humor, and Sefton Delmer, the peripatetic foreign correspondent of the _Express_, often writes stories on international issues which are much more involved and adult than would seem suitable for the majority of the newspaper's four million readers.