War, tyranny and revolt have produced tyranny, revolt and war throughout time … We maintain that the moral law is binding upon States as upon individuals … We hold that the fundamental interests of humanity are one … The time for absolute isolated sovereignty is gone by … Our aim should be a very loose international federation … the reasoned worship of force [is] the real devil-worship … We therefore keep alight the hope that, late or soon, the intercourse of nations will be carried on without armed force.

At the end of this war she would will have to decide which way it desires to go, towards disarmament or destruction... Disarmament is not merely scrapping our guns and our battleships. It is the working out of a national policy, which, being inspired by love for all men, cannot be antagonistic... It is the problem of India, of Ireland, of our relations with Russia and Persia, Germany and Belgium as God would have them to be.

Miss Ellis has been associated with Lord Parmour in much public work of a religious and philanthropic nature. She is secretary of the British Council for International Christian meeting, of which Lord Parmour is President, and has also played a valuable part in establishing the Save the Children in connection with the Fight the Famine Council.

It is in connection with the Fight the Famine Council that Miss Ellis has come most prominently before the public. From its inception in January of this year till the beginning of June.

She was one of the hon. Secretaries, her colleague being Miss Egantlyne Jebb, and laboured untiringly both in the Council's offices in London and is addressing public meetings in the provinces. The two big meetings of the Council at the Sentral Hall, Westminister, and at the Albert Hall in May, were organised almost entirely by her. She is also closely associated with the Society of Friends.

Lady Parmour, step-mother of the late Sir Stafford Cripps died at her home in London yesterday after a short-illness.

A leading member of the Society of Friends she had been connected with peace movement in Britain and on the Continent for nearly 50 years, and had been for some years president of the Women's International League.

Lord Parmour was Socialist leader of the House of Lords from 1928-1931.

Our mother was one of the nine daughters of Richard Potter, who was descended from an industrial family living at Tadcaster in Lancashire, which, in early days, had become involved in the industrial revolution which has raged since the end of last century, and unfortunately is as yet by no means settled. His wife was Laurencina Heyworth, whose father was for many years Member for Derby. Two of the nine daughters married into the Cripps family; William Harrison, later a distinguished surgeon, married Blanche Potter, whilst our father, Alfred, married her sister Theresa. Richard Potter lived at Standish, near Gloucester, where he was a partner in the firm of timber merchants, Price & Potter, who supplied the huts both for the French and English in the Crimean War. There was a story of him 'posting' across France to see the king himself about the contract. He was also chairman of the Great Western Railway Company and of the Grand Trunk Railway of Canada, also, I believe, of the Hudson Bay Company. Another of the nine sisters was Beatrice who later became Mrs. Sidney Webb. When she first brought her husband to stay at Parmoor after their marriage I recollect my father who in those days, was a staunch Tory, turning to me as they drove away, with a half wink and saying: "Have you counted the spoons?" It is amusing to know that later they became great allies, in fact, both served in the first Labour Cabinet, one as Lord President of the Council and the other as Colonial Secretary.

Our parents were married from Rusland Hall in the Lake District in 1881 and I arrived in the world in August 1882, the first of five children. Our mother was very ill after my arrival at Standish where she was staying for the event. The house, perhaps appropriately, is now a maternity home run by the Gloucester County Council and I hope I gave it a good start!

I was fostered for some time by Jane Burridge, the wife of a woodman, who often acted as keeper in early days. After leaving Skirmett they went to live at Bagmoor, when the farm there was incorporated with the Home Farm; his nickname was "Booby" which he hardly deserved, as anyone out shooting could at once see that he was dealing with a master craftsman when it came to smoking out his favourite ferret, Jacob! Perhaps the effect was largely due to the powerful smell of the village shag which, as far as I recollect - and I often tried it - was very pungent....

Although our mother had died in 1893, after a very sudden illness, we were particularly fortunate in having, in addition to our sister, Ruth, whom we all worshipped, some excellent attendants and servants, many of whom stayed at Parmoor for long periods of time. In addition to one, Margaret, who was originally nursery-maid, and stopped with us until she married one of the footmen, we had Mary Marshall, affectionately known as "Mazelle", who came from Alsace to teach us French, and stayed with us for about 30 years, when she went to help my brother, Stafford, with his household in, Gloucestershire for another long period before retiring to Cornwall with her niece, where she died at the age of 102. It always seemed a source of wonder to many that anyone could have put up with us boys for so long!

In 1914 the golden age at Parmoor came to an end, as elsewhere, when war was declared. I remember that our uncle. Lord Courtney of Penwith, a staunch and shrewd Cornishman, who had been Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons, where he was Member for Bodmin, said at tea on that day (August 4th) that England would never be the same again. It certainly never has been!

Our father, then a Tory, who had been Member for South Bucks, after representing Stretford, near Manchester, had been asked by Mr. Asquith, a political opponent, but an old legal ally, if he would accept a peerage to assist in the judicial business in the House of Lords.

He agreed on condition that his assistance should be unpaid, so that he could speak and vote as he wished in the Upper House. Accordingly, his name had appeared in the New Year's Honours List and he had become the first Baron Parmoor of Frieth - a title of which we all approved as linking our family, for ever, with our old home and with the village which had meant so much to us all.

In 1919 my father married Marian Ellis, a Quaker, who had assisted the 'Save the Children Fund' and was interested in the 'League of Nations', my father being in the absence of the Prime Minister, our Country's chief representative at Geneva.

Many political and foreign visitors, including Herr Streseman and Herr Luther came to Parmoor, together with friends whom we had met in various ways during war years. My sister, Ruth, was married, and so were my brothers, Fred, Leonard and Stafford, whilst I became Bursar of Queen's College, Oxford, which enabled me also to combine the management, with the assistance of Tom Jess Jnr. and later Mr. Sherwood, of the Parmoor Estate.

There were also held, during the post war period, various conferences and religious retreats at Parmoor, often attended by the Bishop and other leaders of Church work, in which our father and step-mother and my brother Stafford were all greatly interested.

At the end of an uneasy period of peace, Hitler came to the fore, and again, as all know, gradually obtained control of Europe, after temporarily settling with Russia, leaving England and France to bear the brunt of his attack.

War, though staved off for a time by Mr. Neville Chamberlain, became inevitable and the challenge had to be accepted.