THE TRADITIONAL PATTERN RECONSIDERED.

The author discusses local government structures in Great Britain as of April 1966. According to the author, administrative bodies should be broken into efficient small units, but problems can arise due to challenges in maintaining democracies at regional levels. Topics include Royal Commissions, the comments of the historian F. W. Maitland concerning the Local Government Act of 1888, the provision of public services to regions with widely divergent populations, and conflict between counties and county boroughs. Potential reforms involving the roles of chief officers and local governments are described.