The truth was simpler than many supposed-as employees of Daily Express publisher Lord Beaverbrook, a prominent Conservative supportive of appeasement, the journalists were forced to publish anonymously. The identity of 'Cato' sparked widespread speculation in the press, including among Guilty Men's actual authors who saw no reason not to get in on the fun. Smith refused to sell the book, it nevertheless went into 12 printings the first month. The public, however, was more than prepared to hear about the pre-Churchill government's missteps as they fervently prepared for war under their new prime minister. Leftist publisher Victor Gollancz was convinced to publish the screed, but asked the authors to tone down their fiery rhetoric. In particular, the authors attacked the disastrous unpreparedness at Dunkirk and the failure to invest in armaments and protecting the food supply. Writing 25 chapters in just one month, the journalists took on both British foreign policy and the failure of the Chamberlain government to prepare England for war. First edition, third printing, of this contemporary indictment of the Chamberlain government and its policy of appeasement written by three politically active journalists under the pseudonym 'Cato.' Written by three journalists-Michael Foot, a future leader of the Labour Party Frank Owen, a former Liberal MP and Peter Howard, a Conservative-Guilty Men angrily takes on the 15 public figures including Chamberlain who caused the most damage by supporting the policy of appeasement toward Hilter's Germany.

Guilty Men by Cato the Younger