Argument ad Hominem

As neat and efficacious an "argument to the man" as ever broke an industrial strike was applied last week to the 20,000 idling employees of the French Renault automotive works.

At Billancourt, just outside Paris, the rows of shops of the Societe Anonyme des Usines Renault had been shut down for nine days. Baggy trousered watchmen, caped gendarmes paraded warily 'about the works. At street corners and at the cafes of the workers' quarter morose workers in felt derbies, flattened peaked caps or black sailor straws, harangued one another. They wanted an immediate raise of 20% in wages. The company was willing to advance only 10%. Impasse. Many a worker regretted the quietude of last May Day, on which in past years workers had demonstrated their discontents.

At the same time there were worry and shrewd planning at the homes of Engineer Louis Renault--at number 90 of the avenue du Bois-de-Boulogne in Paris and at his chateau de la Batellerie (of the canal boat flotilla) at Herqueville, near Saint-Pierre-du-Vauvray in the department of Eure, both places well known to visiting U. S. industrialists. Gracious Mme. Renault, she who was Mlle. Christiane Boullaire, made her suggestions. Directors of the Societe made theirs.

The shutdown must not endure. It endangered the very existence of the Renault company. Already the shovel-nosed Renault, which glides silently through Paris traffic and howls down the routes nationales, was having stiff competition in the French markets. And U. S. motor cars were intruding in horrible numbers. The first quarter of 1926 the U. S. had exported 82,496 cars and trucks. Many had come to France--

So the directors of the Societe Anonyme des Usines Renault composed a letter which was sent last week to each one of their 20,000 workmen to be answered by private and individual correspondence. The letter read:

"You have noticed daily the number of American cars increase in France.

"These cars enter our country despite customs, transportation, etc., at extremely low prices.

"This obtains even though the workmen who build them get high salaries and work normal hours: therefore, their efficiency is greater.

"If, therefore, we cannot see the means of balancing a salary increase by better efficiency through organization, equipment and the suppression of waste time--if you don't want to admit this possibility--the American automobile will replace the French automobile, and it will be the death of the French automobile industry, just as occurred in the case of the farm machinery industry. It will mean unemployment and all its conseconsequences.

"Moreover, 4,000,000,000 francs will leave France annually to buy from America the cars you make, impoverishing our country and enriching them.

"We do not believe that with good collaboration and reciprocal good will we can fail to obtain results identical with those of foreign countries."

The workers glanced at their letters and quickly secluded themselves in their closely shut parlors for conference with wives or husbands. That evening of propaganda was a queer one in Billancourt. Workers greeted one another with restraint, peeked slyly aside at one another. Next day the Renault factories resumed production, having granted only the 10% wage increase.

Shortly after the employes returned to work, a fire in the tire department, probably from a short circuit, caused a $1,000,000 damage before the five companies of Paris pompiers (firemen) in their nickel-plated helmets could control it.