Tragedy

Finance Minister Caillaux returned to Paris, from London last week a fiscal conqueror. The Franco -British debt settlement (TIME, July 19), which he had negotiated with Chancellor Churchill was supplemented by attached correspondence providing that should France ever fail* to receive less than 50% of the contemplated German reparations payments, Britain will consent to a renegotiation of the entire Franco-British debt.

Simultaneously M. Caillaux received from Washington assurances that the U. S. will not, in the event of ratification of the Franco-U. S. debt accord, throw any bonds received in payment on the security markets of the world, a possibility under Article VII of the agreement. French fear that Germans might eventually acquire these bonds, thus putting France under a sort of fiscal vassalage to her worst enemies, was thereby allayed. Since this particular "emotional factor" had loomed like a boojum, and threatened to rouse Frenchmen unalterably against ratification, to eliminate it was of paramount import.

Premier Briand and his Finance Minister were emboldened by these favorable omens. They were given the courage of desperation by the unabated fall of the franc.

The moment seemed ripe for attempting to jam through the Chamber M. Caillaux's program (TIME, July 19), whereby the Chamber should confer dictatorial power upon the Cabinet for four months to save the franc. M. Caillaux announced that the Cabinet intended to employ this power to make binding once and for all the Franco-U. S. and Franco-British debt agreements, "as is," and without further dickering.

The stroke was bold and probably judicious. For months the rival factions in the Chamber have played party politics while the franc fell--have displayed the acumen of drunkards gambling in a burning saloon. Not to stake all upon forcing some definite program to an issue, was to court more months of mad trifling while the franc collapsed. Moreover a precedent had been established for franc-saving-by-dictatorship only a few days before, when the Belgian Parliament buried its party differences, and all but unanimously conferred dictatorial power upon King Albert (See BELGIUM).

The temperature in the Chamber was 102 when the debate began. Former Premier Herriot, president of the Chamber, leader of the Coalition of Left Parties, a man of such lofty principles that his last Ministry was overthrown (TIME, April 20, 1925), when it was discovered that he had countenanced tampering with the books of the Bank of France, arose, not to urge any program of his own to save the franc, but solely to upset his rival, M. Briand, and enemy, M. Caillaux, whose notorious reputation has made him suspect of many Frenchmen (TIME, July 5).

Finally Premier Briand called a spade a shovel: "M. Herriot, listen to me. I do not know what will be the outcome of this duel between us. ..."

M. Herriot: "It is not a duel! I will shake your hand!"

M. Briand: "'We must have the courage to call things by their names. There is a duel between the president of the Chamber and the president of the Council (Premier). That there should be such a duel at this moment is tragic beyond words. ..."

The tragedy became a fact of record when the vote was taken. M. Briand's Ministry fell on an adverse vote of 288 to 243. No real expression of the Chamber's will could be distinguished. The present Chamber had merely proved itself once more irredeemably incompetent to legislate.

However, French Cabinets are more frequent than guinea pigs.. At the request of President Doumergue, former Premier Edouard Herriot formed a new makeshift ministry. In view of the fact that immediately the franc reached a record low mark (48 to the dollar), Herriot's official triumph seems likely to cost France dearly. Important new portfolios:

Premier and Minister of Foreign Affairs ....................................................................... .Edouard Herriot Minister of Finance...................................... Anatole de Monzie Minister of War............................................ Paul Painleve Minister of Commerce................................. Louis Loucheur

*At Berlin, Chancellor Marx uttered a dark but pertinent comment last week: "The German Government desires to fulfill that which has been promised, but the German people can endure their burdens only so far as the border of what is possible. . . . The other day a rich American said to me, 'You expect of your people something that we in America could not bear.' "