How to Please a Coalition

After ten days of crisis, France seemed about to get a new government. Conservative (Radical Socialist) Henri Queuille, 66, who saved the day under similar circumstances 2 1/2 years ago, was confirmed as Premier by an Assembly vote of 359 to 205.

In Queuille's plans for a new government, no party's sentiments were overlooked. He offered the Socialists and other leftist deputies an increase in the minimum wage. Rightists were assured that resulting price boosts would not be offset by widespread consumer subsidies. Queuille promised the farmers a subsidy on commercial fertilizer prices, the workers a subsidy to keep coal and electricity prices from rising more than 10%. He said that he would raise funds for the new subsidies as painlessly as possible, by taxes on "uncommon goods" and exports.

Queuille committed himself to the principle of electoral reform, on which all the coalition parties agree, but supported the principle in such general terms that no group--for the moment--had anything to find fault with. He expressed his hope that an election would be held "before next summer."

All this political sleight-of-hand is not done primarily for Queuille's or his party's gain. It is merely what a French politician had to do in 1951 to get even a temporary government for his country.

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