SITUATION IN PARIS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21954, 10 November 1934, Page 13

SITUATION IN PARIS

POLICE REINFORCED CITY COMPARATIVELY QUIET CHAMBER'S BRIEF SESSION M. DOUMERGUE'S EXIT By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright (Received November 9. 7.5 p.m.) PARIS, Nov. 9 Owing to the political crisis the police have been reinforced in Paris, which is comparatively quiet, except for parading crowds of students and members of youth organisations, whom the police keep moving. The members of the Fiery Cross League of ex-servicemen are calm and are refraining from holding meetings or making speeches. They will give anyone with a clean political reputation a chance, but there is no guarantee that a hurriedly-formed stop-gap Ministry would last more than a few weeks.

Parliamentary writers declare that the pre-truce days of three-months' Cabinets have returned. Patriotic organisations, though they have not been mobilised, stand to attention and are awaiting events. The Nationalist organisation L'Action Francaise is preparing two demonstrations.

Yesterday's brief session of the Chamber of Deputies ended with cries from the Left of "Down with the assassins" and shouts from the Right and from the Centre of "Vive, Doumergue." The Cabinet's meeting, in spite of the mechanical procedure, did not lack drama, inasmuch as it turned the last page of the last chapter of the public service of "Papa" Doumergue, whose wife quietly awaited him outside his office later while he cleared up his papers, preparatory to handing over his post to M. Flandin.

BITTER COMMENT DROPPING OF THE PILOT " CEASELESSLY HARASSED " PARIS, Nov. 8 The press strongly attacks the selfishness of the Radicals, and contends that the truce could not consist of bowing before - the exigencies of the party, which had held complete power on February 6, and of subordinating decisions solely to that party's pleasure. Under the heading "Dropping the Pilot" L'lntransigeant publishes as bitter an editorial article as was ever printed <»n France. It says:- "Thus suddenly the pilot has curses rained upon him from all sides. He was sent for when the ship was about to sink and stoically consented to resume an exhausted and perilous job. We cannot blame him for whatever dangers his departure entails. We kill our own men. 1

"Here was a Premier who was attempting a great task, but immediately he wanted to work he was ceaselessly harassed and over 100 unimportant questions were tabled. Our political morals are bad. We prize our great servants of State only when they are in their graves, whither we send them before their time."