The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1903-02-01
Premier Has Lost His Authority
in the Chamber and Soon May
Lose His Portfolio.
MADE ONE FATAL MISTAKE.
Engaged in Debate Supporting the
Budget for Public Worship
and Thereby Quiet Para
lyzed His Majority.
BY J, CORNELY.

SPECIAL BY ABLE To THE NEW YORK
ERALD n THE ST. LOUIS REPUBLIC.
Paris. Jan. 3L-CCopyYght. 1s05)-Since
the beginning of the week the Chamber of
Deputies and the political world Of France
have been engaged III a smoldering stris-
gle. which must appear most improbable to
outsiders. but seems quite in the ordinary
course 10 the initiated.
On Monday the Chamber discussed the
budget of public worship. y Radical
member demanded Its suppression and the
Premier, whom the subject specially con-
Germs. because he is Minister of Public Wor-
ship as well as of the interior, found 1t nee
essary to take part in the debate lie made
a speech which quite paralyzed the major
ity.
In order to defend his opinions for public
worship. he maintained the necessity OF re-
ligion as an indispensable bulwark OF moral
itv. He declared himself a spiritual pni!oSo-
pher.
The stupefaction Of the majority was sue
ceeded by great anger. which VIII result
| probably on the first occasion in the ran OIL
| the Cabinet, for the Radical-Socialist group,
| which forms the majority OF the majority,
has already taken action and is skiing MI.
Doumer. former Governor of lndo-China
and president of the Budget committee
what guarantee he can offer on the SUBJECT
Of the religious question.
COMBE"S MISTAKE.
NJ. Combes, from his own point OF view,
has erred. He would have been able to get
out of the difficulty and obtained a vote for
the budget by remarking that the Chamber
did not have a majority thoroughly deter
mined on separating church and state, or,
better. by maintaining the contractual ma
ture OF the condorate. But the unlucky man
wanted to initiate NJ. Waldeck-Rousseau
lpI rafSo a lnhafn RAISING donates was n
speciality of al. Waldeck-Rousseau. who flat
tered the vanity of the Chamber by letting
it believe that he thought it capable of I'M
derstanding general ideas.
NJ. Combes also wanted to give himself
the luxury of some general ideas. His at
tempt succeeded very poorly. for, as much
as he may please the chamber when he
dissolves religious congregations without
giving explanations, by Just SO much he
displesses them by wishing to explain to
them the higher motives of his conduct
and to show how one may deny the use
fulness of the assumptions without deny
ing the utility of the idea of God.
NJ. Combes was wrong to depart from his
programme and seek TO rise from the
earthly domain of action to the heights of
pure thought. He succeeded in saving the
budget of public worship, which was voted.
, but lost his authority In the squabble and
! before long will lose his portfolio.
j. SCRUPLE AGAINST CRISIS.
. This is not perhaps very just. but it is
! very human. Nevertheless 1t, must be noted
i that in the majority there exists a laudable
scruple against a ministerial crisis. So
they are going to give N. Combes a chance
I to reinstate himself if he wants to. They
/, will choose for this the debate on the
budget of public instruction. 1t is notice
able that the majority is careful TO give the
President this occasion for reinstatement.
The members of the majority would do
well to show toward each other a little of
that clemency which they profess to have
for power. Then there would not be wit
messed scenes like that of the other day in
the corridors. where a Socialist named Cade-
nat began 10 scratch a colleague named Cha
Plus, as if he had claws in place OF finger
nails. True, he apologized the next day
and the incident was buried.
When We compare this aggression with
the dramatic trial that is going on at Saint
Mihiel, where a conspiracy was formed
against an unfortunate teacher of Les Pa
roches, who was accused of a series of
crimes. and who was finally driven to sui
eide, it needs no less than the great out
burst of charity which is spreading over
France in favor of the destitute Breton
fishermen TO show US that we are still ami
mated by the of solidarity nee
essary to a nation. and that the country
known in history as gentle France" Is not
entirely peopled by wild beasts.