San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1924-03-30
Troubles Just Now Due to
Unsound Financial Poll
cies, Says Tardieu.
IS TOO VACILLATING
Writer Recalls His Lack Of
Firmness in Occupation
of Ruhr.
By ANDRE TARDIEU.

Copyrfgnt, 1874, by Consoi. Press ASS n
Paris, March 29.-With the cleo
tons only six weeks off the cabinet
crisis this week was unexpected. The
taxation bills which seemed fraught
with dagger for the government had
been passed, though with very small
majorities, it is true. Yet the acct
dent happened.
The Poincare ministry had been in
power since January, 1922. The first
year, with the conferences at Genoa,
The Hague, London and Paris, it did
not arouse much enthusiasm, but it
had the country solidly behind it when
it decided to occupy the Ruhr in
Premier Poincare often has said
and rightly. that any cabinet would
have done the same thing in the same
circumstances. Nevertheless, the
Ruhr occupation - the reason for
POincare's popularity today, for dur
/ ing his seven years as President, he
was never popular.
The trouble with the Ruhr policy
was not tibet principle, but its appli-
cation. The writer strongly urged the
Ruhr occupation in 1921, when BRAND
was premier and Senator Poincare
was unfolding him in, refusing to take
that step. The occupation has been
weakly conducted, owing to insuffi-
cient preparation, invisible" occupa-
ton, an appeal to Germany's good will
and total lack of authority and de-
cision. These blunders brought on
passive resistance and prevented
France from getting any cash pay
ments in 1923 while she received di-
Unfinished coal deliveries. forcing her
| to buy twelve million extra tons from
England. But the public was i'll
Uniformed of this side of the occupa-
(tion and only saw the fact of occupa-
| ton itself as a sign of energetic poll
Icy which France had heretofore lacked.
Case Of Financial Blundering.
And SO the governments gross fl,
financial laundering had been tolerated.
|from 80 to % francs caused no alarm.
/ administrative reforms and economies
were totally neglected. New taxes
| were not proposed by the government
land even were opposed by it when
fthey were proposed by members of the
House of Deputies. Imagine then the
|country's stupefaction when, after this
long negligence, the government insist
ed on jamming through hastily impro-
4 vised fiscal measures after the Janu-
larry exchange crisis when the pound
jumped five points higher.
Despite the manifest objections to
othese bills and their injustice to civil
servants, pensioners, old age insurance
sbeneficiaries, ex-soldiers, travellers,
Taxpayers and consumers, they were
voted by the chamber and the Senate.
Again the Ruhr occupation had saved
the cabinet.
But during the two months debate
1.-THE ministerial forces decreased not
ably. Premier Poincare had had four
|fifths of the chamber with him on for
eign questions for two years, but on
the financial the total number of OPP
Iponents and abstentionists was con-
|stantly greater than that OF his sup
Fporters.
Supporters Fall Away.
In the chamber he got barely half
I of the deputies and in the, Senate only
/ 45. an even 30 per cent. Plainly the
government was losing strength daily
and last Wednesday the number of
chamber supporters fell from III to
I264.
Nevertheless, President Millerand,
considering the international negotia-
/. tons now in progress. decided to ask
Premier Poincare to form new gov
ernment.
The question on which the vote of
confidence, resulting in the fall of the
ministry came, namely pensions to re.
J tired civil servants, had been discussed
at length in 1923. 1t was proposed
4 to increase these pensions Iii accord
lance with the INCREASED cost of living
and place old pensioners on the same
basis as future pensioners. This pro-
|posal seemed sure to pass when the
exchange panic came January IA and
the government withdrew the bill, an
nouncing that it was impossible to
grant the increases.
Three days later the government
[grudgingly consented to introduce
new bill carrying smaller increases.
This was the bill which was intro
duced March % AMI was rejected by
tie Chamber of Deputies March &c.
As the government was in the difficult
position of combating what it had it
self proposed a few months earlier it
had TO make the question one of con-
sidence and the defeat meant resigna-