Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1925-02-15
FRENCH SOCIALIST
MOVE EXPLAINED
'Tardieu Gives Reasons for
Vote to Continue to Sup
port Herriot.
by ANDRE TARDIEU.


BY Radio 10 The Star.
PARIS, February 14-Assured this
week of the continued support of the
Socialists Premier Herriot probably
Will maintain in the coming month
the same majority he has had since
last June 1t is difficult TO see what
other combination is possible in the
present Chamber of Deputies.
individuals may change, but the
basis OF the French government must
remain substantially the same dur
ing the life of the present Parlia-
ment. Even the opposition. while
proclaiming the contrary, knows it
is true.
All eyes have been focused this
week on the Socialist Congress at
Grenohle. where after considerable
debate an agreement was reached on
a somewhat contradictory resolution
saying the party remains faithful to
the principles of Socialism, but will
support VI. Herriot even in anti
Socialist legislation for the sake of
maintaining it's influence and power
in the Cartel des Gauches.
Party Role Decisive.
The French Socialist party, called
officially the French Section of the
Workers International" plays an
inconspicuous but decisive part in
parliament. lnconspicuous because
the party does not participate in the
cabinet. Decisive. because il inspires
the governments principal decisions
and acts.
The Socialist Party played the same
role under the leadership of NJ
Jaures during the Combes ministry
20 years ago. Since then the Social
lists have been through lean days,
owing TO the split which resulted in
the formation of separate Com
munist Party in 1920, since which
time the Communists have attacked
the Socialists just as bitterly as they
have the so-called bourgeois parties.
Certain Socialist chieftains went
over to the Communists and now call
their FORMER Socialist comrades
social traitors" And the fascina
ton which communism has for the
more extreme elements of the work
ers has deprived the Socialists Of
many of their forces.
The Socialists still claim to be the
PARTY Of revolution, but the Com
nunists give the impression that they
are even more so, and in revolution
airy matters, those who talk most
violently have the advantage. Fur
thermore, the Communists can boast
that they have actually come into
DoUer -namely at Moscow. Until a
few months ago the Socialists re-
torted that they also were in con-
troll of a SUPERINTENDENT then RAM
say Macdonald has fallen, while
Zinoyiev and Tchicherin still hold the
reins in Russia.
Thus it is not difficult to understand
why the Socialist Congress opened
with some misgivings. These mis-
givings were expressed during the
debate on the policy Of supporting
Premier Herriot and were momentarily
appeased. This support has consisted
in voting for NJ Herriot on all ques-
lions of confidence, thus preventing
the Herriot cabinet from being upset
and avoiding formation of a new
coalition in which the Socialists would
have no influence. The left faction
of the Congress said this policy of
supporting a bourgeois government
furnishes the Communists with an
excellent weapon to use against US"
An immense majority of the party
replied: The policy gives US such
tremendous influence in financial, So
cial and military legislation that we
have no right to sacrifice these ad
vantages to purely theoretical OBJ
jections"
L. $. Without Equivalent.
Americans who are accustomed to
velop along different lines must find
all this confusing. There is no ex
act equivalent in the United States
to the French Socialist Party. The
oretically. perhaps, the 1. W. W. is
the American equivalent, but that or
ganization repudiates support of the
bourgeoise government.
The American Federation of Labor
is entirely different since II has al
ways rested on national and legal
basis, while French Socialists call
themselves International and revolu-
tionary.
The Socialists supporting NJ Her
riot are less violent than the l. w.
W, and less moderate than the A. T.
of L Finally. they are more po-
litical than social, and this fact may
cost them dear if the Communists
take advantage of ii.
Copyright, 1921