Evening star., 1926-04-04

mary of the most important
i news of the world for the
seven days ended April 8:
The British Empire.--Let us hope
that the monstrous Shakespeare Me
mortal Theater; at Stratford which, to
| the satisfaction of all artistic souls;
| went up in smoke the other day, will
| be replaced by modest Though eX.
! quiSite, of cOurSe), structure in keep
ing with the charming old town and
! the authentic Shakespearean atmos.
| phere. The stage of Shakespeare S
! globe is indicated. But. alas, there is
talk of another big structure, the last
word in modernity. If that criminal
! idea is realized there are torches, there
are noble firebugs.
| Representatives of the coal miners
and mine owners continue to discuss
with each other the report of the coal
commission, without apparent APP
| proach to agreement. The truce be-
tween miners and owners expires
April 80. with which date the govern
| ment subsidy to the industry ceases.
! The trade showing of the first quar-
ter of the calendar year scarcely JUS
titled the optimism rather widely eX-
pressed as the year opened.
y 4 y, x
France.-The Chamber has voted
the taxation called for to balance the
budget. and there is little doubt of the
Senate's approval.
The reader will recall that NJ. Dou-
| mer's original supplementary taxation
bill, proposed about January |, called
for $500 600, ,000 francs of taxes. in ad-
dition to taxation already voted to
meet the necessities of 1926; i.e., in ad.
dition to the budgetary items and to
three billion francs of emergency di-
rect taxation authority for which was
| Wrung by BRAND from the Sullen
Chamber on December >, 1925.
NJ. Doumer proposed to apply the
three billions of revenue contemplated
by the December grant, and the g..
500 100000 contemplated by his bill, as
follows: 100000, 900 against the esti.
mated budget. deficit. 2,000. 900 900 to
reimburse the Bank of France. $780,
100000 to go into a sinking fund for
amortization of the public debt.
1 cannot discover how much of the
5,S00.000,000 francs taxation called
for by NJ. Doumer was voted by the
Chamber: apparently only 1900. .000.-
600, no provision being made for the
sinking fund. 1t is obvious, moreover
that the budget is only nominally bal
anced. for the estimate of 4,300 ,000,-
600 francs as the budget deficit was
| made when the franc stood at about
20 to the dollar, whereas it now stands
at about 29.5 to the dollar. The franc
may make a considerable recovery.
revenues may considerably exceed ex-
pectations, but the probability is that
there will be a budget deficit after
all. 1t will. not be importantly large,
however, If confidence Is revived.
That is the main thing-that conf
dence should be revived. If petty po.
litical considerations continue to dom
mate fiscal arrangements confidence
will not be revived. The prospect in
that regard IS not hopeful. A bitter
struggle is expected over the ques-
ton of provision for a sinking fund.
The measures just voted got by only
through abstentions. Had the unified
Socialists and the dissident radical
Socialists voted they would have
voted against them. Herriot persuad
ed them to abstain by harping on. the
continuous fall of the franc and point
ing out that, should the measures be