Evening star., 1926-05-29

The apparent ease with which the
Marx cabinet slipped into the place
OF that OF DR.. Luther, with no other
sisnifica mt cha than the substitu-
ton OF a new for an old chancellor.
unhappily does not mean that the IN
coming premier II likely to have
longer or asier time than his prede-
ceseor. who lasted two years. but was
actually defeated more than once:
The fatal weakness in the situa'
ton for any cabinet in Germany lies
in the fact. which is practically the
"a me in most continental parlis ments.
that there is no ma jcrity. On tne
contrary. there are a numoef OF
groups. widely separated from escn
other. but compelled TO work together
on occasion. In Germany, for ex-
ample. there are hardly less than q
score of political parties. although
No, more than q half-doZen have any
real importa nee. In point OF fact. the
pa rites which count are the Sociahsts'
Nationalists. Peoples, center, Demo-
cratic and Communist.
Following the revolution there was
for q time something approa ma
ioritv government. for the repuo.
lican ps rties, which had made ana
accepted the Weimar constitution
worked together as coalition. IheN
were the Socialists. Center ana Demo-
Gratis. But they lost control OF the
Reichstae in the election rolioWlns
the French occupation OF the Hunr'
Although at later election the
Weimsr bloc somewhat improved ~
situation. 1t did not regain control
and in addition it has already begun
to disintesrate. This disintesratlon
ws. due 10 the fact that. while al
three parties we're oVerWneimihBly
reuublican, the Democrats were con
servative on democratic issues. az
were bart Of the Catholic Center
while the Socialists were raoicsi ;
although by no means as radlcal ~
,hsir name might suggest to an
American. :,
Thus. while the republic was In
danger and before it was established
ARMY. at least for q considerable
period. the Weimar bloc could rune
ton, But when the issue OF repuomc
versus monarchy was temp0fArh!
eliminated and the live issue became
that between labor and capital, the
socialists and their Weimar partners
began 10 drift apart.
In this situation a new bloc formed
between the Democratic, the center
and the Peoples Party. which was
made up of the big industria nsts' nso
strons monarchist lea nings. hut rec
no nized that for the moment any At
tsmnt a + restoration would mean ruin
to Germany, since the two great neede
az Germany were foreign loans ana
the eyacua ton Of the Rhineland.
i 4 +
This new coalition was frankly
BOURGEOIS, but 1t relied upon getting
Socialist votes when the question wa
bet ween republic and monarchy ano
Nationalist votes when 1t was between
"a pital and labor. The three parties
making up this group, which might
be called moderate. had between them
some 1855 seats in the Reicnstag' jug.
about q third. The Socialists and
Communists, who were again widely
separ rated, held another third. while
the remaining third was split between
the Nationalists with about 110 seats
the LudendOrff- Hitler extreme Ma
tionafis with less than 20 and
number Of sma Her parties. the largest
of which, the Bavarian Peoples Party.
had strong Catholic leanings and
about 20 seats.
IL il obvious, then, how dihicult has
been the problem Of the chancellor
who has just gone and how difficult
must be that Of Marx, who. unlike
Luther, IL O. politician, and has, there
fore, political opponents. Luther, by
contrast, was an old offlcial, had been
mayor of O. Prussiah city. and was an
administrator rather than a politicia n.
In theory it might be easy for the
chancellor to maintain himself by
taking votes now from the Right and
now from the Left. but both the
Right and Left are weary Of this sort
Of operation.
y
Luther fell because on the issue of