Evening star., 1930-12-08
LAVAL TAKES TASK
OF PICKING CABINET
French Minister Called When
Barthou Fails to Achieve
Success.
By the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
PARIS, December 8.-Senator Pierre
Laval, characterized by CIemenceau as
one Of the most brilliant members of
the Chamber of Deputies Of the Tigers
day. today was given mandate by
President Doumergue to form a new
French government.
His selection to head a ministry was
not made until Senator Louis Barthou,
himself man more of PoincareS type,
gave up the task as hopeless when the
Radical Socialists refused to participate
in a government which included q rep
resentative of the strong Rightist, Louis
Marin.
VIII Consult Leaders.
M. Laval told M. Doumergue that he
would do his best and give him a def
mite answer tomorrow. He proceeded
then to the traditional visits to politi-
cal leaders such as the, Presidents OF
the Senate and Chamber and to NM
Tardieu, BRAND and Poincare.
The new premier designate is an In
dependent Socialist who, as minister OF
labor under M. Tardieu, recently
scared into public favor by cooperating
with Louis Lohcheur In getting through
the social assurance law of pensions for
working people and by settling the tex
tile strikes in the North of France.
He Is a lawyer; and after successful
service. in the Chamber was elected to
the senate in 1926 from the Depart
ment OF the Seine. He is the mayor OF
AubervillierS, near Paris, and enjoys
the friendship and confidence of both
Tardieu and BRAND. He is Sc years old
Situation Held Difficult.
Senator Barthou's failure to organize
ministry of wide republicanism, -
which would have included the Radical
Left and Republican group Of the Center
and Right, is regarded as evincing the
supreme difficulties in fashioning a
cabinet with present membership of the
Chamber and Senate. It is regarded
also as demonstrating that the religious
question is not dead in France, the
Radical Socialists at the last moment
refusing to sit in the cabinet with a
member of a group which advocates
religious teaching In public schools.
The Radical Socialist party has long
been committed to scrupulous adher-
ence to a law inaugurated by Jules
Ferry that the schools of the Republic
be devoid of any form of religious in
struction. A SECTION of the Right group
in the Chamber, led by M. Marin, has
favored an amendment to the law and
Barthou proposed to put member of
that group in the cabinet
Two other conditions laid down by
the radicals were that the new cabinet
must adhere to Aristide Brands Lo-
carno peace policy and strive for fiscal
justice" the latter being an allusion
to the Oustric Bank scandal and re-
cent irregularities in trading on the
BourSe.
After a new meeting of the radical
group today its leaders issued COM
munique calculated to clear their skirts
of any responsibility for the breakdown
of the Barthou combination. The
statement emphasized the loyalty of the
radicals to the republican idea and in
sisted that Senator Barthou's failure
should be ascribed to the demands for
mulated by other groups when the
Tardieu cabinet was overthrown.
This referred to M. Tardieu'S declara-
ton that he would be glad to CO.
operate with M. Barthou if members of
his majority in the chamber were rec
ognized. Friends of M. Tardieu today
charged that the radicals were secretly
fighting to keep him out Of the cabinet.
The opinion was expressed in some
political quarters that If M. Laval de-
cides to give M. Tardieu a portfolio
he will again encounter the hostility Of
the radical group.