Evening star., 1934-02-08
FRANCE IN GRIP
Of REVOLT SPIRIT
Uncertainty of Situation
Due in Part to Rest
less Provinces.
BY CONSTANTINE BROWN.

Although on the surface the situa-
Gon in Paris has improved with the
arrival of the new premier, CASTOR
Doumergue, official quarters here con-
tinue to regard the general situation
with apprehension.
The reason for this continued I'M
certainty are, first, the French prov
inces are restless and troublesome,
and, second, it seems that Premier
Doumergue desires to form a govern
ment of national concentration to
include all the former premiers, the
majority of whom have lost all their
prestige and the confidence of the
country.
In other words, it was stated today,
ut Is the same old gang under a diff
3erent sign"
People Without Leader.
The real great problem of handling
che present situation in France Is that
the revolutionary spirit seems to have
gripped the entire nation, and yet
there Is not single leader among the
discontented people At Nancy, at
Toulouse, at Lyons, in Morocco and in
Algiers there have been serious clashes
between the populace and the organ
tied governmental forces. In some of
these places people have been rioting
to show their dissatisfaction with the
present order. in others professional
Agitators started trouble and were
Ioined by individuals who were either
unemployed or dissatisfied with the
new taxes, or resented the increased
cost of living.
There seems to be, except in very
few cases, no immediate reason for
violent outburstS. yet they are occur
ring daily. There are the Communists
who are trying to fish in troubled
waters and there are the Royalists who
do the same and in many instances
Join forces with the Communists, and
there are the elements who go out on
the street and fight because they love
to take shot at the police or the
troops. In between are the ordinary
onlookers. who we're passive at first.
but became indignant when they saw
the unarmed manifestants being shot
ct or beaten up by the police. And
kt1ese onlookers become as violent as
ths professional troublemakers.
Discontentment at Bottom.
OF course, at the bottom of the
whole thing lies the fact that the
French people are discontented with
their governments.
After having experienced period
Of superficial prosperity Immediately
after the war, they had to stand the
brunt of a severe depression which
saw most Of their savings disappear
and their money reduced to one-flfth
of its actual value.
The crisis was Weathered by the
formation of a government OF ma
tional concentration under Raymond
Poincare, in 1926, and for the next
six years France became one OF the
most prosperous countries in the
world.
Then all of a sudden. the French
masses saw that unemployment was
increasing, the cost of living was
going up in leaps and bounds, the
prestige of France-a very important
factor in Frances national hfe-belng
lowered and nobody could determine
the reason why these things were
happening. The recent financial
scandals opened their eyes, and the
French people realized that their
governing class. the cabinets and the
Chamber Of Deputies were deeply In
yolved in all kind of scandals.
The Stavitsky affair was just the
incident which helped to burst open
the abscess, but the pus had begun
to gather ever since the end OF the
World War.
Under these circumstances 1t Is be-
liered here, the French people are not
likely to be satisfied with just another
government. even If the honest and
liked CASTOR Doumergue is at its
head.
Hopeless Cabinet Plan.
II it is true, it was stated in we'll
Informed quarters in Washington. that
Doumergue wants to form a CABINET
with the same men who have been al
ready prime ministers in the cabinets
which have succeeded each other
since 1919, the chanes Of its remain
ing in office in order to perform sweep
Ing changes, are very slight.
It is very unlikely that the French
people would tolerate men like Chau-
temps Tardieu, Herriot, Paul-Boncour
and Caillaux to continue to run the
government even though 1t Is pre-
sided over by Doumereue.
The trouble makers are at work AZ
present. They will be able to find
substantial following among the
masses when men who have been
chased out of Office are back in their
Old jobs.
The danger which such new cabi-
net is likely to incur is that the radi-
cal element will denounce the govern
nent as one with dictatorlal tenden-
ces. while the elements of the Right
will denounce it as being the same
old dishonest group with respectable
dummy at the head.
The arguments of both these groups
will be sufficiently plausible to gain
the support of the masses, especially
If the new government has to in
crease taxation and is not able to
reduce the cost Of living. The dis
content which prevails now in France
Is not a superficial one, and it will
take a really strong and energetic
hand to stop the spreading OF the
present troubles.