Evening star., 1939-11-13
Exi|ed Polish Reqime
Breaks With Nations S
Dictatoria| Past
Rule of Piisudski and His
Successors Repudioted
In Puris Decree
By PERTINAX,

PARIS, Nov. 13 NANAO.-The
answers Of King George VI OF Eng
land and President Lebrun of France
to the telegram sent by King Leopold
Of the Belgians and Queen Wilhel-
nina Of the Netherlands on Novem-
ber 8, whereby the latter had offered
their good offices for conclusion of
peace, were communicated before
hand to the Polish government.
Neither the King of the Belgians
nor the Queen of Holland had
deemed it opportune, for reasons of
their own, to regard Poland as still
q belligerent. and. as consequence,
no message from them had been for
warded to President Raczkiewicz of
the Polish republic.
But the French and British gov
ernments were careful not to repeat
that omission, and, on Saturday,
they consulted fully with the
Polish head of state and his cabi-
net and obtained their full approval
for the texts to be sent to Brussels
and to The Hague. 1t was not an
empty gesture, but positive step.
It means that Poland ranks as the
ally of France and Great Britain in
the full diplomatic meaning of the
expression.
Three DEGREES Published.
On November the new Polish
government, of which the two lead
ing personalities, besides the Presi-
dent, are Premier Sikorski and For
eign Minister Zaleski, had published
In the Official Monitor. printed in
Paris, three momentous decree
which show in striking manner
that the Poland of tomorrow will
differ radically in its political struc-
ture from the Poland that crumbled
last September under the impact
Of the Reichswehr.
The first of these places on record
. letter sent by Marshal Smigly-
Rydz on October q (surprisingly
late) to resign his functions as COM
mander in chief and general inspec-
tor of the army. But it noes not
stop there. The marshal Is dis
missed" a drastic procedure where
by it is clearly indicated that to-
days Polish cabinet holds min
largely responsible for the military
defeat that was meted out to Polish
arms
While retaining his post as pre-.
mier, Gen. Sikorski will command
the new Polish Army now training
in France, and such is the purpose
of the second decree.
AS to the third decree, it dissolve:
the Polish Diet and Senate, because
they have failed to comply with
the requirement of the state" be.
cause they did not reflect publ;
opinion and did not take care tt
alter the electoral law of 1885.
which deprived Polish citizens Of tht
right to select freely their own rep
resentatives and gave rise to strike
Of the electors on large scale foul
years ago and again toward the enc
of 1898. No more sweeping condem.
nation could have been passed upor
the dictatorial rule Of Marsha
Pilsudski and his successors.
Break From Past Necessary.
Why was it made public in such {
solemn form at a time when ma
tional union ought to be the motto
obeyed all around? The answer i
that the members of the presen
government have unanimously com
to the conclusion that the dicta
torial regime set up following tn
coup d'etat of 1926 was to be re
garded as the major cause of Pc
lands tragic misfortune, that tn
Polish people must not be allowe'
to entertain any doubt about it, ant
that an abrupt departure from tn
past had to be made as soon as pos
sible.
It was explained in support o
that decision, by an authoritative
voice, that the foreign policy car
ried out by former Foreign Ministe
Beck since 1884 was wholly unin
telhgible unless related to that min
ister's ambition to set up in Polan'
q totalitarian state on the Hitlerial
pattern. For that reason, it wa
thought that the door ought to b
closed against repetitiOn of such Al