Evening star., 1953-12-06

language with which Pella explained
and defended it.
Politically, at home and abroad,
Pella remains something Of q
sphinx, This is due in part to
the fact that as Budget Minister llO
generally has behaved in the Parlia-
ment and the country in a con-
ciliatory, non-political manner.
1t is also due to the fact that to
date as Premier he has SHE'D away
from decisions on most controversial
Italian political questions.
His official viewpoints are well
known. He has reiterated them since
becoming Premier. But how hard he
is prepared to fight for them-the
invariable exception being his de
fenSe of the lira"-few Italian poll
ticianS profess to know. And these
politicians include members of his
own party, for Pella never has been
definitely pegged as belonging to the
fairly well defined left, center or
right factions that make up the
Sprawling. heterogeneous Christian
Democratic Party.
Pella gave cabinet jobs to two
prominent Left wing Christian
mocratS-Amintore Fanfani, Min
lister of Interior, and Paolo Emilio
Taviani Minister of Defense. But
he won his parliamentary majority
with the help of the 40 Monarchist
votes in the Chamber-and he
knows they were not given for
nothing.
Trieste First
He repeatedly declares that Italy's
foreign policy is based on the At
lantic pact and Western European
solidarity. But he has threatened
to resign and has limited that Italy
might not ratify the European army
treaty unless he gets satisfaction
OH Trieste.
Pella stands for federated West
ern Europe, but those working most
actively in the federalist movement
C not expect him to push it with
anything like the vigor of De Cas-
peri
He is officially for the "Cassa per
Ii Mezziogiorno" program-the long
range agricultural reform and re-
hahilitation program for Italy's
south-but many Italians vitality in
tcrested in that program believe it
will lag 'or grind to halt under
Pella's administration.
To an outsider, Pella's critics tend
too often to forget the present deli
cate balance in the italian Parlia-
ment. Pella cannot afford to forget
it for a moment.
His supporters can defend his be-
havior quite convincingly by simply
citing the party lineups in the
Chamber.
Pella's delay in meeting problems
head-on may be partially due to his
dependence on Monarchist support
for survival. But he must depend on
that Monarchist support in part be-
cause the Social Democrats, who
now have only 10 Chamber seats,
withheld their backing.
The sad political fact is that the
parties of the center and moderate
left-the pro-Western group that
made up the former De Gasperi
coalition-simply didn't get enough
votes last June Z. That fact may
go far in accounting for Pella's cau-
ton and for his desire to keep his
government as non-political as pos
Sible.
And even his critics really con-
cede that the country would really
be in political trouble II Pellas
cabinet were to fall In the near fu-
ture That helps account for the
duration of his political honeymoon
with all parties, including even those
on the far left.
Nevertheless, straws in italian
political winds indicate that honey
moon now may be drawing to O
close.
Whether its end will spell serious
political difficulty for Pella probably
depends almost entirely on what
happens on the question Of Trieste
. question over which, at the mo-
ment, Pella has no control.