Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1957-04-28
By BRENDA HELsER

gently down from the trees.
It's one of the loveliest phases
of the chestnut cycle that
means 50 much to- this city.
Otherwise we are in q lull be-.
tween two reigns.
England's Queen was queen
Of French hearts as well, the
few days she was here. She
whipped UP a premature Paris
grande saison. and now we're
waiting for it to begin and stay
awhile. Afterward comes the
reign Of the almighty tourist.
Strikes are with us but living
in Paris awhile, teaches one
to live with such things. At
least there's no war in view
and we have the word for that
from no less a parsonage than
Field Marshal the Viscount
Montgomery Of Alamein.
In q talk in which he made
q great point of II don't see
any wars ahead, do you?" He
was discussing the war equip
ment we would have 10 years
from now. He remarked that
BY then we'd have man-made
satellites circling the earth and'
added. Don't know what good
they'll do anyone, but we'll
have them"
Talk Of the Town
BY far the most stirring news
hereabouts. is FRANCHISE Sa-
gan's automobile accident. Sc
rious students of the phenome-
non known as Francoise Sa-
gan are confident that she has
proved her talent is genuine:
That she is truly devoted to
her work and Is a hard and
serious worker likely to be pro-
ductive for as long as she
chooses. They do not agree
with the cynics who are saying
Better she cave this world
while hei glory is high" On
the contrary. they see greater
glory the mcie she produces.
It is understood that she'll
be physically limited for
nearly a year. That year may
prove to be a blessing when
all her energies will spend
themselves in mental activity.
1t took her 40 days, locked
away in a country cottage, to
write her third novel. Just
think what she can do with
365 days. Her schedule Is
strict. She types 10 pages per
day. no more, no less. She
wrote Fin" at exactly mid
night on q Saturday.
Sophisticated Tastes
BY this time it's clear
that Sagan's brooding doesn't
thrive in musty garrets; she
likes the sophisticated best Of
everything. She Is jazz-mad
but she'll take 1t on the Right
Bank. thank you. One night
she was out with her current
beau ("three months Is a.
long as ! can stay In love
with one person"). They went
to Whiskey-a-Gogo which Is
considered ultra-chic by Pa
risien young sophisticates be-
cause it isn't French.
Lined in tartan and serving
nothing but Scotch. it's quite
the bees knees. After Sagan
left a young woman hailed
the waiter who'd served them
and asked breathlessly: What
did she do: what did she say?"
She did nothing. Madame:
she said nothing" said the
waiter, "she Just sat and
thought and she Just danced
and thought"
But now 1t looks like q long
while before FRANCHISE Sagan
will be dancing while thinking.
After she'd crashed 1t took 40
minutes before her friends
could flag down a passing car
TO help them; the same day q
man in West Virginia was lying
with a broken leg in a side
alley. He was stranded for IL
hours during which a half
dozen people ignored his APP
peals for help. Winding ones
own business Is a highly de-
Yeloped art in France but I'd
thought and boosted that in
America a cry for help never
goes unanswered.
Annual Event
One Of Frances great an
nual literary events is Sci
ences Pc Day." held early
every spring at The Institute
Of Political Sciences here in
Paris. On that day every great
author who can come. does:
they sit at long tables, their
books stacked before them and
for the price Of a book you can
get an autograph as well.
Some authors are essentially
authors: others are essentially
something else by profession
and authors only for having
written a book. or books, about
1t. It's rather sad and no little
embarrassing to see the crowds
swarm around the ones who
are Names" ignoring the grey
bearded old men who are little
known TO the general public
but who are revered in their
fields.
At one point Andre Maurois,
at one end Of the room, and
his fellow Academicien,
Frances former Ambassador
TO Germany, Andre Francois
sPoncet at the other, we're
pretty well monopolizing at
tention. Suddenly the crowd
surged away from them both
like an outgoing tide and
flowed of in another direction.
And who was the attraction?