Elections

Egyptian Fraud. As everyone knows, Great Britain must control the Suez Canal, vital "backbone" of Empire trade. Therefore she must control Egypt. She does so through Puppet-King Fuad. In the past two years His Majesty has cut himself off, step by step, from the Egyptian people and their elected representatives. When the anti-British and popular Wafd party won the last election by a majority of 19 to 1 over all opponents combined (TIME, Jan. 13, 1930), it became clear that if King Fuad was to remain on his throne and remain a British puppet the next election would have to be a fraud. Last week Premier Ismail Sidky Pasha, creature of the King, was busy perpetrating this fraud.

Egyptians went to the polls to elect 150 members of Parliament. Instead of winning 19 to 1 as it did last year, the Wafd lost last week 1 to 17 according to the Government's official count. The same authority gave parties adherent to the throne a victory of 4 to 1 over all opponents combined.

Rumanian Cheat. Somewhat less revolting than the Egyptian fraud was Rumania's election last week -- for in Ru mania each party has its turn at cheating.

Rumania's last election was in the brief reign of Boy King Mihai, since ousted by his father King Carol II. The Three Regents for King Mihai had just appointed as Premier Dr. Juliu Maniu, leader of the Peasant Party. In the ensuing election the Peasant Party won 333 seats which they still held up to last week.

Recently King Carol appointed as Premier his old tutor Professor Nicholas Jorga , sly & bewhiskered (TIME, May 11). Last week in an election held by the Jorga Government the Peasant Party's representation dropped from 333 seats to 30. The Jorga Party skyrocketed last week from 7 seats to 275.

There can be no explanation for such electoral returns except cheating.

On Election day last week eight Rumanians were killed, seven by policemen.

Liberian Barclay. There being no general world interest in the black Liberian Republic, no white correspondent is maintained in Monrovia. No Negro paper has a regular cable news service from Liberia. Therefore the U. S. State Department is the chief U. S. source of Liberian news. Last week the big white State Department announced that Liberians had elected as their President big black Edwin Barclay.

When charges of ''Slavery in Liberia" broke (TIME, Jan. 19), Mr. Barclay was Secretary of State, answered Statesman Stimson's urgent inquiries with tact. Presently the then President of Liberia, Mr. D. B. King, resigned. As Secretary of State Mr. Barclay automatically became Acting President, which he was until elected President.

So far as slavery is concerned, Liberia has now flung herself enthusiastically open to a League of Nations' tutelary commission, preferring that to one from the U. S. Little by little the slavery scandal is being hushed and ameliorated.

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