Bourbon & Bonnet

After seven long years of watching French politics from Belgium, the Bourbon Pretender to the throne of France, six-foot, curly-whiskered Monseigneur Le Duc de Guise, decided last week that things were at last going badly enough for him to issue his first public appeal for restoration.

In Paris no brilliant showing was being made by the Republic. Even the threat of Adolf Hitler's rise to power as Chancellor of Germany had not broken the French Chamber deadlock between the Radical Socialists (moderates) and the Socialists (mild radicals). For the third time since last June a Radical Socialist Cabinet was formed, the job of Premier having been given by President Albert Lebrun to a second-string politician, former War Minister Edouard Daladier (TIME, Feb. 6). And for the third time Socialist Party Leader Leon Blum served notice that he would merely "tolerate" the new Radical Socialist Government,* might wreck it any day as he wrecked its predecessors. Perfunctorily the Socialists joined in giving the Daladier Cabinet a vote of confidence (370 to 200) last week. "But we did so," said tall, stringy-haired, glum M. Blum, "without any particular enthusiasm."

Even more ominous was the conduct of Edouard Herriot, again elected Leader of the Radical Socialist Party in caucus last week. Though he supported Premier Daladier in the Chamber, M. Herriot gave the impression that he hopes the new Cabinet will soon fall, hopes to succeed it as Premier of a "National Government" above party. In the Chamber, just before the vote of confidence. Radical Socialist Deputies significantly did not cheer when Leader Herriot lukewarmly appealed "for as large a majority as possible" for Radical Socialist Premier Daladier.

Budget Juggle. First job of the new Cabinet, as of its two predecessors, is to balance the French budget which should have been balanced by Jan. 1. Since the Socialists wrecked the last Cabinet rather than vote enough new taxes and economies to restore fiscal equilibrium, the only course open last week seemed to be to juggle figures so that the French deficit could be called smaller than it actually is: 10 1/2 billion francs ($411,000,000).

Good at such juggling is the new Finance Minister, nimble Georges Etienne Bonnet, who plays with fair skill the fast, exciting Basque ball game of jai-alai. In 1919 Georges Bonnet served France as Chief of Demobilization, has written stacks of books on the most varied subjects: The Soul of a Soldier; Philosophy of Law; The Finances of France; Letters to a Bourgeois of 1914. Last week M. Bonnet proposed to juggle some four billion francs out of the deficit by suspending during the crisis amortization of the national sinking fund and by transferring the deficits of the French State Railways from the budget to a special account which he hopes to cover by upping taxes on gasoline and motor vehicles--Socialists having no sympathy for motorists.

Royalist Manifesto. With Paris editors predicting that "the Daladier Cabinet may last three months--or three days," Monseigneur Le Duc de Guise, who would be King Jean III of France if enthroned, manifestoed as follows from his Manoir d' Anjou near Brussels:

Frenchmen!

I represent the principles which render to the State the fullness of Impartiality, Independence and Stability.

When I received by birth the guardianship of these principles in order to transmit them to my son [the Count of Paris] I inherited also a duty to recall them to the French nation!

And if it pleases God, when He wills it, I shall apply these principles to the country, utilizing the co-operation of all Frenchmen of all origins, conditions and freely organized, who will be represented.

[Signed] In exile,
JEAN

Since tall "King Jean" and his sleek, quiet, studious son consider it beneath their dignity to do much talking, that is done by the beauteous Duchess. She states as facts: "We are certain of at least 60,000 soldiers in France. These are actually inscribed on our rolls and divided into regiments with trained commanders. Among our hundreds of thousands of sympathizers there are many high functionaries of the present Republic. All the officers in the Republic's cavalry are Royalists. We also have strong followings in the Navy, Artillery and Aviation Corps."

Slightly dazzled by these claims, a friend asked the Duchess two years ago why she did not act at once. "My dear!" replied "King Jean's" spouse, "I can't just run out into the streets and shout that I am Queen of France! We have to wait until the Republic is tottering under some crisis."

To U. S. sympathizers (proverbially "more royalist than the King") the Duchess recalls that both her own and her husband's father fought under President Abraham Lincoln to free the slaves.

* Premier and Minister for War--Edouard Daladier.
Foreign Affairs--Joseph Paul-Boncour.
Interior--Camille Chautemps.
Justice--Eugene Penancier.
Finance--Georges Bonnet.
Budget--Lucien Lamoureux.
Marine--Georges Leygues.
Public Works--Joseph Paganon.
Commerce--Louis Serre.
Colonies--Albert Sarraut.
Agriculture--Henri Queuille.
Labor--Franc,ois Albert.
Aviation--Pierre Cot.
Merchant Marine--Eugene Frot.
Posts & Telegraph--Laurent Eynac.

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