Mr. Hoover is offering to surrender $257,000,000 if France will surrender $97,000,000. Crudely stated, he is suggesting that every inhabitant of France put $2.36 into the pot while every inhabitant of the United States puts in only $2.11.
New York Herald Tribune Editorial.
If the leading U. S. Republican Party newsorgan could thus see clearly last week that President Hoover has asked Frenchmen to make a greater sacrifice than he has asked U. S. citizens or anyone else to make, how much more clearly and with what flashing indignation was this fact perceived by the press, politicians and public of France.
"Mr. Hoover summons France to execute herself as he would summon Nicaragua," observed L'Ere Nouvelle, "and yet the whole world is astonished because we make a wry face!" Scattered through the text of conservative La Liberty's appraisal of Mr. Hoover were such epithets as "parvenue insolence," "nouveau riche impertinent" and "plain bad manners."
Radicals for Hoover Fortunate -the radical newspapers sympathized with President Hoover's idealism. Moreover the entire French Cabinet outdid themselves in efforts to present the Hoover note in a favorable light to an angry and mistrustful Chamber of Deputies. Pa- tiently, tirelessly, Premier Pierre Laval explained and re-explained to the Chamber that President Hoover delivered no "ultimatum" to France. Repeatedly the alleged "abrupt" and "threatening" character of the President's proposals was flayed by Deputies. When Premier Laval, looking more than ever like a red-faced, perspiring butcher, soothingly observed, "Mr. Hoover has even sent Mr. Mellon to Paris," irate Deputy Franklin-Bouillon snapped: "The presence of Mellon is not an argument!"
In France Chamber debate trifles tell. When a venomous attack on the Government for consenting to have truck with Mr. Hoover was launched by Conservative Deputy Louis Marin, it was parried, and deflated in a twinkling by Foreign Minister Aristide Briand, "Master Parliamentarian of Europe," as follows.
M. Marin, whose mustache is not enormous, had worked himself into a fury while the huge-mustached Foreign Minister sat placidly dozing in his Chamber chair. "Aha!" cried M. Marin after one of his sallies, "I see the Foreign Minister smiling in his mustache!"
With lightning, devastating wit that made the Chamber roar with laughter and blunted M. Marin's attack, M. Briand shot back, "So you see me smiling in my mustache, M. Marin? Helas, I could not smile in yours!"
Eight Course Negotiations, As a matter of routine the French Chamber voted earlier last week to spend an additional $96,000,000 on frontier fortifications. But to relinquish $97,000,000 as President Hoover asked, to make this sacrifice for the benefit of Germany which has twice invaded and ravaged French territory and will perhaps do so again—that was asking of the French Chamber too much.