NEWS OF THE WEEK
pA_RIS has had another great excitement this week from the Panama Scandal. On Monday, the Figaro, which is acting as informal Public Prosecutor in the affair, published an article stating that M. Rouvier, the Minister of Finance, and M, Clemenceau, the leader of the Radical Left, passed most of November 19th, the day before his death, with Baron Reinach, consulting how his interests might best be defended against the Court inquiring into Panama affairs. M. Clemenceau im- mediately published an explanation, which will be found elsewhere, which exonerated himself, but which confirmed the story in essentials as regarded M. Rouvier. The latter im- mediately handed in his resignation, in order, as he said in the evening in the Chamber, not to compromise his colleagues ; and it was accepted by M. Carnot, after, it is said, a "scene of much animation in the Cabinet." M. Rouvier then proceeded to state his case in the Chamber, his defence being substan- tially that he had tried to shelter Baron Reinach from motives of pity, and that he was a victim of calumny pro- voked by his ten years of service as a Minister in seven -departments. As, however, it was clear that M. Rouvier had tried to stifle a judicial inquiry ordered by his colleagues, his story was received with chilling silence, and he stepped down from the tribune politically a ruined man. On the following day, he gave evidence before the Panama Committee ; but it only confirmed his own previous statements, besides betraying some remarkable failures of memory. He has been succeeded by M. Tirard, who was summoned from Brussels by tele- graph, and who, it is said, only accepted the post of Finance Minister under a definite threat from the President that, in the event of a refusal, he would himself resign.
