The Paris Exhibition Perhaps it is a trifle premature to
discuss the Paris Inter- national Exhibition. Just as there is much work to be done on a ship after the launching ceremony, so the official opening on Monday by the President of the Republic does not mean that the Exhibition is complete. The Paris workmen, instead of responding to M. Blum's appeals, have caused numerous delays and strikes, fearing unem- ployment when the Exhibition is finally completed, which will probably not be before the end of June. But though still incomplete, the display is already impressive. The French have long had a genius for exhibitions, architecturally and otherwise. One of the most satisfying sections in the present one is the Regional Centre, where there is a whole town built in the various architectural styles of the French provinces. Apart from its obvious attractions as a pleasure resort for the world, the Exhibition of 1937, like its famous predecessors, has a twofold importance. It enables foreigners to see in miniature a civilisation ivhich is not yet as decadent as its enemies allege ; and it provides a much-needed symbol of economic co-operation between the nations. The adjectives " universelle " and " intemationale " cannot be too much stressed at a time of frenzied national autarky. The fact that Dr. Schacht opened the German pavilion on Wednesday is in itself the best of omens for the Exhibition's success, and possibly for the success of Anglo-French negotiations in a larger field.
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