NEWS OF THE WEEK B Y the time these lines are
read M. Flandin may have fallen and the depreciation of the French currency he in full progress. The causes of the present crisis are fully discussed in an article on a later page. The funda- mental cause is a continued failure to balance the Budget. Speculation has no doubt contributed, but there is an inevitable temptation for the Prime Minister to exag- gerate its effects in order to divert attention from factors for which the Government could be held more fully responsible. The French people are ready for drastic action, but M. Flandin's demand for a completely blank cheque, and his flat refusal to give any indication of the measures he contemplates, almost inevitably involve his defeat. The outlook is dark, for such economies as reduction of war-pensions will be hard to avoid and almost certain to precipitate political trouble. That may give Col. De la Rocque and his Croix de Feu their chance. Internationally it is profoundly unfortunate that France should be plunged in a political crisis that may last for some weeks just at the moment when negotiations of the first importance on such matters as the Western Air Pact and a Central European agreement are impending. The loss of M. Laval in particular would be serious. He may or may not remain at the Quai d'Orsay under a new Government. Even if he should, he will find it hard to concentrate the attention of the Cabinet on foreign affairs for some time.
