6 JANUARY 1933, Page 10

I am surprised that not more attention has been paid

to the appointment of M. Pierre Cot as Under-Secretary of Foreign Affairs in the Boneour Government. m. Cot's first entry into office is, actually, an event of some importance, partly because, so long as M. Boncour remains both Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary, the Under-Secretary's role will be a large one ; and partly because it marks the beginning of what looks like being a long (since M. Cot is not yet forty) and notable Ministerial career. Experience as a captain of infantry in the War, a keen intelligence, marked oratorical gifts (reminiscent of Briand in his more restrained moments), a manifest sincerity in the cause of peace and disarmament, all point to the new Under-Secretary as a coming force in international as well as national politics.