"Normal Work"

With the French Chamber not due to reconvene until November, Premier Edouard Daladier last week announced that he would call an extraordinary session at "a fairly early date." If the pugnacious Premier does so, then, as Chicago Daily News's Edgar Ansel Mowrer cabled last week: "Everything seems to be set for one of the finest political battles France has witnessed, even in these eventful years. . . . By denouncing the 40-hour law (TIME, Aug. 29), without asking any so-called equivalent sacrifices from French capitalists, Premier Daladier smashes the Popular Front or what was left of it."

Meantime, the Czech crisis and the ominous maneuvers of 1,300,000 German soldiers beyond the French frontier, placed French Communists and Socialists in a corner. Premier Daladier's proposal to emasculate the 40-hour law was a slap in their face but they dared not set out to wreck his Cabinet.

Socialist leader, M. Leon Blum, whose party is the largest in the Chamber, was forced to pussyfoot. He came out in his newspaper Le Populaire thus: "We do not seek to exploit against Edouard Daladier the difficulties which he has created for himself. The hour is too grave for that. But it is necessary that he be warned, if he has not already been. For repeal of the social legislation or for a reversal of attitude toward the working class, let him not count on the Socialist Party."

Actually, the Premier had not called for outright repeal. What M. Daladier demanded fortnight ago and would ask the Chamber, if summoned, to approve, is supplemental legislation or administrative action to draw the sting of the 40-hour law. He was last week in such a position as Franklin Roosevelt might be, were the U. S. President to put Recovery ahead of Reform instead of Reform ahead of Recovery. Premier Daladier calculated that with living costs rising, millions of French workers would rather increase their earnings by working 48 hours (with 10% overtime after 40 hours as offered by the Premier) than cling to the 40-hour week. Secondly, the Premier counted on most Frenchmen, irrespective of party, being able to see last week the military necessity of raising French production, thereby also strengthening France's financial position by increasing Government revenues.

No. 1 French Labor Boss is portly Leon Jouhaux whose General Confederation of Labor boasts 5,000,000 followers. It is a trade union setup separate from the Socialist or Communist parties who eagerly look to it for votes. Last week M. Jouhaux, visiting in the U. S., announced that so long as "repeal" of the 40-hour law is excluded and its "principle" maintained, French Labor will not attempt to bar modifications in the law.

"I say that France is lost if she does not work normally," reiterated Premier Daladier last week as he reminded French Communists that in Russia there is no 40-hour week and Soviet workers toil much longer hours.

Under the force of that declaration the franc and French security prices firmed. M. Daladier meanwhile summoned a Ministerial Council to decide by what steps French workers will be started working 48 hours.

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