THE TROUBLE WITH FRANCE

WHAT is wrong with France? Why should a nation that has successfully survived a thousand years be always on the brink of disaster? Why should a nation that blazed the Continent's trail to democracy be unable to govern itself? Why should a nation whose name has ranked for centuries as a synonym of enlightenment and intelligence be unable to make up its mind? No one ponders these questions more earnestly than the French themselves. As France sulked proudly at the sting of the U.S. Secretary of State's rebuke and vacillated helplessly over the choice of a President who would exercise little or no power, several thoughtful Frenchmen attempted to answer the question: What is wrong with France?

Historian Andre Maurois: "Three things must be done: reform of the constitution, reform of parliamentary procedure, and reform of the electoral system. A really determined political leader could, I believe, do it. France will always be a difficult country to govern, but she has survived worse crises than the present one and always astonished the world with her powers of recuperation. I would be willing to bet that in a hundred years' time--in 2053--France will be going along about the same as she is now--not perhaps much better, but no worse. Unless in 2053 there is one world--or no world."

Novelist Jules Remains, author of the 27-volume Men of Good Will: "France is at a decisive moment of her existence. I personally believe we should introduce some of the elements of the U.S. Constitution. We need strong men in government, energy without despotism. I am often struck by the historical parallels of the Directoire and the First Consulate. Under the Directoire, everything seemed to be going badly, with the corruption and weakness of the government and the seeming irresponsibility and apathy of many of the people in the country, but it needed only a Bonaparte to come along as first consul and say, 'It's over, now it is time to get to work,' and suddenly things began to improve in a dramatic way. The tragedy was that Bonaparte was not content to remain as first consul, and was tempted by his ambition to turn the country back towards absolutism. What we need today is a Bonaparte who would in effect remain first consul.

"People are tired and disgusted with present politics, for it seems that no decision can be taken. But this mood can pass rapidly, if the right leadership arises. If France can strengthen herself internally, she has a big role to play in the world. She could be the center of gravity in Europe--not dominating Europe, but the central organ for United Europe. Some people may say. 'How can France play such a role in Europe, since she has shown she cannot manage her own internal affairs?' But this overlooks the fact that in long periods of her recent history, France managed her affairs very well. The future of Europe is not all a matter of businesslike management. It will also need imaginative ideas, of which France has always been so prolific.

"During the war. the thought crossed my mind that Paris might dwindle in importance, perhaps to become a kind of Vienna. But the new geopolitical factors have tended, if anything, to increase the importance of Paris as a world center. I hope the U.S. continues her traditional policy of alliance with France. She must, of course, speak frankly as to a friend, but she should take into account the ordeals of the past and even perhaps some of the faults of character of her friends.''

Ex-Foreign Minister Robert Schuman: "In a democracy without authority, everything goes adrift: Parliament, government, administration. We no longer respect each other enough to recognize the superiority of others. We know not how to command nor to obey.

Nobel Prizewinner Francois Mauriac, author of close to 60 books: "Our policy at present yields only immobility and rottenness. What is there to say of this unending swirl of opinions around the European army, on which, at Bermuda, our allies watched the two French corks dancing? The crimes of personal life can be redeemed and erased, but not those of political life. Because it never stops, because it develops unceasingly in all directions and on all levels, history does not pardon the consequences of a deed once done nor does it pardon our evasions and our refusals . . .

"Impotence--that is the flaw of our men of power . . . The statesman worthy of the name is the one who can make his own designs prevail over the passions of a Parliament, as he would be able, were he dictator and absolute master, to reduce to silence his own passions. Such is the gift of persuasion and of leadership which has been bestowed on none of our weak rulers.

"The essential cause of France's troubles is the extreme individualism of the French people. Each shade of political opinion insists on being represented. Of all peoples, we are the least cut out for democracy. Which explains the fact that since 1789 we have spent our time envying British institutions."

Businessman Georges Villiers, president of France's equivalent of the National Association of Manufacturers: "Financial and economic policy of the state at all levels--taxation, credit, export policy--all must cease to discourage those who have a taste for risks.

The spirit of initiative is not lacking in France.

What is lacking is the chance for Frenchmen to show it."

Jean-Jacques Servan-Schreiber, 29-year-old editor of the conservative weekly L'Express: "The French mystery is impotence--that lucidity should be followed by nothing. If you listen to an ex-minister, he will explain with serenity what might have been done; if you meet a man in office today he will brilliantly explain what should be done. The ideas are seductive, the directions are clearly indicated, the plans are detailed. France conceived the universe and then nothing, or almost nothing, happens . . . The men who govern today or have governed in recent years (they are practically the same ones), have taken the habit of no longer believing that a serious effort can be undertaken and succeed . . .

"Barring accidents and on condition that external forces

do not intervene at any time in a brutal way, this sliding

into mediocrity and inertia should lead the country slowly

and painlessly into Communism. Those who believe it can't

happen here are lulling themselves with illusions.

France may still be saved by young men convinced

of their mission, whose personal lives are austere and dedicated to work."

Poet-Playwright Jean Cocteau: "Why ask of France that she should be neat and orderly? For then she would no longer be France. To us what is bad is the monologue. We don't want to speak with one voice. We like to have a perpetual dialogue, with everybody talking at once."

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