Evening Star Newspaper, October 25, 1936, Page 42

D—12 Forceful Premier Brings- Stability To Country Once Headed for Ruin (Continued From First Plle) be effected without the progress of the healing prdcess in the rest of the con- tinent. Nationalism is the sickness, and its symptoms are high tariff, ex- port and import quotas, contingents, barter arrangements—in other words, self-sufficiency. “Yet tte truth of it is that not even the United States, the Soviet Union and France are self-contained, al- though they come nearest to it. We shall have got rid of the crisis only after we have placed the economic life of our countries on its natural basis, where goods may be moved from one country to another without hindrance. This time will come, and it will be a turning point in Europe's malady.” “L'experience Van Zeeland” is the name under which the Belgians know their premier’s program, but his fol- lowers prefer to call it a “plan of na- tional renovation.” Since Belgium is smaller than Maryland, and her very life is dependent upon peace and & free exchange of goods among the nations of all the world, international relations and foreign commerce oc- cupy important places in Van Zee- land’s program. Since he realizes that not even the strongest chain of fortifi- cations could save such a small coun- try from an aggressive Third Reich, he has concentrated on aligning France and Great Britain on the side of Belgium. Succesful in London. In the pursuit of this policy he had to overcome the opposition of many Flemish-speaking Belgians who fear France more than Germany, either | jaws and of political and diplomatic because their language and culture are largely Germanic or because they have fallen under the influence of German Nazi-ism. He also had to overcome the obstacle of Great Brit- ain’s traditional refusal to commit herself in advance to any policy that | may involve war. pledge from Downing Street that it would consider the violation of Bel- gian independence a cause of war. Van Zeeland is a fervent believer in European co-operation and is known to be working on a new disarmament plan. He is also preparing conferences in the belief that the best way to keep Europe out of war is to keep the dip- lomats talking. In foreign trade his program calls for the gradual abolition of trade obstacles, quotas and licenses, the lowering of customs barriers, the re- organization of the movements and Van Zeeland has | came deeply intereéted in this country, | succeeded, however, in extracting the | still finds solace in the Odes and Epis- tles of Horace. From the local school he went to the five-century-old University of Louvain, preparing for the bar. At the same time he took up political science and economics as side lines. When the World War -broke out he served his time as a soldier in the unl- versity’s own company. He joined the fleld forces which were being pushed out of Belglum by the advancing Ger man army. He was in the vicinity of Nieuport when taken prisoner in.a night attack, and after some vicissi- tudes, of which no Belgian likes to speak, was placed in the concentra= tion camp of Soltau, a sleepy little town about 50 miles from Hanover. Although as an officer he was not compelled to work, at first, he made use of every minute, studying law, English and German. The early Sum- mer sun saw him already at his books, and he kept working until it was time for lights to be put out. Some of his comrades thought he was aloof until he explained that study was his method of escape from “barbed wire disease,” a rather common neurotic condition of war prisoners, which made them both pugnacious and | weary of life. Year after year went by. There seemed to be no hope. What was at first thought to be an indeterminate | sentence was becoming a life term. In the fourth year of his prison life Van | Zeeland was transferred to the gas factory of Stuttgart where he had to do manual labor. Then came the | armistice, which found him ready m resume his studies at full speed. He was graduated as a doctor ot | sciences. Shortly afterward Princeton University offered a one-year scholar- | ship to Belgian graduate students, | and he won it. During his stay lt Princeton he took particular interest in America’s banking system, lbo\lt‘l | which he wrote a keen study. He be- the political and economic life of | which he has followed closely ever since. In his talks he often refers to American institutions and reveals a deep knowledge of life in this country. | After his return to Belgium he began a busy life, which kept him | moving from place to place and from | | higher to higher offices. Although his | | intimates feared that his retiring nature would he a handicap,-he was | | soon discovered by the governor of | | the Belgian National Bank, M. Le- preux, who madé him his secretary | | and saw to it that the unusual gifts | | of his young assistant should not go | | to waste. transfers of capital and the re-estab- lishment of an international monetary standard — which he still believes | should be gold. He realizes that such reforms may be introduced only on an international basis. He still adheres to the principle announced in one of his lectures before the Page School of International Relations three years ago: “Re-establish the role of eco- omic morality and perhaps provxde for sanctions to secure respect for it.” The guiding thought of his do- mestic economic program was indi- cated in the same lecture: “Once the principal obstacles have | disappeared, private initiative will be quite capable of filling the gaps and taking back its old place. Meanwhile | it may be necessary to provide transi- tional organizations and processes | the Chamber of Deputies—but he which will help to get the machinery | egain in gear.” The most important features of his | transitional program are: Great pub- | lic works to absorb unemployment, | medium-term credits to stimulate business, the policy of cheap money, state supervision of private banks | and state assistance in arranging bank guarantees. He devalued the Belgian currency, he said, not because ‘of its weakness but because of the increase | in the value of gold. He had some | government bonds converted with the compulsory participation of the banks. Provided Minimum Pay. | He settled the numerous strikes | that broke out in June by providing | for minimum wages, paid vacations | and government guarantee of the lib- | erty of action of trade unions. In political matters his program is| summed up in one word: “Democ- racy.” He has indicated, however, | that he would welcome some effective means by which parliamentary work may be accelerated, especially in re- gard to the budget. | Paul van Zeeland comes of an old | Dutch family of burghers which was | prominent in the affairs of the Neth- | erlands even before the Duke of Alva | sought to pacify that country through | his “Council of Troubles,” better | known as the “Council of Blood.” | One of his ancestors, Arnold van Zee- land, made his name four centuries ago as an able envoy of the Utrecht Principality. Two centuries later the family followed the urge of the soil and moved into the French-speaking | part of what is today the Kingdom of Belgium. There they have been part of the landed nobility, prominent in church and army. The seventh of eight children, Paul ‘was borm in Soigniee, famous for the forest immortalized in Byron’s *“Childe Harold.” Napoleon took the oak for his fleet, with which he hoped to in- vade England, from these woods. He | had his secondary education at the Jocal “college,” St. Vincent, attached to the town's beautiful twelfth cen- tury abbey church. His teachers gave, him an excellent classical education, which enables him even now to make occasional puns in Greek and Latin. He was not yet 30 when he was rep- | | resenting Belgium at some of the most | | important international conferences. With record-breaking speed he became | secretary of the bank, then its direc- | tor, and finally its vice governor. King | Puad asked Belgium to lend him to | Egypt. and when he left Cairo after | | a three months’ stay, Egypt's finances | ‘were in much better shape. A few years ago he was honored with a ‘ chair in the law faculty of Louvain. Took Interest in Politics. Up to that time nothing had indi- cated that Van Zeeland would go into politics. He was a member of the | Catholic party, which after the elec- tions of 1929 had a strong majority in the Senate and a weak majority in took no active interest in the coun- | try's political life. ‘When the depression hit, Belgium | suffered acutely, because her pros- perity depends largely upon foreign trade. The nervous breakdown of | | Parliament reflected the country's | position. Governments were trying their best to stave off the worst effects of the crisis. It was first Premier Count de Broqueville who thought of | drafting Van Zeeland for public serv- ice. He offered the young man a min- istry without portfolio, where he was as useful as his limited authority per- mitted him to be. He occupied also the same post in the ministry of M. | Theunis. | In March of last year Belgian | economic life reached a critical point. It was the King who took matters in | hand and invited Van Zeeland for an | exchange of views. The vice governor of the National Bank was ready to accept power if he were sure to re- | ceive the backing of Parliament. His | primary condition was that all major parties—Catholics, Socialists, Liberals | —should be represented in his cabinet. | The professional politicians made a | wry face when informed of the King’s | intention, but there was grave dan- | ger in delay, so they accepted Van | Zeeland. One of the first acts of the new premier was to close the Bourse and suspend the gold standard. He,‘ devalued the. belga by 28 per cent, | converted a large part of the public debt, introduced an ambitious public works program, reorganized the bank- | ing system under government control, | extended mortgage and credit relief. | Late last Spring new elections were held in Belgium—and provided a first- rate sensation. The Catholic party lost its majority and the Socialists be- came the largest party—not because they won new seats, but because they lost less than the other major party. At the same time a new political party, the Rex, suspected of strongly Fascist tendencies, injected itself into political life by gaining 22 seats in the cham- ber, where until then it had none. The parliamentary picture indicated a Socialist government, but Van Zee- land’s prestige had become so great that he was asked to take the helm After 18 hours’ work at his desk he Special for This Weelk! Folding Complete With LENSES again. Oxfords ~—This low 'pflce includes white gold-filled, beautifully engraved vision lenlea olding oxford frame, and white, single- HAVE YOUR EYES EXAMINED (Dr. DesShazo, Registered Optometrist, in Charge) Use Your Charge Account or Our Convenient Budget Plan Optical Dept. Street Floor T HE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. Here’s Your €Ga In Hat¢ C., OCTOBER 25, 1936—PART TWO. 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