800.51 W 89France/365: Telegram
The Ambassador in France (Herrick) to the Secretary of State
[Received August 7—10 a.m.]
314. Yesterday Poincaré struck a snag in the Chamber of Deputies when he found, in trying to arrange for the ratification of our debt agreement before the adjournment next week, that his followers had not had time to adapt themselves to his new attitude and were still opposed to ratification. It seems likely that ratification will go over to the autumn, although the Government’s attitude is now uncertain.
Since it was a great deal to expect that the ordinary rank and file should make a complete face-about in less than a week, this Parliamentary opposition is unfortunate but not surprising.
[Page 102]Although Pertinax strongly urges the ratification of the British agreement as a proof of French good faith and to show that opposition to the Washington agreement is not due to the terms but to the lack of a safeguard clause, I gather that it will share our fate.