DESCENDANTS OF DU BARRY

Petticoat government seems to be reaching international proportions. The case of Sir Eric Drummond, permanent secretary of the League of Nations, versus several million ladies illustrates the peaks to which it aspires It seems that Sir Eric., temporarily blind to the perilous consequences of the act, casually dismissed a librarian one morning whose contract had expired. That the sex of the official was feminine does not seem to have had nearly so much weight with the Secretary as with a whole hornet's nest of women's organizations. To them the deed was no less than a defiance of the Versailles Treaty, a denial to admit women to their rightful place in international affairs.

But the ladies seem, one might almost say wilfully, to overlook the fact that the librarian besides being feminine, was also American. And America, it will be remembered, is not a member of the League. Germany, on the other hand, has just joined and in reward for such good behaviour, richly deserves a plum or two. So argues Sir Eric. But telegrams beseeching and threatening continue to arrive.

Regardless of the merits of the case, the fact remains that a public issue has been made of the matter. Perhaps the ladies will have their way and perhaps they will not. At best it's a fifty fifty chance, which is not a very satisfactory state of affairs. They have been very foolish. Only a peek at the histories of Rome, France, or Bagdad would have shown that their method is not the way to sway Empires. A whisper in the right ear at the right time has always been much more effective than mountains of resolutions and cohorts of deputations. Publicity where an appointment is concerned is nearly always fatal. The ladies who want things done at Geneva ought to be reminded that a woman can sometimes succeed when she is inconsistent but hardly ever when she is unsubtle.