The vandals, in this case, I'm afraid are the councillors. Let us judge.

We protested against the monopolization by the Exhibition of Decorative Arts of the Cours-la-Reine, the Esplanade des Invalides, the Pont Alexandre III, the quays, etc... We spoke of the inconvenience that would result for the population of the installation of an exhibition in the heart of Paris. The municipal council, responsible for this installation, since it voted unanimously, fifteen months ago, the attribution to the Exhibition of these sites, deplored, four days ago, by another vote , no less unanimous, the difficulties which were going to result from it for, circulation.

"What we are going to do is madness," cried Mr. Emile Massard from the Council tribune, adding, verbatim:

"Am I wrong to call such a monstrous project madness?" Not only will we no longer be able to circulate in the places that I have just indicated, but the Champs-Élysées, where the torrent of traffic interrupted elsewhere will be discharged, the Champs-Élysées will become impassable. It will be the assassination of the most beautiful avenue in the world.

The whole Council was outraged by the chairman of the second committee. This indignation was unfortunately not enough to save the pitches already granted, but, finally, one could believe and hope that the councilors would realize the lightness with which they had granted the pitches requested 15 months ago. However, on the same day, during the same meeting, a few minutes after having cast this vote of indignation of which we have just spoken, the same councilors conceded the same sites, and under the same conditions as at the Arts Décoratifs, the 'Colonial Exhibition to be held in 1927.

They even went further; they concede to the Colonial Exhibition not only the Cours la Reine, the Pont Alexandre III, the quays, the Esplanade des Invalides, but the Pont d'Iéna, the Debilly footbridge, the gardens of the Trocadéro, the gardens of the Tower Eiffel, the Champ de Mars!

They cast this vote without a single protest being heard, without a reservation being made, even by the councilors of the neighborhoods concerned. What does it matter to them! In 1927, the elections will have renewed the Council and the new councilors will be able to lay the blame on their predecessors.

This vote is all the more inexplicable in that during the session which has just ended, our city councilors decided to create an exhibition center at the gates of Paris and that article 7 of the agreement that the prefect of the Seine has been authorized to sign reads as follows: "The City of Paris gives the Concessionary Company the guarantee that from January 1, 1926 it will no longer give any authorization for the holding of any exhibition whatsoever on the communal domain, inside the old fortified enclosure, except in the case of prior agreement with the Company. »

In reporting on this deliberation, we expressed concern that this commitment may be breached. All the same, we didn't think we were right so quickly and so completely.

HENRI MONTAZEL