Vindictive Sap

No such thing is Gustave Sap, Belgian scholar, politician, one of the leaders of the Catholic Party and onetime Minister of Finance (1934). But though Scholar Sap has been professor of economics at Louvain University, Politician Sap is not a man to forget a grudge. Independently wealthy, Gustave Sap has been frequently named the financial backer of Rexist Leon Degrelle, Belgian Fascist leader who was soundly trounced at the polls by black-haired, red-mustached Premier Paul van Zeeland five months ago (TIME. April 19).

The prestige of that victory helped win for Premier van Zeeland unofficial command of the expanded Oslo Group of nations (Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Belgium, The Netherlands, Luxemburg, Switzerland) and three months ago he went to the U. S. to present to President Roosevelt the ideas of these countries, who have agreed to be neutral in any coming European war (TIME, June 14, July 5). Returning with still added prestige, Paul van Zeeland seemed ready to compete with Czechoslovakia's Eduard Benes for the title of "Europe's Smartest Little Statesman."

Biding his time, vindictive Sap struck, and last week came within an ace of wrecking Paul van Zeeland's entire political career. By no means wealthy, Paul van Zeeland is nevertheless Europe's only banker-Premier. He served as secretary, director and later as vice governor of the Banque Nationale de Belgique for many years, but punctiliously resigned his post on assuming the Premiership.

Few months ago Gustave Sap rose in Belgium's Parliament and pointed out that though Premier van Zeeland had tendered his resignation from the directorate of the National Bank of Belgium, the Bank still listed him as a vice governor, had not chosen a successor. Broadly he hinted that Paul van Zeeland was still accepting his $20,400 salary as a bank official, in addition to his much smaller salary as Premier of Belgium.* Furious, Premier van Zeeland swore that this was a lie, offered to open all his private accounts. Parliament believed him. Gustave Sap's own Catholic Party demanded that he either apologize publicly or leave the organization. Gustave Sap refused to do either, sued a number of his Catholic brethren for slander, but from then on attacks on Paul van Zeeland were generally made by Rexist Leader Leon Degrelle.

Last week the question of the Belgian Premier's double salary was reopened with a bang. Rexist Degrelle declared that. whether or not the Premier was getting his money, the National Bank of Belgium still carried Paul van Zeeland's 600,000 Belgian franc salary on its books. It was thereupon revealed that at least part of this sum had been quietly pocketed by the bank's Governor Louis Franck and the other directors. Nobody was greatly exercised when Premier van Zeeland belatedly admitted that he had accepted bonuses in 1934 and 1935 when he had left active politics and temporarily returned to the bank. But Governor Louis Franck did not have so acceptable an explanation for his part in the affair. It was true that the van Zeeland salary was still on the bank's books, he said, but part of this money had been used for charity and the acquisition of works of art. The remainder the other directors had appropriated as compensation for doing Paul van Zeeland's work.

To ventilate the whole situation, Premier van Zeeland insisted on a special meeting of Parliament. King Leopold, whose favorite Premier is Paul van Zeeland, may delay the meeting till passions have cooled somewhat. Well he knew that though Paul van Zeeland might be personally guiltless, it was his duty as Premier to know what monkey business the directors of the State bank of issue were indulging in.

*The present small salaries of Belgian civil servants are due to none other than rich Gustave Sap himself who as Minister of Finance was responsible for two successive federal pay cuts of 3.4% and 5% .

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.