MONACO: No Time for Play

War came at last to Monte Carlo. In the little Principality of Monaco, 370 acres of neutrality clamped to the underbelly of Fortress Europe, the Germans tightened the screws. Madrid reported that 5,000 resident aliens, thousands of casual visitors, were sent packing. Monaco, which contains famed, gay Monte Carlo, was left in the hands of the Germans and 1,500 native Monegasques.

War hitherto had not disturbed Monte Carlo. New-rich Germans arrived to spend the proceeds of the loot of France. Collaborationists and refugees with more money than respectability swarmed in. Prices soared. The average price of a meal in 1942, was $24. Wine and liquors easily added another $100 to the bill. British whiskey and gin were $40 a bottle. Good brands of British cigarets were $22 for 50. Food was plentiful and good for those who had the price. The Germans ordered an end of that, too, demanded rationing for neutral Monagasoues. The Government of Prince Louis II acceded.

Mournfully the Madrid correspondent reported: “The last session of roulette was desolating. People played only 10-and 20-franc notes. The baccarat game . . . closed for lack of a banker. The barman at the Casino sold his last Henry Clay cigars for 1,000 francs. A few weeks ago they were 10,000 francs. Nobody wanted to buy whiskey. . . . Monaco is a desert.”