(3) The preceding remarks suffice to explain the following fact: since the establishment of the parliamentary régime in Germany _no Ministry has ever been overturned_ by the Reichstag. How can it be, if it conforms to the condition of its agreement and if, before each hazardous decision, it assures itself the approval of the majority? On the other hand, if it cannot obtain this approval, or if it does not want to accept the policy desired by the majority groups, why should it go before the Assembly and engage in a battle lost in advance? It resigns. The Ministry, therefore, is never overthrown; it retreats, or more correctly, it does not retreat, but changes. The number of men available for a Ministry is very limited and the groups present almost always the same men. There is in advance a certain knowledge as to who the men are who will enter a Cabinet as soon as one knows what groups will participate in the formation. Further, the possibilities of combinations within a given Chamber are limited enough. From the beginning of February, 1919, only four groups have participated in power, of these the People’s Party participated only after June, 1920. It is inevitable, therefore, that in each new combination there remain at least two groups which already belonged to the preceding one. Quite naturally these groups leave, without exception, the same men in power. Why change? An important part of the preceding Ministry, therefore, is maintained in each new Ministry. In June, 1919, Scheidemann’s Cabinet, which consisted of Social Democrats, Democrats and members of the Centre, was replaced by Bauer’s Cabinet, in which only the Centre and the Social Democrats entered. The members of these two groups which were in the Scheidemann Cabinet remained in the Bauer Cabinet and it was sufficient to replace with members of these two groups the vacancies left by Scheidemann and the Democrats. In March, 1920, Bauer’s Cabinet, into which the Democrats entered in October, 1919, attempted a new change after the _coup d’état_ of Kapp. Conferences took place, in which took part the President of the Reich, the Ministers and representatives of parties, in which was discussed the question as to which Ministers should remain and which must go.