The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-10-28
HEARST SCORNS
SMITH Def TO
PUBLIC DEBATE
NO Satisfaction in Meeting
Crooked Politicians or
Faithless Servants
MURPHY SUES PUBLISHER
"Swat the Boss" Editorials in
"Evening Journal" are Lii
bel Suit Basis.

Developments came thick and fast
last night in the feud between Will
lam Randolph Hearst on the one hand
and Gov Alfred E. Smith and Charles
F. Murphy and Tammany Hall on the
other.
Mr. Hearst in letter to Col. Jeffer-
son De Mont Thompson. chairman of
the Committee of One Hundred, which
has rented Carnegie Hall for to-mor-
row night, refused to meet the Gov
ernor there in debate. He had no in
tention, he declared, of meeting the
Governor publicly or privately, politi-
cslly or socially"
Mr. Hearst used harsh language In re-
terring to the Governor. whom he accused
of breaking a pledge TO him TO support
municipal ownership. 1t was this pledge,
he said which induced him to support
Mr. Smith for the Governorship a year
ago.
1t was not necessary, Mr.. Hearst
wrote, to establish further the fact that
! the Governor had shown himself "ut-
| terly fafthless and unreliable"
| II was announced by William NJ X.
Olcott that he had been instructed by
/ Mr.. Murphy to bring an action for libe'
against Mr.. Hearst and the New York
! Erenin0 Journal. The suit. it was
stated. would be based on the publi-
cation of an alleged account of the tes-
/ timony in the Hartog glucose suit, which
was followed last night by a full page
editorial, which Mr.. Olcott declared re-
] Nv hyf a N
Text of Hearst Reply.
| The letter follows:
81 am surprised that Boss Murphy did
I not send me the invitation you have
obligingly forwarded, since it was TG m
many that hired Carnegie Hall for
Wednesday night before the hall was
| turned over to you.
| II have no intention of meeting Gov.
Smith publicly or privately. politically
or socially.
II do not have to meet him. as / am
not running for office and l certainly dc
not want to meet him for the pleasure
| of the association, as l find no satlstac-
tion m the company of crooked politi-
clans.
( 'Neither have ! time nor inclination
! to debate with every public plunderei
or faithless public servapt whom my
| papers have exposed, for the reason thai
! every pilloried rascal in every city where
my papers are published always tries tc
divert attention from the real issue oi
his political crookedness by making some
! sort of a blatherskite onslaught upon me
81 have no explanations TO make fol-
attacking the Milk Trust and the Trac-
ton Trust and the politicians who have
/ surrendered to these rich and powerful
I Numbering corporations. and are com
| mitted to 20 cent milk and 10 cent street
car fares.
"I have no apologies to make for moi
| supporting the judicial section hanus OF
| the New York Central Railroad or any
Of Mr.. Murphy's hand picked appoint
ments to the bench.
THE only apology I would have to
make would be for having supported
/ GOV. Smith, and that l did because ol
| the perjured pledge OF that inolVloua
made publicly in my papers on August 2
1918.
~ had no confidence in the progress
siye sentiments of Candidate Smith, and
in reply to his request for support
| asked for a public pledge. as the private
| a assurances of men of his type have nc
weight with me whatever :.
| ION August 2, 1918. Candidate Smith
| made the following formal statement
which was printed conspicuously in large
I TYNE in nv newspapers for several days
and upon which the editorials were bum
which advocated the election OF Mr
Smith for Governor. Candidate smith
| said: ,
! Government control of public utili'
tie. long advocated and discussed as a
possibility. Is now an accomplished fact
"It is a short step from temporary
control to permanent Government opera
tion of the important public utilities OF
| this country.
| at is only a question of time. an'
a very short time, wnen that Will come
81 believe that experience has taugh
us the wisdom of Government ownership
and operation Of public utilities to I'M
end that these indispensable aids U
the commerce, business, health and com
fort OF the people may be owned an'
permanently controlled by the Govern
ment
"'The action just taken by the Fed
eral Government will have a most stimu
lating influence on the movement TO
| municipal ownership of public utilities
in the State of New York
| "To what a complete extent Gov
Smith has repudated this pledge an'
betrayed the confidence OF the whole peo
pie is fully known to every citizen o
the State Of New York.
Gov. Smith having proved himsel
utterly faithless and unreliable it is 20
necessary further to establish that Oh
yious fact.
You need keep no tickets for an,
friend of mine at your assembly, 10
there is no friend of mine who woul'
.be complimented TO be found in sucl
company.
distribute all OF your tickets to tn
milk trust and the traction trust ant
the politicians they own and the Judge
they are seeking TO control.
And in. conclusion let me say that /
co,,,n.,d a. yh,S puo.