New-York tribune., 1920-02-09
Regencies Used
As Bait to Win
Votes by Sweet
Anti Socialist Strength To
Be Recruited by Bar
ter of Three Vacan-
cies on the State Board
From a sta6 Correspondent

AI.BANY, Feb. S.--Thrce vacancies
Ar the State Board of Regents will be
nsrtered for votes to expel the five
Socialist Asscmblymen at caucus to-
morrow, according to reports current
here tonight.
To hold the wavering upstatemen in
line the little group behind Thaddeus C.
Sweet, Speaker of the Assembly, is
holding out the promise of one more
uns.ate regent if the Assemblymen
north OF the Harlem River will only
stand pat This exchange will be at
the expense of New York City.
One of the New York City vacancies
is due to the appointment of Abram I.
Elkus to the Court. of Appeals. The
other results from the expiration Of
the term of~james Byrnc The third
is caused by the moving of Walter
Guest Kellogg from Ogdensburg to
Cortland.
Regents Govern Education in State
Ogdenshurg is in the 4th judicial
District Cortland is in the 9Th Judi
cial District Under the law there
must be at least one regent from each
OF the nine judicial districts in the state
resident therein. The moving of Kel-
logg necessltates the election of his
successor by a joint session of the
legislature. There are twelve regents
in all, as the law provides that there
shall be three more than there are
judicial districts. The regents govern
the State Department of Education.
The use of the educational system
Of the state as pulmotor for SPEAKER
Sweets personal political machine is
being resented by Republicans. All day
the word has gone forth that the eau
Gus Of the ma ajorities in both houses
of the Legislature will be held to-mor-
row and for all to be on hand. This
caucus has been postponed one week
after another. 1t was originally set
for January 10. Then it was adjourned
to January 2o, then it was set for last
Monday. But on none of these DAYS
were things shaped to the liking Of
Speaker Sweet and his little group
here.
Speaker Sweet, according to the talk
among politicians, can count not only
upon the open support of the "old
guard OF which William Barnes is
the recognized leader, but upon the
covert support of Tammany Hall and
its upstate appendages. Charles F.
expected to let the party lash fall on
the backs of those who are opposing
Sweet.
Bloch Keeps After Sweet
One Of the Tammany Assembfymen
who has opposed Sweet consistently to
date IS Maurice Bloch. He has at
tacked the presence of Mr.. Barnes's
former press agent as disseminator of
reports OF the trial to string of up
state newspapers, and he has character
lied as romance" the story told by the
year-old Brooklyn stenog-
rapher Miss Ellen Chivers, who testl-
ned that at street meeting Assembly,
man solomon spat upon the American
flag.
Bloch also has a motion before the
Assembly calling for the appearance of
Speaker Sweet as witness before the
Judiciary Committee, of which the Tam
that Sweet, who stampeded the Assem-
ply into voting for the expulsion of the
Socialists. should tell all regarding the
ever is which led to the stampede.
II Sweet is called by the prosecu-
ton, as Bloch and others believe he
should be, it would enable the counsel
for the fve suspended Socialists to
,ross-examine him. Should the prose-
cution not call Sweet and the Socialists
put him on the stand they will be
bound by his answers.
The prosecution will end it's case, in
the belief of the counsel of the Judi
ciary Committee, not later than Thurs
day. The defense will take upward of
three weeks.