The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1921-01-11
WALLACE IS
LEADING FOR
FARM POST
Harding Will Stick to Deter
mination to Choose Iowa
Editor for Agriculture Sec
retary, Says Sullivan.
PACKERS OPPOSE HIM
By MARK SULLIVAN

The most dependable judgment is that
Senator Harding will stick to his de-
termination to make Henry c. Wal
lace, of Des Moines, editor of Wal
lace's Farmer, secretary of agricul.
ture.
The opposition to Wallace, which
has been increasing for some weeks,
is just now at it's height. From now
on the efforts of the aroused sup
porters of Wallace may be expected
to count. Next week the National
Livestock association will meet in
Texas, and it is predicted by the ad-
vocates of Wallace that he will be in
dorsed by that meeting. This should
neutralize the widespread allegations
to the effect that livestock men as
well oppose Wallace.
The reply now to these allegations
is that it is only those livestock men
who operate in a big way, or who are
close to the packers. that oppose
Wallace. This is the allegation Of
Wallace supporters. I don't know
enough about it to be certain of the
merits of it.
Some Are Silent
Not all the packers are opposing
Wallace. One group of them takes
the view that in the past their efforts
to affect public matters have reacted
badly, and they now follow a policy
of careful avoidance Of it.
The focus of most of this talk lies
in the fact that there is now pending
in congress a bill, fathered by Sem
ator Kenyon, of Wallace's homestate,
for the revaluation of the packing in
dustry. On this bill Mr. Wallace has
taken a position of quaiified advoc-
acy A few sentences from a recent
utterance of his paper will throw light
on his position.
while there are some provisions In
the Kenyon bill which may seem to
be rather drastic, and while stock men
are particularly fea rful of the proposal
to place such great power in the
hands of the secretary of agriculture,
we do not think there Is any danger
that legislation will be enacted which
will cripple the packers, provided 1t
is enacted soon.
Fire Getting Hot.
'Tt is astonishing to US that the
packers themselves do not see this;
they have been under fire for 80 years
past, and the fire has been getting
hotter all the time. They can expect
nothing less than that it will continue
to get hotter until remedial legislation
is enacted, and we should think they
would be glad to accept fair bin
which will give the government some
supervision over their operation"
This utterance gives a key to Mr..
Wallace's point of view and temper
on public questions he stands midway
between the radicals and the conserva-
tives. On the one hand, he advocates
reasonable control on the packing in
I,,ef hn 0t rA hn oil re
the radical non-partisan league most
strenuously.
Urge Curtiss.
The chief man whom the opposition
to Wallace has put forward is another
resident of Iowa, Charles F. Curtiss,
dean of the Iowa agricultural college
and head of various live stock associa-
tions. Between these two Iowans,
know that Wallace has the support
Of both senators from Iowa, and l am
told he has the support of every one
of the eleven Iowa members of con-
gress.
About the only other man seriously
mentioned for secretary of agriculture
is Governor Lowden of Illinois. There
is not much to that suggestion.
Senator Harding himself, has a feel
ing about Wallace that is strong
enough to resist good deal of oppo-
stion. During the campaign Harding
repeatedly sent for Wallace and in the
laying down of national policies about
agriculture in his campaign speeches.
consulted Wallace more than any
other man. 1t is likely that Harding,
in his own mind picked Wallace earl
ier and more definitely than any other
member of his cabinet
Wallace Is Scotch.
The feeling about Wallace held by
fact that whenever they describe him
always include the terms Scotch
man; that he is IAN emotional Scotch
man" or a "sure-fOoted Scotchman,"
or an honest Scotchman" or a "safe
and dependable Scotchman"; some
times when they mean to emphasize
certain strong qualities in him, they
describe him as "a red-headed Scotch
man"
, They all speak of him as being of
the highest character, of having an in
tegrity that is mathematical and of
having to a high degree administra-
tive ability that the office of secre-
tary of agriculture demands.
Takes Firm Stand.
Wallace appears to be a man who
takes a definite position on public
questions course and sticks to it firm.
ly. in the course of taking positions on
public affairs within the past few
years. Mr.. Wallace has opposed
Hoover on the ground that the latter,
as food controller in his relations
with the farmers was not always wise
according to Mr.. Wallace's view, and
most deplorable of all to a man of
Mr. Wallace'S temperament WAS az
he thought, inconsistent and vacili.
tating.
incidentally, it has no connection
with this, but it is fact that the like
hhood of Hoover being in the cabinet
seems little less certain now than it
was some weeks ago. The opposition
to Hoover has been most strenuous
in getting its views before Harding.
There has come to be, by the way,
a good deal of discussion among party
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