The New York herald., 1922-11-02
: MILLER RAPS Smith
As AFRAID TO FIGHT
Dares Him to Stand Up and
Give Blow for Blow in
Transit Issue.
SAYS HE QUITS NIXON
Accuses Him of Failing to
Repudiate or Defend Acts
OF Own AppOintee.
CALLS, PLEDGE A SHAM
Yells Brooklyn Promise of Foe
Is to Give Lines Over to
Corrupt Machine.
CALLS PLEDGE A SHAM

The fighting Miller crossed the
Rubicon of local Republican politics
last night and carried his war against
the Hylanism that Smith condones
into Brooklyn territory claimed by the
enemy. In a speech bolder and more
ruthlessly candid than anything which
mad proceeded from him he exposed
the Hylan plan for transit reorganiza-
Z ton to the biting acid of his ridicule
and denounced Alfred e. Smith as
shirlxer and skulker.
This new and intensely interesting
Miller, showing himself in an utterly
unsuspected light to the people of New
York city Gas if Judge annoyed by
Jack Dempsey, had stepped OIL the
bench to stand up to the champion
IN a toe to toe fight), described smith
az man of promise but Of precious
-.t,c performance, as Governor VINO
S.ilea to make good and who is trying
now to shove responsibility for fallure
upon others; but for every punch the
bellicose Miller let fly at Smith ne
drove two at Hylan. Plainly the Gov
ernor conveyed his contempt Tor
Smith, an able man, asking for votes
on the basis Of the junk and DUNK
(these are Miller's own words)
which make up Hylan's stock In trade.
Contrasts Two Methods.
Enthusiastically hailed by $500 Kings
county Republicans. and no man knows
how many Kings county Democrats. and
inspired by detonations of applause, ths
Governor built his lively speech upon a
comparison of the Hylan plan, so-caiied'
and the transit plan which his own
Transit Commission is now working out
And he closed his speech with this piuht
opposition of the facts:
"On the one hand you have weird
plan Of economic idiocy and political
bunk; on the other hand plan Oh
proved business vision, utterly divorced
from political considerations. On the
one hand you have Mr.. Smiths promise
to turn the transit system over 10 \
corrupt political machine. On the othcf
hand you have my promise to diverse
the transit system from politics. to give
tho people adequate transportation
facilities, to restore the LOO transfer
points that were taken from you ana 30
guarantee a permanent cent fare from
any part of the city to any other part.
1t is your city, your government. This
ia the issue. Take your choice"
The laundering of applause that fol'
lowed this downright statement was
about the heartiest response the Gov
ernor has received anywhere In the cam
paign. The crowd liked his fighting
manner and his way of putting facts In
words that sank straight into their COM
prehension. Talking before his Dig
Brooklyn audience. the Governor took
up the whole complex traction situation.
took it to pieces and put 1t together
again so that everybody in the Clermont
Avenue Rink knew (probably for the
first time) what all the talk meant.
Gives Specific Instances.
He gave specific instance after
specific instance Of what Smiths Public
Service Commissioner Lewis Nixon and
the Hyian city administration had done
to ruin transit service OF the CITY. ana
he outlined exactly what his Transit
Commission had done up to date to rev
pair the destruction Of the last four
Years and to build greatly for the future.
Ho summarized the results OF Hylanis'n
and Smiths inaction and he compared
this record with summary of reN
achievement by the Transit Commissio J
which lie DaCkS WIFI All tic Va
the state. Here is the way the Govern or
put 1T:
First. the city Administrations pro-
gram has been one of destruction. The
Transit Commissions work one of con-
struction.
Second, Commissioner Nixon and
the city admins ration's destructive
plan destroyed thu five cent fare by
making 1t a double and treble five
cent fare. The Transit Commission has
already saved the five cent fare and
nut a guarantee of at least s25. 900, 900
back of the maintenance of the five
cent fare in the future.
Third, the city administration and
Commissioner Nixon helped to break
I'D existing lines and TO destroy the old
transfer system. The Transit Commits
zion proposes to restore the former
transfer system.
Fourth. the city administration Is
desperately undertaking 10 make junk
OF needed facilities In order to substi-
tute politically controlled facilities in
their place. The Transit Commission
proposes to retain existing facilities un-
III others have taken their place.
Business Vision VS.. Idfocy.
Fifth, the city administration pro-
poses still further breaking up what is
left OF unfication by separating the
elevated systems from the b. II. r.
subway by breaking In two the Inter-
Borough system in order to establish
municipal operation of a part only of
those two systems and to compel the
people to pay further double fares In
order to fasten political control for pri-
vate profit on part only OF the broken
systems The Transit Commission pro-
poses to retain the present unificaton
and upon that TO build UP a completely
unified system to be city owned, with
city representation and not State rep
resentation. upon the board OF control.
"Slxth. the city administration pro-
poses TO use UP all Of the available
borrowing power OF the city In order to
establish political control over n part
OF these systems. The Transit Commits
sion proposes to acquire title to the
systems without the expenditure of a
single dollar of city money and to re-
lease $500, ,000,0 900 of present frozen city
credit for the immediate building Of
new subways.
ITO sum up. on the one hand you
t~I ~.