The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-04-15
HOG TIED ONES IF COP. HAVE ISSUE AT HAND.
Must WrestIe With Harding For Party Control Before Their Candidacy For President Will Gain
 Momentum

WASHINGTON. April 14.-Events of the week have completely revolu- tionized the situation within the re- publican party President Harding has come back from a tranquil vaca- tion on the golf links of the south to find his party dividing itself into hostile factions over international is- sues-first, the international court proposal which the administration ex- pected would receive the whole hearted support of the entire party and second, the League of Nations which the President mad thought was dead as King Tut,
 Furthermore other presidential as pirants within the party who were hog-tied by Attorney General Daugh- erty's announcement that the Pres ident would be a candidate for re election, have suddenly found an is- sue thrust at them, virtually chal- lenging them to wrestle with Hard ing for control Of the party
 Developments have come so fas' that the administration is frankly z bewildered Harding has sought tC calm the tempest by suppressing talk of his candidacy now, by evadine political questions on his forthcoming
 
 be allowed to devote himself to his duties as President,
 But if Harding is in $. foI~ trouble from his own enemies in the party he is also in danger from his friends who are laudins his request to join the international court as the frs, step into he League of Nations. Sec retary of State Hughes, Secretary of Commerce Hoover an official spokeS- man al the White House, insist that no such purpose is in mind. But ir- reconcilables like Borah and John son, knowing that Hughes and HooN- CT were in favor of the league dur ing the. 1920 Presidential campaign are skeptical.
 Johnson Lacks Issue.
 Johnson has been regarded as a candidate for the 1924 nomination, but he has been suffering for want of an issue He voted Tor the Fordney- McCumber tariff because it protected California fruit growers and there fore he was in no position to make a fight on that issue. His failure to arrive in Washington until the day after the vote on unseating Senator Newberry placed him in vulnerable position. Hardings aloofness from the Ruhr question was strictly in ac- cordance with Johnsons ideas of iso- lation. It locke dark indeed for candidate who needed an issue on which to assail the President John son had been jockeyed into such a position that he could offer no req son for asking the nomination except that he wanted it..
 But almost overnig ght, matters have got out of hand. Johnson will come back from Europe in June, his pock- cts stuffed with evidence of Euro pean iniquity." This and his record as an isolationist will give him a commanding position IS the leader of tn. assault on Hardlngs 8 inter- national policy. It is more than year before the nominating conven- ton, and any one who takes the nomination away from the Presl- dent will have to surmount almost hopeless obstacles. for Harding will control the convention machinery and most of the delegates. But the fact remains that friends of the adminis- tration are worried.
 AMERICAN COMMERCIAL VICTORY
 American commercial enterprise has won historic victory in land iog tba concession to rebuild Tur-