The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-07-26
JOHNSON HOPES
To smoke OUT
HUGHES
Senator Indicates He Suspects
Secretary of Being Friendly
to League.
Rx WILLIAM HARD.

III
here last night by Senator John
son of California, two brand-new
bitter fights began to go forward.
One is to force Mr.. Secretary
Hughes and Mr.. Secretary Hoover
to declare themselves explicitly
on their present personal posi-
ton toward the League of Ma
tions in order to show whether
or not an honest affection for
the league, which President Hard
ing rejects, may have induced
them to promote the World
Court, which President Harding
accepts.
Discover Purpose.
Senator Johnson intends to devote
himself perseveringly and embarrass-
ingly to the full effort which this
fight implies. He Is going to his Of
weeks in studies Of the agricultural
and transportation problems. He
intends, however, to devote much
time on future suitable distressing
occasions to continued irritating
endeavor to discover If a pro-leaguc
purpose was at the source of the
world court proposal in President
Harding's Cabinet.
This is the explanation Of the
elaborate irony with which last night
he congratulated Hughes and Hoover
on having subdued their former pro-
league sentiments sufficiently to re-
main in President Harding's Cabinet
after they had promised the cleo
torate in 1920 that the election Of
Harding to the Presidency would be
the shortest route to Geneva.
Johnson's strategy Is as follows:
He believes the League of Nations
to be unpopular in the United States.
He believes Hughes and Hoover to
be still, in fact, in favor OF the
league. He purposes to drive them
into saying SO.
He purposes then to turn to the
electorate and say:
See, that's why they started this
league world court proposition. It's
a league trick"
Then, in Johnson's servere and
savage opinion, the people will say:
"Slide it the ash can"
The second disagreeable pugnaci-
GUS endeavor which today begins
to take its course into the fighting
future is within the Democratic
party. While La Toilette in the
West has been organizing a BIZ
partisan and non-partisan PRO
gressive group" on radical domestic
issues, Johnson last night in New
York produced the first known in
stance of bipartisan and non-parti-
san 'irreconciliable" fervor on a
L. nR
policy.
At Johnsen.s left as he spoke was
Mayor Hylan, Of New York, Demo
crat, and Immediately in front of
him was a large table Of important
Democratic <officeholders, thanked
throughout the hall by several hum
dred vociferous preliminary ap-
plauders.
These gentlemen, as was pointed
out to this writer by Mr.. Koenig,
the Republican leader of Manhat.
tan Island, who sat not far from
Mayor Hylan at the speakers table,
were so unfortunate not long ago
as to lose many votes and several
offices in this city through popular
disaffection caused among their fol-
lowers by President Woodrow Will
sons discovery and adoption Of the
League of Nations idea It was
not a winning idea here, and it
was politically costly to the Derao-
Gratis.
Mr.. Koenig Is credited with hav-
ing been one Of the moving in
fluences which in 1920 swayed the
managers of Mr.. Harding's Presi-
Dental campaign toward advising
him to take his firm anti-league
position in his Des Moines speech.
Mr.. Koenig's view seems to have
been that a certain number of
prominent people would be for par
ticipation in European world affairs
but that the mass Of rank and file
voters would in the end be against 1t.
Tammany and G. O. p.
Last night, with his leadership
of the Republican party in Manhat-
tan upon him, he came to the John
son dinner along with Mr.. Law
renee, Republican leader In the
Bronx, and Mr.. Livingston and
former Senator Calder. contending
Republican leaders in Brooklyn,
thus giving Tammany the pleasure
Of dining with much OF the out
standing Republican leadership of
Greater New York.
BY IhelF applause OF Johnson g
remarks the Tammany forces were
there to say that they are just as
much opposed to American partici.
patton in European affairs as their
Republican brethren and that they
hope the voters will notice it. Thew
are not disposed to run the risk Of
losing many votes and several
offices again.
They were also saying that demo.
cratic presidential candidates like
Mr.. McAdoo, and also like Mr.. Raj
ston, Of Indiana, and also like Mr..
Underwood of Alabama, who all
incline heavily toward American
participation in European affairs,
must now mediate carefully upon
what that inclining might do to
election prospects next year in the
sovereign empire critical strategic
state Of New York.
Johnson's relations to the Demo.
cratic municipal government of
New York begin now to show their
national meaning. They have ad.
vanced from the point at which
Johnston was an attorney in law
courts for the city of New York TO
the point at which johnson is the
means by which the New York
Democratic organization tells the
National Democratic organization
that it absolutely has no intention
of going along with 1t on any
Wilsonian foreign affairs program