Evening star., 1923-09-30
PROGRESSIVE MOVE.
IN OHIO c. 0. P. SEEN
Liberal Leader Launches At.
tack on Party Bosses"
ASSaiIS Taft'S Son.
Special Dispatch to The Star.


COLUMBUS, Ohio. September %
Conviction of republican leaders that
Charles L. Knight leader of the lib
eral wing of the party in Ohio. would
swing into line with the regulars this
year received a shock this week. Mr..
Knight, owner and editor of the
Akron Beacon Journal and the Spring
field Sun, launched a vigorous attack
on the party BOSSES" charging them
with attempting to suppress the more
liberal provisions of the state con-
stitution, which indicates that he is
not definitely back on the party reser-
walton.
Representative Robert Taft of Gin
cinnati. son of Chief Justice Taft, is
the principal target for this attack,
and the cause of it was a movement
by Mr.. Taft to save from referendum
a law of which he was the author and
which was intended to make it less
difficult to raise the taX-rate limit,
enabling the cities to get out of finan-
cial trouble. This attempt of the
bosses" to withhold the referendum
provision of the constitution, he de-
;'iares is worse than anything at
tempted in oklahoma. Some interpret
this declaration as placing Mr. Knight
ut the head of an antl-hlgh taxes
organization as candidate lor the
republican nomination Tor governor
Interested I'm Row.
There is evidently disposition on
the part of the republican leaders IN
the state to have whatever ditncults
there may be between Secretary Mel
Ion and Internal Revenue Commls-
sioner Blair and Federal Prohioltlon
commissioner Haynes adjusted, ano
Mr. Haynes retained at the head OF
that department. If he retlres IT is
regarded as practically certain that
he will become a candidate for gov
ernor If he is a candidate ne VIII
confuse the issues and make IL very
difficult for the party leaders 10 u'
ANYTHING TO control the nomination
Mr.. Haynes has the good Will ana M the
confidence of the dryS here. WhateFel
the facts may be, the ONO drsS peliek {
that he is being interfered WIN DS
''higher-ups," as they refer 10 tue III,
1lucnceS that seem to prevent even
fair degree of enforcement or the pro-
hibition laws. and as a candidate tor the
nomination for governor he would draw
heavily from the dry element. The re
publican leaders here do not understand
the nature of the trouble between
Haynes and his superiors, but they are
making an effort now to t1nd out ana 70
adjust it for the sake of the influence OF
ohio politics the retirement of the pro-
htbition enforcement officer might have
Some difficulty is seen already in the
distribution of the delegate-at- Large
honors in the republican national con-
vention of next year. Ohio will be en-
titled under the apportionment to nftS
delegates in the convention. forty-fouI
of which will be elected by congressional
districts and the other six at large. the
new female element of the voting body
claim the two additional delegates-at-
large, and for these honors already Har-
riet Taylor Upton and Mrs. James Cor
don Battelle are already lined up. Ol
course, the two senators will be selected
as such delegates, but who shall get the
other two places probably will have tc
be decided by contest.
But none of these local matters has
any bearing on the support of the state
in the national convention for the presi-
dency The prevailing sentiment in the
party here remains strong for President
Coolidge.
Gov Donahey took advantage of the
occasion of an interview in Cleveland
this week to make the statement that
he would under no circumstances per-
nit the use of his name in connection
with the democratic presidential nomi-
nation. No one here expected that he
would. The general expectation here
IS that former Gov. Cox will be a candi-
1ate. J. Fl. GALBRAITH.