Evening star., 1923-03-27
HARDING TO CONFER
WITH DAUGHERTy
Meeting at St. Augustine to
Be First Since Attorney
Generals Statement.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

When Attorney General Daugherty
rejoins the presidential party here
tomorrow, President Harding will
have his first opportunity to discuss
the why and the wherefore of the
statement issued at Miami ten days
| ago by Mr.. Daugherty. which was
generally constructed as a formal an
nouncement of the Harding candi-
| dacy for 1924
The President did not know that
| the Attorney General was going to
\ make the statement he did. Mr.
Daugherty was careful not to say
that he spoke on behalf OF Mr.. Hard
! ing. though many newspaper men
President and Mr.. Daugherty were
both in Miami, a matter of such i'm
! portance must have been thoroughly
| canvasSed with the chief executive
| before being disclosed to the press.
Daugherty Surprised.
When the Attorney General sent for
| the newspaper men and made his pre-
| diction that Mr.. Harding would be
renominated and reelected. the sig
nificance of formal announcement
was Immediately attached to his ut
| terance. The President did not see
! the newspapers until the next morn
/ Ing, when he had already left Mia mi
and there has been no chance since
| for him TO converse with the Attor-
ney General, as the latter has been
sojourning at Miami on the advice of
his physician, while the President has
| been slowly cruising northward along
! the Florida coast
Mr.. Daugherty was as much sur
; prised over the effect his announce
| ment produced as were members Of
the presidential party. The Attorney
! General promptly told this CORE
! spondent that he had not talked the
matter over with Mr.. Harding on the
| Florida trip. but that he had made
! the statement so as TO advise the
! Presidents friends throughout the
country Of what was coming.
1t is a fact that Mr.. Daugherty
laid before the President the state
| ment issued at Columbus last fall.
| in which the question Of Mr. Hard
! ings availabilit for 1924 was put
I up to the republican party, it being
/ asserted that II the party wished
! him to run again he would feel com
! PEELED to do SO.
| Sought to End Rumors.
All the discussion. meanwhile. as
| should have been made at this time
\ turns upon whether II is a wise
/ Of Congress ahead of him and with
| u transcontinental speaking tour
| scheduled for this summer to appear
in the role Of an active ga eGandidatse at
L
| ing wants IT understood he is not
| seeking denomination and viii not
| take single step TO solicit the
| favor of the party that has honored
I him in the past.
Mr. Daugherty's purpose was not
| to start the 1924 campaign this early,
! but to squelch much of the talk that
| Mr.. Harding was tired OF the JOB
| and would voluntarily withdraw and
all that sort of thing. He wanted
! to set rumorS at rest and he hoped
! his statement would dispose of the
I matter and nothing more would be
! heard or said about it for year
! or more when the usual preconven-
| tion activity would begin.
! But what Mr.. Daugherty did has
1 not been accepted a casual episode
| and the President has since learned
! from reading the newspapers that
! his candidacy has been regarded as
| launched just as much as If he had
| signed the announcement himself.
The President owes Harry Daugh-
| erty so much for his management
| Of the preconvention campaign in
| 1920, and he is so fond of him per-
| sonally. that he would be the last
| man in the world to utter a word
of criticism of the Attorney General.
| But the latter, on the other hand
| is such an aStute and courageous
! political manager that If he thought
| there had been a wrong impre ession
| remarks to the newspaper men he
| would not hesitate to assume respon-
sibility for the initiative he took and
| clear the President of any connec-
| ton with the announcement made
| in Miami.
Friends Approve Move.
For all practical purposes Mr..
IDaugherty's statement remains a fact
however, irrespective of whether II
Is later decided that it would be ad-
| vantageous to disassociate the Presi-
denomination. The President is ready
TO accept denomination. His close
friends have advised him of their
purpose to go ahead and make sure
| of his denomination. He has told
them that as republican leaders they
friends. the Attorney General, has
gone so far as to predict that renom-
ination was assured. That's his own
optimistic view and probably will be
verified by the republican national
convention, but it is almost a fore
gone conclusion that if Mr. Harding
had been consulted about the an
nouncement made at Miami he would
have vetoed 1t as inopportune.
/ But there again he is willing to ac-
cept the verdict of his friends. Some
of them insist 1t was a good thing to
squelch in their infancy the boomlets
of other republicans because of the
dangers of factionalism in the next
Congress. Others feel there will be a
better chance of welding the party
elements into a working unit when II
is known the President is preparing
to go to the country to appeal fol
support for the republican party not
simply on the basis of his own record
but the performance of the majority )
party in both houses of Congress.
1