The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-06-25

| White House tuned in today on
 the democratic convention today at
 New York. At the conclusion of the
 cabinet meeting, a radio set in the
 cabinet room was tuned in for an |
 interested group of listeners. | President Coolidge has become
 devotee of the radio and friends con
 slider it likely that he will take
 wireless seat himself at the con
 vention during some of its sessions. men from another party, lest the disease of one political organization infect the body polite and lest by mak- ing no change of men or party we get no change of measures and no, real re form"
 Moral Is Plain
 The moral is plain: The country will make its-own application. At the outset let it be understood that this convention, composed of the militant representatives of the democ- racy of the nation, is no cold-storage affair. It is going to be red-hot, high ly seasoned, and we'll prepared. We order by the candidate to notify the
 
 the people to name the candidate-the next President of the United States.
 The democratic party is the friend of business, big and small it delights to see the reflected glory from burning furnaces the contentment from happy and prosperous farm homes; the crowded lobbies of counting houses; the steady streams of heavily loaded trains 1; and the early bustle. of mining camps. It cares not how large the scale or big the investment, what it is most con- cerned about is honesty in operation.
 The corner stone of the repub-
 liean party is special privilege and
 today its grip is more firmly tight
 ened and its place more secure than
 at any time in its long history.
 It needs no cards to gain admit
 tance to the White House, no
 password to- the congressional
 committee rooms.
 Crooked busiaess needs only to ges- ture or special privilege to wink to make this administration understand and do.
 It is against this brutal thing that we will wage >Telentless war in this campaign. We will not pitch our camps nor stack our arms until the American masses and the honest camps nor stack our arms from its strange hold. They may direct their poisonius gases at us, but no camou- flage can be contrived that will give covert and protection to the Pharisee. They can describe us as they may hurling anathemas will be futile-for these guarded posts of favoritism will ha toiy nf al privilege and unjust power must fall.
 Guard Special Interest
 In the guarded orchards of this ad- ministration the golden apples of spe- cial privilege have been gathered by the favored few. It is the guardian of ev- cry special interest. The mother never guarded her tender young more zealous- ly than has this administration watched over the needs of its petted and pam pered puppets.
 Not only in the administration. but in the enactment of laws these inter ests come first. The administration late and lamented tax proposal was grown in the Mellon patches of special privilege. Its propagation was a work of republican art
 For a while 1t was thought to be very beautiful, large, colorful, and juicy thing. It attracted unusual attention. The invited guests, a selected few in number, smacked their lips in anticipa- tion of the feast. But when it was ex- amined and it's parts dissected, it's rot tenness was revealed. No setting was ever more adroitly staged than when this scheme of taxation first made its debut. It was billed for passage at the psychological moment. The people were stopped under a heavy load of tax ation. For three long years they had felt their country slipping through the results of a riotous and debauched ad They had seen the natural resources of this government dissipated, its chartered courses abandoned, it's leaders corrupted. They saw policy of passivity adding discredit abroad and bankruptcy at home.
 Right To Triumph
 Their hearts were heavy and their spirits low. Any ray of hope that might bring the slightest relief was welcomed. When the secretary of the treasury off, fered his plan and the President in- dorsed it, the American people did not stop to study nor tarry to think. But reason follows hysteria, and right ulti- mately triumphs.
 What is this melon that Mellon sought to cut? It would have given 1,2O0 of the 3,5S5, 9s5 income-tax pay CTS in America 51 per cent of the total reduction.
 Under it's benign provisions an in come of $5,O00.00Q was to receive a re- duction of $1,331 ,S32, while an income of $3,000 would have received only $8T5 reduction. Through its unre- stricted earned-income provisions it would have opened an avenue of es- cape to every tax-dodging capitalist in America.
 Written in the cold lines of that pro- posal was the inspiration of it's author, that the less exacted from the highly favored few, and the more demanded from the less-favored many, the greater the good to the common country. The champions of the proposal believe that prosperity should come from the crumbs that fall from the tables of the rich i; that if you legislate solely to make the well-to-do prosperous their prosperity will seep through upon those below.
 The republican party is the ancient enemy of the income tax. It is con- trary to reactionary republican doctrine and inimical to republican practices. The 'income tax was never intended to touch poverty. It exscts no settlements from bankrupt courts-forecloses no mortgages and forces no sales. It is collected only where prosperity smiles and earrings abound. As a means of raising revenue it is one of our party 8 priceless legacies, and as such it shall be neither weakened nor destroyed.
 When the President and his secretary of the treasury, with all the hosts of selfish interests, charged on the battle 4 E..., l., kn-