Evening star., 1924-04-02
Politics at Large
BY N. o. MESSENGER

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| Jr., that he has abandoned support of
| the presidential candidacy of Senator
Hiram w. Johnson of California is
classed by politicians as dealing a
severe blow to the Califorrian's pros
poets. The damage lies not only, it is
said, in the loss of the financial sup
port of Mr.. Wrigley, who was under
stood to be substantial contributor
to Senator JohnSons campaign fund.
but also in what Mr.. Wrigley says
about the nature Of Senator Johnson's
campaign and its possible swaying
the course of others.
Mr.. Wrigley, in the interview he
gave in Los Angeles said: 81 am not
satisfied with Hiram's present ideas.
Right now l. cannot agree with some
OF his policies. Some of the things
ms supporters are saying / would not
care to back up
MIR. Wrigley predicted the nomina-
tion and subsequent election Of Presi-
| dent Coolidge.
4 i :; 4
A special dispatch to The Star from
Omaha the other day said that while
Senator Johnson, who is touring the
| middle west, drew large crowds, his
leave many of his auditors uncon-
vinced and that his attacks upon
President Coolidge were causing reac-
ton In the Presidents favor.
Supposing that Senator Johnson,
when he saw that the tide was setting
so strongly and so obviously in the
| party to President Coolidge at the
very outset of his taking office, for
| hp h,l
out with announcement Of his recOg-
| milton of the seeming general desire
| OF the party to nominate President
/ Coolidge and had pledged his support
would not Senator Johnson then have
become one of the biggest republi
cans in the party and in line of pro-
motion To the presidency hereafter,
! without serious contest?
| This question is frequently heard
among politicians who aver that they
| think Senator Johnson overlooked d
| bet"
The politicians are wondering if in
the event of his defeat for the nomi-
nation Senator Johnson will leave the
party and attack the President openly
or will just remain inactive and let
| the seed of the attacks he has sown
| work the harvest.
! The democratic national commit
! tee claims it has discovered a re-
I publican plot TO make a false polit-
! ical issue for the campaign in con
necton with the taX-reduction bill
now pending in the Senate. It's cur
! rent news service in statement
! says: by restoring the Mellon rates
! which cut the higher surtaXes from
! 30 per cent TO % per cent. in the
! pending revenue bill, the republican
! members Of the Senate finance COM
/ mittee have given additional evidence
| Of the truth of the charge frequently
| made that the republican old guard
| is conspiring to defeat tax reduction
/ at this session Of Congress in order
/ that they may make II an issue in the
| national campaign and falsely accuse
| the democratic party of responsibility
: FOR the defeat of tax reduction"
! The development Of this conspiracy
to create a false issue 10 fool the
! people" the statement goes on to say.
and 10 enhance their campaign fund
| is shown by the following facts:
First, the so-calied Mellon pian
itself which provides for cutting in
haIT the higher SurtaX rates of the
very large taxpayers. and which con-
tainS the greatest inequality and in
Justice in the rates paid relatively
by an Individual business man and
one whose income is derived from
*toc rs in corporations-the individual
buSine esS man paying nearly twice as
much As the corporation The Dro-
ron"nts knew or should have known
: IN adYanc" that the Mellon higher
SurtaN rates and the ineoualities and
InjuStiees in the bill would not meet
the approval Of a Congress which
was elected in protest Of the same
things attempted by Mr. Mellon in
the previous Congress
Sec Ond. the substitution nf tba
LongWortn bill for the Garner nlsn
/ which latter had been previously
adopted in the House and which gave
the most eQuita Bile reduction to all
taM pa eIS possible at this time
Third, the readoption OF the Mol
{ ION higher surtaT rates by the old
guard members of the Senate finance
committee. trickily taking advantage
! u me absence of Senator McCorrlicI,
OF Illinois and the illness OF Senator
Ia Toilette of Wisconsin. both of
Whom are reported to oppose thai
feature OF the Mellon plan
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"Forewarned is forearrned =. e,,-S,
I the democratic committee statement
! and the people should and will l,no,,.
IN advance that if an equitable tax
! reduction bill fails to pass this Con-
gress it will be solely the fault of
the old guard tricksters with the
! approval OF the old guard eleme,t
! 1t%nlnatlns tt the republican party for
| the purpose OF making party capital !
/ in the coming campaign.
! II IS not contended that the demo-
! cratic plan of tax reduction is ner-
feet or final. but it is conended in
an truth that it is the best plan and
% h Ia .1ay,
{ III there is such a thorough revision
/ of revenue legislation as to remove
| all the inequalities and injustice and
, stop all the leaks and holes by which
! just taxation is evaded. Then there
can be further readjustment of higher
! surtax rates and all other rate taxes. -
/ X \ X
John w. Davis of West Virginia
gave a setback this week to the
! friends who are SO indus triously
working up a boom for his nomina-
tion as the democratic presidential
| candidate. An admirer in the Senate
wrote to Mr.. Davis suggesting that
| he could easily capture the demo-
cratic nomination If he would give
up the practice of law and dismiss
| the list of clients, some of whom
might be suspected OF connection
| with the interests.
Mr.. Davis replied that while he
| admitted the lure of the presidency.
| especially at this time when there
seems to him to be a fair chance
| of the democrats capturing it, he
| would not think of paying such a
| price as to desert his clients and
part from his associates in the hon
orable practice of the law.
= :: =
Politicians point out that Mr..
| McAdoo has given up line of his
| clients, but it is not of record that
| he has retired from the practice of