The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-01-15
Bryan Bobs Up
By RAYMOND CHAPTER (Jeaed Wire to The Age.Herald)

tLedeu W1Tc tO AAC A8GeAACEaAuJ
 WASHINGTON, Jan. 14.-Wtth smile extending from ear to ear, Will liam Jennings Bryan has bobbed up again, to worry leaders assembled nere for the meeting of the demo- cratic national committee.
 It was exactly four years ago-at the Jackson Day dinner here--that Bryan nearly broke up carefully planned love feast by attacking the League of Nations. To prevent an- other such affair." it was decided to nave no democratic dinner this year.
 But Bryan has been 8 democratic headliner for more than quarter or a century and he was not to be pushed into temporary oblivion by blithely announcing President Mur- phree of the University of Florida as his presidential candidate. Bryan took a train from Miami for Wash ington and will be on hand for the democratic meeting Tuesday.
 Worse than that, he will make the big speech at the jubilee dinner ot the drys Tuesday, to celebrate four years of prohibition, and the demo- cratic leaders, trying to steer har- monious course between the Al Smith vets and the McAdoo drys, are fear ful that the commoner will under take to advise the party on the pro- hibition issue.
 Democratic nominees in three pr esi- I1ential campaigns, the decisive fac- tor in the nomination of Woodrow Wilson in 1912 and still full of fight. 4fe coInmoner is regarded as po- Genital figures in the tangled row which. is centering around the 1924 nomination.
 Has No Organization.
 Democratic politicians like to say that Bryan Is dead one, politically. In a sense they may be right. Bryan has no organized machine. His in- dorsement of the Florida educator for President caused not ripple here, except some minor comment to the effect that the commoner is merely trying to win local favor :n his adopted state in order to get on the convention delegation. Active party leaders look upon him as a man who has served his time in poli- tics. They think he should now stand on the sidelines and keep quiet Sd the team can hear the signals. as that of an old grad who goes back to help out the coach on the eve of the big game.
 But Bryan seems to be entirely ob- livious to this state of affairs. He looks beyond the new generation of voters that has grown up, since the free silver campaign and sees tho oldtimers who voted for him three times andsare ready to do so again. They, and the dry army, constitute his inspiration and his power. IL Is to this army of volunteers that Bryan appeals over the heads of his political enemies. In this sense, Bryan still is a powerful political person. age.
 O O O
 His Help Needed.
 The presidential campaign will be much closer fight than it was in 1920 and Bryan's help will be need ed. II is desirable for the party as a whole. to keep him on the reserva- ton because he could do irreparable damage if he desired. In fact, some say he contributed to the defeat of Cox in 1920 because of his suspicion that the party was playing too much to the wet vote. No matter what the party leaders think of Bryan, they would rather have him as friend than as an enemy. Bryan is well aware of this, of course, and that is what leads to the fear among some of the party bosses that Bryan will attempt to dictate the party's stand on prohibition.
 He is openly opposed to Al Smith and Underwood because of their wet views. The general belief exists among political observers that when the convention meets. Bryan will abandon his Florida candidate and tErow his strength to one of the ma jor candidates, probably McAdoo.
 Bryan's dry speech here Tuesday night will be his curtain-raiser. From then on, he will carry on one-man campaign to lick the wet faction of the party.