Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-03-01
DEMOCRATS awake
FROM DEEP SLEEP
Hire Press Agent and Pre-
pare to sit Up and See
What Is Going On.
BY ROBERT T. SMALL.

The first feeble STRINGS of renewed
activity at the headquarters OF the
Democratic national committee have
been detected by keen observers. They
have come with March, the month OF
the Spring equinox, and may indicate
that the opposition party is about to
emerge from its long Winter hiberna
ton.
1t is reported on excellent inside
authority that the Democrats either
have hired, or are about to hire, 9
press agent. The general opinion Is
that the move has been made none
too soon, for the burden and respon
sibility which confront the new man
are we'll night overwhelming.
To all outward appearances the
Democratic national committee has
all but lapsed into innocuous desne
tude since the last campaign. Glenn
Shaver of West Virginia, who was
made chairman by John w. Davis in
1924, has retained his position, but
there has been no functiOning by the
committee. A few stenopraphers and
clerks have been employed in the
Washington headquarters, but they
have had to do much knitting ana
sewing to fill in the wide gaps be-
tween dictated letters or other forms
of office work.
No National Party.
Various State Democratic leaders
like Gov. Smith of New York, have
continued to fight the enemy but
nationally speaking there has been no
Democratic party for the last year or
so, and to Judge from the voting IN
the House and Senate thus far in the
session there has been no Democratic
cohesion or leadership on Capltoi
Hill. Congressional Democrats nave
been rowing the prairie, voting Wnere
thew pleased, more often with the Re-
publicans than against them.
It has been the most astounding
exhibition and has created the most
anomalous situation Washington ever
has seen.
But now that the national com
mittee has employed a press agent
perhaps things will change. Perhaps
the sleeping Democracy will be stirred
to a new and militant attitude. Per
haps the press agent Will discover
some new potion, entirely legal in
character, to make the jackrabbits sit
up and hurl defiance at the bull dogs.
Certainly some one is needed to speak
a word for Democracy. The capital
has long been silent in that quarter
so much so that all the Democratic
Rip Van Wrinkles may well arise and
demand to know in chorus:
Mr.. Speaker, where are we att"
Shaver Handicapped.
The Democrats of the country are
not placing all the blame for their
present predicament on the shoulders
of Mr.. Shaver, although a great
many of them would have preferred
that the West Virginian step aside
at the end of the disastrous Davis
campaign and give a more active and
aggressive man an opportunity at
party reorganization or party re-
building.
Mr.. Shaver has been Handicapped
by lack of funds No chairman car
do anything without money, and
supposedly, in the Democratic or
ganization somewhere there is g
treasurer or ways and means com
mittee which should have been stir
ring its stumpS, but which appar-
emily has been as silent and as still
as the night.
Chairman Shaver evidently ha.
stuck to the job because no one ha.
! pressed him to give IT up, and no one
has come forward to take up the task
Mr.. Shaver remained immediately
after the campaign because there
were stories that the McAdoo forces
were going to capture the commit
tee and put in their own man al
chairman. This would have aroused
the Smith brigade. Likewise, If the
friends of Gov. Smith had made ever
the slightest move toward the chair.
manship, the McAdoo men and WON.
en- Of the committee would have
famed into rebellion.
Shaver Great HibernatOr.
II was thought best by all con-
cerned that after the episodes o.
Madison Square Garden. followed as
they We're by the debacle at the ma
! tional polls, it was best for the party
to hibernate--to hibernate good anC
long. Mir. Shaver was thought to bS
a fine man to conduct the hiberna
ton. Every one admits today thai
in this respect at least he has beer
one of the greatest chairmen the
party ever had
And now just to show that thu
slumber was not too deep, that the
Democratic beast is beginning tC
prick up his ears again, comes the
word OF a press agent in the off1ns
or on the job.
The Democratic donkey at last i.
astir, Perhaps he will yet get stron1
enough to give the G.. O. p. elephant
I Even the elephant shows signs OF
| needing some such treatment AL
of Washington appears TO be sleep
DO Hit 4