New Britain herald., 1926-09-27

so devoted to efficient commerc
 that there is nothing else whicI
 really matters. They are like thos
 reformers who are so devoted t.
 having an efficient municipal gov
 ernment that they wish for a bene
 volent despot telling everyone wha
 to do and seeing that they do it. A
 least the outside of the platter would
 be clean and attractive. They neg.
 lect that development of character
 which after all is the most import
 ant thing in the citizens of a strone
 country. They want the federal gov.
 ernment to look after us. In con. sequence we are coming to be ruled not by the president and the execu.
 tive departments and the congress
 but by great number of depart mental and bureau chiefs. to whose
 personal desires and beliefs the rights of the American citizens arc practically subject"
 In conclusion, Senator Bingham said: The dangers that confront us and which threaten our personal rights are first those which come from envious foreign nations, jeal- ous of our power and prosperity
 loving us as a debtor. deeply in debt loves to see the man to whom he owes money coming down the street
 Second. envious states of the union
 envious sections of the country, who dislike our thrift who envy us our prosperity and are jealous of our sound financial position. They arc inclined to abuse the tax power, to abuse the system of federal aid, to favor federal interference with state rights and state responsibility and state sovereignty. They propose an attack on that tariff policy which has been largely responsible for building up the prosperity of the country Our defense is in the con- stitution and in a determination to resist any encroachment on our ! rights under it.
 Hard to Find Lake Compomce
 Assistant Secretary Robinson amusingly described the efforts he had to make to keep his speaking engagement. "Fourteen days ago I received an invitation from Con- 1 gressman Tilson to speak some where in Connecticut on September 25," he said. "I wrote to him ask ing for further particulars but re- ceived no reply. Last Tuesday was l informed that l was to speak at Lake Compounce. But no one told me where Lake Compounce was so | I enlisted the services of the naviga- tors in the navy department. l con- suited all kinds of charts and rec ords. At last one of our men-you ] can depend on the navy to furnish man to find anything-loCated Lake Compounce. Then I was stuck again. I didn't know how to get 1 here. So I called up my friend, MT. l Christ and he told me how this spot could be reached. So I flew up from Washington yesterday and landed at your aviation field in Hartford.
 "Of course I didn't know what to talk about so they sent me a copy of an old speech by Senator Nc Lean to steer me straight on the points I was to discuss. I found that there was one thing I was not to speak about - prohibition That struck me funny because In my home state, New York. that's about all anyone talks about. You can't run for any office from dog catcher fup without being tagged wet or ! dry beforehand. But we're going to have a test of the prohibition question in New York at the next election and that ought to take it out of politics.
 Governor Trumbull used part of the speech I intended to make. He probably delivered 1t better than I could-but it was a terrible loss just the same.
 T want to speak about the apathy of voters. They're not apathetic every place. I'll admit. Take Penn sylvania, for example. Now If I lived in Pennsylvania I would prob ably have made the price of my ticket to the TunneyDempsey bout Blamcs Direct Primary For Apathy
 Please understand that I am not speaking for or as a part Of the ad- ministration. This is a talk by a republican to fellow republicans. Perhaps the blame for apathy among voters IS that they get too much politics. I was at one time an advocate of the direct primary, q warm advocate. But now l am con- vinced that the direct primary is the greatest contributing factor to apathy among voters. They have to come out twice a year to cast bal lots. Under the old caucus system they liked to come out and pack a hall and rub shoulders with their | fellow citizens while they discussed the qualifications of the respective | candidates. Complaint has been | made that the old caucus system was unwieldly. But that was better than empty ballot boxes on primary days. Return to the old system, believe, would change the situation and the voters would show more in tercst in the nominations.
 "The direct primary system has in creased the cost of elections. I am not astonished at the cost of conduct ing primaries In Pennsylvania and Illinois. I am not convinced that the men who were nominated were cor rupt--it was simply the cost of bringing voters out to do their duty. I
 "The primary system is developing rule by organized minorities. In my district at the last primary an intel i ligent voter had to make 52 crosses on his ballot-that is not an intelli- gent method of naming candidates.
 For some time l have been out : of touch with politics. I have learn ed that every working day has 10 be given to the joo when you're in the navy. Bureau chiefs have their i ea,,In k