Evening star., 1927-03-13
NEW AL" SMITH IN SKILLFUL
BATTLE TOLEAD PARTY IN 1928
Cautious, Careful Methods
Replace Old Free-and-Ea
Public Contracts.
Goes Outside Own Backers 10
Name High Grade Men to
Responsible Jobs.
BY GEORGE w. FRANKLIN.


Special Dispatch to The Star.
ALBANY, March 12.-No big banker
ever battled harder for financial
supremacy, nor did any common la
borer ever put in more good licks to
do an honest days work, than Gov.
Alfred E. Smith is doing to get the
Democratic nomination for President.
Straining every fiber of his body to
overcome obstacles which confronted
him in 1924, he very often, even in
Winter, willis more than one starched
shirt and one stiff collar between
breakfast and dinner.
1 But. to become the standard bearer
of the Democracy. Gov. Smith is us
ing none of the frayed or shop-worn
methods. Radio and results count
with him, for he has completely scrap
ped the old stuff and points to the
pledge in his inaugural address Jan
uary l, 1927, when he said;
Y "No man could stand before this
Intelligent gathering and say he was
not receptive to the greatest position
the world has to give any one. But |
can say / shall do nothing to achieve
IL except to give the people OF the
State the kind and character of serv-
ice that shall deserve 1t.
SuTDTIStu Ny
To accent this literally was hardly
the thought of Republicans, While
Democrats smiled and said, as a
statesman" Gov Smith surely was
there. 1t was like an earthquake to
both organizations, though, when Al
Smith, a Tammany man, of. for and
by Tammany. and Tammany gov
ernor commenced to appoint high
af rnnlificC h1lt nf
well known ability to important posi-
tons in his cabinet, and some were Re
publicans. This was cause for real con-
cern. Ii was a startling tranSforma-
tion, Democrats were not getting
Ttheirs'' and Republicans were aware
Al was thinking 20 years ahead
of them and was playing brand-new
game of politics Nm assistant to the
governor at $4,000 per year, sec
retary of state at S12 900 per year.
conservation commissioner at 1000
per wear and a commissioner of cor
rections at $l2 900 per year are some
Of the chairs he filled without taking
up with Tammany or the Republican
machine the qualifications of the ap-
pointees. Three were Republicans and
one. the commissioner of corrections,
an Independent.
"A Tammany governor adopting
such a course was enough to create
hectic discussion. but TammanY, even
If IL wanted TO, could not utter word
Of protest and Republicans likewise
were rendered speechless. Quick as
was Tammany to see what the gov
ernor was doing, it was no more alert
than were the Republicans. The
Democrats discerned he was trying to
retain Republican support. which he
II ~
should he be a presidential candidate.
Makes Votes for Future.
Republicans realized that was pre-
cisely what he was doing in naming
Republicans to conspicuous berths.
Both organizations knew Al was pre-
pairing to offset any accusation in a
subsequent campaign that he had
used his office for purely partisan pur-
poses. In doing so he made, as he
Believes, votes for Gov. Smith should
Gov. Smith some day need votes. All
he will have to do to prove he is above
the bitter partisanship of a former
day will be 10 refer TO the members
Of his cabinet.
The Democratic national conven-
ton is before the eyes of Gov. Smith
every minute. He is cognizant to the
fullest extent that, politically, ii may
be his last chance and he must make
no mistake now that could be used
BY opponents to beat him for the
nomination. No one knows better
how deeply rooted the objection may
be, and no one has a more accurate
estimate of what bigotry. and pref
ydice NAV attempt His appoint
1nents, he prays. may check reliSi-
Gus onslaught, his assistant being a
a2d degree Mason and the others, to
whom reference Is made, being Prot
estants. So in this respect he may
feel he has built a background that
will minimize any effort to undermine
him because he is a Roman Catholic.
Extraordinary as 1t may be. the al
Smith who a few years since was
ready TO answer any and all ques-
tions, straight from the shoulder and
in the most trite language, is not
present. The Smith here today is a
cautious, careful, circumspect Smith,
who knows ii is easier to keep back
than take back. This disposition is so
well defined that his political ambition
seems to have voice when he is not
uttering single syllable.
Reticent About Nomination.
He meets people by the score in the
executive chamber, makes them wei
come and talks about everything eX-
cept the nomination, but when that
topic is approached he is as reticent
As his predecessors who have gone on
and whose pictures are done in oil
and are hanging in rigid rows on the