Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-01-26
Politics at Large
By G. Could Lincoln.

Americans, said a New Zealander re
Gently in Washington, was. lis New
Zealand wet?" This question, he said,
invariably followed the query. Where
Is New Zealand?"
Judging from recent addresses de-
hvered III Congress. there seems to be
considerable doubt as to whether
America Is wet or dry Judging from
those same addresses and from the
Nominations of men in the public eye
outside of Congress, strenuous efforts
are being made by the drys to prove
that the country generally speaking
does not take a drink. and equally
strenuous efforts are being made by
the vets to prove that cocktails are
the national drink.
X X II
Williams Gibbs McAdoo, Secretary
of the Treasury in the Wilson admin
istration, who appears to have inherit
ed some of both the Wilson and Bryan
strength in the rank and file as Well
as the leadership of the Democratic
party is to make q dry address at the
Midwinter meeting of the ONO Baf
Association in Toledo on Friday. me
title of his address is prohibition,
Notification and LaWlessness. lie
will appear as the great dry leader or
the Democracy, succeeding TO the DO
sition held for SO long by William Jen-
nings Bryan, who was passionatefy de-
voted to the cause of prohibition. lie
will be regarded as a dry LochlnVaf
come out of the West to carry Miss
Democracy off on his saddle bow if he
can. Whether he actually casts his
hat in the ring for the presidential
nomination or not at the Ohio meet
ing. his entrance anew into the fight
will be regarded sufficient notice Of
what is to happen.
Mr.. McAdoo will have as difficult a
job, a more difficult job, i'll fact, turn
ing dry the wet Democracy of the
North and East than Senator Wads-
worth of New York is meeting in his
effort to convince the dry Republicans
of the Empire State that they should
vote wet. But Mr.. McAdoo and ms
supporters are still shouting for a
union of the West and South to
elect q President and control the Gov
eminent. The one great difficulty,
however, lies in the fact that the
Democratic party in the States of the
West is fiat on its back. The one
issue which the Democrats might have
seized with some prospect of gaining
strength in the agricultural states
farm reIief-they have muffed so far.
Perhaps they may make an attempt
to gain the good graces of the farmers
when the McSary- Haugen bill comes
before Senate and House again at this
session.
Senator James A. Reed OF Missouri
is not the candidate OF Senator
Thomas J. Hefiin of Alabama for the
Democratic presidential nomination.
MIR. Hefin has made this reasonably
clear in his recent speeches In the
Senate. For one thing, Mr.. Reed is
usually regarded as a wet and Mr..
Hef1in is bone dry. Furthermore, Mr..
Reed raised his voice in criticism or
Mr.. Hefin's intersection OF the
knights of Columbus into the debate
over the Mexican situation. Speaking
i'm the Senate, yesterday, Mr.. Hef1in re
fe,red to Mr.. Reed and his possible
presidential ambitions with some
measure of 1evity.
another Senator" said Mr.. Helm,
told me the Senator from Missouri
had made the same speech over at
New York when he spoke over there,
in what some thought was the launch
ing of his boom for President. The
Alabama Senator was referring TO the
Reed speech demanding religious toler-
ance. He continued:
"a Reed shaken by the wind. a
presidential wind. 1t will blow mighty
cold on him before he gets the nom1na-
ton
Mr.. Reed, it appears, will have DIM
Guilty obtaining the support OF the
Alabama delegation at the next Demo
cratic national convention, unless, in
deed. Mr.. Hef1in should happen to be
mistaken, The "24 votes for Oscar
w, Underwood" which rolled out over
Madison Square Garden in 1924, were
cast for a wet and also for a. Senator
who attacked the Klu Klux Khan.
* X x
While the headliners in the Demo
cratic party are planning their cam
paigns for the big prize of 1923, the
party machinery which still continues
to operate and which operated with
some success in the last congressional
campaign is being oiled up again.
Representative William A. Oldfield OF
Arkansas, indefatigable worker for
the party cause, has been again elect
ed chairman of the Democratic ma
tional congressional committee. The
committee made it's selection of chair
man at it's annual meeting Monday
night and reelected Ralph Roberts or
Indiana as executive secretary. Mr..
Oldfield will have a, real job on his
hands to elect a. Democratic House IN
1928. particularly If the wet and dry
tides in his party continue to run so
swiftly, not to mention the religious
issue. For many years the Republl-
cans have been reckoned stronger IN
a presidential year than in the on
wear elections. A split in the Repub1-
can party in 1912 and the war cloud in
1916 were responsible for the Demo
cratic victories in these presidential
campaigns, rather than any over
whelming strength of the Democratic
doctrines.
The appointment of Lincoln Dixon
of Indiana, Democrat, and former
member of the House, to be a member
of the United States Tariff Commits
sion furnishes a relief from the at
tacks which have been made in the
last year or two on appointeeS to the
semi judicial and policy forming in
dependent agencies of the Govern
ment. DIR. Dixon was member of the
ways and means committee of the
House and is familiar with the tariff.
1t is understood that the movement in
favor of his appointment to the Tariff
Commission, in place of a Democrat,
Mr.. Classic, whose term of Office had
run out, was initiated by the Demo
cratic members of the ways and means
committee, and that it was looked
upon with favor by Republicans in
the House and Senate as well. Mr..
Dixon's nomination was ordered IA
vorably reported by the Senate finance
committee today.
Mr.. Dixon was in charge of the
Democratic campaign headquarters
in Chicago during the 1924 campaign.
He has been leader in his party in
his State.
The approval with which the ap-