Evening star., 1928-11-03


WaterpoWer resources should remain in
violate. That means nothing. 1t does
not do much good to retain an empty
Zee to property If you ALLEVIATE all the
beneft to be derived from it by long,
term lease.
Let us take up the subject of agricul-
ture. This time every year the Repub-
lican party is busily engaged in explain
ing that 1t is the great friend of the
farmer. Let us analyze the Republican
attitude to agriculture in our own State
as taken from the record.
The Republican candidate speaks
about prompt payment of indemnities to
the owners of slaughtered tubercular
cattle. What does the record show; 1t
shows that the last Republican admin
istration in the State of New York failed
absolutely to make any appropriation
for the slaughter of tubercular cattle.
When arrived in Albany for my second
administration was compelled not only
to suggest appropriations for the current
year but to meet the deficit left over as
a result of Republican neglect to make
provision for payment of indemnit1eS.
We have appropriated for this purpose
100000 in the past five years, the
largest sum ever appropriated in this
State for this important protection OF
public health.
In the last six years under Democratic
administration more has been done Tor
the farmer than in any similar period
in the history of the State.
Appropriations to Cornell.
Generous appropriations were made
to the College of Agriculture of Cornell
University.
State subsidies to the country for the
repair, the building and the malnte-
nance of county roads designed to bring
the produce of the farm closer TO the
consuming public were inaugurated.
The cooperative marketing bill was
introduced in the Senate by, Senator
Straus, Democratic Representative from
New York, and signed by me.
The American farmer is awakening
to the fact that the Republican party
has been engaged in the political
pastime of making promises to him.
AS Senator Norris of Nebraska SAID.
what the farmer wants today is little
slice of fulfillment; he has been fed
to death on broken Republican prom
ises.
Let us take a journey into the field
of the States educational activities. In
one of his speeches, the Republican
candidate for governor said:
THE Republican Legislature of New
York has in the past 10 years made a
notable record for itself in this field. y
It is a notable record, and we will
note it here tonight. 1t is a record OF
hostility to improving the educational
facilities of the State. 1t is matter
of record that nothing was done by the
Republican Legislature, although I in
sisted upon it year after year, to i'm
prove the rural school system OF this
State, to give to the children on the
farm the same opportunity for educa-
tion that is given to the children IN the
great cities. The Republican candidate
for governor will not deny this. Every
forward movement in the interest of
public education was initiated from the
Office of the governor, with the sup
port of prominent and influential citi-
zens of New York who gave of their
time, their ability and their energy to
a study Of the problem.
Smothered Bills.
What happened to the bills that came
from the Friedsam committee, pre-
sided over by Col Friedsam of New
York? The Republican party smoth-
cred them, only to be compelled the
next year to accept them under the
fire of adverse public criticism.
Tt was my insistence as chief eXecu-
tive that brought about increased ap-
from $9,000,000 in my first
year to $88,000,000 in my last year for
State aid to the localities for the pay
nent of teachers salaries.
1t was the same inSiStence that
brought about sufficient appropriation
for the construction of Teachers Col
ege at Albany; that gave liberal aid
from the State to make possible the
increase in the salaries of school teach
RS, and that effected a definite pro-
gram for betterment which brought the
education department Of our State up
TO the high standard 1t now maintains.
The present commissioner of education
Is Republican. He is clearly on rec
ord as stating that as governor of New
York have been the best friend that
The department of education ever had.
On the subject of the reorganization
Of the State government, let me quote
from the speech of acceptance of the
candidate for governor:
II am in complete accord with the
of State departments
which occurred as the result of the
of that principle by Elihu
Root, and which was constructively de-
veloped by the adoption of the recon-
mendation of the commission headed
by Charles E. Hughes"
Did the Republican candidate, when
he made that statement, believe that
he was talking to the people of the
State of New York? Or that he was
talking to children under school age?
The whole history Of the reorganiza-
ton of the government constitutes to
my mind one of the strongest argu-
ments against the return of the Re-
publican party to power in our State.
It is true that reorganization of the
government had it's birth in the con-
stitutional convention presided over by
Elihu Root. That was as far back as
1915.
Defeated by G. o. p.
Thereafter the matter was entirely
forgotten until 1920, when I recon-
it to a Republican Legislature.
That Legislature approved a constitu-
tional amendment to carry it into
effect. But under our constitution it
had to be approved by second Legis-
lature before submission to the people.
In 1921, under a Republican governor.
it went down to defeat in the Republi-
can Assembly presided over by the
present chairman of the Republican
State committee. The effect of that
was that had to begin all over again
when returned to Albany in 1923. I
the fight for this great reform
to consolidate over 100 scattered and
overlapping bureaus into 18 responsible
of the State government
and designed to make the government
more understandable, to cut out waste
and to promote efficiency and economy.
At that very time the same Republi-
can hostility was being exhibited to the
subject of similar reorganization of the
Federal Government. Promised in the
national platform in 1920, promised
again in 1924, we come to 1923 with
absolutely nothing done about it. 1t
is matter of record that the Re-
publican party in this State did every
human thing they could to defeat the
reorganization of the State government.
However, by the force of public opinion,