The Indianapolis times., 1928-08-23
Smiths Acceptance


ming for Office on tickets headed by national leader
who wet and wet Republicans running on tickets
headdA e. national leader who is dry.
Am9nu the rank and file OF voters, thousands and
tens of tn 1sands of Democrats dry like Walsh,
and thousands and tens of thousands of Republicans
wet. like Butler.
Never was an issue more scrambled more incongru-
Gus, more grotesque.
The whole Nation is in state of emotional upset
over it.
Were there no other issues than prohibition there
would be no party lines whatsoever. The words Dem
ocrat" and Republican" would be erased and the
words wet" and "dry" substituted.
Governor Smith in his speech of acceptance treats
the prohibition question not as emotional one, but
from the point of view of broad and fundamental
party principle
We believe that it should be so treated and we
agree with Smiths position Furthermore, we hope
that sometime this Nation will apply the test that
Smith would now apply-the test of Jeffersonan de-
mocracy.
But we realize that all present and practical facts
pon to the conclusion that far most voters are
concerned the prohibition problem is purely per-
sonal one, and that JeHersonian democracy and
States rights have nothing to do with the case.
With most voters, prohibition is still thing about
which there is more feeling than thinking. Repub-
the more jealous wet Republicans will quit their party
and vote for Smith, and some of the more Jealous dry
Democrats will quit their party and vote for Hoover
Many Others like the Democratic leaders, Walsh,
Carter Glass and Josephus Daniels, will ride along
with the party despite their bone dry convictions.
How the score of party desertion will stand IN mo-
vember can never accurately be told.
But much though the prohibition subject domi-
mates political conversation we convinced that it
will not be the determining factor in November.
There is too much of an element OF Offset to much
criss-crossing too much vote-swappng to make that
possible other issues not prohibition, hold the bal
ance of power.
An ultimate solution of the prohibition question as
a fundamental problem in government, rather than
as an emotional ISSUE is to be desired, and in our
ouinion is certain sometime to But it will not
come so long as the public mind in its present state
Therefore we believe it is we'll that the sum total OF
other issues in 1923 be considered as more important
than the single issue of prohibition
AS that sum total relates to the two candidates, we
believe as we have repeatedly stated, that HooVers
experience training, temperament genius for organ-
zaton and administration, and superior knowledge OF
international as we'll national affairs, qualify him
better than Smith for the presidency Having actively
advocated the nomination of both in the pre-conVen-
ton campaigns, we now reassert that opinion
Bt the preference for Hoover as the better of two
exceptionally able men in no way coos our admra-
ton for the true craftsmanship displayed in Smiths
address of acceptance Our reaction after reading
that and after a re-readng of Hoovers acceptance
speech is once again to emphasize what we said be-
fore the nominating conventions-that the country
would indeed be fortunate to have Hoover the Re-
publican nominee and Smith the Democratic.
The conventional newspaper attitude oftentimes
is quite similar to the conventional attitude of the
axNI coott Ito
neously viewing with alarm; praisng the candidate
who is favored and at the time berating his
opponent 1t so happens that the attitude of this
newspaper in this particular campaign is the reverse
of the conventional Therefore, while supporting
Hoover we desire to express i'll half-hearted terms
our admiration of the way Smith has met the issues
as he sees them.
He exhibited a candor and frankness that could
only come from profound faith in the ability OF the
people to rule themselves
There was no evasion, even where evasion might
have been politically expedient evidenced by his
clear declaration for Government ownership of power
SITES an issue that is most important to the people
but opposed by powerful interests.
His declaration concerning Mexico and his pledge
of appointments without regard to religion should
drive bigotry and religious fanacism out of the cam
pagn.
No one could read or listen to the speech without
oeing convinced that here honest man, fear
lessly barring his soul for his countrymen.
His speech of acceptance is concise, clear and
courageous.
In many respects it comedies with policies this
newspaper has consistently advocated-such policies
as modification, Government ownership and control
of great water power sites, public utility propa-
ganda on Nicaragua and Latin America, on labor and
the misuse of the injunction On some of these IS
sues his position and Hoovers are similar. On some
others they differ And on still others Hoover, as
announced in his speech of acceptance is yet to be
heard.
On one particular point dissent strongly from
Smiths position-in what he said about changing the
census basis for immlg alton restriction And in Ger
tain other respects which will be discussed from time
to time, we also differ with him
But on the whole, we consider the Smith address
of acceptance the most effective Democratic docu-
ment since the days of Woodrow Wilson
Hoover Should Step In