New Britain herald., 1928-10-20
RITCHIE CONTRASTS
 SMITH AND HOOVER
C1lk Democrlt Humanitarian
 M Republican Politician
fanacial tA the HAEAldl

mantarian and Herbert Hoover as a politician by Gov. Albert c. Ritchic of Maryland at . democratic rally in this city last night. Gov. Ritchie traced the careers of the candi- dates for president and said that If Smith is elected he will carry into the White House the great human impulses that have marked his rise from the sidewalks of New iork.
 Gov. Ritchie's speech follows:
 "I hear the people profess to dis trust Smith because he came up to high position by the Tammany Hall route. They seem to think that Hoover descended upon us from high Olympus fully accoutered as great political warrior and leader. II is true that Hoover tries to create the impression that he is above practical politics, and that he moves m the rarefied atmosphere Of higher statesmanship and in the realm of pure economic law. We'll. let's see about that.
 "Fourteen years ago, when the dark war clouds descended upon us' Hoover was unknown. By his skill and shrewdness as mining expert he had accumulated great fortune He had lived nearly all his adult llte abroad and was by way of becoming a rood Englishman. The war broke Hooyer came to be the American resident abroad who was entrusted with the disposition of the great ar- gosies of relief which we sent to un- happy Belgium. Millions of suffer- inx people came to look upon nlm as the worlds great almoner and as the symbol of American sympathy and charity. He was his own boss in this great work. and 1t brought kin deserved glory.
 Then we entered the war. HooV- CT was made food administrator and We put behind him all our pa trictism and all our zeal to win the war. His powers were unpreceden'- ed, and anyone who might nave thought of criticizing his exercise of these powers would have been re- xarded as traitor to his country. All this made Hoover familiar name in every household. He came out of the war as the one great civilian hero. do not question that he deserved all the glory he got, n he made mistakes am not com- petent to pass on them. Up to th's poirt. I doubt whether he ever cast an American vote.
 Capitalizes Position
 "Haying now tasted the fruits Of popular acclaim, MT. Hoover decided he would like to be President. as was his right. He determined 10 capitalize all this war enthusiasm and patriotism for his own advan- taRe. He went about 1t like good engineer. He got out his compasses and his scale rule and laid out plan. He began to study practlca politics. First, he must decid' whether he was to be Democrat or | Republican. He had some trouble on that point. In 1920 We find him sayinR that he could not yet tell which 1t was to be. He was sure oi only one thing and that is that he wouldn't belong to the party that wasn't for the League of Nations and that wouldn't undertake to play . great part in Europe. He saw him. self q great world political figure Then he got job in the Harding cabinet: that definitely made him q Republican.
 "He now began to develop his first political policy-that is. the policy of silence. He sat silent while Fall and Daugherty and Forbes and the forces of corruption were al work. Political expediency. he thought, demanded silence then, a: he thinks it does now on so man, things about which we should lik' to hear from him.
 "But while Hoover was converting silence into a political cult, he wa: at the same time developing his owl cult of practical politics. He set uI . political organization all his own With ample funds he lined up men and kept the country flooded witt adroit Hoover publicity and propa eanda. He had marvellous staff O first class writers all singing hi praise,-some singing for love ant some for lucre and some for thu hope of benefits to come. Then h. al rates in tn old orthodox Republican way, played the ends against thu middle. and went down the middl where . middle road existed, unti finally the trick was turned. and tn richest man ever active in Amer ican politics and the biggest politica boss Philadelphia ever had, unite, to endorse his work and call Good.
 And still they tell you tha Hoover is not product and an sx ponent of practical politics, an that Smith is.
 Hoover reached his position b the new twentieth century method of the aristocrat. and if he eve goes into the White House. he vii take with him all his statistics an charts and blueprints and his othe engineering deficiencies; but thes are not the political efficiencies tha make a good President, charge with the direction and control C the great human factors and force which produce our problems of gov ernment
 Smith Rises On Democratic Rou,
 Smith reached his position | the step by step route of the demo crat. and this has given him somt thing that, after all, is required { solve popular needs and to initiat sound governmental policies It ha
 given him human understandin
 and heart.
 Smith can hire all the engineel
 the country needs, and all the stati
 tics and charts and blueprints: yl
 he has the heart. Neither Hoov,