Evening star., 1928-05-02
WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS
BY FREDERIC WLLIAM VILE.

Claude Gernade Bowers. who is to
| be temporary chairman Of the Demo-
cratic national convention. may keynote
himself into the vice presidential nomi-
nation II he isn't careful. Such, at
least, was the soft impeachment cur
rent at the national executive commit
| tee meeting. which has just selected
the Hoosier editor to open the ball at
| Houston Geographically, Bowers quail
/ fies. The only two Presidents the DEM
ocrats have ever elected since the ClVll
! War-Cleveland and Wilson both went
| into Office with Indiana running mates.
respectiyelv. Hendricks and Marshall.
| Bowers resides and writes in New YORK.
| but he's native of Indiana and re-
| tains a voting residence there. AT vari-
| Gus times. he lived in indianapolis.
| Terre Haute and Fort Wayne, once
| he ran for Congress in Everett Sanders
| old district. Bowers served an appren-
| ticeship as a Democratic keynoter. haV-
| ing functioned in that capacity at the
| Indiana State convention in 1920, Inc
| silver -tongued Hoosier Is just on the
verge of so. Referring TO his oratoricaI
/ triumph in Washington on Jackson
| dav. Bowers said to this observer. Il
/
| that the average Democrat Is hungry
| for a restatement of the party funda-
mentals." That's to be the keynote OF
| the Houston keynoter.
=
There are amazing revelations OF ra-
dio progress In the report submitted 10
| the advisory council Of the National
Broadcasting Co. by its president Mer-
/ ~ IL oar
| invested more than So 500 900 In broad
casting equipment. Though II operat-
ed at a loss OF $500 900 for It's first "a
months. 1t expects TO be self-support-
| ing at the close OF 1923. More than
1000 faces are placed before N. b. =;
microphones each month. Sixty-odd
great American industries support pro-
grams broadcast over N. B. e. network.
| During the coming year. an investment
| hour" consisting OF counsel on thfiit'
savings and investments. Is TO be put on
the air. From Chicago a daily noon
| day program on agriculture will soon be
broadcast The N. b. G. Is the cotln"
| try's biggest user OF telephone service.
| II paid the A. T. & r. 81 $50, 900 IN wire
| tolls last year for special hook-up cir
cults Through the Red. Blue and Pa
cific Coast networks covering practical
| ly the whole United States, $4,000 900
was spent in 1927 on presenting radio
programs Industries which use tine
| magazine Of the air" for advertising
paid 81 900 900 for program talent,
One Of tn. Democratic board OF strate-
gy In session at Washington this week
was Mrs Leroy Springs, national com
mittceWoman for South Carolina, she >
known as the lady who nearly broke
up the Madison Square Garden con-
fusion prematurely in 1924 because she q
run out of hats II appears thht Mts'
Springs Is famed for her millinery. She
brought along enough hats % wear dii~
ferent ones, spectively, at morning,
afternoon and evening sessions. hut
by the time the seventy seventh ballot
had come and gone. her stock was run"
ming low She did not figure on lS-
day convention.
y y
IT'S dollars 10 doughnuts that the
Smithsonian Institution Will come into
lis own now. with the Spirit oi St,
Louis ak "A drawing card de luxe. The
great national museum, created by act
Of Congress In i846 has, OF course, al
ways attracted It's quota OF visitors, but
officials are confident that with Lind
bergh's transatlantic plane on view, the
institution Is destined to become the
most magnetic mecca IN all Washing
ton Perhaps the new popularity the
gmithaonian will thus achieve may call
deserved attention 10 the fact that 1t
Is In need of funds Most Americans
are under the Misrepresentation that the
institution Is Government establish
ment. maintained with Federal funds
II lives mainly on 100000 income
derived from private bequest ~~ths
iodgkins fund A scheme Is afoot ia
provide the Smithsonian with a ~ 900
900 endowment.
4
Presidential candidates generally pick
their Own national committee Chaifmen
Already the pr0gn0Slieatora are busy
with The names 0f men who might pilot
Herbert Hoover OF Al Smith 10 victory
Ihe best Republican bet II believed IA
be james w Good uf Iowa, nov in
managerial direction OF Hoover pre-.
J convention interekla He's q better
whioh'd be an asset for Hoover and