Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-06-16
The Political Mill
By G. Gould Lincoln.

| nave their weather eyes out Tor what
may happen in the Republican sena-
torial primary In New Jersey tomorrow.
If the wet Mr.. Morrow or the wet Mr.
Frelinghuysen comes in q winner
against the dry Mr.. Fort, members of
| the House from New England States
| from New York and half dozen other
States who have been rated dry in the
past, may have to meet wet candidates
in their primary races for denomination.
Some Of these drys are "jumpy" today,
| they don't know just what to make of
the alleged wave Of wet sentiment
which has rolled up in the last six
months. They are not sure but what
the wave after all is little mora than a
wavelet, beating against q sturdy dry
shore. That's what many of them
would like to believe. But they want
70 Know 1t is humanity possible to
| know.
Despite claims by the vets of a great
increase In the number of persons who
are actively opposed to national pro-
| htbition, these dry members of Con-
gress say that the results at the polls
have not yet given any advantage to
the vets. A victory by Dwight w. Nor
row, now rated as one of the foremost
opponents of national prohibition be-
cause OF his prominence, would give
the wet cause a considerable boost. ON
the other hand, If Mr.. Fort should be
nominated. the Republican drys would
heave long sigh of relief,
u
The first real scare which the Repub-
lican drys in Congress suffered came at
the time Of the special election early
last Spring In the Springfield district in
Massachusetts to fill q vacancy caused
by the death Of the sitting member
THIS was the district which Senator
Glllett represented for thirty or forty
years In the House before he went to
the Senate. 1t has been regarded as a
Republican stronghold But when the
ballots were counted last Spring q wet
Democrat, Representative Granfleld
had won handily. Admittedly, this was
a dry reverse. 1t is true that the Re-
publican nominee, getting cold feet on
the liquor question, had said he would
vote wet If his district went wet In a
referendum. This angered lot of the
drys, who refused to support him. But
the effect was bad so far as the drys
| were concerned
The Association Against the Eight
zenith Amendment, which apparently
has plenty Of the sinews of war, Is
greatly interested in the result of the
Morrow candidacy in New Jersey.
Equally, the Anti-Saloon League is
straining every nerve to nominate Mr..
Fort. The Anti-Saloon League leaders
fairly froth at the mouth when they
speak Of the New Jersey law which COM
pels all independent candidates to file
In that State five days before the pri-
mary election. They say this law is
designed particularly to make it hard
Tor such organizations as the Anti
saloon League. In other words, the
league, If 1t Is not satisfied with the
way the primary election goes, cannot,
after the primary is held, put up an
independent dry Republican candidate
Tor the general election. The league is
stopped from doing what it did in New
York State in 1926. when it ran an in
dependent dry, a Republican State
Senator, and so made the defeat of
former Senator Wadsworth by his Demo-
cratic opponent a sure thing because
OF the division in the total Republican
vote. The league had been out to get
Mr.. WadsWorth for some time because
he was q wet and because he was
TAXED OF as presidential possibility
OF the future. The league does not like
prominent political leaders If they are
wet, and especially 1t does not promi-
nent Republican leaders who are wet
It regards the Republican party as dis
tinctly dry political territory.
y
Writing for magazine, former Pres
1
mendouS send off. He said In effect
that Mr.. Morrow was the kind OF man
! VINO should be elected to the Senate
tnat ne Is capable of great leadership
and service. That was before Mr..
Morrow's speech declaring himself a
foe OF national prohibition. Since that
speech, the former President has made
a speech himself urging the country to
stand by President Hoover. The dryS
are linking the two speeches together
and declaring that Mr.. Coolidge, by his
Endorsement of President Hoover. has
taken his stand against Mr.. Morrow and
his stand on the eighteenth amendment.
Perhaps It would clarity the air, how
ever, If Mr.. Coolidge spoke for himself
on this matter.
y y \
| Mr.. Hoover has the tariff bill finally
before him for his approval. It is
without either of the provisions written
into 1t by the Senate coalition"
against which Mr.. Hoover made earnest
protest, the debenture clause and the
Senate amendment doing away with
the flexible provision of the tariff law.
| The Senate, in its effort to embarrass
the President, went the limit on these
| two amendments. But 1t failed in the
end. The Democrats are attacking the
tariff bill vigorously, although many of
the provisions were written into the
| measure, carrying higher rates, with
Democratic aid. It has been a ia
/ vor1te paStime, however, for Democrats
to vote for high duties on the products
of their own States and then to vote
against the passage of the bill. That
| happened In connection with the pres
ent Republican tariff bill. The Demo-
Gratis may say with considerable JUS
tice that If pluns are to be passed
around, their constituents are entitled
to them, too Only five of the Demo-
Gratis, however. were finally recorded
| for the passage of the bill In the
Senate. But as the bill passed only
that 1t could not have passed at all
without Democratic aid. Too many
Republicans opposed 1t.
Franklin w. Fort, whose candidacy
for the Republican senatorial nomina-
ton in New Jersey on dry platform
has brought the liquor issue to the front
| there as much as the candidacy of
Dwight w. Morrow as an opponent OF
national prohibition, has had an I'M
usual and almost meteoric career in
politics. 1t Is only six years since he
was first elected to the House of Rep
| resentativeS. In that time he has be-
come recognized leader in the House.
He has been a power in national Re-
publican politics, both as secretary of
the national committee, an office he re-
signed not long ago, and as one of the
men who had a prominent part in
| bringing about the nomination of
President Hoover. Mr.. Fort has I'M
doubted ability. He is a clear thinker,
an able debater. If he should be NOM
mated for the Senate he has a hard
battle ahead. Jersey has decided wet
leaning, which might make 1t difficult
for a Republican dry this year to win