Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-06-18

The Nomination of Mr.. Morrow.
The nomination of Dwight w. Nor
| row for Senator in the New Jersey
primary yesterday is a recognition. of
ability and of the service already per-
formed by Mr.. Morrow. It is an indi-
cation that the people, once imbued
! with the idea that a man stands out
among his fellows, can be relied upon
to pick that man for important public
Office. This is not said by way of re-
Election upon the opponents of Mr..
Morrow IN yesterdays primary. Rep
resentative Franklin w. Fort is, too, a
man of great ability and of tried serv-
ice. Joseph S. Frelinghuysen has al
ready demonstrated his qualifications
during his six-year term in the Sen
ate number of years ago.
Mr.. Morrow, however, has intrigued
the imagination Of the people of his
State. His great success In the legal
and business world, emerging finally as
one Of the principal partners of j. P.
Morgan & Co.; his success in Mex
leo, where he was sent by his friend,
President Calvin Coolidge, as Ameri-
can Ambassador, and, finally, his serv-
Ice as an important member of the
American delegation to the London
Naval Conference, have cast a glamour
about Mr.. Morrow which has been in
creased steadily by q favorable press.
To the people Of New Jersey, to the
Republicans at least, although many
independent Democrats are credited
with the same idea, the chance to
nominate and elect Mr.. Morrow to the
Senate came as Opportunity" to be
seized by the forelock before 1t should
vanish.
In many quarters the nomination Of
Mr.. Morrow will be hailed as a great
wet" victory. It Is true that he de-
feated Mr.. Fort. q dry adherent of the
eighteenth amendment, who entered
the race at the eleventh hour because
Mr.. Morrow had declared himself for
State control of the liquor trafic and
against national control. It is true
that was the main issue discussed in
the campaign. But the fact remains
that Mr.. Morrow probably would have
won the nomination whether he had
taken the position he did or had de-
clared his intention of going along with
the eighteenth amendment. Had Mr..
Fort defeated Mr.. Morrow it would
have been considered O distinct victory
for the cause of national prohibition.
1t Is natural, therefore, that the vets
should claim a victory in the nomina-
ton Of Mr.. Morrow by a tremendous
majority. But 1t Is doubtful that any
other wet could have won the victory
that Mr.. Morrow won in New Jersey yes
terday. Had the race lain between Mr..
Fort and Mr.. Frelinghuysen, for ex-
ample, Mr.. Fort might well have won.
There are great number of drys
among the Republicans in New Jersey.
Indeed. the estimates have 1t that more
than a majority of the Republican
voters in the State are dry. It is quite
clear, however, that literally thousands
Of persons who sympathize with the
prohibition cause voted yesterday for
Mr.. Morrow, ignoring for the moment
the prohibition question in order to OBJ
tain the services OF q man whom they
considered particularly qualified for the
Senate. The very fact that prohibition
sentiment Is strong among the Re-
publicans Of New Jersey caused the
Morrow supporters degree of uneasi-
ness up to the day of balloting.
Mr.. Morrow played the game in a
courageous and frank manner. He did
not sidestep the wet and dry issue when
he entered upon his campaign. He did
not, as many vets do, claim that
Government has no right to say to the
individual citizen. you shall not use
alcoholic beverages" What he did say
was that Government had that right,
but that the control of liquor and trafnc
in liquor should be in the hands of
the State governments and not in the
hands of the national Government. To
Mr.. Morrow prohibition, If 1t is to be
had, is q matter for the individual
States and not for the Federal Govern
ment to handle. He does not shut the
door in the face Of the prohibitionists
But quite naturally the doctrine he
has advanced appeals strongly to States
like New Jersey and New York where
there is q strong sentiment against
prohibition.