Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-04-26
DEMOCRATIC WET PLANK
PROSPECT WORRIES DRYS
Third Party Unlikely as Raskob Forces
Hustle for Delegates, But Nominee
Cannot Be Anti-PrOhibitiOnist.

often some one comes in or writes In
to give portentous news about pros
poets of third party. The latest such
harbinger to come to the office of this
writer brought excited news that dry
Democrat William @. McAdoo is going
to form and lead party of protest. In
quiry revealed that Mr.. McAdco Is alb
sorbed in writing the "reminiscences OF
his lively life. A little group of dry
Democrats have met several times to
consider calling a national meeting to
organize third party. The place and
time of the proposed meeting are dis
cusSed-but the meeting does not take
place and the third party does not get
itself born.
All of which reinforces the skepticism
of those who have been long familiar
with politics. 1t is easy to dream a
third party. and many do it. But the
creation of third party takes time and
money and work and sweat. There is
not now in sight any one likely to pour
into the creation of third party the
indispensable quantity of energy and
effort-the grinding work that Theo-
dore Roosevelt and George w. Perkins
went through to form third party in
1912. or that the elder Senator La Fol-
lette and his associates put into the set
ting up of his third party in 1924.
Dreamers of new political parties are
like dreamers of new newspapers. More
people dream new newspapers than
dream any other occupation or profess
sion. Hardly anybody ever dreams OF
new coffee business or new cloak
and suit business Thousands of ideal
lists, however, dream of themselves as
creating a bstter newspaper than now
exists. Almost none ever get around
to the business of renting a building
and buying presses and hiring typeset-
terS. Such as make the attempt usually
find that their new newspaper. after it
is created, does not differ greatly from
the old ones. And so of dreaming third
parties. To actually launch a new party,
to provide the bones and ribs the CIR
Gers and pillars of the structure, calls
for qualities that the idealist and the
dreamers do not always have.
Republican Ticket Possible.
Dismissing the idea of third party,
the next possible course for the dry
Democrats. after and If their own party
goes wet, is to support the Republican
ticket (assuming the Republicans are
dry, or dryer than the DemocratS).
Doubtless many dry Democrats will do
that. Doubtless many OF the rank and
file among them will quietly vote the
Republican ticket.
Possibly few dry Democratic leaders
may publicly follow that course, may
publicly counsel voters to do the same, |
may make themselves formal leaders OF
a bolt. A few dry Democratic leaders |
may do thar, but it is likely to be only |
a few. An~~ the few will not include |
any who Ll,w hold high political ONCE |
or hope to have political careers. Such |
viii be deferred by the memory OF 1928. |
In the 1928 campaign, when the wet |
Smith was the Democratic candidate, |
just three important dry Southern DEM |
ocrats publicly and formally supported |
or gave countenance 70 the Republican |
ticket All three found their personal |
political careers curtailed. One of the |
three was the venerable Senator Sim
mons of North Carolina-and he is no |
longer Senator. Another was Senator |
Heflin of Alabama: he, too, no longer !
wears the toga. The third was Tom |
Love of Texas. and he was rather disas- |
trously set back in his hope 70 be !,
Governor.
These examples will be remembered /
To the extent that Southern dry Demo !
Gratis depart from the party when and |
il it goes wet: to the extent that they |
support the Republican ticket (assum- |
ing it is dry. or drier than the Demo- 1
crats), they will do so quietly. probably |
IN an unorganized and leaderleSs way. |
Even SO, there may be good many Of .
them.
The third course for dry Democrats |
who may be disappointed by their party |
going wet is the familiar formula for !
pacific protest in the world of politics
to use election day as an opportunity to |
go fishing"
All this has been about what the dry !
&c IL ~ .
and II their party goes officially wet. /
Equally interesting and more immedi- |
ate is the question. what will the dry +
Democrats do now, what will they do
to prevent the party from going vet,
or at least TO protest against its going
wet?
Dry Fight UnquestionabIe.
The dry Democrats will fight. Let
there be no doubt of that When and |
if Chairman Raskob finally writes his !
wet plank into the Democratic plat /
form he will know he has been through /
an experience Of a sort that doesn't f.
often take place in the arenas familiar
TO him, the decorous directors rooms
Of business corporations. The kind Of .
explosion that can be touched of by /
his proposal for wet plank has been
shown by what followed his introduce
ton Of it at the meeting of the Demo-
cratic National Committee in March.
when three dry Democratic Senator'S
Robinson of Arkansas, Hull OF Tennes-
see and Morrison of North Carolina
chose TO accept the mild-mannered Mr. |
Raskob's suggestion as declaration OF |
war. Mr. Raskob will see more Of that /
during the Is months which intervene /
before the Democratic National Conven- |
ton in June Of next year adopts plat |
form and names a presidential can
didate
1t is just possible. though only family !
possible. that the drys may check their |
wet chairman. With determination and |
the dryS might make Mr.. |
RaSkop's victory so costly as To be OF |
little value. In such a fight the drys |
would have some extraordinary allies |
from. the wet side. Not all the wet |
Democrats want a wet plank in the |
platform. Ex-senator Jim Reed Of Mis- |
souri,. for example, though as wet as the |
River, regards the idea OF
wet Ilank in the Democratic platform
as roadness. He thinks, as most Demo- |
cral4: leaders do. that the party has a
reg. chance to win, and he deplores the
raging Of the prohibition issue as an
uEs ecessary wedge driven into the party
frn.t. Reed has, moreover, a l9,S 1l.n-
ioi OF Chairman Raskob or 81 counts;
regards him as . torasi4 intruder from
TIE world Of ba&i,:ess. Back to the
cash register" says Reed to Raskob. |
Reed will help the dry Democrats re-
sist Raskob's wet plank. 1t will be
fantastic alliance, but politics sometimes
makes strange fellowships.
A good many other wet Democrats
will up to a certain point help the dry
Democrats resist Raskob's wet plank. !
So distinguished a person as Gov.
Franklin Roosevelt Of New York has
already stood beside the dryS in the
opening skirmish at the Democratic
National Committee meeting in March.
lntEnt.a