Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-05-27
WET STATEPLANKS
FORECAST IN NORTH
Republican Leaders Still
Hope to Gain Hoover's
Consent to Plan.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

Announcement that both the Demo-
cratic and Republican platforms in New
Jersey would contain a plank advocat-
ing repeal of the eighteenth amendment
is regarded here as a forerunner of what
will happen in many Northern States
next year
New Jersey has a gubernatorial cleo
ton next Autumn, hence the State plat
form Is not yet the embarrassment that
it will become for the national Re-
publican administration in 1882. There
are hopes on the part of Northern Re-
publicans that they may yet get Mr..
Hoover to consent to a platform plank
which gives each State organization in
the Republican party freedom of action,
but there are no signs that the Presi-
dent will deviate from his unqualified
Will Propose Revision.
That the Democratic national plat
form will propose revision of the eight
zenith amendment is now a foregone
conclusion. Most Democrats feel the
subject will not be ignored and that the
dry South will accept changes in the
wording Of the eighteenth amendment
provided those changes do not weaken
the opportunity of the South to main
tain the status quo ON prohibition of the
liquor traffic.
Most Republican leaders are inclined
to believe the Northern States in their
State platforms will insist upon a
freedom of action permitting State
tickets to espouse the wet cause II the
leaders in the wet States so desire
The trend is toward minority fight
in the next Republican National Con-
vention, which will require record
vote. In 1928 the wet forces, led by
Nicholas Murray Butler, did not keep
the issue before the convention as ag-
gressively as will be the case in 1882.
If the National Convention should take
a vote, it probably will mean embarrass-
ment for various State delegations in
Congress as well as difficulties for the
Republican party in the wet States.
The Democrats will contend that a
vote for the Republican National ticket
is dry vote, Notwithstanding the fact
that Republican delegations from the
wet States will have registered their OBJ
jections to a dry plank.
Economic Issue Paramount.
Evidence is multiplying that prohibi-
ton for the moment is not as promi-
nent an issue as it was year ago. This
IS not due to any lessening interest
in the prohibition controversy, but
through the acutness of another issue
which has superseded it in Importance,
namely. the economic situation.
The Democrats are counting on the
effects of the depression to carry most
of the important Northern States, and
they reason that even though the Re
publican State organizations adopt
State planks advocating repeal of the
eighteenth amendment the wet votes
will go to the Democratic side.
1t all depends, of course. on who the
Democratic candidate happens to be.
If 1t Is Franklin D. Roosevelt, the drys
will not be SO happy as the selection
of Gov. Albert c. Richie of Maryland,
for example, would make them. This is
because Mr.. Roosevelt, while advocating
repeal of the eighteenth amendment,
has proposed substitute amendment
which would require State distribution
of alcoholic beverages and would not
allow each State to legislate as it
pleased.
If the business situation improves,
prohibition will again take first place
in national politics.
tCopyright. 1917