Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-21
WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS
BY FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE.

President Hoover's message to Con-
greSs on the Wickersharn report was an
eleventh-hour decision. In a chorono-
logical sense, 1t was literally such. It
was not actually ready for dispatch to
the Capitol until the very second that
the White House messenger was sent
speeding up Pennsylvania avenue with
the mouse which the laboring Wicker
sham mountain brought forth. AS re-
executive ofnces were assured that Mr..
Hoover's communication to Congress
would be the mereSt letter Of trans
initial. Thereby hangs a tale-or at
least the tale now circulating IN expla-
nation of the Presidents final determi-
nation to speak a piece Of his own
anent the WickerShammers' MASTER
piece. Until the text lay before him,
It's said, Mr.. Hoover was definitely Of
opinion that the report would be over
whelmingly and almost unqualif1edly
dry. In other words, he thought Il
would be In tune with his own prohibit
ton views. When the President dis
covered that the report was long way
from being arid, he concluded TO sub
NIT II to Congress with statement
which would at any rate not be ambigu-
Gus as far Is he is concerned.
Having nailed his dry colors TO the
mast on this conspicuous occasion,
there can hardly be any doubt Of Her
bert Hoover's stand on prohibition in
1882. He will run for reelection under
bone-dFy banner. The Republican
platform will have to conform to the
Presidents anti-liquor attitude or fi1d
somebody else TO be the party'S stand
ard bearer. insiders long have under
stood this to be the Californian's posi-
ton. They have gathered, moreover,
that Hoover still thinks the dry end OF
the prohibition argument 10 the winning
side. He is not mindless OF the ferment
at work in many centers of population
over the eighteenth amendment, but,
by and large, the President Is repre-
sented as feeling that on country
wide showdown the people will vote 70
remain on the water wagon. Even the
Democratic wet victories in MaSsachu-
sets, Ohio and Illinois last November
left the Chief Engineer unconvinceo
that Uncle Sam prefers q quencheo
thirst to Q parched throat.
Senator Claude A. Swanson, Demo-
crat, of Virginia, in a cloak room wise
| crack, observed, with respect TO- the
| prohibition controversy: Things have
come to such pass that a gentleman
can no longer remain on both sides
Of this great question" Brother Wick
ersham and his side-stepping con-
freres have Just proved that Swanson
is wrong. Monte M. Lemann, New
| Orleans lawyer, the southernmost MEM
Der Of the commission, emerges, by
general consent In Washington, with
the only crown of glory: He alone Of
the hot and bothered n declined
to sign the compromise report. Assist
ant Secretary of the Navy Jahncke,
| feIlow-townsman Of Lemanns Is author
ity for the proper pronunciation. OF
Lemon. Mr.. Lemann turns out to be
| anything but that.
| 4 \
Who says that q woman always is
wordier than a man? The shortest,
tersest statement by any member of
the Wickersham Commission is con-
tributed by Ada L. Comstock, president
Of Radcliffe College. It's only 140
words long and occupies less than half
page Of the 286-paged tome which
the commission requires for full dis
closure Of its inconclusiveness; Miss
| Comstock is a MinneSotan and, by pro-
| fession, a teacher of rhetoric. Evi-
IDENTIFY she considers that brevity Is the
soul Of English.
| \
Was II designed or coincidence thai
! led President Hoover to blot Clifford
| Pinchot on the publicity map by releas-
ing the Wickersham report at the very
hour Of the Governors inaugural ad-
dress at Harrisburg? The PennSylva-
mans friends are saying that the cpl
| sode has all the earmarks of dirty dig
at him. Under ordinary circumstances
Pinchot's thrust at the public utility
barons would have been front-page stun