The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1931-03-12

! rift In the politics of this country.
The people of the Atlantic sea-
board north of Baltimore. without
much consideration for party. viii
vote wet in the coming election. The
people in the south and In the west
outside OF the larger cities will vote
dry.
Feeling Is Bitter
Republicans and Democrats ordi-
narily do not let their emotions af-
tect their judgments of each other.
But prohibition has emotionalized
politics, and people have ceased to
think and have begun to feel. and
feel bitterly.
An example of the bitterness
which may come in our partisan
politics during the next two years
is seen in the explosion within the
Democratic national committee in
its last meeting, when Chairman
Raskob attempted, on behalf of the
vets, to commit the party on a wet
program.
The same thing easily might hap
pened in the Republican national
committee if the New York and
New England members had made
the attempt which Raskob made in
the Democratic committee.
Prohibition is bound to be an is
sue in the coming presidential cam
paign, perhaps the only issue, GER
tainly devastating issue, one which
may, for time at least, and pos
sibly finally, split both major par
ties.
Split Is Likely
1t is not impossible that major
ity Of the Democratic convention
favorS wet or moist plank in the
Democratic national platform. But
with the two-thirds rule prevailing,
the drys can prevent wet Demo-
cratic presidential nomination.
With the adoption, or a serious
threat of adoption, of a wet plat
form, it is more than likely that the
south and west might Withdraw
from the convention and name a
dry Democratic candidate, VINO
might be nominated a few hours
later or earlier, according to the
luck of the game.
Similarly, the drys certainly viii
be able to control the Republican
convention; their control easily
might be frittered away and a wet
or moist platform might be made
for Mr.. Hoover, a dry.
Another Bolt Possible
But there is in the Republican
party strong minority group of
progresSives for the most part from
dry states. These dry progressive
Republicans might take a notion
to name Pinchot, one of their own
kind, on boiling ticket, thus leay-
ing Hoover ecuhred into a vet po-
sition with the regular nomination.
Such a forecast is not impossible.
The south would vote for the dry
candidate and in the Republican
party probably the dish would break
on the old crack. Many Of the mid
die states and the Missouri valley
would go dry and radical under the
pressure of hard times. Ney York
and the seaboard New England
states easily might go wet Repub-
lican.
1t is mess and a naixup. The
eastern vets can not realize how
permanently and finally dry the
west is. They are blind to the fact
that year after year for g dozen
years the drys have held and sti1
hold in the next congress working
majority.
Playing With Fire
They grasp at straws. Because
Ohio elected a liberal senator, the
eastern vets forget that Ohio, on
the one vital matter pertaining to
prohibition. elected dry legislator.
Because J. Ham Lewis came back
to the senate the vets forget that
he was liberal running against a
conservative Republican candidate
who attempted to straddle the pro-
hibition issue by falling back upon
referendum and lost both vets
and drys.
TIE vets see what they want to
see in the politics of the west, but
the drys make no mistake about
the intense feeling Of the east on
prohibition. The situation is acute.
1t is full of danger.
1t is an issv- which easily might
lead to disr Iption in this country
which would be serious and terrible.
We are as nation playing with
fire.