Evening star., 1932-06-25

what has transpired in the last two days
here in Chicago
First. the Roosevelt forces named the
Chairman of the Resolutions Commit
tee, Gilbert ~ Hitchcock of Nebraska.
Second, the Roosevelt forces placed
six of their own members on the Reso-
lutions Subcommittee Of nine to draft
platform.
Third. the Roosevelt forces in the
Democratic National Committee by
vote of II to IA, flguratively speaking,
rolled in the dirt the anti-Roosevelt
contesting delegation from Minnesota
and placed on the temporary roll of
the convention the Roosevelt delegates,
"a in number.
Fourth, the Roosevelt forces in the
National Committee, by vote of So to
80. seated the Huey Long delegates from
Louisiana and turned down the Long
opposition. Long has announced his
intention of casting the Louisiana dele
CATION votes for Roosevelt.
Look Good to G. o. p.
The RooseveltianS will dominate the
Committees On Rules, Credentials and
Permanent Organization of the national
convention. Each State and Territorial
delegation has one member on each OF
these committees.
Senator Pat Harrison of Mississippi
has sought to act as dove of peace,
to bring the warning factions among the
Democrats to some degree OF harmony.
1t does not appear possible he will sue
ceed. The Roosevelt opposition, led by
Smith and his manager, Frank Hague
of New Jersey, is too bitter, ana the
Rooseveltians apparently have decreed
that this convention shall see the end
Of the Smith influence in the national
set-un of the Democratic Party. The
fight is not nice fight from Demo-
cratic point of view, but very nice as
the G. o. P. looks at it.
The roars of Frank Hague have had
no effect except to tend to, solidify the
Roosevelt forces. His statement declar-
ing that Roosevelt cannot be elected II
nominated merely enraged the Roose-
yeltians instead Of soaring them. Every
time that M. Smith reiterateS his as
sertion that he Is a bona flde candidate
and expects nomination, it throws the
Roosevelt forces more closely together,
for in large part they are as much anti
Smith as they are pro- Roosevelt.
In the end it will be the votes, not
the roars that count. That was demon
strated when the Roosevelt machine
operated in the National Committee
and in the Resolutions Committee.
Weary Chairman John j. Raskob OF the
National Committee, presiding over MS
committee. saw the Roosevelt forces
sweep aside the protests of the support
ers OF Smith, Ritchie and other favorite-
son candidates and work their Will.
Chicago Filling Up.
Chicago already seems to be filled to
overflowing with Democrats arriving for
the convention. Today and tomorrow
there will be a tremendous increase In
the size of the crowds, due to the ar
rival Of State delegations from all parts
of the country. Each candidate has a
following that comes rolling into the
city.
After nearly all the other candidates
making up the field against Roosevelt
had taken a shot at the proposal to
abolish the two-thirds rule, Alfred E.
Smith late yesterday issued the follow
ing statement;
"The two-thirds rule is a tradition of
the Democratic party which has stood
for 100 years. A new rule should not
be adopted in the heat of a political
will not tolerate any eleventh-hour,
unsportsmanlike attempt to change the
rules after the game has been started
Since the earliest primary this year all
the contestants for this nomination, as
we'll as their hackers. have known that
two-thirds of the total number of dele
gates were required to bring about this
nomination. The delegates we're all
elected with the understanding and ex-
pectation that two-thirds would be re-
quired.
The leader of the forces behind the
candidate with the largest number Of
delegate votes has proclaimed to the
country at least three times a day that
the man he was backing would be
nominated by two-thirds vote on the
first ballot, when the scepter of power
however, fell from his hands and was
taken up by the Senator from Louisiana
and the Senator from Montana late
last night. Resolutions we're hastily
adopted by a small group committing
the candidates followers to an abroga
tion of the tWo-thirds rule. This radi-
cal change, suggested late at night
without any deliberation or discussion,
sounds like cry for the life preserver,
Smith Vetoed Change.
Leading Democrats throughout the
country will repudiate any such action
and 1t will be distinctly harmful to the
party chances in November no matter
who is nominated.
"At least a year before and again six
months prior to the Houston Conven-
ton a number of my friends suggested
this identical procedure. / vetoed it
on both occasions and frankly and pub
licly stated that unless two thirds Of
the delegates to that convention wanted
me, did not care TO receive the nomi-
nation"
Mr. Smith announced that he would
take the floor in the convention and
speak against the substitution of ma
jority rule for the two-thirds rule If
it was presented.
He said that the two other living
Democratic candidates for President,
Cox of Ohio and Davis of West Vir-
ginia and New York, had notified him
they were opposed to doing away with
the two-thirds rule. under which they
had been nominated.
Mr.. Smith said he considered worse"
a so-called compromise plan whereby a
rule providing that If is ballots were
taken under the two-thirds rule with
out a nomination the convention would
then work under a ma jority rule
With a smile, he said he did not be-
lieve there was any sentiment among
the delegates for the drive against the
two-thirds rule, which had been started
by 'two new generals" Senators Long
of Louisiana and Wheeler of Montana.
"I regard the movement as a confess
sion of weakness ON the mart of the