Evening star., 1932-06-28
.BLUNDERS |NJURE
| ROOSEVELT'S RACE
RitChie and Baker Gain
Strength as Delegates
Begin to Waiver.
Continued From First Page.)

courage very greatly the favor1te son
and dark horse candidates opposing
him.
And yet, despite these tactical er-
rors, Roosevelt still stands the leading
candidate for the presidential nomina-
ton His supporters assert he will be
nominated on the first or second ballot,
under the two-thirds rule.
In part. the withdrawal from floor
battle to do away with the two-thirds
rule has brought together again Roose-
welt supporters who were sadly divided
over the proposed majority rule. Ves-
tiges of soreness are still in evidence,
! however.
Ritchie and Baker Gain.
The names of Gov. Albert c. Ritchie
of MARYLAND and Newton D. Baker OF
Ohio loomed large in the gossip here
today about possible candidates for the
presidency in the event Roosevelt is
unable to make the grade Ritchie has
many friends in many delegations, who
would gladly go to him. 1t has been
understood in many quarters that the
forces supporting Al Smith would be
glad to go to the Maryland Governor
if they have a chance. 1t has been
suggested that Smith intends to with
draw and announce his support OF
Gov. Ritchie. Such a move on the
part of Smith would be of very doubt
| full value to the Ritchie candidacy,
however. One of the reasons that
Gov. Roosevelt has advanced SO far
toward the presidential nomination is
the desire of many Of the Democrats
from the South and West to eliminate
Smith, not only as presidential can
didate but also as an important and
directing factor in the national party
management This is not Smith
convention.
Undoubtedly the Smith delegates from
Massachusetts, New Jersey, Connecticut,
/ Rhode Island and Pennsylvania, wet
delegates, would be perfectly satisfied
to go to Ritchie. The Ritchie people
are laying claim to 200 delegates, most
of them in the Roosevelt camp as a
second choice. If Roosevelt is halted
seriously in his drive for the nomina-
tion and these delegates drift to Ritchie
it will make him a real contender with
between 300 and 400 delegates soon
after his own drive gets going. Illinois
delegates are said to be strongly in IA
vor of Ritchie and ready to jump to
him after they have given a vote or
two to Melvin A. Traylor, Chicago
banker
An appeal to Newton d. Baker to per-
nit his name to be presented to the
Democratic National Convention as a
presidential candidate. 1t was predicted
today, will go forward to Mr.. Baker
from one of his friends in the conven-
ton, if it has not already gone forward.
There is pressure to have the nomina-
tions for President and Vice President
taken up before the day is out.
The first test of strength between the
Roosevelt forces and those opposed to
him is to come early in today's session
of the convention, when the name Of
Senator Thomas J. Walsh of Montana
Is to be presented for the permanent
Craftsmanship of the convention. The
ShouSe, chairman of the Democratic
Executive Committee for the Office.
Walsh Wins, SO to IL.
Both sides claim victory. Walsh was
winner by big margin, however, in
the Committee on Permanent Organiza-
tion last night when by vote of 36
to II, he was nominated for the chair
manship. Shouse's name will be placed
before the convention. The voting
strength of the 36 States, whose repre-
] oCllLdblFGo III lklt NOiIllllIbCC SuPHOi lNN
Walsh is 674, as compared to 348 in the
State delegations, whose representatives
favored Shouse. If this is a correct
measuring rod, Walsh will win handily.
Some of the State delegations. however,
will not vote solidly for Walsh even
though their representatives favored
him in the committee meeting. One
hundred and thirty votes are held by
the States and Territories not recorded
in the vote last night. The Roosevelt
camp expressed great confidence they
will win this contest.
Today Farley was at work at $50
am. calling his key men in the various
delegations, seking to straighten out
the tangle over the tWo-thirds rule and
to keep every cne in line for Walsh.
The charge has been made by the
supporters of Mr.. Shouse that the
Roosevelt faction has "double-crossed' -
Shouse and that the Governor has con-
nived at the double-crossing. This was
another contest precipitated by the
Roosevelt leaders with poor judgment.
1t is bound to leave sore spots, no mat
ter which way it goes. The record in
the case leaves the burden of proof on
Roosevelt to show that the chairman
ship was not promised to Shouse.
The report of the Committee on Per-
AAihAiNAlb vi 6aAiLHoLlOll ID uuE W SOlilC
before the convention soon after it
meets, with both sides ready to go to
the mat. Al Smith has announced he
VIII take the floor in support of the
ShouSe candidacy for the chairman
ship. 1t will be Smiths first speech In
the convention.
The convention also will be called
upon to decide whether it shall NOM
mate its candidates for President and
( OrnSfdnF,f 1N1F- -
tlonal platform. The Rules Committee
voted Tor such procedure. An effect to
change the program so that the plat
form consideration would come first was
defeated by vote Of 25 to "a and then
the resolution proposing the entire pro-
gram OF procedure was adopted by a
vote OF 81 to Ia. The minority will bring
IN report to place the platform ahead
OF the nominations in the conventions s
program.
Cites Past Records.
The argument was advanced by the
opponents of the committees plan that
II was only fair to adopt a platform be-
lore 1t asked the candidates to stand on
IT, however, 1t was pointed out by Dam
lei Roper, the District of Columbia's S
delegate in the Rules Committee, that
IN j9l2, when Wilson was nominated
anu again IN 1916 when he was renoml-
mated the nominations had been made
nrSt and the platform adopted later. In
iszo, tne platform was adopted and
then Al Smith was nominated for Pres
laent. He then sent the Houston con-
Ventlon telegram repudiating the dry
plank OF the Democratic platform and
announcing his own personal program
against the eighteenth amendment. 1t
matters little, if the Smith case is to
be criterion. whether the platform is
adopted first or second.
Inc extreme wet faction is making
hard fight to put a plank in the plat
form placing the Democratic party on
record as favoring repeal Of the eight
eentn amendment and in favor of i'm
mediate revision of the Volstead act so
as 10 permit light wine and beer. The
ieSS extreme wetS-practically all DEM
ocrats now here show signs of wetness-