The Waterbury Democrat., 1936-09-05

cal life of the Kingf1Sh'S N Talmadge.
 On that day, Georgia voters will decide whether the toga of the junior senatorship of the state shall remain on the shoulders of Senator Richard B. Russell, Jr,, or be transferred to "Our Gene.
 In making that decision the vot- CTS will do more than choose be- tween afl able young man and a flamboyant, red-gallused rabble- rouSer. Far more important than this personal factor is the choice between a New Dealer and 8 rabid anti-New Dealer.
 That is the real issue at stake in next Wednesdays primary elec- tion in Rooseveit's adopted State. sFriend'' of Roosevelt
 Talmadge, fighting for his po- litical life, is desperately trying to deny this. He is insisting that he is not against Roosevelt; that he will support the President whenever I think he is right"
 "All right" Russell has chal- lenged back, ''let my opponent say where he stands"
 But Talmadge's only reply is: Georgia needs a man in the senate who will help guide the President"
 This, however, fooled no one in Georgia, where his Liberty League and Wall Street backing are well known. The support Is not the only accusation being hurled at the red-gallused l1aranguer. He is also being asked to explain how on 8 gubernatorial salary of ST. 800 he was able to make exten- sive farm land purchases. His opponents say that these pur. chases represent $l00,000 in value.
 "Our Gene" has made hun- dreds of speeches in his sena- tcriaI campaign, but the first word is yet to be heard from him on his farm holdings.
 Anti-LabOr
 Nor is he replying to the venge- full attacks of Georgia laborites who recall how he used the state militia to break the 1885 textile strike.
 When running for governor in 1892 and 1884, Talmadge paraded himself as the friend of the work CT and the farmer. He was elect ed chiefly through this support. Yet, last year, when the mill workers took to the picket lines in @ struggle for union recogni- ton and wage increases, Tal- madge enabled the textile opera tors to beat them into submission by calling out the troops and placing the mill areas under martial law.
 This has not been forgotten by Georgia labor and 1t will have 8 chance to pay off its score next Wednesday.
 Spectacular Rise
 Talmadge was @ mediocre country lawyer in the small town of Mo- Crae, Ga, when he first flared over the state political horizon as 8 fiery crusader against the fertilizer trust. With this issue as Q vehicle, he rode into office as State Agriculture commissioner and promptly forgot his pledges to bring the fertilizer interests to their k,..aes.
 His Cerm as agricultural com- missioner was criticized for his speculation in hogs, which was branded as illegal. There was talk of impeachment.
 But Talmadge merely turned this incident to promote his gubernatorial ambitions. To the "wooI hats, as he calls Georgia farmers, he declared that he had used state funds for his hog operations in an effort to get them higher prices. "Only because of crooked specu- lators," he acclaimed, did his project fail.
 In his first gubernatorial cam. paign Talmadge declared war on utility interests. Today hs is their friend, and has made vltriolic speeches against the Tennessee Valley Authority, which the power companies oppose.
 Big Business Agent
 Talmadge's doublecross of labor was the stepping stone from which he leaped into the nationel arena. It was after he smashed the tex- tile strike that mill owners and other big business clements swarmed to his standard. They saw in him . new white hope'' against the New Deal and spurred hi mon to declare open war on the President.
 Feeding upon their flattery, "Our Gene" actually began to enyision himself Q presidential candidate. Huey was removed from the scene, and the Georgia firebrand thought he saw the way cleared to skyrocket out in front as thhe anti-New Deal chamuion. With this in mind he