The Washington times., 1936-01-28
JEFFERS0NIANS
GIRDING FOR
BATTLE
Interna,,a.ssI Sow servIee

MACON, Ga. Jan. 28.-On the
heels of AL Smiths threat to take
a walg" during the 1885 presiden-
tial campaign unless the Roosevelt
Administration mendS its ways,
there was started here in the deep
South today-in the Presidents
adopted State-an effor to defeat
him for denomination.
1t is sponsored by Gov. Eugene
Talmadge of Georgia, outspoken
foe of the Administration, and
by John H. Kirby, Texas lumber
man who has inSurged against
a lot Of things in his time. Joint
ly, tomorrow, they will convene a
meeting of "JefferSonian Demo
Gratis" invited from a dozen
Southern and border States.
They say they expect an attend
ance of 10000 anti-RooseVelt
Democrats.
There is no connection between
the Talmadge-Kirby movement and
AL Smiths threat to take walk, "
except their mutual dislike OF
Roosevelt policies. They are agreed
in their denunciation Of those poll
cies as "socialistic" and as "un-
Jeffersonian," but there the con.
nection ceases.
Still Sore on Smith
With the bitter memories of 1928
still in their minds, the Democrats
of the deep South don't want Al
Smith as the nominee of the party,
even if he were ambitious for it.
The sponsors of this "Jeffer-
sonian" convention are emphatic
that this is entirely Southern
show. Kirby declared on arrival
here that while the cooperation Of
the Northwestern States is well
coined because their objective is
the Same-the defeat of Mr.. RooSe-
velt-thiS convention is wholly a
Southern undertaking. He said
I'VE will organize the Dixie
Democrats in II States, and we
will see whether Mr.. Roosevelt
is not going to have, some OPP
position at Philadelphia"
Whether the self-Styled Jeffer-
sonians will make a presidential
nomination at their convention.
or endorse a candidate. appeared
problematical today. Their only
avowed objective is to defeat Mr..
Roosevelt at Philadelphia, to TO
ment a revolution within the
party that will make the June
convention something more than
merely a ratification meeting.
Sponsors of the meeting, which
has been dubbed grass roots
Democratic gathering" insists
that the session has been called
to stress principles, not candi-
dacieS.
Governor Talmadge, the red
gallused Georgia leader whose
firm mo" was the only dissenting
voice to the Democratic national
committees recent resolution of
Roosevelt Endorsement, insists that
the Macon convention has been
called for two purposes:
"TO save the Democratic
party, and to save the country"
To which Kirby added:
"And to fight socialism"
But while talk of candidates. to
oppose Mr.. Roosevelt was depre-
Gated by the convention leaders,
1t would not be surprising if the
convention in the final analysis
does give an Endorsement to the
black-haired Georgian.
Ewing Y. Mitchell, a member of
the Roosevelt Little Cabinet" as
Assistant Secretary of Commerce
until he resigned some months
ago after a row. is one of the dele
gates. He said he thought Gov
ernor Talmadge would make "a
good man" to stand for the preSi-
dency. A great many of the gov
ernorS followers here in his home
State feel similarly about it.
Strength Uncertain
Just how far the Georgia gov
ernor could go, however, even in
the matter of his own State dele
CATION, is also problematical. The
two Georgia Senators and virtu-
ally the entire congressional dele
CATION are at odds with Tai
madge, and are plotting to take
a solidly pro-Roosevelt delegation
to Philadelphia. But that doesn't
feaze the governor. He is going
to stage his show, have his say,
and in the end he hopes to whip
up sentiment in the once solid
South sufficiently so that the
delegations that go to Philadel-
phia in June will be Spiced
literally with rebellion.
The convention opens tomor.
row, with Hugh Howell, chair
man of the Georgia State Cen
tral Committee and a Talmadge
supporter, presiding. Talmadge
will make the principal opening
speech over a national radio
hookup of half an hour, and
later a resolutions committee will
bring in a platform bitterly de-
mandatory of the Roosevelt Ad-
miniStration.
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