The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1936-02-06
NATIONAL PRESS BLDG.

clothes ana mas
Liberty League put on long pants
Steps Out in the field of pol
itics. Although
comparatively new as group
and promoted consistently as nom
partisan, the league can now be said
to have plunged headlong into the po-
litical warfare If its first big rally can
stand as criterion, its influence is
due to be felt In an important way in
the Forthcoming national elections.
This rally that really marked the
leagues campaign debut was a pic
turesque thing. 1t was picturesque
first because of the time and the place
and the very nature of the thing and
the manner of approach to the voters
of the country but it was more pic
turesque and more important as well
because the headline speaker was AL
fred E. Smith, one time Democratic can
didate for the Presidency, and by all
odds the most colOrful and pungent
speaker of the present day. 1t was a
dinner of more than 1000 persons
from every state in the Union-and it
was held in exactly the same rooms of
the Mayflower hotel here where two
weeks earlier President Roosevelt had
addressed about the same number of
persons at the Jackson day $50-a-plate
dinner. AS further note of interest,
attention might be called to the fact
that the meeting was presided over by
Borden Burr, lifelong Alabama Dem
ocrat, and the other speakers were DR..
Neal Carothers, Southern Democrat,
long head of the economics depart
ment of Lehigh university in Pennsyl-
vania, and former Federal Judge
Charles l. Dawson of Louisville, KY,
Republican.
referred above to Mr.. Smith as be-
ing a colOrful speaker, and from all
of the comments have heard, it seems
to be the consensus that never has he
justified the description better than in
his league speech. He was introduced
by Mr.. Burr as "Al Smith of Amer
ica." and proceeded to assure his audi
ence that included millions listening
by radio that he placed patriotism
above party, that he was a candidate
for no office under the sun, that he
had no ak to grind and that such
critical shots as he might take were
without personal animosity for any
one. But he did not pull his punches
when he pilloried the New Deal and
he showed no mercy when he drew
the deadly parallel between the Demo
cratic platform of 1882 and the policies
which Mr.. Roosevelt had carried
through. I believe it may be said that
he reached the peak of his speech
when he laid on the speakers stand
copies of the Democratic platform of
1882 and the Socialist platform of the
same year and in his best East side
that Mr.. Roosevelt had been elected
on Democratic ticket and had car
ried out the Socialist promises.
The Presidents breathing spell' ut
terance, his message to congress on
the state of the Union, his staff of adj
visers, his monetary policies formed
other meaty subjects which the former
governor of New York picked to pieces
in his own inimitable way. He begged
congress to assert itself again and
quoted from the Bible in his plea it
should return to the fathers house
and be again one of the three branches
of the federal government He said it
took courage for a lifelong Democrat
to say the things he was saying, but
there is no gainsaying he displayed
what 1t took.
Through the speech was Mr.. Smiths
chosen theme that great danger lies
ahead, a danger that the New Deal
will destroy everything which he held
had made America the outstanding ma
tion that it is. He accused the Presi-
dent of having arrayed class against
class and asserted that what the ma
ticn faces is the most gigantic tax bur-
deh ever known. To this he added
that 1t will not be the rich who will
pay, nor the poor, but "that vast army
of individuals with incomes from a
hundred dollars month to five thou
sard dollars a year."
Finally, in conclusion. Mr.. Smith
said:
LET me give this solemn warning:
There can be only one capital, Wash
ington or Moscow.
There can be only one atmosphere
of government, the clear, pure fresh
air of free America. or the foul breath
of communistic Russia. There can be
only one flag, the Star and Stripes, or
the flag of the goddess union of the
Soviets. There can be only one ma
tional anthem, The Star-Spangled
Banner or The Internationale,'
there can be only one victor. If our
Constitution wins, we win. But If
the Constitution-stop, stop there-the
Constitution cannot lose"
But what of the significance of the
league dinner and the Smith speech?
Prior to the din
The Smith ner. the leagues ex-
Wolkout ecutive council met
in secret. Whether
1t committed the league to a definite
stand was not formally announced, yet
surely there are grounds upon which
to base a statement that 1t means to
support candidates and platforms on
the conservative side.
With equal emphasis, 1t can be said
that Mr.. Smith has walked out on that
section of the Democratic party that
sticks by Mr.. Roosevelt. He said it
was a choice either to 'put on the
mantle of hypocrisy or we can take
walk" He explained it probably
would be the latter course. And
frankly it seems with the personal
following that he has. walkout by
Mr.. Smith cannot be described as 9th
erwise than serious to the party from
which that group is detected 1t has
all of the earmarkS of an interestinp