The Waterbury Democrat., 1938-02-19

Republican thunder filled the air on the anniversary of Lincoln's birthday. We had speeches from Senator Vandenberg, potential can didate for the presidency, from Chairman John Hamilton, of the Republican National Committee, and various senators, governors, and les ser lights.
 With one exception - the speech of Governor Aiken of Vermont-it is doubtful if anybody who listened to those speeches can recall more than an empty rumbling of attacks on President Roosevelt and the reitera- tion of threadbare banalities as to the high motives, purposes and prospects of the minority party.
 There was no constructive word anywhere. Several of them, includ- ing Senator Vandenberg and Sen- ator Bridges, of New Hampshire, es- saved the task of writing a Re- publican platform. They numbered the points eight in the case of the Michigan senator, ten in the case of his New England colleague - and there was not new word or a new thought in any of the numbered paragraphs. The Republican prin- ciples would seem to be limited to being for what everybody else is for and against poverty, unemployment, dictatorship, communism and fas- cism. The inference was, of course, that the Democratic party, and par ticularly the Roosevelt adminiStra- tion, stood for all the evils and none of the beatitudes.
 Of'course, being a Republican par tisan, Governor Aiken insisted that the people no more wanted the Roosevelt leadership than they wanted the sort of leadership they had gotten from the Republican party. He accorded the president the compliment of having led the coun- try out of it's darkest days, but in- sisted that he was now dazzled and confused.
 That's all right. A speaker at a Republican function must make some accusation against the other party or he would not be speaking on such an occasion. He insisted, like the others, that many voters were deserting the administration. This could have afforded small comfort for the Republican leaders, for he added but do not delude yourselves that these thousands who are look ing for leadership have yet turned to the Republican party"
 They were not even definite when 1t came to discussing the sins of the Democratic party. The nearest ap- proach to it was when Senator Van- denberg asSailed the Jackson Day dinners, which were planned to raise enough money to pay of the party s deficit remaining over from the last election and to carry on the work ot the Democratic National Committee through 1888. He found something scandulouS in Democrats contribute ing to 8 party fund in this fashion. With that rare taste and veracious argument that distinguishes the probable next Republican candi- date for the presidency, he indicated that, while distress stalked through the nation, the Democrats in Wash ington were each consuming a hun dred dollars worth of table delica- cies and vintage wines. Of course the senator knew, as did everybody else. that the menu was just the or- dinary menu on such occasions ana every guest had been advised in ad- vance of this fact and the circum- stance that everything over and above the modest cost of the table fare was going to pay of the party debt, and that furthermore, the other dinners given throughout the country were on a $25 seat basis or less. It may be terrible way of pay ing the expenses of the party. On the other hand, it might be worth while to compare this method of paying political expenses with that which the Republicans practiced in Maine in 1886, where 8 dozen multi millionaires chipped in $5,000 apiece to keep the state safe for Landon It may even be offered ill compari- son with the Liberty Leagues ex- penditure of more than half mil lion dollars in behalf of the Repub- lican nominee in that same year This half million is not a fancy figure; it comes of the report which ! khn Tjhn,.fxy ' oo U,Io f71pd with COn-