Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1939-12-26
The Political Mill
New Book by Rupert Hughes Presents
Dewey os Hero in Civic Reform

for Dewey to take over the Office Of
district attorney Of New York Coun-
Manhattan.
Mayor La Guardia had been elect
ed in 1888 because Of civil war in
the Democratic party-when James
A. Farley, Postmaster General and
chairman OF the Democratic Ma
tional Committee, was backing
Holy Joe" Mckee against the
Tammany candidate. When 1887
rolled around, the Democrats had
united again and named former ST.
preme Court Justice Mahoney as
their candidate for Mayor. Dewey
was invited by Judge Seabury and
other Fusion leaders to accept nomi-
nation for district attorney. He also
was invited by the Republican COM
mittee and by the American Labor
party, and finally he agreed, In that
whirlwind campaign, Dewey attack
ed Albert Marinelli, county clerk of
New York, a powerful political fig
ure in Tammany, and charged him
with being the ally of thieves, pick
pockets. thugs, dope peddlers. Dewey
was elected and later Marinelli
turned in his resignation. unwilling
to reply to the set of charges that
Dewey had raised against him.
Candidacy Talk Rises.
Thereafter was considerable talk
of La Guardia as possible G. o. P.
presidential nominee in 1940-and
also of Dewey. But when Dewey
ran for Governor in 1888, Mayor La
Guardia and the American Labor
party, of which he is chief figure,
supported Gov. Lehman, the Demo-
crat, and talk of La Guardia for a
Republican presidential nominee was
washed up.
1t is not without interest, too,
that Judge Ferdinand Pecora, who
declared mistrial when Dewey first
sought to convict Jimmy" Hines,
powerful Tammany leader, on the
eve Of the gubernatorial struggle,
has faded considerably into the
background, while Mr.. Dewey has
continued to advance. Hines was
convicted after Dewey's defeat for
Governor.
Even Dewey's defeat at the hands
of Gov. Lehman-by a scant $4,000
votes-failed to check the onward
march of the youthful prosecutor,
as Mr. Hughes points out. His two
campaigns. first for district at
torney and then for Governor. had
made a seasoned campaigner of
Dewey-and as such he now pre-
sents himself in his campaign for
the presidential nomination.
Lehman Brought Into Race.
The dynamic Dewey has become
something of mystery to his
political opponents. They have
sought again and again to silence
him by mentioning his youth. When
Dewey was nominated by the Re-
publicans for Governor. the chief
high command of the Democratic
national party, with Mr.. Farley as
its spokesman and back of him
President Roosevelt, brought pres
sure on Gov. Lehman to run again,
although the Governor had declared
his intention of seeking senatorial
nomination and said he would not
again be a candidate for Governor.
AS it turned out, probably only
Lehman could have beaten Dewey.
Here is one instance where it was
of material advantage to the DEM
ocrats to do their nominating in
convention after the Republicans
had named their candidate. Per-
haps they have it in mind now,
when they insist that nothing will
change their determination to hold
their 1910 national convention after
the Republicans shall have held
theirs. If Dewey should be NOM
mated, the demand that Mr. Roose-
welt run again may intensity.
Dewey has made two speeches in
his present campaign and both have
been widely acclaimed. In certain
quarters, however, the comment
has been made-"Why shouldn't he
make good speeches when he can
get the best that money can buy?"
Cynically, it might be suggested
that it would be to the advantage
Of other candidates if they, too,
would "get the best speeches that