Evening star., 1940-05-26

5. Stereoptlcon slides IN movies,
posters in department stores and
on streetcars.
6. House-to-house canvass.
7. Enlistment of the Commis-
sioners.
In addition to these procedures,
which were common to all, or nearly
all, the drives, each drive had an
idea or two of its own that might
be copied this time. The 1919 cam
paign, under the direction of Jesse
c. Suter, came up with an airplane
deluge of pamphlets from the
heavens just as citizens were home
ward bound from work. The litera-
ture was dropped in envelopes which
in some instances inclosed tickets
to the theater or movies. Since
the populace had been forewarned
of this pleasant content, there was
a general mad scramble for the
falling stationery. Those not fortu-
nate enough to get tickets were con-
fronted with an editorial by News
man Earl Goodwin on why they
should join citizens associations.
Reliable reports say Mr.. Godwin's
associates forecast the failure of this
project because your editorials are
SO light they'll never come down.
The 1921 campaign under direc-
ton OF Don H. York concentrated
heavily on enlisting the women.
and the services of Mrs. Nanette
Paul and Mrs. Anna E. Hendley,
prominent women leaders, were OBJ
tanned. An appeal to the pulpit
was effected in 1926.
Radio was employed in the 1884
drive to advantage, such speakers
as Senator Capper of Kansas ap-
pealing to the citizens over the air
to join. Undoubtedly this medium
of reaching the public will be en-
ployed in subsequent campaigns.
Headquarters Established.
Establishment of downtown head
quarters to count the new members
and dispense general information
was found necessary in each in
stance. The first two campaigns
were conducted out of the District
Building pressroom and the last two
from an old bank building at 1886
New York avenue. All you had to
do was call Main 5000 the first two
times or Main 1923 the last two
times, and information was yours
for the asking
1t was no trick at all to enroll
President Wilson in the West End
Citizens Association in 1919. In
fact, his whole cabinet was trapped
in a meeting by an alert commit
tee, and only one escaped. His
name and address were known,
however, and they finally got him.
Efforts were made to sign up
Presidents Harding and Coolidge in
the other two drives. AS the COM
mittee came out of the presidential
office after getting run-around
from Mr. Coolidge, Mr.. Suter, who
also headed the 1926 campaign,
was bawled out by Dan O'Connell,
press agent for the drive.
you chump," Mr.. O'Connell told
Mr.. Suter. IF you had just offered
to pay the dollar for him you would
have had him"
President Roosevelt signed up as
member of West End Citizens
Association, in whose territory the
White House lies, in 1884 without
any trouble at all. He expressed
the hope, however, that it wouldn t
cost him too much and that he
wouldn't lose his vote in Hyde Park
as a result. A. j. Driscoll, presi-
dent of the Midcity Citizens Asso-
citation. directed the drive
Stump Speeches Made.
Stump speeches were the gen.
eral rule. A borrowed Liberty Loan
truck in 1919 circulated through
the streets dropping of Mr.. Suter
Mr.. Driscoll, William NICK. Clayton
Gideon A. Lyon and others at
street corners, where they appealed
to the crowd to join. Others were
lured to concerts in front of the
District Building and then ha-
rangued by five-minute speakers
A similar battery of speakers COW
cred the District in 1921. Snow and
bad weather hampered the 1884
campaign.
Police and fire stations made
good centers of enrolment, and
probably schools may be included
in this category next time, as they
were used in the suffrage straw
vote in April, 1898. But nothing
beats the house-to- house canvass fol-
actual results. In 1926, to make
doubly sure no able-bodied eligi.
bles escaped, the committee oh.
tanned permission to distribute ap.
plication blanks to the school chill.
dren to take home to their parents
Enlistment of the support Of the
Commissioners was always easier
than getting the President, and
most of the citv heads Issued state