The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1944-03-03
Big Publicity
Man Predicts
Continued from Page u


Failing that, Nicholson says Farley
will announce that he will vote the
Democratic ticket straight and take
no further part In the campaign.
This correspondent understands
Farley's intention to be precisely
that.
Nicholson relates O conversation
with Mr.. Roosevelt as follows:
IT think that you will agree with
me-" he said to the president prior
TO 1910, that no Democrat but
yourself can be elected this year,
Would 1t not be better-in the event
OF your not being q candidate to let
Jim Farley have the nomination. II
he was defeated, that defeat would
be attributed to religious prejudice,
II almost any other Of the aSpirants
was nominated and lost, that defeat
would be hailed as q Reputation OF
your administration and the New
Deal"
FDR's Reply
"No," replied the president, thai
would be most unfair to Jim. He
Is too fine O person to be subjected
to the humiliation Of o bad defeat
and the setback that would involve
to prospects and career. I do not
agree that our party Is destitute
OF available candidates. There is
Cordell Hull, for example,"
"AS to Roosevelts intentions,
writes Nicholson Of 1914, II am In
the same position as was five years
ago when I wrote;
"'Of course am entitled to q
guess, and my guess Is that Franklin
D. Roosevelt would take q case Of
the hives rather than four years
more Of the headache that being
president means. 1t will not be sc
easy choice as that. Circum.
stances might arise that would make
1t impossible for him to lay down
the burden. The world way be al
war with or without threat of oul
involvement, or some other equally
acute emergency may eventuate
that would forbid change Of ad-
ministration; and the man In the
White House is not the kind OF an
individual who would let his per.
sonal desires interfere with what
seems to him his duty"
There was more to the paragraph
In 1888 according to this correspond
ent's files, and Nicholson seems to
have left out a fairly pertinent final
sentence, as follows:
He could not say today, even II
he were so inclined. that he would
or would not be a candidate in 1910.
Nicholson is a political sage and
sharpshooter Of attachments who
was hired away from the late New
York World by John ]. Raskob tc
become committee publicity director
during the Democratic doldrums Of
l928-32. He wrote bitterly satiricaI
speeches for mDcorateicumt =
speeches for Democratic statesmen
containing big words or little, &C.
cording TO order, and drove Repub.
licans to such a frenzy Of retort
that they more often were cam.
paigning against the smiling Char.
ley than against the ONCE seeking
element Of his party. He generally
Is regarded as the best political pub.
licity director of modern times.
Associating closely with Mr.
Roosevelt since the 1899 Democratic
National convention, Nicholson
comes in the magazine article h
the conclusion that the president
does not take chances, that HI
makes certain" things win not X
wrong. Illustrative OF that, he re.
ports that during the 1910 campaign
he devoted one OF his columns x
Walter Lippmann. the erudite poll.
tical commentator" and was ex.
aiming the proof when he received
a call from the White House "men.
tioning that they were informed
was attacking Walter Lippmann.
He explained that he had thought
none but himself and the printer
knew the contents OF that column
and adds:
II never asked and do not know
yet how the White House got ar
advance tip on my production, Ap.
parently, was under surveillance.