The Ypsilanti daily press. (Ypsilanti, Mich.) 1928-1962, 1944-09-08
The PeriIs Of Ghost Writing
These DaysSaE. x sT2 ;3.! E, s0ko!'k'
Ghost

The assumption must be that a
public official knows what he Is
talking about and that he means
what he says. But that Is not always
so. Very often, too often, his ghost
knows what he is talking about and
he says what he assumes Is advap-
tageous 10 himself at a given mo-
ment. The suggestion that someone
recently made that members OF
Congress be forbidden to read their
speeches was an excellent one, be-
cause no ghost, no matter how
CHASTITY. could whisper a speech in
TO the ear OF a talking Senator, or
even into a talking Governor or
President. And not SO many politi-
clans would want to murder their
ghosts two or three years later
when forgotten words come home
TO roost.
The three Republican Governors
who turned down the ghost.written
speeches sent them by the Repub.
lican National Committee were
sound in their rebellion against the
ghost-writers union. 1t Is tough on
Tom Dewey that Il started In his
campaign instead of Mr.. Roose-
velt's, because the fact Is that ev.
erybody's doing It. Every organiZa-
ton that does any propaganda OF
any kind has a speech-writing mill
which turns out speeches for all &C.
casions and all corners.
The more Independent indivldu.
ais often pretend to rewrite what
comes from the ghost, satisfying
their consciences by changing
a word here and there, or comma
or a semi.colon. But, upon analysis
1t is usually discovered that the
speech comes out OF the horses
mouth almost the same as 1t was
put into 1t by the ghost.
Once a group OF us sat around
listening to an official and we bet
that we could tell which ghost
wrote which part OF it. And some
in that company were themselves
notorious ghosts. can recognize
such famous ghost-writers as Stan.
lev High or Samuel Rosenman by
the wording and the flair OF Ian
guage. In Mr.. Roosevelts early
speeches, | could always detect Ray.
mond Moley or Hugh Johnson Al
many conventions OF great national
organizations every speech IS
ghost.written and II man declines
10 speak the speech that Is handed
to him, he is looked upon as Boil
shevik and is never asked to talk
again. Extemporaneous speeches.
are hated in such places because
they fail to be given space in the
press. which should really prefer
them to the ghost-written docu'
ments that are sent out as releases.
The only extemporaneous speak
er at the Republican Convention
was John Bricker. At the Democrat.
ic Convention, Senators Guffey and
pepper and the labor leader. Rich
ard Frankenstein, made extempor-
aneous speeches. These were the
hest speeches IN both conventions
because they expressed the souls
the angers, the hopes, the genuine
beliefs OF the speakers. And audi:
ences showed their appreciation, II
not in votes, surely in applause and
excitement. How many Of the other
speeches were ghost-written, do
not know.
Herbert Hoover writes his own
speeches by a most painful process.
His first draft is usually his best.
Then he monkeys with 1t through
countless drafts and usually spells
It. He sends copies to friends foI
criticism and that Is why so many
persons whisper that they had
hand in preparing his speeches.
but know that he rarely permits
anyone to do any OF his writing.
Many men work the opposite way;
they get a lot OF drafts and then