Evening star., 1945-04-25

pears to have formulated any def
mite ideas for the future. Most of
those In Office are hoping to hold on
under Mr.. Truman. Some are recon-
ciled to going back into private life
Zone. Mr.. Stephen B. Early, had
planned to do so before Mr.. Roose-
welt died and several are known to
be negotiating with various peri
odicals for publication of inside
stuff"
The man who has most "inside
stuff" and whose writings, because
OF his status as Mr.. Roosevelt S
closest friend, will have a higher
market value than any one else, of
course, is Mr.. Harry Hopkins.
Having marketed at high price
number of such articles while Mr.
Roosevelt was living and he had a
Federal salary of $4,000 a year, it
is entirely likely that Mr.. Hopkins
will continue this way of augmenting
his income, If and when he leaves
the Government payroll. If he
writes freely, his pieces should be
exceptionally interesting and worth
d good deal.
Magazines on the Alert.
There are several others whose
"reminiscences and obServations-if
frank enough-should be easily
salable. In brief, for those really on
the inside there is considerable
money to be made, and alert
magazine editors, it is reliably re-
>orted, have already signed up one
or two-with no difficulty whatso-
ever.
However, of them all Mrs Roose-
velt stands at the top of the list both
IS to earning capacity and personal
Importance. For one thing. she is
The only one among them Except,
perhaps, Mr.. Wallace) who has a
. personal following and real political
power
All the radical elements in New
York and the labor leaders who sup
port Mr.. Wallace are also devoted
friends of Mrs. Roosevelt. She is
herself a member of the CIO. In
addition, her individual strength
among the Negroes is far greater
than that of any politician of either
party-in fact greater than all of
them put together.
Now. no one thinks that Mrs.
Roosevelt is going to pursue her
literary activities Just for the money
there is in them. After II years of
most lucrative lecturing, column
writing, magazine writing and broad
casting, she has made a most sub
stantial fortune of her own.
Two Likely Reasons.
This being the case, there seem
but two likely reasons for her an
nounced purpose to continue her
daily column and monthly article.
Undoubtedly one of these is to give
her something to do.' A woman Of
vast energy and a wide variety of
interests, it is almost inconceiv-
able that after the sort of life she
has had for the past IL years Mrs
Roosevelt should now sit down and
fold her hands in idleness, or knit
or just read.
The other is to provide channels
Of communication to the people
which can be used to promote the
'auses to which she is devoted and
he policies she advocates. Mrs.
Roosevelt made this plain at her
inal White House press conference,
hen she explained that in writing
yer column in the past she had been
handicapped and restricted by the
act that she was the wife of the
resident. From now on, she said,
l shall be on my own"
This can only mean that she in
ends more freely and forcibly to
ypress her own ideas about poll
ics and public affairs. Unquestion-
bly, her position will be consider
bly, farther left than the left of
enter position Mr.. Roosevelt once
eScribed as his own.
Some professional liberals" re-
ard Mrs. Roosevelt as a more pro-
lounced liberal than was her hus-
and. Certainly her tendencies are
IL in that direction Some have
'ontended that Mrs. Roosevelt's COL
mn was possible only because she
as the wife of the President. that