Indianapolis Times, Volume 40, Number 37, Indianapolis, Marion County, 23 June 1928 — Page 4

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SCKIPPS-HOWAJtD

They Wish China Luck —All Bad News dispatches from China tell of “grave issues” having arisen between the new Nationlist regime in that country and the foreign diplomats in Pekin. The news was not unexpected. With the possible exception of the United States,. there is hardly a single foreign power which sincerely wishes China to blossom out as a great nation. Prom its very inception fifteen years ago, the Nationalist movement has been opposed bitterly by such countries as Britain and Japan. Japan’s opposition is based on two things: First, the instinct of self-preservation. She fears China may become stronger than Japan. Second, the desire to expand in Manchuria and eastern Mongolia at China’s expense. Britain fears for Hongkong, gem of her Far Eastern holdings, and her China trade, remaining incomprehensibly blind to the trade possibilities in an awakened China with her more than 400,000,000 potential buyers. Similarly, most foreign powers want China to remain pretty much the weakling that she is. It’s easier to exploit her that way. So they are now busy wishing her plenty of luck—all bad. They may be counted upon to make mountains out of molehills and generally pour cold water on the wholesome spirit of nationalism now doing so much for the land. It is all part and parcel of the same old scheme to hold China down. It is to be hoped that the United States will hold aloof from all such undermining tactics. The temptation to join with the others in administering a spank; to young China at times will doubtless be great, for it inevitably will make many mistakes, thanks to its ardor and inexperience. t Also our diplomats in Pekin will be surrounded constantly by the world’s cleverest and subtlest propagandists, who will leave no stone unturned to make white appear irrevocably black. Whether from the humanitarian or the financial or economic point of view, the best interests of the American people lie in encouraging, in so far as they may, a great upstanding China, self-reliant and peopled by hundreds of millions of wide-awake wageearners. Think of how much happier they would be—and how many more automobiles and other American products they would buy from us. Washington should warn Minister Mac Murray, therefore, to be ever on his guard, lest the wool be pulled over his eyes before he knows it. Kissing in the Movies The young man's ancient prerogative of kissing his girl in a dark movie theater has, it is comforting to note, been upheld by the New York courts. A young New Yorker took his girl to a movie and, in the darkness, proceeded to kiss her. An usher beckoned him out on a fire escape, where a group of ushers fell upon him and beat him. Then, having reproved him, they let him return to his seat. The young man had them arrested. At the trial the young man’s counsel declared, “When a man can’t take his girl to a movie and kiss her, it’s time to eliminate movies.” The court apparently agreed: at any rate, it fined the offending ushers. The young man now, presumably, may kiss in peace. And we’re glad of it. What’s a movie for, anyway? An Opportunity “American business is jealous of its good name and insists upon protecting its professional status by the maintenance of the highet standards, and intends scrupulously to discharge its collective responsibilities. “Chief among such responsibilities is that of purging business of all those who indulge in commercial and political corruption, and through resort to unclean or unworthy practices bring business into disrepute and shock the sensibilities of all decent citizens." This is the text of a resolution adopted by the United States Chamber of Commerce at its recent convention in Washington. It is commended for consideration to the National Electric Light Association at its annual convention in Atlantic City next week. The National Electric Light Association is an organization composed of nearly all the electric utility companies in the United States, it speaks for the electric light and power industry. Testimony before the Federal trade commission has shown that the association is a leader in spreading utility propaganda. It collected in a year more than a million dollars to oppose the Walsh resolution and Boulder Dam and Muscle Shoals legislation to combat Federal regulation and public operation, and otherwise to influence public thought and legislation. It is one of the three national associations comprising the joint committee of national utilities, which assembled during the last session of Congress the largest and most active lobby ever seen in the capital. It maintains, in addition to an extremely active central office, regional agents throughout the country. It cooperates closely with the so-called committees on utility information which exist in most of the States. The association has approved and furthered the efforts of the utilities to invade public schools and colleges for the purpose of having its views on rate regulation and public ownership taught as facts. It has helped to hire college professors and subsidize colleges, and has been party to the movement to place textbooks prepared by the utilities in classrooms. It negotiated with S. S Wyer for the preparation of his notorious attack on tne Ontario hydroelectric system, which the Smithsonian institution was misled into issuing under its imprint, thereby giving it official status. It has organized speakers’ bureaus, and has by devious means put the views of the utilities before women’s clubs. The association is an important part of the gigantic propaganda machine which the trade commission has revealed, with its ramifications extending into every community—the machine that uses every known form of propaganda and lobbying, and of underground political influence, to attain its ends. The public has come to regard the power industry with suspicion. The attempted corruption of education alone is sufficient reason. It is time for the industry to clean house, and to come into the open in its dealings with the public., There must be anew attitude of mind if popular distrust is to be allayed. Atlantic City convention offers the National

The°lndianapolis Times (A SCRIPTS-HOWARD NEWSPAPER) Owned and published daily (except Sunday) by The Indianapolis Times Publishing Cos.. 214-220 W. Maryland Street, Indianapolis, Ind. Price In Marion County. 2 cents—lo cents a week: elsewhere, 3 cents—l 2 cents a week. BOYD GURLEY. ROY W. HOWARD. FRANK Q. MORRISON. Editor. President. Business Manager. PHONE—RILEY 5551. ' SATURDAY. ,*CNE 23. 1928. Member of United Press, Scrlpps-Howard Newspaper Alliance, Newspaper Enterprise Association. Newspaper Information Service and Audit Bureau of Circulations. “Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way.”

Electric Light Association an opportunity to show that it “intends scrupulously to discharge its collective responsibilities.” Do the Impossible The impossible things are the things that need to be done. So said the Rev. Henry H. Tweedy of Yale University, in an address to the graduating class of Lake Erie College for Women. The rise of civilization the speaker pointed out, is the story of man’s increasing accomplishment of the impossible. For most impossibilities are only imaginary; they seem impossible, and we accept them as such, until some very energetic or skeptical man comes along and does them. There are a great many obvious illustrations. When Morse was experimenting with the telegraph there doubtless were many friends to tell him the thing was impossible. ' While the Wright brothers were making their first flight, a distinguished Washington scientist was proving, mathematically, that flight in a heavier-than-air machine was impossible. When Ford established a minimum wage of $5 a day there were plenty of people who knew it was impossible to run a business that way. But the challenge to accomplish*' the impossible is not something that has to do solely with the material world. It is equally pressing in the realm of the spirit; more pressing there, in fact, than anywhere else. Os the problems now confronting the world, nothing is much greater than the problem of warfare. In the old days, when wars were conducted by relatively small armies, a war was not a major matter necessarily. Now, however, war affects everyone. The last war very nearly bankrupted European civilization. It left the victors little better off than the vanquished. Aii-planes, submarines, poison gas, modem explosives have widened war’s scope tremendously. If another war comes, involving as many nations as the last, it is quite possible that the entire world would be plunged back into the dark ages. It is up to the world to find some way of avoiding wars. But every time that is suggested, someone is sure to say: “Oh, you can’t ever do that. You can’t change human nature.” Yet that is precisely what must be done, it is one of the impossibilties that this generation must accomplish. Human nature, of course, can be changed; it has been changed vastly in the last few centuries. Compare the ways and customs of medieval Europe with our own, if you don’t believe it; it was ‘‘human nature” to do a great many things, in those days, which no sane man would think of doing now. We must do it. The world’s future will be pretty dark if we fail. t Exit Widows and Orphans Most of us had come to believe that corporations seeking to gouge the public no longer had the hardihood to say they did it in the name of the widows and orphans among their stockholders. We thought the term “widows and orphans” had been laughed out of court. Our bistake! “Regulation of service must be carried on with the interests of the investors in view, many of whom are widows and orphans,” says a pamphlet distributed by the thousands in the public schools of Missouri by the Missouri committee on public utility information. John B. Sheridan, secretary of the organization, was questioned this week by the Federal trade commission. “You know that this reference here is nonsensical, don’t you?" asked Judge Healy, commission counsel. “I certainly do,” admitted the utility propagandist.

-David Dietz on Science.

Pocketbook Must Decide

- No. 84-

THE stars of the Great Dipper form part of a larger constellation called the Great Bear. This constellation was known to the ancient Greeks and Romans. The accompanying illustration shows how the familiar stars of the Great Dipper and a number of adjoining stars go to make up the bear. At the top Is a of the stars with their names. Below a picture of how they fit the figure of a bear. The average reader will complain at oncee that the fit is not very good and that the stars do not in any

ALCOC. PUOHt ,'**'?* JfVICM T ! U- •‘•Ai*** * V \ \ PHftKRA \ A- EL ALCOL4 - ->

interesting legends growing up about each one. There is a gripping story of love and jealousy and hate, with the gods of ancient Greece for characters, woven into the history of the Great Bear. But perhaps it would be well to learn to recognize the constellation before turning to the legend. The four stars which form the bowl of the more familiar dipper are on the flank of the bear. The three stars in the handle of the dipper form the tail of the bear. Because of its length, it is usually referred to as /‘the impossible tail.” A curving row of stars to the right of the dipper represents the head of the bear. Below the dipper will be found three pairs of stars. These indicate the position of the claws on the right forefoot and the two hindfeet. Other stars to be observed between these and the dipper fit into the body and legs of the bear. If a telescope is turned on the constellation of/the bear it reveals many stars which are too faint to be seen by the unaided eye. The telescope reveals about *3O stars in the constellation. Among these are two very interesting stars. One is the star which is closer to the earth than any other star in the northern hemisphere. The other one is the star which of all stars in the northern hemisphere has the fastest proper motion, that is, it is the fastest moving star in the northern hemisphere. These faint stars have no names and are known only by catalog number. The near one is known as Lalande 21,185. The fast one, sometimes called the “run-away-star,” is known as Groombridge, 1,830.

M. E. TRACY, SAYS: _ “The Republican Party Having Chosen to Take the Dry Side, the Democratic Party Has No Alternative Le’ft if It Wishes to Make Headway, but to Take the Other Side.”

T TOUSTON. June 23.—Friday was a thrilling and not altogether unsatisfactory day for Houston. First, there was the news that five out of the seven roughnecks who staged the lynching bee Wednesday morning had been caught, that one had confessed and that the other two were known. Second, it was reported that no less than 10,000 reservations had been made and that prospects of the convention running through Saturday, if not into the second week, were growing steadily brighter. Third, Governor Smith’s statement to the New York World that he had not changed his mind with regard to the desirability of amending the Volstead act added vigor to the convention. Fourth, Judge Olvaney struck town and horned toads made their appearance among the novelties for sale. nun Shocked by Lynching The lynching confession left nothing to be desired in his gruesome and brutal details, but it tailed to offer any logical explanation for such a wanton and useless crime. You simply cannot believe that seven men would meet casually near midnight, go to a hospital, hold up a deputy sheriff, take a dying Negro from his bed, dump him into an automobile, beat him over the head with a gun when he protested, carry him to a bridge, tie one end of a rope around his neck and the other around the railing, force him to walk from the car to the railing, push him off, light a match to see where he landed, hoist him up when it was discovered that the rope was too long and he was sitting on the ground and then ride home complacently. The thing simply does not ring true, and few people in Houston are convinced that the whole story has been told. Back of this exhibition of twentieth century depravity, was some dominating mind, some vindictive motive, some lawless spirit who lqd the gang. Houston is still waiting for the first chapter of the story u n n Dry Issue Apparent As for politics, it looks as though anything might happen. The “hush hush” boys appear to have lost their grip completely. The fire that Norman E. Mack lighted Wednesday night and that George Van Namee tried so heroically to put out has blazed up with double fury in response to Governor Smith’s statement. If Senator Reed thought prohibition was not the issue he certainly found a surprise waiting for him at Houston. Even the arrest and confession of the lynchers failed to interrupt the conversation on this all-absorbing topic. Senator Pat Harrison, who endeavored to restore harmony by pitying the farmers, could hardly get a word In edgewise. What everybody wanted to know was whether Governor Smith had strengthened himself, or piade war medicine for the drys. My own opinion is that Governor Smith’s statement was logical and straightforward, that It not only squares with his record, but with the exigencies of the situation, and that the Democratic party should accept as the basis of its attitude toward prohibition. The idea of evading this issue, or of reconciling the conflict which has arisen over it, is preposterous. The Republican party having chosen to take the dry side, the Democratic party has no alternative left if it wishes to make headway, but to bike the other side. Furth -r than that, when the Democratic party accepted the leadership of Governor Smith to the extent it has, it gave the people the right to assume that this is what it would do. n n n Need for Training If Governor Smith has enthused his Supporters, and he certainly has, prohibition leaders claim to find a lot of comfort in his attitude. They say that no less than 200 of the delegates pledged to him are dry, and that those delegates have been proceeding on the assumption that he would not raise the issue of amending the prohibition laws. They say, also that his declamation gives them the rallying cry they needed to form a die-hard coalition. What the drys need is a training camp, they have plenty of enthusiasm but they lack experience. One by one, their leaders fail to marshall the array. It is now being whispered that Governor Dan Moody is likely to be chosen as the “Moses.” Times certainly have changed since the “fighting forty” went from Texas to stand by Woodrow Wilson ai, Baltimore. Not only that, but times have changed since Woodrow Wilson went out of office, leaving the Democratic party with one of the greatest administrations on record to its credit. One looks in vain for the figures who surrounded Wilson, and who were recognized as leaders of the party ten years ago Gregory, Burleson, Baker, Houston, Daniels, McAdoo and the rest. Their absence is one reason why the Democratic party finds itself in such confusion. So, too, is the absence of interest in those great policies which Woodrow Wilson formulated and which the Democratic party was once glad to applaud.

wa y resemble the outline of a bear. This criticism can be made of all the constellati o n s. The ancients merely let their imagination s have free play, fitting the stars arbitrarily into any sort of figure they pleased. But the various constellations became fixed with the passage of time.

THE INDIANAPOLIS TIMES

BY DR. MORRIS FISHBEIN ’ Editor Journal of the American Medical Association and of Hjfela, the Health Maratlne. Just as medicine itself is the subject of all sorts of superstitions and folklore, so the individual portions of the human body are the subject of strange notions and fancies such as arise in the minds of people who do not actually know. These fancies relating to the teeth have been assembled recently by Leo Kanner of South Dakota. They constitute another compilation of information on the credulity of man. For instance, it is a common superstition that if the teeth are far apart the possessor will undertake long travels in foreign countries. Indeed, the rhyme also expresses the corollary that “if your teeth lie one on the other you will always live with your mother.” In Palestine teeth far apart are regarded as being associated with the evil eye. There is an Arabian proverb that says, “Allah, protect us from a

(Abbreviations: A—ace; K—kin*: Q—queen: J—Jaek; X—any card lower than 10.) ALTHOUGH the occasions are few, there are times when pre-emptive bidding is necessary and advisable. When, then, shall two no trump or two in a suit be bid originally? Should you ever bid two originally? When should three or more be bid originally? What is the necessity of opening a bid of more than one? The object of pre-empting is to shut out bidding on the part of the adversaries and prevent them from arriving at their best gamegoing declaration by interchanging information. It must be done in fear of something. else there is no necessity of pre-empting. The stronger your hand, the less advisable is it to preempt! All authorities agree that a bid of two in' a major or minor suit will not shut out bidding. 7'his being so, what is the necessity of bidding two? Some experts bid two when holding AKQXXXina miner or major suit. Those experts who advocate it assert that it will give partner accurate information as to this particular holding. They all agree that you should not bid two except when holding A K Q X X X, and then only when you do not hold material strength in the other suits. Exactly what strength may be held in other suits is not definitely determined. The disadvantage of bidding two is that it may shut out valuable information from your partner. Partner may hesitate to go to three hearts after your two-spade bid, but game may be made in hearts and not in spades. The exjfcrt may, under certain circumstances, bid two spades, recognizing the psychological moment for it. Some authorities recognize the two bid as a convention when holding a suit of six cards including the Ace-King-Queen, but thousands in different localities have not generally accepted it. '"""■“Att c ;r' *•'-

June 23 1683—William Penn made a treaty with the Indians. 1752—Georgia became a royal province. 1752—John Jay reached Paris as American Minister to France. 1863—Approach of Confederates caused a biisines* paralysis in Philadelphia. 1904—Republicans in convention in Chicago nominated Roosevelt v and Fairbanks.

Blamed If You Haven't, Charley!

JULflMWttfc? • /Bt

Many Notions Prevail About Teeth

Bridge Play Made Easy BY W. W. WENTWORTH

This Date in U. S. History

DAILY HEALTH SERVICE

beardless man who has blue eyes and teeth that stand far apart.” It is now generally recognized that infants may be bern with teeth already developed. Nevertheless, this is so unusual an occurrence that superstitious savages and peasants have always looked askance at the occurrence and the child born under such circumstances is likely to have some trouble before it grows up. Among negro tribes in Africa a baby born with teeth is killed immediately. In Hungary children born with teeth are believed to have been substituted by a witch for the child which should have been bom. They are therefore treated with contempt and cruelty. In the same way superstitions attach to the order of appearance of the teeth.

Questions and Answers

You can get an answer to any answerable question ol fact or information by writing to Frederick M. Kerby. Question Editor, The Indianapolis Times' Washington Bureau, 1322 New York Ave., Washington, D. C., encoslng 2 cents in stamps for reply. Medical and legal advice cannot be given, nor can extended research be made. All other questions will receive a personal reply. Unsigned requests cannot be answered. All letters are confidential. You are eordinally Invited to make use of this free service as often as you please. EDITOR. How are “proof coins” made? They are especially struck from polished blanks and dies and finished by hand, which gives them a mirrorlike, reflective, smooth, surface. The mint makes a charge for proof coins and they can only be had during the year of issue. A proof coin is the most perfect condition of coin known. When the President of the United States dies and the Vice President takes his place who presides over the United States Senate? When the Vice President becomes President, the president pro tern., who is elected by the Senate from among its members, presides over the Senate and receives the Vice President’s salary, but he is not in line of succession to the presidency. The office of Vice President remains vacant until the next election. Did General Sherman say “War is hell?” This epigram was attributed to General Sherman auring the Civil War, but he did not remember saying it. John Koolbeck, Harlem, lowa, who was aide-de-camp to General Winslow, t testifies that after the battle of Vicksburg in 1861, General Sherman was watching the crossing of the Army across a pontoon bridge at the River Pearl, and he heard him distinctly say “War is he'll.” Was aviation attempted before the present century? In Greek mythology, according to legend, Icarus, son of Daedalus, was fitted with waxen wings bf his father and soared too near the sun so that the wax melted and he fell

The Correct Thing Civilized society has established certain customs and rules ol conduct which distinglish the man and woman of refinement and' education from those who lack good manners and good taste. Our Washington bureau has a group of seven of its interesting bulletins covering all phases of etiquette. A package containing them will be sent to any reader. The titles are as follows: 1. The Etiquette of Dress. 4. The Origin of Etiquette. 2. Etiquette for Children. 5. Social Etiquette. 3. Etiquette for Dinners. 6. The Etiquette of Travel. 7. Etiquette for Weddings. If you want this package of seven bulletins, fill out the coupon below and mail as directed. CLIP COUPON HERE ETIQUETTE EDITOR, Washington Bureau, Indianapolis Times. 1322 New York Ave., Washington, D. C. I want the package of seven bulletins on ETIQUETTE and inclose herewith 25 cents in loose, uncanceled, United States postage stamps, or coin, to cover postage and handling costs. NAME STREET AND NO CITY STATE I am a reader of The Indianapolis Times.

In southeastern Europe there' is a belief that if the lower teeth come first the baby will grow up, but that it will not survive if the upper incisors come in first. There are, of course, instances in which very old people have developed a third set of teeth. Scientists quarreled about the possibility of this occurrence for some time, but there is now evidence that the thing actually can happen, although not often. The Jewish Talmud, according to Dr. Kanner, contains the report of a rabbi who was rewarded for his laudable endeavors by the development of a perfectly new set of teeth at the age of 80. Just as there are beliefs relative to the growth of hair after death, so also are there beliefs that teeth have grown after death. There are several scientific explanations for these occurrences.

to earth and was killed. About the time Columbus was discovering America, the Italian, Lonardo da Vinci, had a vision of flying men and experimented with wings of various designs, none of which, however, were successful. Who is the author of the epigram, “What this country needs is a good five cent cigar”? Thomas R. Marshall, late Vice President of the United States. Is it unlawful to multilate United States coins? It is not unlawful to make holes in, or otherwise mutilate coins so that they may be worn for jewelry or for other purposes, but it is unlawful to return mutilated coins to circulation. Is there a rule for tipping In hotels? It is customary to remember all those who have served one in a hotel when leaving. When the stay has been a long one the waiter can be paid for his services in one large tip. Individual tips should be about 10 per cent of the amount of the bill.

Times Readers Voice Views

The name and aadress of the author must accompany every contribution, but on request will not be published. Letters not exceeding 200 words will receive preference. Editor Times—Since you have been putting graduation class pictures in the paper, I have been watching them to see who had the largest. You said the other night that No. 3, N. Rural St„ school had the largest class. It had sixty-eight. I was graduated from School 39, Lexington Ave. and State St., June 15, 1924, and my class had seventyone. My sister graduated there June June 15, 1923. and they had seventytwo, thirty-six boys and thirty-six girls. MISS DORIS LEVIS, 815 Gerrard Dr.

-JUNE 23,1928

KEEPING UP With THE NEWS

BY LUDWELL DENNY TTOUSTON, June 23.—The hysteria has begun. Those shrill days and conspiring nights in which nervous delegates prepare for a national political convention are upon Houston. “Smith is stopped!” “Smith is stopped!” “It'll be another Madison Square Garden!* “We won’t stand for any wet candidate.” So the talk drones on in hotel lobbies and rooms, an occasional loud threat against Smith breaking above the babble. But these are women’s voices mostly. Women delegates with women dry organization leaders. They are excited. They believe the fight will be won by talk and tears, by demonstrations. Some of the men from dry southern States also decline in the high voice of the crusaders, saving the land from “the great evil” in the person of the New York Governor. Around the corner, these drys are holding a continuous revival in which Al is mocked and defied as the emmissary of demon rum. The political chiefs, the Senators and Representatives and national committeemen who determine the course of a convention, are much more subdued. Indeed they are so quiet that hardly a dry politician among them is beating the tom-tom. While the lobbies talk the liquor issue, the big State politicians talk harmony. n n n THERE is such a wide difference between the history of the little delegates and dry lobbyists and the serenity of the politicians that one begins to suspect there may be no witch-burning in Sam Houston Hall after all. Os course, the drys are going to do their best. They advertise that young Dan Moody, Governor of Texas, will lead "the hosts of the Lord” against this “papaist from the sidewalks of New York.” Asa local paper puts it, “the New York Governor looks like the man of the hour and the drys are looking for a quick draw by the boy orator of the San Gabriel.” But the insiders are inclined to think it will take more than a quick draw by a boy orator. They believe Smith will be nominated, probably on an early ballot, and the most the drys could do would be to stir up so much bitterness that he would withdraw rather than accept the nomination from a divided party doomed to defeat. What the drys are excited about is that reported “I have not” statement by Smith in reply to the question whether he had changed his views favoring modification of prohibition provisions. Just as the Kansas City Republican convention turned on the Coolidge phrase, “I do not choose,” the Houston convention is apt to focus on Smith’s “I have not.” This may be to the advantage of Smith, rather than against him, as his opponents think. nun THIRST, the New York GovernA or’s attitude is so well known and the drys have~-tried so long to use it against him, that the statement can hardly come as a shock to anyone. It does indicate, however, what even his enemies have not denied, that Al is an honest man. Ha is not ashamed of his convictions and has no intention of concealing them for the purposee of political expediency. But the drys go much fuither in interpreting he significance of this statement. To them, it means Smith is goLig to try to force a wet plank through the convention. If such were the case, Smith’s defeat would be probable either at Houston or in the election. But there is no evidence that tha New Yorker rates his liquor views as more important than all the other Democratic issues combined. On the contrary, Smith’s managers repeat that he favors a law enforcement plank so long as tha law is on the statute books. They point to his probity as Governor of New York as proof that as President he would obey scrupulously his oath to enforce the law. But the New Yorkers agreed with! Senator Pat Harrison of Mississippi, who is not nominally a Smith adherent, that the enforcement! plank should cover all laws, “including the prohibition laws, laws against graft in elections and laws protecting our natural resources against corruption in public office.” nun r’ is possible that Wednesday’* statement by Norman Mack, national committeeman from New York, which precipitated this convention excitement, may not hava been the unconscious blunder it appears on the surface. Mack said Smith favored modification, later saying he was only voicing his own opinion. The latter came after George Van Namee, Smith manager here, denied Mack was authoized to speak for the Governor. Smith's statement followed in support of Mack. Mack is not only an experienced politician unaccustomed to making such “mistakes,” but he is, in point of service one of the party’s oldest national committeeman, and is a close friend of Smith’s. He made his statement verbally at first, and an hour later without any apparent reason repeated it in a formal written pronouncement for wider (distribution to the press. As a newspaperman himself, he went out of his way to get that statement on the front page throughout the country. Many find it difficult to believe such action by such a man was taken other than deliberately, especially in view of Smith's unexpectedly quick response. Those who like to speculate on political intricacies point out that this episode may draw all the dry attack to the non-existing wet plank. Then after the dry’s forces have the glory of “winning” their platform fight for a strict enforcement plank, they can with better grace accept Smith, whom theyiwill “force” to run on a dry platform. If this is actually the plan, hoW happy the convention will be.