AGAINST PRIVILEGE AND PILLAGE.

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXV, Issue 17995, 28 June 1928, Page 9

AGAINST PRIVILEGE AND PILLAGE.

Democrats on Warpath.

WIERD DOINGS AT CONVENTION. (United Press Association —By Electric Telegraph—Copyright.) NEW YORK, Juno 26. News from Convention Hall, Houston (Texas) states that the delegates foregathered at noon for a short preliminary meeting, at which the Convention was organised.

The amazing ascendancy of Tammany Hall is evident. -It is not the old Tammany, wnicn, in American political annals, has earned the same reputation as the Mafia m Italian criminal annals. The old South, has hated Tammany, and to make the old , South accept Tammany’s candidature, Governor Smith, Tammany has rad.cally altered itself. It has learned social amen titles, and its r.ew ways are the most startling outgrowth of tiie present^lAmventio-i. Mr Claude Bowers, a New York journalist, in a keynote speech, said: “American democracy is mobilised today to wage a war of extermination against privilege and pi L ge. Mr Sinclair has paid the dects of the Republican Party.” The speaker recounted all the details of the alleged corruption and pollution of the Harding Administration, stating, “Within five montiis the conditions at Washington became a scandal and a stench. He attacked the Republican treatment of the farmer, and the extension of privilege to business, stating who a few powerful' corrupters were, but added that the small business man was a bankrupt. He excoriated “the Republican dollar dip’omacy,” which he said had brought war with Nicaragua The Convention Hall, a huge wooden structure, seating 25,000 persons, was like a moderately hot oven under the Texas sun.

The first picturesque touch was the march around the floor of a cowboy band, behind a cow girl in blazing red, on a prancing horse. A woman from Georgia, which is intensely dry, got on a chair, and sang hymns. It was a hard gathering to bring in order. The chairman, Mr Shaver, of the Democratic National Committee, pounded the gravel for twenty minutes ineffectively. He was greeted by jeering and whistles. Kleig lights flared, and it was fantastic when the Convention did get down to business. It only had a few representations to accept from patriotic societies, and to listen to the speeches of welcome. It then went into Recess until 7 o’clock to-night. Meantime the committee rooms discussions hang on tne words of the Eighteenth Amendment should be included in a compromise, while a plank of the general terms was agreed upon, namely, strict law enforcement and condemnation of ihe Republican Administration for lax enforcement of the Volstead law.

The Vice-Presidential possibilities now centre upon Senator Robinson, of Arkansas, hut it is not likely that a definite alignment wi’l occur until after the Presidential nomination is out of the way.

DRAFTING THE PLATFORM.

DEALING WITH LIQUOR ISSUE. (United Press Association—By Eloctrio Telegraph—Copyright.) (Received June 27, 8.30 p.m.) _ NEW YORK, June 26. AVhen the Democratic Convention was re-convened in the evening, it was strongly rumoured that the enforcement plank will not mention the Eighteenth amendment. The Convention selected various Committees, and adjourned until II o’clock to-morrow morning. The Platform Committee starts its final work towards putting the platform in shape for presentation to the Convention.