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Griffin Daily News BRUCE BIOBBAT WASHINGTON (NEA) President Johnson’s lightning-stroke announcement of his Intent not to run in 1968 gives the supreme advantage to Sen. Robert F. Kennedy for the Democratic nomination. This does not presage a wholly new fight with Vice President Hum phrey as the President’s stand-in. A quick check of key Democratic sources discloses little serious talk of Humphrey as a 1968 prospect. His once-broad support in the party’s potent liberal wing has been heavily eroded during his years as faithful spokes man for the President. Humphrey is a vivid symbol of the very Johnson policies on the Vietnam war which the President himself acknowledges have been gravely divisive. At the heart of his decision not to run was the expressed wish to see this divisiveness ended. To promote and advocate Humphrey would be to continue it. As he made his historic declaration, the President had a clear reading from his advisers on how serious a threat Ken nedy’s candidacy represented to his renomination. That threat was large from the outset of Kennedy’s entry Into the race on March 16. Kennedy’s impressive campaign swath through 15 states in 2Vz weeks magnified the threat. Thus the President could have had no illusions, upon the occasion of his announcement, that he was doing anything but clearing the road for Kennedy. Not only does his announced posture make an effort for Humphrey unlikely, but had he wanted to aid Kennedy’s chief active rival, Sen. Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota, the Presi dent obviously would have waited until after the Wisconsin primary results. McCarthy’s showing against noncandidate Johnson will now be discounted. Key Democratic figures in the big states with huge delegate votes have shown slight Interest In McCarthy’s candidacy. Many, in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois and elsewhere, have stayed firmly loyal to the President. They are now released from that bond, and all signs suggest that—with varying de grees of speed—they will move toward Kennedy as the candi date most likely to move the electorate and win the Novem ber election. A top Republican politician, whose judgments are highly re garded, greeted the Johnson pull-out with his own flat declar ation: “The choice will now be Kennedy.’’ With the President confiding in so few persons, it may be a considerable time before anyone will know with full author ity what processes of reasoning and feeling took him to his dramatic decision. Until then, only speculation can fill the 8 Whatever weariness and trauma he may have felt as the result of the pounding given him by clamoring critics of his Vietnam policies, it is also plain that he has never felt at home in the politics of the presidency, did little to master it, and was discovering in these last weeks that the cost of this neglect was immense even among such committed sup porters as those he had in large number in the ranks of labor. At his moment of greatest personal trial, he was getting lip service loyalty from many quarters, but heartfelt back ing almost nowhere in the nation. COLD FEET PHILADELPHIA (UPD—Sen. Robert F. Kennedy was ad dressing 15,000 persons at a rally on a downtown street Tuesday when he remarked, “I’d like to announce that someone Is taking off my shoe.” A young woman tugging at the laces on the New York Democrat’s shoe was pulled away by police. SPECIAL SERVICES FOR EDUCATIONAL and SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT Rev. Samuel Southard Guest Minister EVENING SERVICES THURSDAY, 7:30 P. M. “The Problem of Selective Inattention” FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH Taylor at Eighth — Griffin, Georgia JI I IM FASHION I 1118 EXCITEMENT 1 I s ALL YOURS •• • and •Ir. Petites ri"*** • / / 1 then some in the fine selec- Missea / tion of the soft look, \ the good looks, I \ I the new look, the you look ! Ik So many wonderful ideas to make this Easter best! For Your Best Easter Ever — Open a Marsh’s Charge Account! e .MAMJ/ 20 Thursday, April 4, 1968 Bob Kennedy Appears 'in'; Humphrey Bid Not Likely By BRUCE BIOSSAT NEA Washington Correspondent FIRST ASCENT The first successful ascent of Pike’s Peak was not made un til 1820, 14 years after Zebulon Pike first saw it. Pike himself never climbed the mountain. SOLE SURVIVOR Gen. George Armstrong Cus ter and his whole command were massacred at the Battle of the Little Big Horn. A horse named Comanche was the on ly survivor of the disaster. Backstairs Prognosticators Didn’t Get Hint By MERRIMAN SMITH UPI White House Reporter WASHINGTON (UPI) —Back stairs at the White House: Without doubt, no world capital has as many prognosti cators, seers and political prophets per square block as Washington. And they develop in abnormal profusion during the early stages of an election year. This year Is no exception, but there Is this difference—the prophets, for the most part, are angrier than ever at President Johnson for having what they regard as overbearing temerity to give up his political career without the slightest hint to them. These far - seeing experts would be even more aroused if they knew the extent to which Johnson and some of his insiders had dropped hints all over the lot—and for months. The trouble was that almost no one believed this sort of nonsense. One Exception With one notable exception, few if any nationally known columnists or commentators came out in advance with a flat prediction that Johnson would not seek re-election. This exception was William H. Lawrence, veteran political analyst of the American Broad casting Company who in Janua ry, 1967 made Johnson’s with drawal in 1968 as his best political bet. Furthermore, La wrence repeated the same forecast a year later and both times, before a nationwide audience. Why were most of the experts caught more or less flat-footed by Johnson’s dramatic an nouncement Sunday night? The best answer seems to lie in Johnson’s own political perfor mance record. For many years, he earned * MUSSOLINI —Actress Sophia Loren hugs her mugging niece, Alessandra Mussolini, 6, in Rome. She is grand daughter of Benito Musso lini, Italy’s *TI Duce” dicta tor of the 1930 s and 19405. Sophia’s sister Maria is wed to Mussolini’s son Romano. the deserved reputation for being a close-to-the-vest politi cian who did not disclose his next move until the last possible moment. Political Legend During his time on Capitol Hill, he was known as a man who much preferred to work behind the political scenes rather than out In the open. This led to a legend in his own time—that Johnson was a consummate politician who nev er stopped running for office. If Johnson in this week's amazing instance discussed his possible future with as many ‘people as evidence now indi cates, how was it that the secret held? One of his closest friends explained it this way. "This was the sort of thing, strangely enough, that the President could discuss without it getting away from him. A great many of those to whom he talked about stepping out, and this was months and weeks ago, simply did not believe him." Concerning such suffering souls, Johnson could not help bep be amused. If there is anything he enjoys, it is the sight of one of his erstwhile tormentors having trouble with his own credibility gap. ' ' • < ' w ' • - ' '>7 < v < ' * .■ ■ : . K » • A Our One-For-AII Charge Card is for everything where honored. Bh. I J m d IB I|B wz & mb i F ki & ■ M J •hl • r A MMMMM MMMBmBhhHB EmmUk ■hk. ~ ~ Our Regular or Special Checking Account is for everything where our Charge Card isn’t honored. >• ’ ' • x : \ X 'x 'V''' b ' ' x \ § ' V’i. '' ' '•x s \ ’< <'/ V< * ' j ' * '*s4- And much, much more. With our checking account you can pay your bills by mail when you’d hate to go out. Or charge your light, water and telephone bills to your account. Our charge card enables you to take advantage of unusual good buys. And unexpected expenses. You can even borrow up to S2OO on it to build up your checking account balance. One or the other account is O.K. If you have both, you won’t need much cash. FIRST NATIONAL OF GRIFFIN, GEORGIA MEMBER F.D.I.C. ■B B H hk A—J| Fl • wr | ---ffi .. Bmwt “REMNANTS of an American bomber downed in Hanoi,’’ is the caption accompanying this picture received from an official Communist source in North Vietnam. Czech Liberals Alarm Communists By PHIL NEWSOM UPI Foreign News Analyst The liberalizing trend In Czecbslovakla clearly is causing alarm in Communist East Germany. It is indicated in the haste with which the regime under party leader Walter Ulbricht Commentary announced a plebescite to approve a new East German constitution would be held April 6, permitting only n days for preparation. It further was indicated in the violence of an attack on the new Czech regime by Prof. Kurt Hager, East Germany’s chief ideologist, accusing the Czechs of betraying East germany by encouraging West German at tempts to isolate her from her Communist allies. Contrary to Czech moves away from centralization of controls, the new East German constituion is designed to give increased control to the Com munist party leadership. A number of elements enter into Ulbricht’s obvious growing concern. Only a dozen or so nations recognize the Ulbricht regime even after 19 years, compared with more than 90 that recognize West Germany. Under former President Anto nin Novotny, Czechoslovakia had been considered, along with Poland, a loyal ally against a “revenge seeking" West Germa ny. Should a liberalized Czecho slovakia follow Romania and Yugosliava by establishing di plomatic relations with West Germany, Ulbricht’s regime would be further isolated. That Isolation would be virtually complete should the West Germans succeed in their present campaign to convince the Poles that they have no aggressive intent against the Polish Oder-Neisse border and the Poles then also succumb to the lure of West German trade and gold. Borne improvement in their economic well-being has induced a certain lassitude among East Germans toward their regime. But they are not immune to revolt. They proved it in 1953, and the knowledge must also weigh heavily upon old-Stalinlst Ulbricht. AUTHORED EPITAPH Henry (Light-Horse Harry) Lee was the author of the fa mous epitaph of George Wash ington: “First in war, first in peace, first in the hearts of his countrymen." He used this phrase in an oration which he delivered to Congress after Washington’s death.