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 For weeks, every time he could find a slot in Democratic mayoral candidate John Street's schedule, city Democratic chairman Bob Brady would bring in another white ward leader to meet with Street and overcome hard feelings from the primary.

The work was hard, but Brady has managed to bring most of the party faithful into the fold.

Today, President Clinton crowns the campaign with a big "get out the vote rally." But hold on here.

If you're a Democratic ward leader in the Northeast or South Philly, do you really want to juice turnout? Just among us, no.

"We're all going to rent sound trucks for Election Day," one ward leader quipped, "and they are going to drive through the Northeast playing bedtime lullabies."

A truth recognized by most and spoken by few is that if you are a good Democrat, and you pump up turnout in white wards, you'll be getting out more Katz votes than Street votes - maybe three times as many. So what does a white ward leader do?

"I think they'll be instructed to be selective in who they ask to come out," said veteran South Philadelphia ward leader Buddy Cianfrani.

In 1987, when incumbent mayor Wilson Goode was in a dogfight against Frank Rizzo, Brady was the party chairman. He asked committeepeople in Rizzo wards to get him a handful of votes per division - the committeepeople, their families, the local election board.

The troops pulled a few votes out, and Goode won by a nose.

Veteran Democratic consultant Jack Collins said it's the same this time, and you won't see Democrats running phone banks and dragging every voter out of his or her home late in the day.

"If you're a ward leader, you tell your committeepeople, 'Try very hard. Go to go those people who you've serviced individually,' " Collins said, "and remind them, tell them you're asking for a favor back and hope they oblige.' "

Brady doesn't admit to any worries that a strong turnout in white wards will help his opponent.

"We're not afraid of that," he said in an interview yesterday. "We think that we have a record in the Democratic Party in this city. In those river wards, the leaders are extremely service-oriented.

"I think when the people come to the polls, they look at the Democratic committeeperson, after all the work the committeepeople have done, I think if you get the people out, they'll vote Democratic."

One Democratic ward leader, who asked not to be named, said he will run phone banks in only one voting division. As for the rest, whomever comes to vote comes to vote.

A complicating factor for Street is that the Northeast Philadelphia wards most inclined to support an African-American in the past are areas west of the Roosevelt Boulevard where Jewish voters are numerous.

Republican Katz, who is Jewish, presumably has some appeal there.

"The rule of thumb for committeepeople here is you don't try to bring out people you don't know," Collins said. "You go to your friends, your family, people you've helped, and ask them to give you a vote."

Ironically, if there are ward leaders or committeepeople who supported Marty Weinberg who wanted to hurt Street, they could do it by simply doing the good party soldier's duty and turning out the vote.

Weinberg has campaigned actively for Street in his areas of support, and Cianfrani believes the Democrats' edge in registration will in the end carry the day.

"I can't in my wildest imagination see how Johnny Street could lose," Cianfrani said. "I think Katz is in for a few surprises."