Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-08-30
A CLOSE ELECTION
Political Gossip of Capitol
Guides.
THE TALK OF VISITORS
SITUATION MORE COMPLEX THAN
IN MANY YEARS.
People Are Extremely Reticent-Do
Not Know How Their Neigh
bors Will Vote.
THE TALK OF VISITORS

There is no better place to gauge the
political tide of the country than here I'M
der the big dome," declared a member or
the efficient force of Capitol guides today.
:We meet people daily from all over the
United States" he continued, land It Is
easy to get from them an idea of the polit-
ical conditions and probable results in their
communities. They are not the trained
politicians of the country by any means,
but business men, farmers and mechanics
the men who cast the ballots-and 1 have
found in years gone by that the drift or
talk among these visitors Is about the best
indications obtainable to the probable
results of the ensuing elections
Beginning with the above preface the
guide went on to say that the sum total or
the talk he and his associates had heard
during the past two months, or since the
national conventions have put forward their
candidates and platforms, is to the effect
that the coming presidential election Will
be the closest the American people have
known for many years
No Landslide This Year.
"It is not going to be a landslide year.
predicted the guide. "All talk along such
lines is without the slightest foundation In
fact. The people we meet coming as they
OO dliuOSt ulTcctiy tHSlT HOHlcS dud
from conversations with their neighbors,
say it is decidedly difficult to forecast the
November results. This condition of un-
certainty seems to apply in many states
that either one or the other of the two
great parties are CHASING as certain. 1t
also applies to state, congressional and
presidential tickets, only under varying
local conditions. Take my tip for it. there
will be the greatest splitting of the votes
this year the politicians have ever known.
Tov,er fny,o 1tSfr rNtc
to Congress and vote Overwhelmingly at
the same time for the republican presi-
Dental electors. This will also be true In a
reversed way in other districts.
But the principal thing we notice up here
is that the people are extremely reticent.
1t is this reticence that has got the mama
gers of the campaign guessing as they
never guessed before. Some call the silence
apathy Others say 1t denotes changed pref
erences among the voters. The latter class
declare that the silence means there VIII
be breaking away from party animation
among men who are not bodstfuf OF any
such change in their views.
1.-The general and the best opinion seems
to be, however, that great number OF
the Independent voters of the country are
weighing the two parties and their candi-
dates carefully in the balance. They have
determined to think the matter out for
themselves, and following this determi-
sci and are going to reach a decision sat
isfactory to themselves without the aid OF
the professional politician.
1.-The political situation In the United
States today is more complex than l have
ever seen it, and I have followed the ma
tional and congressional campaigns for
many long years. The man who says he
can predict with any degree of certainty the
results of next November's balloting is
talking merely for the love of hearing his
own voice. There are no premises by
which the various results may be accu-
rately figured and any forecast you may
~;ol,I r,0tr or1y 10 a.
ton as one Of extreme doubt Is pure guess
work.
Doubt With Big D.
doubt with a great big d is existing
throughout the entire country, and many
of the visitors we have conducted through
the Capitol and who have found time for
stray bits of political gossip say they are
actually at loss to know how their next
door neighbors will vote. This element of
uncertainty seems to be the only logical
thing to expect. For eight years party
lines have been broken as they had not
been broken in many decades Just how
many of these men who have changed Will
remain in the party of their latest at
tachment is problem the political man
ayers are solving with the greatest ueeTee
of difficulty"
During a campaign of great interest the
guides at the Capitol conduct something
of a clearing house for political news and
Kennedy chief of the brigade. During an
hours tour of the big building it is an
easy matter for the various guides to In
terject a good bit of political inquiry into
their conversation with the visitors. Sew
eral times daily the guides gather In the
rotunda and exchange the views of the
visitors. In this way they keep up with
the trend of political thought in many parts
of the country. The visitors to the Capitol
hail from everywhere. They are usually
quite proud of being asked for their po-
litical views and are seldom reluctant TO
communicate what they believe to be the
actual facts. This year. however they
are admitted their inability to tell how
the battle goes. Some of them are con-
vinced that the Parker telegram eliminated
the silver issue, others say it did not.
This diversity of opinion is found on other
subjects of campaign moment, and may be
taken as typical illustration of how the
voters are summing up the issues for them
selves. The men of the ballots are show
ing an independence somewhat new to the
party bosses and just how many Will Kick
entirely over the traces when 1t comes to
voting no one can foretel.
There is a. .strong impression among the
guides that New York and New Jersey may
be classed as almost surely democratic.
Many of the daily visitors at the Capitol
have recently been in the two common
wealths These visitors say they hear
more democratic talk than anything else,
and there seems to be an enthusiasm
among the democrats which cannot be
found in Nhe republican camps. 1t Is true
the visitors base their statements largely
upon the feeling found In the cities, where
1t is admitted the trend is nearly always.
and is at this time decidedly in favor of
the democratic tickets.
Some Particular States.
New Yorks thirty-nine electoral votes
and New Jerseys twelve, added to the Isl
sent up from the solid south. would give
Judge Parker total of 2o2 votes, or thir-
ty-seven short of the majority which will
make the next President. The republicans
could readily concede these two eastern
states to the democrats without jeopardy.
If they vote for Parker 1t will simply be in
line with the predictions made that the
coming contest is to be the closest and the
most exciting during the time the ballots
are being counted of any the present gener-
alton has known.
party of Indiana mechanics recently WIS.,
tied the Capitol and the artisans were piled