Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1904-10-06

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1t will be seen by the above table in
1896 when the country was aroused by
the threatened danger to the currency
of the people, the vote was larger than
it had been any time since then except
in 1900, when the same candidates for
president again asked the suffrages
of the people. 1t should be noticed,
however, that the "off year elections"
since 1900 have shown considerable
decrease in democratic votes as COM
pared with the elections in 1S97-S-9.
The republican vote, on the other
hand, since 1900, with the exception OF
1902, compares favorabiy with the re-
publican vote cast in the off years
prior to that date. Neither party, how
ever, have been able to cast the vote
that it did in the presidential years,
and if, as seems the case, it requires
enthusiasm in an ordinary presidential
campaign to get out the vote in Iowa,
no one can tell with any degree of GER
tainty what to expect this year when
such apathetic conditions exist,
The census of 1900 shows that there
were at that time 635,29S males of vot-
ing age living in the state. OF this
number, 1894 had only filed first
papers; l,431 were aliens and 2S,436
were classed as unknown" Subtract
ing the i0501 represented by these
three classes, leaves 594,797 as the
voting strength of the state in 1900.
There were, in fact, 530.355 votes cast
in the state that year, leaving 64,442
f, stay-at-homes, or about II per cent OF
the voting strength of the state.
Voting Strength in 1904.
The census bureau estimates thai
there are S6,339 people in the state
who will be entitled to cast their first
presidential vote this year. Adding to
this number the 5,634 who had filed
their first papers in 1900, and assum-
ing that the number of aliens remain
practically the same, and that those
classed as unknown by the census re-
port need not be taken into considera-
ton, we have 91,973 to add
| to the number of voters in 1900. Then.
assuming that 10000 have died or left
the state since 1900. we have 646.770
as the voting strength Of the state this
year. If there is the same percent
age of stay-at-home votes as four years
ago. these figures would indicate a
poll of 575,626 votes or $4,000 more
than were polled last fall.
Duty Of Republicans.
The census figures arc undoubtedly
correct 1t now remains with the peo-
pie of the state to see that the vote is
polled 1t seems probable that no one
can be in any measure of doubt re-
garding the issues and there is no rea-
son why every republican should not
come out and vote his ticket The
principles Of republicanism are the
same. The supremacy of these princi-
pies have brought about good times
and it is just as necessary that the
people should vote for the continuance
OF these good times as it was to vote
for the reinstatement Of the republi-
can party in 1896. Ii 1t was wise and
patriotic to save the country from hard
times brought on by the Wilson-Gor-
man bill, and from the threat of de-
based currency which was the slogan
Of Bryan it is just as wise and patrt-
otto to vote this year for continuance
of these principles, which brought
about the results sought for by all
sound thinking men in 1896 and in
1900.
Iowa permitted her solid republican
congressional delegation to be broken