The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-09-12
Maine Majority Reductions Are
 Very Encouraging
OTHER CONTEST 10 BE MADE
The Explanation By Republican Papers of the Result In Maine Is Very Amusing to People In
 the Capital City.

Washington, September 11.-(SpeciaL)- The officers of the democratic congress sional committee are naturally jubiant 5 over the result in the state of Maine. It has been years since the democrats m that state have come any place near re- ducing majorities to the figures brought out yesterday. By all it is considered a good omen and will undoubtedly have the important effect of encouraging demo- crats into believing they can carry the House.
 "The trouble with us, said one around committee headquarters, "is that we have the losing habit. A thing like this makes us think we are getting out of it and helps a heap. Such gains as we made in Maine yestJ 2y carried through into No vember S carry the House for us by big maS-aSy because there are compar- atlvelly few republican congressman who had two years ago anything like the ma jorty given Littlefeld which we cut down to . beggarly thousand yester- day.
 If such states as Illinois, Indiana and Ohio, for example, where there is a more natural democratic tendency, such senti- ment against the republicans as that ex- changed in Maine would leave mighty few republican congressman"
 Labor Feature.
 The labor feature of the campaign in Maine will now be energetically pushed in other congressional districts where labor has declared war on republican Congress- man Sherman of New York the chairman
 
 of the republican congressional commit tee, is on the labor blacklist His ma- jority two years ago was not as large as was Littlefeld's. Many others who are opposed by the Gompers organization got fin by small majority, though in many cases the maJorities were overwhelming. Occasionally there was no opposition
 Among the most prominent members of the House against whom an active fight will be waged from now on are Payne of New York, Dalzell of Pennsylvania, Me Call, Gardner, Ames. Weeks, Thrill and Gillette of Massachusetts, Jenkins of Wis consin, Palmer of Pennsylvania. Gardner of New Jersey and Foster of Indiana
 Foster especially will be bitterly op- posed Two years ago he only had 10G0 majority and Chairman Griggs has placed
 
 democratic column. The afternoon papers today print story to the effect that the chairman of the Maine democratic com mittee last night wired Chairman Griggs that Littlefield would have been beaten and the state carried by the democrats had not Bryan made his government ownership of railroads speech. The story says the speech drove thousands of votes from the ticket.
 Secretary Edwards emphatically denied that any such thing was received by the committee. One of the funniest things in the whole situation is to read the ex- plantations of the republican slump in the republican papers of today. Ever since the campaign started the republican press has been claiming that Roosevelt was the Issue and should be endorsed Every one of the big men sent to Maine, Cannon. Taft, Beveridge and the rest, made Roosevelt speeches and nothing but that. This fact is entirely ignored now The republicans clam that the virtual re- publican defeat is entirely due to state Issues" It's amusing.