The interior journal. [volume] (Stanford, Ky.) 1912-1984, 1916-05-30
ROOSEVELT IN KENTUCKY.
Impartial Poll Among RAIDS Shows
Interesting Situation.
(From Courier-JournaD

The following conclusions are
based on a straw vote of Kentucky
Republicans carefully conducted by
the Courier-J Journal thru its corps of
correspondents in the State:
Sixty-three per cent of the Repub-
licans of Kentucky are opposed to
the nomination of Colonel Roosevelt
for President, but only Is per cent
of them will not vote for the man
who disrupted their party in 1912 in
the event he is nominated. Eight
per cent of the Republicans of the
State will vote for Wilson, should
Roosevelt receive the Republican
nomination and President Wilson be
nominated at the hands of the DEM
ocrats. Thirty-seven per cent of
Kentucky Republicans favor the NOM
nation of Colonel Roosevelt.
After deciding to test the senti-
ments of Kentucky Republicans on
the Roosevelt proposition the Cou-
rier-Journal communicated with each
of it's county-seat correspondents,
sending each twenty ballots and in
structing him to distribute them
among the town and county Repub-
licans, taking in all factions and CIV
ing to no particular group the ad-
vantage of doing all the voting.
Returns were made by all but
eight of the 120 correspondents, the
missing counties, being Bell, Bullitt,
Harrison, Knott, Livingston, Martin,
Spencer and Trigg. AS result
2,240 Republicans were heard from,
and of this number 825, or 81 per
cent expressed a preference for Col.
Roosevelt; 1,415, or SO per cent, in
Dictated their opposition to the Col
onel; 1928, or 80 per cent, said they
would not vote for him under any
circumstances; 176, or per cent,
indicated that they would vote for
President Wilson should Roosevelt
receive the Republican nomination.
Various reasons were given by
those opposing the nomination of
Roosevelt, the chief one being that
no recognition should be given a man
who did his best to wreck the party
in 1912. Another reason was that
the nomination of Roosevelt by the
Republicans, might be taken by hot
bloOded youth of the country as an
Indication that majority of Amer
leans are eager for war with Ger
many.
On one of the many ballots re-
ceived from out in the state was
written: "Afraid of Big Stick" Yet
this Republican indicated that in the
event Roosevelt is nominated by the
Republicans he would vote for him.
Returns from 26 of the 112 coun-
ties heard from showed a majority
each for Roosevelt. These are Boyd,
Boyle, Breathitt, Galloway, Fayette,
Fulton, Garrard, Henderson, Hick-
man, Hopkins, Jackson, Laurel, Les
lie, Letcher, Logan, McCracken,
Mercer, Monroe, Nelson, Oldham,
Pendleton, Powell, Rockcastle, Scott
and Woodford. In Hickman coun-
ty all but one of the twenty Repub-
licans interviewed expressed pre-
ference for the Colonel. In nine
counties the vote for and against
Roosevelt was equally divided.
The Mercer county correspondent
writes that "the most surprising fea-
ture of the situation" in his county
sis that a number of men who were
active supporters of Taft four years
ago are now enthusiastic Roosevelt
supporters. Two prominent Repub-
licans, while not favoring Roosevelt,
expressed the oponion that he would
be nominated"
Roosevelt is not nearly as strong
in Wayne county as four years ago,
according to the Courier-Journal
correspondent at Monticello. "This
is DUE" he writes, "tO two reasons
resentment of his boiling the Chi
cago convention and feeling that
we need a safer man under present
conditions. The Republicans here
are sticklers for party regularity and
hesitate to bolt under any ordinary
condition, but l believe from my con-
versations with them, that more will
vote for Wilson over Roosevelt than
indicated in my straw ballot returns"
Cener,1 Nex.,e Notes