The Washington herald., 1916-10-07
Labor Casts Straw Vote.

the campaign is the result of a comprehensive
and thorough straw vote just taken with con-
siderable care by the Literary Digest which
would seem to show that the misgivings OF
Chairman Wilcox and his associates are founded
upon facts.
The Digest polled labor officials connected
with organized unions il all parts of the country
and embracing workers in all lines of industry.
OF those polled 457 labor executives have
responded to the request for an opinion and
337 favor President Wilson, Al find their voters
are for Mr. Benson, the Socialist candidate, and
43 report sentiment favoring Gov. Hughes.
"The findings Of thirty-four officials reveal
either noncommittal attitude sentiment evenly
divided and it is of interest to note that the
ratio was much the same all through the three
weeks of incoming replies" says the Digest
Since there seems to be such preponderance
of opinion for the Democratic candidate, it is
interesting to ana1yze further and observe the
reasons given for this popularity in the ranks
of labor.
The Western Federation of Miners through
high official says that the workers believe that
the present Congress under Wilson has done
/ more for the workers than any ten previous
administrations.
Among boot and shoe workers in St. Louis it
was found that the administrations record for
labor legislation is President Wilson's strong
hold.
The Painters and Decorators Union, of Ten
nessee, quote that president Wilson has kept
Us out Of war"
A Republican official of the Order of Railway
Conductors advises the Digest that he has never
voted other than the Republican ticket all his
life, but believes that this time it is different"
The secretary of a cgarmakers' union in San
Francisco reports that as a Republican, he hon
estly believes it would be ito the best interest
of the country as a whole if the Republican can
didate were elected" but he adds that when Mr.
Hughes on his visit to that city accepted the
invitation of the Union League Club he out
"in favor Of the open shop" This action he says
estranged a great part of the union labor vote in
San Francisco.
An official of the Seattle Pressmen's Union,
who is not a Democrat says that all organized
labor there intends to vote for President Wilson,
for his stand before that formidable array Of
powers that be-" namely the railway magnates
and asserting himself in regard to the eight
hour proposition. And so it
Those who propose to vote for Allen Ben
son, the Socialist, come in a large degree from
Socialist centers although there are a number
of labor leaders who have potential preference
for the Socialist candidate but will not vote for
him because he is negative factor in the con-
test anu luCdpdDlG OF ASSISTING ldDOl IllOuSH
policy or legislation result.
Turning to those replies which indicated a
preference for Mr.. Hughes it is found that the
Central Labor Union of Asheville, believes Sen
timent is fast changing in his direction"
A cigarmakers' union of Illinois reports that
70 per cent of the membership will vote for the
Republican candidate and a similar union of
workers in Wisconsin records the same senti-
ment.
Perhaps the most significant and forceful
endorsement that is offered Gov. Hughes is the
statement of an official OF the Brotherhood Of
Railway Postal Clerks saying that the Post
master Generals treatment of the postal en-
ployes will result in the loss Of thousands upon
thousands of votes for the Democratic party"
The men are said to be "disgusted with the
administrations handling of the postal service,
especially the railway mail service, and many
lifelong Democrats will vote for Hughes"
From the above canvass of the replies, it
must be admitted that the Republicans have
cause to be disturbed at the outlook and justified
in making preparation for drive the labor
forces and a scientific campaign of education
on the real purpose and intent OF the Adam
son eght-hour bill within the next thirty days.
There are some things, however, which the
straw vote does not show. 1t has not taken
into consideration the many thousands of laborers
who are not organized and the many thousands
more who work in cities and towns which have
been affected by the Democratic tariff for revenue
only. Neither does it show whether the labor
movement and its success is the predominating
thing in the minds Of thousands of workers with
hyphenated tendencies.
There exist in numerous cities factories and
commercial establishments whose very life and
prosperity depend upon the assistance that a
reasonable protective tariff affords. Will the
workers in these plants, looking to the future
and the reaction that must follow cessation OF
the strife in Europe, vote for an administration
that may stifle the industry which furnishes them
livelihood
Again, how often has organized labor stood
together and how often has it been the determin-
ing factor in a national election? Its support
weighs tremendously, but it has never yet de-
cided a national election. The replies received
by the Literary Digest indicate that the work
ers have been thinking They quiz Mr.. Hughes
on his decision in the Danbury hatters' case,