Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-10-09
FOOTBALL
. INM|SS0UR|F|GHT
Republicans Badly Split, but
Democrats, With Reed Defiant,
Are in Worse Shape
HARDING TO CARRY STATE
BY CLINTON w. GILBERT
TAFT Correspondent Evening Public Ledger

Harding found the league more familiar
to the people here than anywhere else
In the country. Bitter fights have
ragged for months in Missouri. SEN
ator Reed has been thrown out Of the
state convention here and out OF the
Missouri delegation to the national con-
vention at San Francisco for disagree
ing with the President on the league.
President Wilson, within few days,
has raised an issue Of veracity with
Senator Spencer over the league.
The league issue here has been dram
atized and made personal. It is little
clouded by the feeling over Wilson him
first, and the league second, and
Jim" Reeds followers, who are about
one third of the Democrats Of the state,
as the Senate primary contest showed,
follow their leader in hating Wilson
and the league only as an expression
Of Wilson.
But leaving out Of consideration this
personal issue, the league Is better
known and better understood In Mis-
souri, than in any other state in which
Mr.. Harding has been. People know
Article X here rather better than they
do the Ten Commandments. Except
for factionalism, there Is the possibility
Of a solemn referendum on the league
in this state. Party lines here are
rather firmer than in the North. As
in Kentucky, one does not find here the
sweep or swing or tidal wave or what
ever you want to call 1t that most
people see in the North. Missourians
this time are Republicans or Demo
Gratis, except so far as faction makes
them scratch their ticket. or as the
league, denounced by the Kansas City
st. Louis Post Dispatch in the East,
persuades them to leave their party.
Lowden Money Scandal
Factiona.ism in the Republican party
dates back to the incident Of the Low
den money which was spent In the
from getting his nomination ut Chi
cago. Missouri was scanda'ized over
this money. Republicans who were Gu,
out of power seized upon the occasion
TO drive those who were in power into
the bushes. The party was cleansed anu
purified. All the politicians who were
associated with the men and got Low
den money were beaten in the subse-
quent primaries and driven from Office
in the organization. Reformers, and in
some cases, highly practical politicians,
who did not get any Of the Lowden
money, took their places. The Repub-
lican party was reorganized.
Only Jakey Babbler remains. Jakey
is national committeeman. He was
elected before the exposure of the Low
den fund before the Kenyon commit.
tee in Washington. He was smirched
In that exposure. Jakey is not SEN
sitive soul. He clings to his job Of pa.
tional committeeman. He boarded the
Harding train in Missouri, meeting the
yylrtu,u men who replaced all his old
friends and associates in politics, men
the cars withdrew their garments a
little for fear of being contaminated
The Republican have invited Bab-
bier to retire from the national COM
mittee. They have passed resolutions
adopted of conducting the national cam
paign in Missouri through the Mis-
souri, state committee instead of through
National Committeeman Babbler. The
Babbler is isolated. He is politically
inconmunicado. But he hangs on smil-
ing and unperturbed. He has his own
ideas about political virtue.
Old Machine Wrecked =.
Babbler is all that Is left of the old
guard here. Reform has washed all
else away. The old state machine Is
gone. The st. Louis machine Is re-
placed by new lot of politicians. The
silk stockings triumphed in Kansas
City. All this means many hard feel
ings. Republican factionalism Is not
as bad as Democratic factionalism. but
1t exists. The Republican candidate for
governor, Arthur NJ. Hyde, is anti =
Bsbbler. He will have the hardest Job
to get elected of any one Of the three
leading figures on the Republican ticket,
knitted. but because the Democrats are
more united upon the desirability of
keeping the governorship in their
possession than upon anything else.
Senator Snencer has been on both
sides Of the Republican issue. He was
nominated first under the Babbler re-
gime. He was therefore naturally some
what allied to II. He IL now on good
terms with the reformers. But the
thing which above all else Is likely to
keep Republican factiona'ism from be-
ing costly to Harding or Spencer or
Hyde Is the belief of the Republicans
generally that they have a good chance
to win this year. Everybody want to
participate IN the fruits of victory.
Missouri n Close State
Missouri is close state normally.
Here is the political lineup in recent
political campaigns: Roosevelt carried
1t In 1904 by %, 900 votes; Taft carried
Il four years later by 65S votes: In
1919. when the great split occurred,
Wilson had big majority. but the
votes Of Taft and Roosevelt added to-
gether we're more than Wilson'S, In
1919 Wilson got 27,000 majority, and
two years later Spencer for Senate got
80 900 majority. But Folk, his op-
ponent. had many enemies.
Thus you may take $1,000 as the
measure of the Democratic strength
under favorable conditions. But these
are not favorable conditions. The Dem.
ocratic party is badly split by the fight
between the forces Of the administration
here and the forces Of Senator Jim
Reed. 1t Is the bitterest party row
anywhere in the country. It Is sure to
cost the Democratic national ticket and
the Democratic candidate for senator.
Breckenridge Long. many votes.
Then there Is In Missouri as else
where the foreign vote. Eastern Mis-.
souri,, especially st. Louis, has a large
German vote. This vote is normally
Republican. at least Is to so per cent