The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-09-16
THINK SENATE WILL BE CLOSER I HAN
 PRESIDENTS RACE
Both Party Headquarters Pay- ing Much Attention to Fights In the DebatabIe
 States
Bl CLINTON W. GILBERT


 then thsFepubIieans will carry the
 doubtful states and control the
 Senate by good majority. But
 The republicans admittedly
 much weaker in several states on
 the Senate and on the state tickets
 than they are on the national tick-
 ct. Harding may he elected by
 comfortable majority and stilI the
 Senate may be close
 Conservative opinion here regarding the Maine election is that the result should not be taken too seriously as a1tording light upon what the west VIII do. The League of Nations was always weak in Maine. The electorate there is conservative, and the women voters are utterly unused to political action and probably followed their husoands much more than the indepen- dent women of the west will follow theirs At any rate the republicans at headquarters here, though pleased with the Maine result, are prepared to dis count it somewhat and point to what happened in 1916 when early returns from the east were utterly deceptive as to the result throughout the nation.
 MAY LOSE SENATORS
 Senator Harding may carry the coun- try easily and the republicans accord Ing to their own estimates, may lose senators in Indiana, Utah and Wash lngton, They stand to gain senat tors on the same basis of reckoning in Cali- fornia, Kentucky, South Dakota and perhaps Maryland and Idaho
 The democrats think their chances of gaining are good in Indiana, Ohio, Missouri and Washington. They also think they will hold Kentucky, Cali fornia. Colorado, Idaho and Nevada. They regard New Hampshire Connec- ticut and New York also as debatable ground.
 Both sides point to Indiana, Utah and Kentucky as the most debatable of ths most important states. very hard fight will be made by both parties in those states. Indiana short time ago was regarded by republicans as like ly to send Taggart to the Senate But recent reports from there are mora favorable to Watson. The republican. state administration there is unpopu" lar and Watson has mades ome serious political mistakes. The league issue also bothers him.
 SHOOT HAS REAL FIGHT In Utah Senator Smot both sides agree, has the fight of his life on his hands He is interested in the produc- ton of beet sugar and the price of sugar is one of the issues. His op- position to the Kenyon bill for regu- lating the packers also counts against him. The Non-Partisan League Is &C., tive in Utah and is supporting Con- gressman Yelling, the democratic can dfdate. Both candidates stf@ Mormons and what the church will do no one knows.
 In Kentucky the chances prob-
 ably favor the recollection of Sena-
 tor Becxham, democrat. The stnte
 may go republican the presf- dency and still elect Beckham. A
 neN issue which has arisen in
 border states like Kentucky and to
 some extent In states like Ohio and
 Indinna Is the v6ting of the negro
 women who have been given the
 suffrage under the recent amend
 ment. Every one says that every
 negro woman will vote. They mo-
 where like the prospect of addf-
 tions to the black vote and the
 feeling on this subject mny help
 the democratic party.
 The difficulties of Senator Wesley Jones in Washington were unexpected. The Seattle Times, probably the most influen- tial paper in the state, suddenly turned against Jones a couple of weeks ago. The shipping interests of the state apparently do not like his shipping bill. The state of Washington is in dubious position politically because of the activities of the Partisan League there and tho radlcaliSm or iaDOr,
 CALIFORNIA AND MISSOURI r The democratszaount upon re-electing Senator Phelan in California, but every indication there is that Senator Johnson means to sweep the state bodily into the republican columns and the republican candidate for senator there SaInuel Shortridge, is likely to win, Similarly in Missouri the democrats talk bravely of eiecting Breckenridge Long, but the Reed faction of the party is bitter, and the in- clination of the state is toward repub- licanism The chances of reelection for Senator Spencer. republican, are therefore good.
 The weakness of Senator Cummins, re- publican. in Iowa is one of the unex- pected developments Of the campaign. Some well-informed republicans in that state think that MT Cummins will be beaten, and the democrats, who have pus up a good candidate in Claude Porter arc strongly confident. MT. Cummins is in and unable to take part in the cam pagn.
 The opposition to him showed first in the republican primaries. where ne mar rowiy escaped defeat. IL is based on the Cummins- Esch railroad bill. which has already carried one of its authors, Con- gressman Esch. down to defeat in the Wisconsin primaries. Labor is against Mir Cummins. but that is not highly irn- portaik In Iowa.
 The4neal trouble is that the farmers of Iowa do not like his railroad bill with it's government guarantees, and they blame him for the high freight rates which have followed the return of tho railroads to private ownership. MT. iCummins will run behind Senator Hard ing, but Iowa is so overwhelmingly re- publican it is difficult to see how he may be beaten
 WOMEN AND THE LEAGUE
 Woman suffrage and the League of Nations cut figure in the three east ern states which the democrats think beatable but which the republicans claim with q great deal of confidence. The woman suffragists are fighting Senator Moses, who seeks reelection in New Hampshire; Senator Brandegee. who is again a candidate in connecti cut, and Senator Wadsworth who is up for bis second term in New York.
 The democrats hope that the French Canadian vote in New Hampshire, which is said to be pro o-league. because of the recognition Canada gets in the Wilson covenant. will be enough to de- feat Senator Moses.
 The election of Moses. Brandegae and Wadsworth probably depends upon the strength of Senator Harding in their three states. The result in Maine prob- ably indicates the political condition in