The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1922-09-27
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.
Especial Dispatch to The Reformer.)
(rr,rrrinhA 1000

Especial Dispatch to The Reformerl
Copyright 1922
CLEVELAND, Ohio. Sept. 27.-Presi-
dent Harding has lost ground in his
home state. Nobody can upon analysis
put his finger on the exact reason 1t
was inevitable that an unprecedented
majority of 100000 should melt away
but there are few Democrats of politics
sagaeity who VIII say it has vanished
altogether.
This is normally a city of Democratic
tendency. To win this county often
means a state victory. Yet with all
the criticism of the Harding administra-
tion that one hears, there is no report
ing enthusiasm from the Democratic
party The Republicans may be in dis
favor, but they haven't grown bad
enough in public esteem to send the tide
in the other political direction as yet.
The best indication of what is going
on III Northern Ohio is the comment on
Senator Pomerene,s fight for reelection.
lie Is personally popular. Republicans
by the scores sing his praises in spite OF
the fact that he Is a Democrat Lots
of Republicans consider him n strong
man because he has refused to coddle to
labor unions and has puTsuaded a cour-
face il would seem that such man
would have a certain victory. Yet his
own friends admit he has "a hard fight
ahead" and they are frankly doubtful
Labor is fighting him and as for Repub-
liean business men, they are influential
but not SO numerous at the polls. Many
of them admire "a Democrat of courage
but they don't always let their admins
tration pull them away from party
strings.
Governor Fight VIII Show Sentiment.
Paradoxical as it may seem. the guber-
Material fight here will be a better index
of the state of mind of the public on the
Harding administration than win be the
congressional contests, Carml 1homp-
son. Republican candidate for governor.
is an intimate friend of President Hard
ing. The incumbent at Columbus Is a
Republican but he wasn't Tenomlnated.
Strictly on the state record Mr.. IhOmp-
son viii not have much OF an OppOr-
tunity on the stump. Vic Donahy, the
Democratic candidate, is popular, He
ran way ahead of his ticket in 1920.
The friends of Thompson will wage a
Stand-hv- the-nresident campaign. -Four
hundred thousand Is a big majority for
any Democratic to overcome. DonahY
will cut il down extensively. It's too
early to say who viii win but as Don
ahv takes large slices out of the Re
publican lead Of two years ago, he VII!
pull with him many Democratic con
gressmen. The Republicans have all the
members of congress from Ohio now.
They may lose half of them.
Benjamin karr. statistical wizard OF
the Cleveland News. a Republican news
paper. took the Maine election figures
and calculated the ratio of gain and loss
if applied nationally, and comes to the
conclusion that the Democrats would
under those circumstances elect II out
of p representatives. Carrying 1t
throughout the nation, he oplneS that
the present Republican majority IN the
house of l67 will be cut down to 80
The wet and drv issue will be here IN ?
new form A referendum Of an amend
mcnt to the state constitution permit
ting light wines and beer VIII be voted
on on November 18th. 1t viii hardy
he n fair test MANY people who might
annrovp. know it would conflict with the
federal constitution and they viii not
waste time voting on 1t. Nevertheless
the issue will be widely discussed an0
the candidates will win and lose votes
bv their respective declarations on the
subject.
Labor Element Strong.
Again i'm Cleveland as in Western
New York. the writer discovers the pub
lie mind disturbed about industrial Is
sues. The headquarters of the railroad
brotherhoods are here. This Is a union
stronghold Nothing has created quite
the sensation. however, as the preach
ment Of Newton d. Baker on the sub
iect Coming back to the city over which
he was mayor for four years, he turned
to the practice of law. The tOwnsfolk
made him president of the chamber OF
commerce. He Is esteemed by the Re
Dublicans and Democrats alike-thev all
have a good word to say for the former
secretary of war-but when he v~ot
his sO-called open shop letter, he Went
up even higher in the opinion OF the pro-
fessional and business men and one
might saw even in the view of many
Dathy with the radical fringe IN their
movement Mr.. Baker didn't ally HIM
self really with either side as the term
open shop IS confusing. lie lined up
with the public as against the factions
who prev on the public purse with
strikes and lockouts. But the best way
to describe it is to quote Mr.. Bakers
own words which antagonlZed some
Ia Dor leaders but won approval outside
that group:
sThe term open shop as used in the
labor policv of the Cleveland Chamber
of Commerce is unhapDily confused with
the term closed non union shop. 1t IS
therefore necessary in this discussion TO
remember what the true meaning OF
that phrasp is Tt describes q labor re-
Iatior in which workers are wholly free
to Join or not to Join unions: III when
the Drincinlp of the collective bargaining
is recognized as sound and lust. and IN
which the workers when unable to agree
with their employers have right to he
represented by Representatives of their
own choice in wage and other employ
Ynant negotiations. In such an open
sbop no man is to be Disseminated
Against because he holds a union card
md correspondinnly no man is to be
discriminated against because he holds
no such card
Public Is Interested.
"Trade unionist as, | have always.
been and am. I cannot bring myself to
believe that labor relations are the CON
Germ only Of EMPLOYERS and employees
as separate and conteadng classes. In
every labor question there are really
three PARTIES The public has an interest
too little recognized and rarely repre-
scented. | think your district council