The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1924-11-01

he must write letter to each
station that he gets and say:
Here 10 the proof that heard
your station last night, and send
me a stamp to put in my radio
stamp album showing that did
it."
This takes up the citizens time.
His duties as really modern per.
son leave him less and less time
for the comber, dull stuff about the
qualifications Of candidates and
the perils Of the constitution. He
Is busy man and II his beloved
country ID going to break in on
his time, she has to dress herself
up in all sorts Of sensations and
scates and sing jazz to him in
order TO do it.
Hence the vast number Of wild
alarms by Republicans about the
downfall Of our institutions and
by Democrats about universal
corruption in high places and by
La Follettites about vague invisible
trusts infesting ell industries and
grinding down an impoverished
people till they almost have to sell
their radio sets IN order to pay off
the mortgages on their mahogany
monographs.
These alarms are alarm clocks to
get the voter out OF bed. Some.
thing desperate has to be done to
do it, and something desperate does
accordingly get done.
Fear Silent Voters.
There thus remains the final In.
scrutable fact in the campaign.
What about all the voters who
take no part in newspaper or
magazine polls and who refuse to
say how they are going to vote
and who perhaps in multitudes Of
cases do not themselves know how
they are going to vote because
their manifold duties as modern
men and women in the midst Of
modern inventions have kept them
too busy?
That Is where the Democrats ana
the La Follettites come in with
their hopes.
The voters whose Intentions are
known seem to provide safe ma
jority for Coolidge. It Is admitted
on all hands in professional po-
litical circles, however, that the
voters with unknown intentions are
extremely numerous.
1t y they who win decide the
election.
The La Follettites claim that 4
large proportion Of these voters are
morally Disguised with both old
parties and have abstained from
politics not because they were too
lazy or too busy with trifles but
because they could not bear to take
part In game which the two old
parties had brought to such 4 low
level Of degradation,
These noble Creatures, according
to the La Follettites, win now ~.
turn 70 politics and show how patri.
otto they are by voting for a new
party to clean both old parties out.
The Democrats have an argu.
ment equally perhaps with some.
thing IN II. They claim that these
voters with unknown intentions will
hesitate at the last minute 10 vote
TOR q new party which (as the
Democrats say) cannot win, and
they thereupon viii turn 70 the
good old way Of rebuking the Re.
publican party--which IL by. voting
for the good old Democratic party.
Appeal Is Same.
In both cases, while the arsu.
mert differs, the appeal "a to the
same sort Of people; and It IL quite
thinkable that. those people may
give the country some surprises Ia
this election.
The majority Of habitual voters
In this country would seem to be
undoubtedly for President Coolidge,
The infrequent voters, however, the
sincerely Disguised voters, the triv.
Tally pre.occupied voters, the hest.
tant voters. the secretive voters:
what are they going to 40? Are
there enough Of them to affect the
result?
That Il what in this year OF ap.
parent deep. decline In interest in
citizenship no political correspon-
dent and no politician can really
know till after November 4.
(Copyright 1924, BY Current News
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