Evening star., 1924-10-23
DAVIS NATVE-SON
!. APPEAL WEAKENED
IN WEST VIRGINIA
Listed as "of New York" on
BaIIot-"Had to Be-" Says
G. o. P. Official.
LA TOILETTE is MAKING
STRONG CLAIMS IN STATE
Democrats Counting on Drawing
Republican Votes-Bryan
Hurts Ticket.
BY q. GOULD LINCOLN.
stan Correspondent of The Star.


WHEELING, w. Va, October 23.--
Is John w. Davis of New York"
as strong in this State as Mr.. Davis
of West Virginia? The Democrats
say he is. TIE Republicans, deny it.
on the official ballot. Mr.. Davis ap-
pears in this State as John w. Davis
of New York. What, ask the Re-
publicans, becomes of State pride and
the native-son appeal under such con-
ditions?
West Virginia has been a Repub-
lican State To elect Mr.. Davis, the
Democratic nominee for President,
considerable number of Republicans
must desert their party ticket in
this State, or La Toilette must draw
so heavily from the Republican
damaging materially
the Democratic party--that the
Davis Bryan ticket will prevail.
Democratic leaders here are confident
that many Republicans will vote for
Mr.. Davis because they like him and
the cause he represents. They as
sert also that La Toilette is drawing
the greater part of his strength fror:
former Republican voters.
The placing of Mr.. Davis on the
ballot as a New Yorker, while 1t may
seem a trivial thing, is being talked
about in the State. Protests against
this designation have been made to
the Secretary of State of West Vir-
ginia by various Democrats, but the
reply has been that Mr.. Davis was
certified by the Democratic national
convention to the Secretary of State
as coming from New York State. The
Republicans have charged widely
that Mr.. Davis preferred to have
himself designated as New Yorker.
with the IS electoral votes of New
York State in view. West Virginia
has only s.
G.. O. p. Attacks React.
Another factor that is initiating
against Davis is the manner in
which he attacked the Republicans,
first In his address at Clarksburg,
when he accepted the Democratic
nomination, and since then during the
campaign. 1t came as a cold water
douche to some of the Republicans
who were figuring on voting for Mr..
Davis because he was a West Fir-
ginian. What they expected Demo-
cratic candidate for the presidency
to say is somewhat of a mystery. But
they did not like and do not like
the harsh things which Mr.. Davis
has said about their G.. o. p. The
coupling of Gov. Bryan with Mr..
Davis on the ticket has not been
helpful here.
The La Toilette candidacy In West
Virginia is not regarded seriously,
except as it may affect the relative
standing of the two old parties. OF
course, the La Toilette supporters
make no such admission. and are in
tent. they say, on rolling up a big
vote. Some of the newspaper polls
indicate he will receive substantial
recognition. But the Democratic and
Republican managers estimate that
the Independent Progressive ticket
will receive not more than 80, 900 votes
This out of probable total of
$4,000.
Labor Not for Davis.
One significant statement was made
by La Toilette supporters here. They
believe that Coolidge will run ahead
of Davis. They say further that
while La Toilette will draw perhaps
more votes from the Republicans
than from the Democrats throughout
the State, the ratio will not show a
great difference, and will be due to
the fact that there are more Repub-
licans than Democrats in the State
John w. Davis has not made headway
with organized labor to the extent he
might have been expected to do in
this State. His opponents have taken
out and shaken in the breeze his en-
pIoyment as attorney for the nom
union coal mines in West Virginia
AS a matter of fact, organized labor
is laboring hard for La Toilette. 1t
is from the ranks of labor, organized
and unorganiZed. that the Wisconsin
Senator will derive his greatest
strength here. The railroad men.
many of the miners, employees in the
steel mills and the stogie makers, of
whom there are large number near
Wheeling, are largely counted for La
Toilette.
'"The stogie makers are better in
formed than most labor" said a La
Toilette leader here, in explanation Of
their enthusiasm for the progressive
cause. They are allowed to have
readers read to them while they roll
the stogies That's part of their
regular compensation. And so they
know more about what Is going on"
This idea that fuller information
tends to La Frolletteism may sound
quaint to Republican and Democratic
ears.
La Toilette runs in this State as a
Socialist and Farmer-Labor candi-
date. The two parties have named
the same presidential electors and a
vote under either designation Is a
vote for La Toilette.
Since 1896 West Virginia has voted
Republican in presidential elections
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