Evening star., 1926-10-28
COOLIDGE LEADING
BAY STATE ISSUES
Presidents Appeal Makes
Him Outstanding Stake
in Buffers Fight.
BY FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE.
Special Dispatch 10 Tsle Star.

Special Dispatch 10 Tsle Star.
BOSTON, October 28.-Calvin Cool
ldge has become the paramount issue
in Massachusetts. The Presidents
eleventh hour intervention in the
Butler Walsh senatorial contest dwarfs
all other bones of contention. It has
relegated prohibition, the tariff, pros
perity, primary slush funds and the
World Court into the limbo of the
insignificant. BY asking his home
State to elect his friend and political
lieutenant. William Morgan Butler
to the Senate Mr.. Coolidge has made
himself the pivot around which the
whole Massachusetts fight is now
winding to a thrilling finish.
Butler, 1t is agreed on practically
all hands, will stand or fall by the
response of the voters to the Presi-
dents appeal. Democratic leaders hail
il as a Macedonian cry of distress, a
signal of Republican despair. Repub.
hcan managers contend that Mr.. Ccol.
idge by throwing the full weight Of
his personality into the fray mere.
ly made Senator Buffers election
dOubly sure. They hold tha. the
President is far too shrewd and eau
1ious politician to risk his own
prestige in a losing battle.
Buffers leaders are especially elated
over Mr.. and Mrs. Coolidge's decision
to journey to Northampton to vote.
They think that circumstance may
induce thousands of stay-at home
addicts to go to the polls.
Up to the hour of the Coolidge
gesture the tide was running strongly
in Walsh s favor. 1t was taking that
direction not 80 much because of new
conditions in this campaign, but be-
cauSe of WalSh'S normal vote getting
qualities. The impressive thing about
his candidacy from the outset has
been his 1924 run against Senator Gil
lett. In that presidential year. with
Coolidge on the same ticket, Gillett
defeated Walsh by bare $4,000 votes,
while Coolidge's majority over Davis
and La Toilette mounted to a round
10000. No amount of Republican
- ument avails to minimize the
@@ssal lOuS significance Of what Walsh
a. omplished in 1924.
Walsh Is Optimistic.
The Democratic senatorial nominee
figures that nothing has happened in
The interval to make him less of a
vote getter. Walsh reckons, on the
contrary, that many things have oc.
urffed to magnify his strength. He
Is certain to receive a large number
ing on heavy support in the industrial
districts, which have suffered depres-
sion during the past two years. He is
calculating that Butler is a far less
attractive candidate than Gillett was.
Walsh, in short, considers that the
situation from every standpoint makes
him more formidable than he was in
1924.
1t is at this point that Mr.. Coolidge s
dramatic intervention assumed deci
sive Importance. If Butler wins, there
is small doubt that the Presidents ac-
ton will be the factor that saved the
q. .. +. national chairman. Demo
rrats do not underestimate the power
of the Coolidge factor. Indeed, they
admit that their supreme task now is
to convince Massachusetts that a vote
Tor Walsh is not a repudiation of
Coolidge
The Boston Post, Independent Demo
cratic. New EnglandS most widely
circulated newspaper and ardently for
Walsh, thus summarizes the situation.
Shall Massachusetts accept Sena.
tor Butler merely because he is the
friend Of the President? Must our
affection for Calvin Coolidge and over
confidence In him be stretched to its
uttermost limit to force us to vote
for a man whose record is repugnant?
Can we not in truth and honor say to
President Coolidge:
Mr.. President, we are your friends.
We rejoice in your success. We are
interested in your welfare as you are
IN ours. We do not want Senator
Butler. He is not the Coolidge type
or the Massachusetts type. We pre-
Ter some one whom-or nearly-rep-
ieSents the people of Massac achusetts.
80 We are preparing to vote for David
|. Walsh. You know him. He is
honest. able and independent. He has
declared that no partisan reasons will
ever induce him to oppose any of your
policies when he is convinced that
YOU are right. Furthermore, the more
ilneS he IS able to support a Massachu.
Setts president in a righteous cause,
the more pleased he will be. You
should not ask anything more. And
now. Mr.. President. if you know of
any reason why Mr.. Walsh is un-
worthy Of the support of those who
nave faith in Massachusetts and be.
l!eNe In Calvin Coolidge, please give
them to us"
Speculate Support.
Speculation is the rife of what
hnally induced Mr.. Coolidge to come
out into the open for Senator Butler.
massachusetts was convinced that
he President would adhere to his
oppressed determination to keen
hands off all State elections this wear.
including the Bay State. The ex.
pIanatlon forthcoming in Butler
quarters is that a dangerous whisper
ing campaign had set in to the effect
.hat Coolidge had little or no inter
st in the Senator's fate Democrats
assert that such an explanation is
4 Smoke-Screen to conceal the real
cause Of the White House interven-
tion-namely, the seriousness of But
ler's plight and the necessity to put
The fun Coolidge influence behind his
mperiled candidacy.
Next week VIII show whether the
President can delegate his enormous
horne-State prestige to a friend. 1t
is stating things conservatively to
say that Republican managers are
filled with anxiety on that score.
In their confidential moments they
conCede that the Coolidge indorse-
ment has become their real hope of
beating Walsh. They will be salts
fed to do SO by a modest margin.
Democratic mana gers are far less re-
strained in their Demonstrations.
They talk about n Walsh majority of
as much as 100000. They declare
are a 10-to-7 proposition.
Personality an Issue.
Personality is cutting almost more
If figure in the senatorial conflict
than issues. Butler is conservative,
capitalist and a man of somewhat