The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1928-11-05
Bitterness Over Religious
and Prohibition Issues
Big Factor.

favorS letting down restrictions on
immigration but he denies this and
insists he stands with Hoover in
favor Of restriction.
The battle has been waged furi-
ously with hundreds Of stump
speakers. 1t probably has been the
most expensive in the nations his
tory and the officially reported costs
probably will run to $12,00O,000 be-
sides thousands of dollars spent
which will never be accounted for.
Radio has come into dominating
position in the mechanics of the
campaign with each party spending
thousands of dollars to buy time
on the air.
This has forced candidates to
change tactics. 1t requires a new
speech each time for the whole ma
tion listens in.
incidentally the peculiarities of
radio make Hoover, one of the worst
speakers in politics, perfect speak
er before the miscrophone. Smith,
one of the greatest of popular
| speakers, is less euecLlVe.
With so many novel factors in
the campaign, the tremendous num-
ber of new voters, the religious and
prohibition issues which never have
been tested in a national election,
the uncertainty as to how the voters
in mass have reacted to the impress
sions of the candidates received
direct over the radio make this
election extremely difficult to Judge.
Handicaps for AL
No human being knows what will
happen in states like Massachusetts
and Missouri.
Among many political experts it
is considered the following three
points will react against Smith:
l. The United States is normally
Republican by 100000 votes or more.
2. The nation is dry-or was
theoretically so ten years ago when
every state Connecticut and Rhode
Island ratified the federal prohi-
bition amendment.
3. The nation has a protestant
tradition, never has elected a
Roman Catholic as President and
has a Catholic population only in
the proportion of about one to five.
Furthermore, the record of the
Tweed ring and other Tammany
figures has been stressed in many
sections as an argument against
Smith, who is Tammany man.
On the other hand, Democrats
have countered with the argument
that the "oil scandals" react against
Republican administration.
After an 11,000-mile trip as
political correspondent of the United
Press, which took this correspondent
into every section of the United
States, the situation may be stated
conservatively as follows:
Hoover Certain Of $50 Votes
Hoover is fairly certain of $50
electoral votes with sixteen more
needed to win. Smith is fairly cer-
tain of 159 electoral votes-the solit.
south and New York-with lot mora
needed to win.
The remaining 122 doubtful cleo
toral votes are listed as follows
Arizona, 3; Kentucky, 13; Marylan
8; Massachusetts, 18; Missouri, Is,
Montana 4; Nebraska, 8; Nevada, 3,
New Jersey, IA; New Mexico, 3
Rhode Island, 5; Tennessee, II:
Wisconsin, Is.
States which appear fairly Ger
tain to go for Hoover are: Califor~
mia. 13; Colorado, 6; Connecticut, 7.
Delaware, 3; Idaho, 4; Illinois, 90;
Indiana, is; Iowa, 13; Kansas, 10;
Maine 6; Michigan, 10; Minnesota,
IL; New Hampshire, 4; North Da.
kota,5; Ohio, "a; Oklahoma, 10,
Oregon, 5; Pennsylvania, 38; Soutn
Dakota, 5; Utah, 4; Vermont, q;
Washington, z; West Virginia, s;
Wyoming 3-total $50.
States which appear fairly certaii
to go for Smith are: Alabama, II,
Arkansas, 8; Florida, 6; Georgia, ID,
Louisiana, no; Mississippi, 10; New
York, as; North Carolina, IL; Soutb
Carolina, 8; Texas, 20; Virginia, 12--
total 159.