Evening star., 1932-09-10
C. 0. P. GIVEN EDGE
IN PENNSYLVANIA
Both Parties Feel Apathy.
Roosevelt Unlikely to
Get Smith Vote.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

ALTOONA, Pa, September 10
While it may be early to gauge politi-
cal sentiment, 1t is not too soon to
begin recording some of the trends, and
here, in a rock-ribbed Republican Sec
tion Of the country, there are some
significant manifestations which ulti-
mately will affect the result in No
vember.
Registration is light The Republi-
cans and Democrats who f1ocked to the
registration places four years ago. and
broke all records for first-day enroll
ment, now are apathetic. Many of the
people who idolized AL Smith didn't
take the trouble to register. They may
do so later, but it is apparent that
Gov. Roosevelt is not going to poll the
Smith vote of four years ago. He un-
doubtedly will get a heavier -than-nor-
NAL Democratic vote, but he has a
long distance to go to approximate the
Smith strength.
Unable to Forget.
The question is asked: Could Al
Smith by word or deed bring his fol-
lowing here into line? The answer is
in the negative, because the Smith fol-
lowers have deeply ingrained in their
minds the fact that Smith Is not the
~th4AAAodOCt tlAdI lAlC uldIl JIl6y DSueHSQ
the ablest in the country to act as
President was deprived of his oppor-
tunity at the Chicago convention by
Roosevelt and his managers. How can
they suddenly see in Roosevelt, they
ask, a merit they believe to be only
characteristic of Smith? 1t Is Smith
they want and not some one he extolS
for reasons of party regularity
This detection from the Smith vote
Us not necessarily a diminished Demo-
cratic vote. Many of those Smith votes
that piled up to 100000 were not
Democratic. No previous candidate for
ticket had ever enrolled such a number
before. A large proportion came from
the Republican party. 1t was Smiths
personality and background and SIM
plicity which they liked. Nobody since
the days of Bryan has caught the i'm
agination of the voters as has Alfred E.
Smith.
Under the circumstances 1t is diff
cult to convince the pro-Smith voter
that a vote for Roosevelt is the same
thing as a vote for Smith. Feeling
more or less disgruntled about the way
the Hoover administration has been
handling public affairs, the same Smith
supporters have in many instances de-
NANSN W oNO40 IAIC PO1Lo dlIOSCIIlCI. l.
This means distinct help to Hoover,
who may get close to the normal Re
publican vote of 1924.
Roosevelt Hopes Dim.
The foregoing is based on talks with
disinterested individuals here who keep
posted on local conditions. They con-
cede that the Democratic strength is
considerable, that it may affect the
congressional election. but they ridi-
cule the idea that Roosevelt has any
chance of getting Pennsylvania cleo
toral vote or even making as good a
showing as did Al Smith four years
ago.
From these trends may be drawn
the inference that Republican strong
holds in other parts of Pennsylvania
are reacting in much the same way to
the national election. Apathy is no
ticeable. There is no such enthusiasm
as four years ago on either ticket. The
Republicans who saw in Hoover an eco
ncmic genius who could carry on the
prosperity Of the Coolidge administra-
tion are not bestirring themselves
either. But conversations with regular
Republicans indicate that they are 60
ing to vote their ticket again this year
largely because they do not want
CnduSe IN government In the midst OF
an economic crisis. The more SYM
pathetic to Hoover say that he cannot
be blamed for the depression any more
than Wilson could be blamed for the
outbreak Of the European war, and
that as things begin to look somewhat
better now it would seem best to let
well enough alone. This argument,
however, is to be heard among busi-
ness people rather than among workers.
Workers Shun Hoover.
Railroad shopmen and railroad work
ers are strong for Roosevelt. Four
years ago most of them were behind
Smith, and 1t is evident that the So
called labor vote is lining up behind
Roosevelt, SO that his gains will come
largely from the people who toll with
their hands. The rural districts. how
ever, are strongly Republican, and rela-
lively little disaffection is to be noted
there. What this part Of Pennsylvania
shows Is that the Republican party is
strongly entrenched, and that the Dem
ocratic tide isn't big enough to give
the Republicans any concern.
(Cpyright, 1922