Evening star., 1936-07-13
POLITICAL ACTIVITY
SPURNED BY NYE
Refuses to Commit Himself
to Any Candidate-Aids
Drought Work.
BY G. GOULD LINCOLN.

Senator Gerald p Nye of North
Dakota, one of the group of pro-
gressive Republicans in the Senate.
is going to give his whole time and
attention this Summer to aiding the
drought sufferers and forget about
the presidential election"
The North Dakota Senator, who
came to Washington today from the
West to urge that the administra-
ton act with all possible speed in
bringing relief to the people Of his
State, is not committing himself to
Landon, to Roosevelt or to Lemke
in the presidential race.
II shall devote my whole time
and attention to seeing that the farm
ers In South Dakota who have suf-
fered from this terrible drought get
some relief 7 am planning to leave
here Friday and to move right into
the area which has been most severely
hit. I will open headquarters and
take most of my office force with me"
Describes Heat Devastation.
Nye said he had just come here
from California. but that he had been
in South Dakota prior to that and the
conditions due to the drought were in
describable; that the crops had been
wiped out, except in small areas. That
included the wheat, and other grains,
potatoes and grasses.
"I expect that fully 80 per cent Of
the population Of the State will have
to go on relief-and the percentage
among the farming population will be
much higher than that" said Nye.
If the relief for South Dakota
comes swiftly and without a lot Of
red tape. in Nye's opinion it will aid
Roosevelt politically. If, on the other
hand, there are vexatious delays, with
a lot Of inspectors Of one kind or
another going over appeals for aid,
then the situation will be something
else.
Frazier in Alaska.
NJC SOA4cdSuC, 0CudCOI II dZltT, also
q Republican Progressive, has gone to
Alaska, after first declaring himself
satisfied with the Landon nomination
by the Republicans and then SWITCH
ing to the support Of Representative
Lemke, North Dakotan, who is heading
the Father Coughlin Union Party"
ticket.
Lemke, it is expected, will draw
some votes in North Dakota, although
his home State may not take him too
seriously. The votes he gets will come
from the Roosevelt ticket, rather than
from the Landon supporters.
Nye said today Senator La Toilette
Of Wisconsin had consulted with him
before Congress closed about the pro-
posed conference Of Progressives, to
be held within the next few weeks.
1t was his opinion that the conference
would consider particularly what
might be done about putting q new
Progressive party ticket into the field
in 1910. However, Senator Nye, like
others, has little doubt that Senator
La Toilette will be found supporting
President Roosevelt in the present
presidential campaign.
La Toilette is expected to announce
details Of the proposed conference of
Progressives sometime this week. He
Is still in New England on a vacation.
Whether the conference is to be held
here or in the Middle West, Nye said,
had not been determined when he last
talked with Senator La Toilette. He
that he would attend the
conference, If it were possible.
La Toilette consulted with other
Of the Republican-Progr
sive group in the Senate, and also with
some Democrats, regarding the con-
ference.
Nye said he was awaiting with con-
siderable interest the speech which
Gov. Landon will make on July %, for
mally accepting the Republican presi-
Dental nomination. Landon would
have an opportunity then, he said, to
make his position clear on number
Of important questions.