Evening star., 1936-09-27

the Democratic small towns are less
Democratic than in the past.
Business in Ohio Is improving
right along. This should be factor
on the Roosevelt side of the ledger.
1t is influencing some Of the business
men who in the recent past have been
inclined to damn the New Deal.
With business improvement has come
greater private employment. Never
theless, the number Of persons living
on w. p. A. wages and direct relief
of one kind or another is tremendous.
And that, by the way, is one Of the
things that is hurting the New Deal
with thousands of the Ohio voters. as
we'll as helping the New Deal with
relief votes. AS of September 10,
there were 147,500 w. p. A. workers.
1t is estimated this means $4,000
men, women and children benefiting
from the w. P. A. wages. On direct
relief there were 67,274 "cases," or
about 100000 leases" for the State.
This would bring the total number
of persons in the State receiving re-
lief either through the w. P. A. or
otherwise up to about 100000. This
is about the same number as last
May.
Many Negroes on Relief.
A large number of colored people
in this State have been on relief.
Therefore. In counting the relief vote
and the colored vote for Roosevelt, it
becomes necessary to combine them
to some degree. and not to count
them twice. The w. P. A. has put
greater number of women to sew
ing. making over clothes, making
bedding and so forth. About 4,600
colored women, for example. have
been given such work in Cleveland.
The products of their labor are used
for persons on relief, it is said.
In 1882 the total Democratic and
Republican vote cast in Ohio in the
presidential race was 2,529,374.
Roosevelt's plurality over Hoover in
that election was 74,0l6, narrow
margin considering the size of the
vote. In September of 1882, the polls
taken by the newspapers indicated
that Roosevelt would carry the State
by several hundred thousand votes.
In the final drive, however, the Re-
publicans made great strides, with
the result that Ohio became a COM
paratively close State. 1t Is to the
last few weeks of the campaign that
the Republicans are looking now to an
increase in strength that will win for
them by from 5000 to 100000 votes
plurality.
Democratic leaders here express
their confidence that Roosevelt will
carry Ohio by from 100000 to 100000.
They admit, however, that the State
is by no means "in the bag" and that
they have a hard fight ahead of them.
The Republicans are more harmoni-
ously and better organized in the
State than they have been for a long
time. fractional lines have been wiped
out, at least for this campaign. Wal
ter Brown, former Republican Ma
tional committeeman and former
postmaster general in the Hoover cab
met, is out of the picture and has
been since he was beaten for re-elec-
tion as national committeeman at the
Cleveland national convention last
June. The Republican leaders who
supported Senator Borah for the pres
idential nomination are now in line
for Landon, among them Dan E. Nor
gan of Cleveland and John s. Knight
Of Akron, both of whom are on the
Republican Campaign Committee.
Those Republicans who wanted Col.
Frank Knox for the presidential can
didate are satisfied, now that he Is
the vice presidential candidate. Fur
thermore, the Republicans have plenty
Of money for the campaign. The
women are strongly organized, under
the leadership of Mrs. Katharine Ken
nedy Brown, the national committee
woman.
Democrats InharmOni0us.
On the Democratic side all has not
been so harmonious. Gov. Martin L.
Davey, Democrat, is by no means an
asset to the Roosevelt cause in this
State. He Is due for a drubbing in
the election for Governor. He has
frequently been at outs with the ad-
ministration in Washington and the
Administration would have been glad
to see him defeated for denomination
He won, however, and now there are
Democratic "State headquarters" in
Columbus and Democratic national
headquarters" the latter headed by
Democratic National Committeeman
Charles Sawyer. Sawyer has an
nounced for Davey and Davey is say
ing kind things about Roosevelt, and
an effort has been made to patch
things up. There Is no great love