Evening star., 1936-06-08

~LENEIAND, June 3 MAN,
A0.-As a betting PROPOSE
ton, the Republican Presi-
- Dental convention is Begin
ming to suffer from froStbite. Three
days ago, your correspondent hooked
a finger into the buttonhole Of Mr.,
John Tecumseh Doyle, the best known
| betting man on Broadway, and asked
him to quote a line of odds on the
convention. Doyle complied, as fol-
lows:
Gov. Landon-even money. Senator
Borah-4 to l. Senator Vandenberg-
to l. The field to S.
The field, in Doyle's book, included
such candidates and potential can
didates as Knox, Hoover. Mills.
Steiwer, Lowden, Taft, and Glenn
Frank.
And also" said Doyle, never re-
luctant to consider a sporting propsi-
ton, If you want to take one of
these long shot guys,-like, for in
stance, Steiwer-I will give you 1000
to l and move the price on the rest
of the field up to to 5.
Three days have elapsed since Doyle
delivered this historic grafton TO your
correspondent. Since then, Gov.
Landon has waxed hotter than a
prairie fire. Borah has slumped off
and so has Vandenberg, and so has
the field. On the eve of departing for
this beautiful city of unfortunate base
ball teams, your correspondent asked
Doyle for a fresh line of prices.
We'll, I hope Cooper wins" said
the scholarly shot-caller, with a
solemn shake of his head.
Cooper"
yes, Cooper" said Doyle. "If
Picard or Sarazen or Revolta comes
home ahead, will be paying of from
now till Christmas"
Odds Change.
Sherlock Holmes could have told at
a glance that Doyle's mind was not
on the Republican Convention, but
on the national open golf tournament.
1t required several minutes to get
him on the right track again.
oh, the convention" said Doyle.
Il was thinking about that eighteenth
hole, which IS tough par If ever 1
| saw one. Well, as far as the conven-
tion goes, Landon is coming along like
the limited moving through fresh
water. He is an odds-on choice, now,
at to 8, and Borah is practically out,
and Vandenberg goes up to is to l,
and the field is no better than 2 to l.
And I will still lay 1000 to l against
your Tavorite dark horse. He is dark
enough"
to / on "Susannah."
Those. roughly, are the odds which
prevail right now on the scene of
battle. The Landon bahdwagon is
rolling along, to the tune of "Oh.
Susannah''-and incidentally, I will
offer 4 to l that there is not a single
delegate in town who can sing the
right words of "Oh, Susannah," any
version, without the script. The
usual rendition (as transcribed in
shorthand from the lips of Kansas
delegate) is this:
"Oh, Susannah.
Don't you cry for me.
Oh, SuSannah,
Don't you cry for me.
I'm goin' back to tra-la-la
With my banjo on my knee"
To return TO the subject of conven-
ton and election bets, Landon is miles
ahead. The election itself-With
President Roosevelt a 2-to-l favorite
IN the Doyle book-does not figure to
produce many breath-taking trans
actions. Certainly, it won't rival the
presidential election of 1916, when
Doyle had adjusted his wagers in such
a way that he stood to win about
$4,000 on Wilson.
1T was a hot betting year, 1916"
reports the sage. People were bet
ting on everything, and most of all
the election. Well, on the evening of
the big day, got tip from my coast
agent that California was going for
Hughes. That seemed to be the pay
of. and went out and coppered bets
right and left.
by the time the word came
through that my agent was dsffy and
Wilson had carried the State, I
didn't stand to win a nickel That
taught me lesson. From then on
when had a good thing, I stood by
it. Hedging is bad medicine"
(Copyright. 1886. by the North American
Newspaper Alliance. Inc.)