The Washington times., 1938-10-03
PUDDLER JIM
TO BEAT EARLE,
SAYS PROPHET
But Pa. Governorship
Is-Something Else
BY THEODORE HUNTLEY

Here's a prophecy on PennSyl
vania, good until further notice:
Puddler Jim Davis will win tor
the Senate in November, beating
out New Deal Governor George H
Earle.
But don't go overheard on the
governorship. The chances are
that the Republican Welshman
Judge Arthur H. James Of Wilkes
Barre, will clean up the Demo
cratic Welshman, Lawyer Charles
Alvin Jones of Pittsburgh. But
don't bet too much money on it.
This forecast, according to the
best sources of information in
Pennsylvania-Dem as well
as Republicans about SO 2-5 per
cent sound now. 1t can change
between now and the first Tues
day in November. But if it does,
It is likely to point more surely to
. COP triumph.
CHANCE FOR SIZE.UP
One reason Pennsylvania po-
Ntical outlook can be sized up
more readily than that in some
other States Is that the Pennsyl.
vania primaries are held in May.
That was four months ago. The
politicians have held their sum
mer picnics-and fought for roast
OK, you remember, as if they'd
never smelled a barbecue before
and played the county fairs. A
few big meetings have been
staged to give the boys something
to talk about. And the scouts
have hung around to get the cur
rent curbstone opinion and the
feeling Of the farmers. And this
is what they learn:
= Pennsylvania is swinging back
slowly to its traditional Republi-
can moorings. The country dis
tricts are getting tired of the New
Deal brand of evangelism. They're
ae'in taxes. They're ag'in labor.
And they're ag'in Pittsburgh and
Philadelphia.
OLD MACHINES SMASHED
In Pittsburgh and Philadelphia
the old COP machines of the
days Of Magee, Coyne, Penrose,
Ware, ct al, have been smashed
to smithereens. Upper-crust pub
lie opinion revolted. Labor left
the reservation. Then the Dem
eocrats won. First they cleaned up
the Republican registration lists.
1eraSing the names taker 'om
graves in Trinity church I'D
the larger cemeteries. I ay
put them on the Democr, -eg-
1Stration lists.
= Victory in Harrisburg followed,
and between city State and Fed
eral patronage and the WPA, the
Pennsylvania Democracy of the
Joe Guffey era has been living
the life Of Riley. Or, if you pre-
fer q different Simile, wallowing
in clover. Either way it made
Joe Guffey the boss until he de,
eided to support John L. Lewis
Tom Kennedy for governor in
the primaries, going down to de.
feat with a rouSing cheer for the
:CIO, as his alter ego Democratic
State Chairman Dave Lawrence
proceeded with the aid of Gov
'ernor Earle to nominate-of all
people, man by the name of
Jones.
Since then Joe and Dave have
appeared on the same platform
pledged undying friendship anew
and publicly cemented an effec
tive political alliance.
DEMOCRATS ALL SET
That puts the Democratic ma
chine back together, all nicely
CREASED with bigger and better
SWPA cash, but suffering a bit
from q scarcity of PWA oil, as
Honest Harold Ickes asks Gov
Teruor Earle and his mechanicianS
guarantees they are reluctant tc
give.
Meanwhile. there is a big shift
in registration going on, all of ii
lin the same direction. In the good
sold days when the Democrats in
Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Scran
ton and other vacation resorts
were simply tail to the Republl
scan kite, most of the Democrats
registered as Republicans to have
- voice in public affairs or gel
within reach of the gravy. Wher
the New Deal showed up with 4
bigger gravy bowl, the trend wa,
reversed. Now. for reasons which
seem to lie partly in the field o.
taxes and labor controversies anC
partly in the field of transcend
entaliSm. the Republicans are com
ing back to their own family fold
shouting Hallelujah as they come