Evening star., 1938-05-13
BITTER FIGHT ON
TO BEAT P|NCHOT.
Ex-Governor's Leaders See
Victory Against Old
Guard in Primary.
By G. GOULD LINCOLN.

PHILADELPHIA, May l3-The
desperate struggle for political control
in Pennsylvania now underway is not
confined to such stalwart New Dealers
as Senator Joe" Guffey. Gov. George
Earle and his Philadelphia contractor
friend, Matthew H. McCloskey jr, and
David Stern, Philadelphia publisher
John L. Lewis is making a bid for
place in the political sun for his
Committee Of Industrial Or9a nixatio
backing Thomas Kennedy. Lieutenant
Governor and secretary-treasurer OF
the United Mine Workers of America,
for the Democratic gubernatorial
nomination.
Old Guard Republicans. among
them Joe" Grundy. former Senator;
Joe" Pew. the party angel. and jay
Cooke. Philadelphia city Republican
chairman, are making a desperate
fight to nominate their. candidates
for Governor and Senator-Judse
Arthur H. James of the Superior
Court and State Senator G. Mason
Owlett, respectively.
In order to accomplish their aim
and retain control of the G. o. p. in
this State, these Old Guard leaders
must beat former Gov. Clifford Pin
chot. who Is campaigning for the
gubernatorial nomination. and Sen
ator James J. Davis, who is seeking to
succeed himself in the upper house.
Bitter Fight On.
The Republican row is not as pic
tureSque as the Democratic: no
charges of graft and corruption are
flying between the G. o. P. candidates
Nevertheless the fight is intense, it is
bitter. Both sides claim victory.
Unlike his earlier campaigns, Mr..
Pinchot has the backing of nearly one
half of the Republican county
organizations. The best he could
count in the past was two county
organizations-for the Republican
organization has always opposed the
veteran progressive, who was q fol-
lower Of Theodore Roosevelt. Today
he has the support Of practically the
whole party organization in Allegheny
County, which includes Pittsburgh.
and in Washington County. Erie,
Northumberland and many others,
according to his managers. Philadel-
phia has always been = tough nut for
Mr.. Pinchot to crack. Today he has
five large wards out of the 5l-and he
never had but one before.
Judge James is called the Repub-
lican organization candidate, how
ever, and the organiza ton is count
ing on running up big vote for him.
The organization men say he will
have lead of better than 10000 in
Philadelphia County over Mr.. Pinchot.
The Pinchot people. on the other
hand, say that Judge James lead in
the city Of Brotherly Love will not
exceed $4,000.
The reason Mr. Pinchot has the sup
port of Republican organization leaders
in Philadelphia and other counties
who were his opponents in the past-is
because these leaders are tired of being
out" and In the minority-not because
they love Mr.. Pinchot any more. They
believe that they can win with Mr.
Pinchot in the November election
against the Democratic nominee no
matter who he may be. b. There are
$4,000 division committeeman in Phil
adelphia and about 400 of them have
no political jobs and their tongues
are, fguratively speaking, hanging out.
II the @. o. p. comes back into power
they figure they can get jobs. The old
guard leadership has been dishing
them up set of candidates in the
last three elections who failed to win.
The Pinchot people say 1t is obvious
what many Of these division commit
teemen will do on election day next
Tuesday.
Philadelphia has q sales tax which
affects $4,000 merchants, not to mem
ton all the people who buy. Mr.. Pin
chot has promised to get rid Of this tax.
Fourteen members of the City Coun-
(See PINCHOT Pace A.EI