Evening star., 1940-10-15
Roosevelt Has Fight
On Hands 10 Garry
WaNace's Home State
President May Lack
Sufficient Farm Vote
To Win in Iowa
By G. GOULD LINCOLN,
Star Staff Correspondent.

DES MONIES, Iowa, Oct. 15.-A
canvass of II farms from Is to 20
miles outside of Des Moines, on the
presidential race, gave the follow
ing result: For President Roosevelt,
9: for Wendell L. Willkie. 8.
This is not a large sample" of
political sentiment. 1t is correct in
It's findings, however, for I made it
myself yesterday and the answers
came from dirt farmers" The
farmers and the farmers wives did
not hesitate to say for whom they
intended to vote, nor did they lndl-
cate they had not made up their
minds. This leaves me in consider
able doubt when I read Of polls in
which a large percentage OF 'unde-
cided" votes are recorded.
Several interesting straWs turned
up in this canvass. In the first
place, three of those questioned had
voted for Mr. Roosevelt in 1882 and
1886 who now say they intend to
vote for Mr.. Willkie. None of those
who said they intend to vote for
President Roosevelt this year voted
- u.
Roosevelt in 1886
Answers Revealing.
The answers made by the farmers
and their wives were revealing be-
cause of the reasons. The Roosevelt
supporters invariably commented on
the assistance which the New Deal
administration has rendered them
loans and benefit payments of vari-
Gus kinds.
IF I had hired hand who had
been faithful and done we'll by me
for eight years, would I turn him
OFF," asked one pro-Roosevelt farm
er. ct would not. Nor will I vote
against the President because he Is
running for a third term. Rather
will I vote for him because for what
he has done for me and for other
farmers
II believe we need change. and
I am going to vote for Mr.. Willkie,"
commented one of the farmers, who
said that twice in the past he has
voted for Mr.. Roosevelt Il don't
like the public debt the admins
tration has rolled up and I don't
think the President has any idea Of
the value of a dollar.
mo. I'm not voting against the
President because of a third term.
That isn't the point"
Appreciation for Relief.
Il can't forget he fed us when we
were hungry" said a farmers wife.
This family evidently had been on
relief in the hard days of 1888. An
other commented that she and her
husband had just started buying a
farm when the depression got un-
der way and that had it not been
for the farm program of the New
Deal administration they would
have lost it. Yes. we're going to
vote for Mr.. Roosevelt" she said
emphaticallv, "and you can tell him
so. We're Republicans. too
Another farmers wife said she was
afraid the President would get this
country into war. I've got an lS-
year-old son and I don't like that
idea, not bit. She admitted. how
ever. she had voted for Mr.. Landon
in 1896. =
A young farmer, handling a good
sized acreage, said the farm pro-
gram was not helping him much.
and that he believed it would be
better for the country to have a new
administration in charge of the
Government. The farmers uues-
toned were farming from small. 10
acre lots to 1900 acres. Some of
the farm houses were well kept and
some indicated clearly by their ap-
pearance the struggle which their
owners or tenants had to get along.
One young man announced fatly.
1 m against Mr.. Willkie because
he's a German" He was the single
farmer questioned who brought that
up, but it is clear that the whisper
Ing campaign, which has been more
and more outspoken as the days GO
by, has reached into the cornfelds
of Iowa. Just what effect it viii,
have is problematical There is. of
course, another side to the picture
IN this State. which has some 800, 1000
population of German blood.
Farm Vote Percentages.
THESE Germans are not pro- Hitler. /
but they do not like the idea that
a candidate for President must be
opposed because he has German
blood in his veins. This sample
of the farm vote in Iowa gives Mr.. !
Roosevelt 52.o per cent of the vote, I
Mr.. Willkie 472 per cent. When /
the President carried Iowa in 1886 /
he had 614 per cent of the States /
farm vote and in 1882 he had 7O2 /
per cent. In 1923 former President
Hoover received 56.7 per cent of the |
farm vote.
The following is quoted from
Wallace's Farmer and Iowa Home
stead of September q, of which |
Henry A. Wallace, the Democratic
vice presidential candidate, was edl-
tor and took a leave of absence" |
when he went to Washington TO .
become Secretary OF Agriculture in |
1888. The paper is strongly support
Ing the RooSevelt-Wa ticket.
Iowa farm people usually cast
about 40 per cent of the votes in
any election. In the past whenever
the farmers have given Democratic
candidates Sc per cent or better of
the farm vote the Democratic can
dldateS have won. Whenever farm
ers-as in the governorship contest
OF 1938-have given the Democrats
less than Sc per cent of the farm
vote the Democrats have lost"
Wallaces Farmer and Iowa Home
stead is conducting a poll of its
own on the presidential race. The
issue of October S, commenting on
the September poll, said that "Roose-
Velts share of the Iowa farm vote
rose from "a per cent in August to |
S9 per cent in September. The |
Willkie share rose from "a per cent
to 81 per cent. (Twenty-four per
cent of the farmers were reported |
undecided This gives MIR. Roose-
velt little better than 81 per cent