Evening star., 1948-10-17
West Virginia Miner:
Expected TO Swing
Away From Truman
by Gould Lincoln

OF henry wallace or Just mol
vote at all. and so make it diff
cult for the Democratic preSi-
dent to carry the State.
The picture in West Virginia il
vastly different from what it wa
when Franklin D. Roosevelt wa
heading the ticket.
Mr.. Roosevelt was the miners
idol, white and Negro. Not ever
John L. Lewis was able to wear
them away when he came out fol
Wendell Willkie in 1914, and wher
he persisted in his opposition tt
President Roosevelt in 1914.
Resolution Specific.
Mr.. Truman is no Roosevelt t
the West Virginia miners. When MI
Lewis at the recent mine workers
convention verbally tore the shir
on the Presidents back and labelled
him an enemy, the miners knew
what Mr.. Lewis was talking about
The resolution critical of Mr.. Tru
man, subsequently adopted by tn
convention, was specific enough
Such an incident could not hav,
happened in Mr.. Roosevelt's day.
: The miners vote in West Virgini,
constitutes the greatest single bloc
1t is estimated there are more thar
100000 miners in the State, ant
their wives and relatives of votin,
age swell the total potential vote O
the bloc to ~ OF B times that mum
Der. When 4 IS recalled that al
most all of these votes went for MI
Roosevelt, Mr. Truman's predica
ment is understandable.
-Four years ago Gov. Dewey los
West Virginia by 10000 votes. Thi
represented a reduction of MI
Roosevelt's lead over Mr.. Wilkie IL
. 1910 by more than $4,000 votes
This year the state probably will g,
= for the Dewey-Warren ticket b,
25,000 up. The Republican leae
might run as high as $4,000.
Wallace on Ballot.
Henry Wallace is on the ballo
here by dint of hard work by hi
supporters. State laws make it diff
ficult for new party, but the nee
essary 10000 sigatures were OBJ
tanned. While public opinion poll
allow Mr.. Wallace a low percentag,
Of the total vote-not more thar
$4,000 out of an expected total O
100000 votes-the Wallace man
ayers clai mthey will go as high a
10000. The Wallacesvotes will com,
almost entirely from former Roose
velt strength-radical labor and Ne
groes. He is expected to get a ma
terial vote among the colored min
ers, Of whom there are a great man,
in the Southern coal fields of tn,
State. &,
Democratic leaders : pin thei
hopes on the fact the registration
earlier in the year showed tn,
Democratic total about 10000,
greater than the Republican. Thous.
ands have been "purgedss from tn,
rolls, however, in the interim, fol
one cause or another, narroWin,
the gap between the registration O
the two parties. Also, THE Democrat
have for years had similar advan
tage in registration over the Re
publicans.
Until President Truman mad
his recent trip through the State
West Virginia Democratic candi
dates for governor and senator an,
for other offices abstained from
mentioning Mr.. Truman in thei
campaigning. Indeed, one of thes,
gentlemen was heard to say: "Tru.
man is too great cross to carry.
And now that Mr.. Truman ha.
come and gone, very little more il
being said about him. However
Democrats are looking forward tx
having Senator Barkley of Kentucky
their vice presidential candidate, IL
the State for some speeches. Sen
Barkley is popular here.
Labor Law Is Issue.
The Taft-Hartley Labor Act ha!
been made the chief issue by thu
Democrats in the industrial center.
and in the coal mines. Mr.. Tru.
mans veto of that measure is, in.
deed, the only thing that seeming.
ly is saving him from the most dis.
astrous defeat handed to a Demo.
cratic presidential candidate in thi!
state for a long. long time.
The new labor law, however
works politically both ways in Wes
Virginia, as it does elsewhere.
While the Democrats have com.
paratively little hope for Mr.. Tru
man here, they are boasting the,
will elect their candidates for sen,
ator and governor and will take tw,
or three House seats now held b,
the Republicans.
The Senate race is of particula
moment. The Republicans need f,
victory for their candidate, Senate
Revercomb, to help them hold tl1ei
slender majority in the upper hous
today. His Democratic opponent i
Matthew M. Neely, former Repre-
sentative, Senator and Governor
MIR. Nicely is professionally a frient
OF labor, and voted 100 per cent will
organized labor in Congress. Sen
ator Revercomb supported the Taft
Hartley bill on its way through tn
Senate.
Nicely Is Veteran.
Mr.. Nicely held public Office O
one kind or another for nearly 8
years. He met reverses, however. il
1912, when he tried to return to tn
Senate after having been Governor
Senator Revercomb beat him b
$4,000 votes-a great many of then
Democratic votes. Two years az
MIR. Nicely tried again, this time 70
the House, but was beaten handil
by Republican Representative Love
q newcomer.
The Senate race is close. Th
preponderance of opinion is tina
MIR. Nicely has the better chance
However, his old Democratic enemie
are still on deck, and if Gov. Dewe