Evening Republican, Volume 23, Number 98, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 April 1920 — A STRAW VOTE. [ARTICLE]

A STRAW VOTE.

Straw votes mean anything or nothing. Taken with other corrobative evidence and covering a wade enough territory they may be of inescapable significance. The Literary Digest's poll is the most inclusive yet attempted. It coven the nation and thus far expresses the preferences of more than 25,000 voters. Wood is now easily the leader, with 5,857 votes against 3,968 for Hoover, his closest rival. Considered as a Republican candidate Wood made an even better showing, receiving the votes of 4,520 Republicans to 1,657' Republican votes for Hoover. A little more than 2,000 votes each were reported for Harding and Johnson, while Lowden was a poor sixth with 838. He was badly beaten by Hughes who ranked fifth. More ean be known when the returns are had from the rest of the 11,000,000 ballots sent out in the poll, but the canvass thus far is suggestive. It confirms other and frequent evidences of a widespread Wood popularity exhibited in ways varying from back-platform debates, local straw votes, letters to newspapers and political writers’ reports on direct primary results. The Wood sentiment is not confined to any state or locality. He has a strong hold in every community and among all classes, except the old guard politicians. These are out to “get” him at any cost and through any candidate convenient for the purpose. Popular sentiment, as some of their leaders have frankly _ indicated, means nothing in their lives. The less the people have to do with the presidential nomination the better for the politicians. What they want is a candidate amenable primarily to a machine and friendly to the vested interests of politics. A candidate elected by the people in opposition to the old guard and, not of it might be embarrassing to the good old order of things. There is increasing evidence that the voters may take things in their own hands and choose their own candidate instead of letting that be done by a few self-appointed guardians of the public welfare in a back room on the third or fourth day of the convention. —Indianapolis News.