Overwhelming Landon victory shown in Digest poll (Washington Times, Oct. 30, 1936, p. 3)

OVERWHELMING LANDON VICTORY SHOWN IN DIGEST POLL 370 ELECTORS FOR HIM, 161 TO ROOSEVELT Kansan Given 1,293,- 669, Against 972,897 Straw Votes By EARL GODWIN Governor Landon elected with 370 electoral votes to Roosevelt's 161. This will be the trend of elec tion headlines if the Nation's voters line up as indicated by the final report of the Literary Digest Poll to be published tomorrow. In the final count Landon re ceives 1,293,669 straw votes to Roosevelt's 972,897 and Lemke's 83.610. The Digest Poll shows Roosevelt slipping slightly since the publi cation of its count two weeks ago when it gave Roosevelt 161 votes. Gets "Solid South" The States carried by Roosevelt in the Digest Poll are Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Ken tucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mis sissippi, New Mexico, North Caro lina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Vir ginia. This nothing more than the "Solid South'' plus Utah and Oklahoma and the border States of Kentucky and Maryland thrown in. The Digest kills all Roosevelt hopes for the big pivotal States and kills these hopes with tremen dous percentages against the New Deal, such as Illinois, where the poll is a 5-to-4 count for Landon; Indiana, nearly 2 to 1 for Landon; Massachusetts, better than 3 to 1; Michigan, 2 to 1. New York State is given to Landon in a count show ing 162,260 straws for Landon and 139,277 for Roosevelt. Pennsyl vania, which the Roosevelt forces are claiming even now, is given to Landon by a 5-to-4 vote. In the face of a wide variety of other results from other polls, friends of the Digest poll point out that in 1924 it was 99.44 per cent correct. Forecast Smith Loss In 1928 it was approximately 96 per cent correct. It certainly fore cast the Solid South's split against Alfred E. Smith, and it forecast the failure of Smith to carry his own State of New York. In 1932 the Digest forecast 474 electoral votes for Roosevelt to Hoover's 57. This was close to the actual vote, which turned out to be Roosevelt 472, Hoover 59.' In fore casting the popular vote on the repeal of prohibition the Digest poll was off by only 6-100 of 1 per cent. This year other poll takers and many partisans declare the Digest, poll is wrong; that the result should be almost entirely re versed with President Roosevelt leading Landon with even a greater lead of States than Lan don is credited with by the Di gest. The Digest statement an nouncing the final result, says: "Never before have we re ceived so many different varie ties of criticism." The Digest goes on to repeat what it said in a previous year-- that it makes no claim to infal libility and did not invent the phrase "uncanny accuracy" so frequently applied to the Digest polls. Changes Possible The Digest speaks of lastmin ute switches in previous cam paigns, and there is certainly every possibility of some serious last-minute switches in this cam paign. The Democrats are meet ing serious trouble with the "pay envelope" propaganda which the President attacked at Wilkes- Barre. Pa., yesterday. At the same time the Digest statement makes an intersting confession: "We say now about Rhode Island and Massachusetts that our figures indicate in our own judgment too large a percent age for Mr. Landon." However, the poll directors do not believe Massachusetts or Rhode Island will be found in the Roosevelt column. They seem to think that not enough Demo cratic straws have come back to them from the large number mailed out. While the Roosevelt backers claim Pennsylvania by a series of calculations involving every county, the Digest poll declares it is not only safe for Landon but that there has been a reversal of senti ment against Roosevelt to a re markable extent in many Key stone State cities. Landon Given Coast The Pacific Coast is given to Roosevelt by the political writers, but not the Digest poll. The poll says: "A State like California is al ways a difficult State to get an accurate opinion from by the polling method, and we may be far astray." However, the Digest poll pre dicted that Upton Sinclair could not be elected governor in the face of political experts to the contrary. The Digest close, its statement with these words: "The poll represents the most extensive straw ballot in the field--the most experienced in view of its 25 years of perfecting --the most unbiased in view of its prestige--a poll that has al ways previously been correct." T<7*pAm< District 7000 REMARRIED FATHER FIGHTS FOR BOY No. 1 Wants Child Too JRHk w i mi JSn si Miffs ijpJL J -t-nimmM fUko. y Maa. CAPT. J. D. MEYER, of Fort Sill, Okla., and his sec ond wife, Mrs. Eulah Meyer (at top), outside Middlesex Probate Court, where he is fighting Mrs. Dorothy A. Meyer (bottom), his first wife, for the custody of Henry, 6. International News Photos. Mollison Flies Ocean In 13 Hours (Continued from Page 1) not counting waiting time at Harbor Grace, was 19 hours 43 minutes. "Good Old Jim" Mollison leaned heavily on the wing of his American-built speed plane Dorothy, as he weakly an swered the questions of customs officials. While the crowd shout ed "Good Old Jim," he staggered around to the front of the plane and posed for photographers. He said: "I'm too tired to say much now. It was very cold. Soon after we left Harbor Grace w® ran into a snowstorm. About 700 miles out the ice formations began to get dangerous, so I circled around many times to get rid of it. That was a tough period. "Most of the time I flew at an altitude of around 10,000 feet. "The machine behaved splen didly. I didn't sight Ireland. The first land I saw was Wales, and then I was able to get my bearings." Mollison added that he made the trip from Newfoundland to his first landfall on this side in just 10 hours. Laughing off the 13:33 in his time, Mollison posed with a rab bitt's foot which, he said, a girl in Harbor Grace gave him. At this, a girl leaned over and said: "And I give you this." It was a kiss. For Cape Town Buyer Mollison is delivering the plane to a buyer in the South African city. Mrs. Mollison was at her Lon don home and she "doesn't ex pect" him to call on her. She re- Air Travel Booms; No Winter Layoff NEW YORK, Oct. 30 (1.N.5.). Finding that the winter season has not caused the usual decrease in passenger traffic, coast-to-coast air lines are taking on more em ployes now instead of laying them off, it was learned today. Trans continental and Western Air re ports its passenger traffic has in creased 25 per cent this year as compared with 1935. w B|p ■j||Nyj|yg&a 4cently announced they were "go I ing their separate ways." She said: "I'm glad that Jim made an other successful and safe cross ing. His time was extremely good." This was his first west-to-east flight across the Atlantic. He flew solo from Ireland to New Bruns wick in 1932, and from Senegal across the South Atlantic to Bra l zil in 1932. The same year he and his wife flew from Wales to Connecticut. mm jgjipr P^s3-95 THE WASHINGTON TIMES, FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 1936 48th ANNIVERSARY EVENT Kerling silver This I I Imported, Handmade I Service ior Six OFFER ENDS HANDBAGS 2-Slice, Electric SATURDAY!^ "MOVIEMATIC" BLUE GLASS V\ New. Indirect Dinner Service $g.95 LAMPS Ljji 50. a ON Designs jjso. a iv««* zE I H 11 "CERTIFIED" r I I -universal- I PERFECT r --=r 1 P 36-Piece Quality electric DIAMONDS ei IJr We offer you the opportunity .omplete SeMce foe 8! 5T.95 Ito select a beautiful Certified i I I (fWT *1 "Perfect" Diamond and in some 14-Kt. friendship 'REE GIFT CHEST cases pay less than the replace- _ _r\ m»i/^ MO? M ment wholesale cost. NO DIAMOND RING II list ll W" iiJW MONEY DOWN...and not a a K(I TfS- ue penny added for interest or 111 l \fe V a carrying charges... 1* months Birthstone J s on Certified "Perfect" Dia- With TWO JUTE Ttlephone MElro 0060 Chas. SmfaloZ' Son Chas. SSfiwfiHz Son 1 DIES, 20 HURT IN PRINCETON TRAIN WRECK Tracks Cleared to Let Landon Sunflower Special Pass PRINCETON, N. J., Oct. 30 (I.N.S.) --Crews of laborers worked until dawn today to clear the Penn sylvania Railroad tracks of the wreck of the crack flyer Cleve lander, which jumped the rails and left one man dead and at least 20 injured. It was feared for a time that Gov. Alfred M. Landon's "Sun flower Special," en route from New York to Charleston, W. Va., would have to be sent over an other route because of the wreex age on the main line, but one track was cleared so that the special passed the wreck at 2:12 a. m. The dead man, who was decapi tated, was believed to be Edward Snyder of Detroit. His clothing bore that name and he had a receipt in his pocket from the Central Radio Store of Detroit. The train was about a quarter of a mile out of Princeton Junc tion, when the last six cars left the tracks. Railroad officials today were in vestigating the possibility that the train may have lost a wheel, thus causing the swinging of one car to carry others from the rails. Hurtling cars smashed down several iron poles, supporting power lines, and rescuers had to work in the darkness. All four tracks at Princeton Junction were blocked by the wreckage for several hours. --VOTE AMERICAN-- Blenheim, Pioneer In Wireless, Is Dead EAST ORANGE, N. J., Oct. 30 (1.N.5.) .--William J. Blenheim, 58, American traffic manager of the Western Union Telegraph Company's cable system, died at his home yesterday after a short illness. Born in England, Blen heim worked in the laboratories of Sir Oliver Lodge. When wire less telegraphy became practical he established, under British Gov ernment contract, the first com mercially operated wireless tele graph circuits in the world. --VOTE AMERICAN-- Treasury Condition International News Service Treasury balance October 28: $1 808 103.226.66; internal rev enue, $3,711,360.12; customs re ceipts, $36,346,469.14. 'MERCY DEATH' ENDS GYPSY QUEEN Champion Horse Gone at 21 T!~ i j imL i ft i v "'S'. 9m w M F Wm i vmjwkt- j GYPSY QUEEN, champion long-distance horse, and Frank M. Heath, of Silver Spring, Md., at the start of their 11,356-mile trek through the 48 States 11 years ago. The famous mount was put to death mercifully at the University of Maryland. She was 21 years old. PRIZE HORSE MARTYR A martyr to the cause of sci-4 ence, Gypsy Queen, for whom the title of world's champion long distance horse was elaimed, yes terday was put to a "mercy death" at the University of Mary land so that scientists might study parasitic ailments which afflict horses. Eleven years ago Gypsy Queen and her master, Frank M. Heath, of Silver Spring, Md., set out from the Zero Milestone in the Ellipse to claim the long-distance championship. They traveled S Tomorrow! One Day Only! (Mai.^dlluahtyS §m S GREAT EVENT TO A CLOSE :rriNG day of surprise specials Tctephona Dhtrict 7000 11,356 miles through every State in the Union and Gypsy Queen cinched for herself a niche in the hall of fame of the horse world. The horse was 21 years old last April 1. Due to her trium phant tours, Gypsy Queen was bothered with a knee ailment and in recent months a skin dis ease broke out to torture her. Heath, broken-hearted over being forced to part with the once stately mare, deemed it best that she be put out of her misery. Gas Assn. Names Sperry to Board Os Directors Marcy L. Sperry, president of the Washington Gas Light Com pany, has been elected a member of the board of directors of the American Gas Association in con vention at Atlantic City, it was learned here yesterday. The convention, which adjourns tonight, attracted a large delega tion from Washington, including Edgar Morris, president of the Board of Trade. 3