Smyrna times., 1886-09-01
A Great Gathering of Repre8en-
tatiVe PrOhibitiOniSts at
Harrisburg.

ndFFlSDurg'
The Republican organs say that
the Republican party has offered the
ProhibitiOnists all they ought to ask"
said Permanent Chairman Stevens as
he assumed the chair in the convention
to-day. Our answer is that we are
past the era of begging. Year after
year we came to both Republican
Conventions and Legislatures asking
for prohibitOry legislation and we got
only the cold shoulder. We asked for
bread and got a stone. Now we are
able to earn our prohibition bread and
purpose to do it, and no thanks to the
Republican or any other party as a
party. We want prohibition, not
promises, and we propose to labor day
IN and day out until we get it," The
spirit that inspired these ringing SEN
tences seemed to pervade every one of
the six hundred and fOrty-four dele
gates who took their seats in the Opera
House this morning and proceeded in a
truly characteristic way to transact the
business of the convention. There
was no mistaking the fact that this
body of men, the like of which never
had assembled in a political conven-
ton in this State before, had come to-
gether to inaugurate an aggressive
fight against the liquor traffic and that
they meant to fight it to the bitter
end.
SINGING AND PRAYING,
1t might have been because it was
something new, but even the regula-
ton convention hanger-On was ready to
admit that the singing of fifty girls, led
by Professor Ellenberger, was an i'm
provement on the usual brass band
performance which marks the gather
ing of the ordinary political conven-
ton. This singing lasted for nearly an
hour until the convention was practi-
cdlly seated. At 10 o'clock the Rev.
M. }. Fiery, of Blair county, arose and
announced that the devotional exer-
cises would begin with the singing of
the Coronation hymn.
Then the music began. There were
a thousand people in the Opera House
and its galleries. They could all sing
and they did with all their might,
Such a volume of genuine vocal sound
never before arose in that house. The
veteran James Black, of Lancaster.
who made the first prayer, sat on the
right side of the main aisle, near the
paraquet. Just across the aisle sat
Joshua l.. Bailey. A few.seats farther
to the front, on the same side, sat S. P.
McCalmOnt, tall, gaunt and looking as
though he was ready to kick even in a
convention of PrOhibtionists. On the
right in the paraquet circle sat white
haired Ex-senator George Landon, of
Bradford county. A seat or two in
front Of him sat Charles S. Wolfe, sup
ported on his left by President LOomis.
OF the Lewisburg University, whose
ruddy cOuntenance indicated that heCar-
ried his accumulating years like boy.
And when Mr.. Black grew thankful
that the little band that nominated the
first Prohibition ticket, fourteen wears
ago had grown in this great cOnven-
tion, a Methodist delegate in the para
quet circle calculated, GLORY to God. >"
with fervOr that smacked of an old
fashioned camp meeting. The chorus
of Amens that went up from all
parts of the house during the prayers
that followed indicated that the Meth
odist body was largely represented in
the convention. The few men of note
in Prohibition circles were we'll scat
tered through the audience.
THE WOMEN DELEGATES.
State Chairman Barker, broad
shouldered and ruddy, circulated
everywhere arranging the preliminar-
les of the convention. In the seat oc-
cupied by Sam JOsephs at the late Dem
Ocratic Convention sat a demure-look-
ing Quaker lady, while in that occu-
pied by Squire McMullen at the same
time was seated an enthusiastic men,
Der Of the Woman's Christian Temper
ance Union, whose eager and hopeful
cOuntenance indicated that she ex-
pected salOOn-keepers soon to become
an extinct race.
When, at half-past ten, Chairman
Barker called the convention to order
there was tone of pardonable exulta-
ton in his voice as he recOunted the
difference between the convention of
thirteen delegates that nominated him
for Auditor General in 1877 and the
large and enthusiastic convention now
assembled before him. The enthusi-
asm manifested itself at once and the
applause was vigorous, frequent and
continuous during the remainder of his
opening speech. He then proceeded
to read the call for the convention,
which asked citizens of PENNSYLVANIA,
without distinction of sex, race or
color who were opposed to the drink
traffic, to unite in sending delegates to
this harinu
the invitation had been accepted with
a will.
A motion was adopted to appoint
State central committee of one from
each legislative district
Those delegates who had been SOL
diers in the war stood up and were
counted. One hundred and forty
eight stood up, and a cheer was' given
for the old flag
Saml. p. Goodwin announced to the
convention that he had received a
message from Mr.. St. John, the Prohi-
bitiOn candidate for the presidency in
1884, sending his greetings to the con-
VentiOn, and saying that he was on the
way TO meet Blaine at Maine phillip.
Cheers.
On motion, all clergymen delegates
were requested to stand up and be
counted. The count was made while
the convention sang Praise God from
whom all blessings flow" One hun
dred and thirty-eight clergymen re-
spOnded. When Il call was made for
lawyers, the count was 55. An ex-
cited delegate arose and said that it
had been charged that the Prohibition
party was rich mans party, and
" Now let's take count of the me-
chanics." On this 27l delegates stood
up. ICheers Then 27 teachers stood
up and 10 doctors. When the under
takers were asked to stand up someone
cried out, "This is no funeral" and
the Chair remarked "The kind
of undertakers we want to stand up
are those who undertake to knock us
out"
NOMINATING A STATE TICKET.
They then nominated the following
ticket Governor, Hon. Charles S.
Wolfe, of Union county; Lieutenant
Governor, A. A. Barker, of Cambria
county; Auditor-General, Charles L.
Hawley, of Lackawanna; Secretary of
Internal affairs, John NJ. Emery, of
Lawrence county; Congressman-at-
Large, Rev. John M. Palmer, (colored)
of Allegheny. The nominations were
all made by acclamation. James L.
Bailey, of Philadelphia, in seconding
the principal nomination, christened |
Wolfe 1.-THE David WilmOtt of the new |