The Emporia weekly news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1881-1889, 1888-06-21
BUSINESS BEGINS.
The National Republican Convention
Formally Opened.
Temporary Chairman ThurStOn Dsliv'
ers Protection Address.
The Great Auditorium Bswilderingly
Decorated for the Occasion.
General Fremont. First Candidate Of
the Party, Loudly Cheered.

CHICAGO, June l9.-When chair
man Jones of the National republican
committee assembled the platform of
the great auditorium hall at noon to
call the national convention to order,
he looked upon a scene unparalleled in
the history Of public gatherings in the
country. Larger aSsemblages have
been held in more spacious halls, but
at no one have the ANGULAR properties
been SO effective or the brilliancy of
illumination and picturesque color
ings been 80 splendid. Every face can
be seen without effort and an audience
less than ten thousand appear to be al
most a countless multitude.
The magnificent sweep of the great
gallery alone which seats nearly 5000
persons is a picture which impresses
even those familiar with great audi
ences and the whole scene bathed in a
flood OF electric light shed by $500 in
candescent lamps thrills even the most
sluggish heart. There are Just 8, 100
seats in the hall and as the convention
is called to order probably 5000 people
are within the glance OF Chairman
Jones' eye.
The decorations appear a trIfle be-
wildering at first. The walls, cell
ings, and every post, pillar and PANEL
is covered with flags, bunting and
streamers, in varied artistic designs
and colors, and portraits and paintings
of historic scenes meet the eye every
where. The red, white and blue is
conspicuous, of course, everywhere,
but great sheet of terra Gotta bunt-
ing hangs as a roof between the sun
light, which pours through it from a
great open space just above the great
gallery and relieves the otherwise mo-
notony of so prodigal q dis
play of sensational colOrs. Some
of the details of the auditorium
decorations are worth special mention.
AT the apex in front OF the chairman g
desk is a g1lded American eagle and
beneath it a portrait of Washington.
On the right of the chairman's desk is
plaster bust of the late General John
A. Logan in heroic size, draped with an
American flag. Hanging from one OF
the boxes at the right is large paint
ing of LOgan's charge at the battle OF
Atlanta. On the face of the north and
south walls of the auditorium, framed
flags, and surrounded by circle OF
electric stars are portraits of Lincoln
and Grant. The designs being nam
moth in proportion and form, the two
most striking details of the deco
ration. A Boston club has planted its
magnificent banner five feet long just
behind the stage and it proudly floats.
bearing in letters of gold upon a field
appear to be the uttermost
in the minds of the delegates. The
banner is inscribed, Home Marked
Club of Boston; American wages
for American working men; Amer
lean markets for the American
people; protection for American
homes" This banner is marked
by delegates as they come into the hal
and by spectators as they gather in the
galleries and balconies, and is cheeret
time after time.
The air in the hall Is delightfully."-
cool, and although large number o.
the spectators as they come in have
fans in their hands find no practica
use for them. The first of the dele
cations to reach their seats were those
Kinley and Butterworth. Mckinley
who is much talked of as dark horse
is recognized by few of the
spectators in the gallery and gets 8
cheer or two which, however, is short
lived. The Michigan delegation fol
lows the Ohio men, coming in as bod.
and filling up their block of seats OF
spectators generally are admitted NOR
early than the delegations there ar
few demonstrations as the convention
begins to gather. Most of those insid
the galleries are ladies, who are inter
ested but not demonstrative. ThurStol
of Nebraska arrives with the member
of the Nebraska delegation.
Precisely at 1870 the gavel Of Chail
man Jones. chairman of the nations
al hn m q
hogany desk and the republican conven
ton of 1888 WAS formally opened. TIL
hum of conversation ceased through
out the vast auditorium and the buZ
of expectation gave place to an impreE
sive silence as the chairman introduce
the Rev. Frank w. Gunnsalus of tn
Plymouth Congregational church G
Chicago who opened the proceeding
with prayer.
AT the conclusion of the praye
Chairman Jones announced that tn
secretary, Mr.. FessendeH of the ns
tional committee, would read the ca
for the convention issued by tn
national committee. AllusiOns in til
call to the position of the party upo
the tariff question; to the determin;
ton Of the party to have fair electiO
and an honest count, and to Otht
salient points were warmly applaude
by the convention.
Upon the conclusion of the readin
ing of the call, Chairman Jones steppe
to the front of the platform and spok
as follows:
The republican party may we'll /
congratulated through its represeI
tatives here assembled upon the III
specious prospects that lies before il
convention. will surely lead to victor
in the campaign upon which we al
about to enter. There can be no doul
as to which side the great majority
votes will fall If each party be trie
by its record If the grand achiev
ments of the republican part
be appreciated and the uttl
failure of the democratic party be u
dorstood. The two parties are diane
rically opposite to each other. One
vors progression, the other retrOgre
sion; one lifts up, the other casts dow
Thanks to Mr.. Cleveland and his sout
ern allies, the democratic party h
thrown of the disguise in which it h
heretofore fought its battles in mort
ern states. and has boldly declared I
British free trade and against Anne
can protection. This avowal b
caused much adulation in certain 81
tiOnS of this country and in all of En-
land, which has from the beginni
been hostile to the industrial progrI
OF the United States. But IL has fall
heavily on the ears of the patriO
portion of the democratic party. I
we must not expect that this is the e
of dishonest pretences, deceit, fallac
and sophistry will again be resortad
and practiced. Therefore, we shov
have a platform based upon true
publican principles, free from eQui
cation or ambiguity, and should mo-
nate candidates who are the embC
ment of these principles.
Chairman Jones then introduced
NJ. Thurston as the temporary CHI
man of the convention. Delegate
born of Kansas objected to the assuI
tion on the part of the national q
mittee of trying to name the temper
chairman and asked If Mr.. Thurs
had been elected by the convent
Chairman Jones replied in an emph
Affirmative, for which he was yiRor
y RpplRudsd. But Mr.. Osborn was