St. Paul daily globe., 1888-05-05
HOW THEY DID 1t.
Some of Dakota's Solid Men Talk
OF the WatertoWn Convention.

l.
Of the Watertown Convention.
'There was no fight at Watertown in
the regular convention" said Hon. W.
4. Steele, OF Deadwood, who was in St.
Paul yesterday. He is one of the dele
gates chosen to represent Dakota at the
st. Louis convention next month. This
is true for the reason that the adherents
OF MIR. Day chose to absent themselves
from the meeting place selected by the
committee of arrangements.
An anomalous state of affairs exist
ed, however. at Watertown, inuthe ar
rayal against the administration at
Washington of the men who should
have been among its staunchest sup
porters. Responsibility for this condi-
ton rests solely upon the shoulders of
NJ. ID. Day, and the way that it was
brought about was substantially
this: BY virtue of his posi-
ton on the national committee as
Dakota's representative, Mr.. Day
hurried to the capital as soon as Presi-
dent Cleveland was installed. Keeping
an eye upon the postoffice and other de-
partments, he managed to be pretty well
Informed as to the probabilities for the
appointment OF poStmasterS, and in fact
1t is charged that he had pecuniary in
terest in them while he was conducting
his Washington bureau.
AS soon as he would learn that post
master was to be appointed. he was par
tlcular to write or telegraph the appli-
cant what action was likely to be taken.
and invariably he made it appear that
he had been instrumental through his
Endorsement in bringing about such a
result.
consequently, when the time arrived
for selecting delegates to the conven-
ton which was TO choose representa-
tives to go to st. Louis, he had all the
postmasters backing him up, albeit
they were thereby brought in
conflict with the administration.
1t has been demonstrated repeatedly
that Gov. Church outranked Mr.. Day in
the estimation of the president, and
naturally one would be led to suppose
that the repeated rebuffs given the self
appointed leader of Democracy would
have been discouraging. But no. In
stead Of being abashed he has only been
emboldened. and by every means posi-
bic he has endeavored to Smirch Gov.
Church and his administration of affairs
in Dakota.
1.-The governor, however. has proven
himself equal to the emergency, and his
energetic, buSineSS-like method of car
rylng on the government entrusted to
his hands has made him stronger daily
with the masses of the Democratic party
in the territory, while Mr. Day has been
growing correSpondingly weaker.
''ln nutshell, the trouble at Water
town grew out of declination of the
majority TO submit to system of paper
contests inaugurated by the Day fac
ton, and hopeless minority, by the
way, which would have engendered an
lnterminable conflict without bringing
about any practical results advantageous
TO the cause of true Democracy.
''Our delegation goes to st. Louis in
structed for President Cleveland, and
we have no fear of the result of a con-
test made for our seats by those chosen
by the opposing faction"
ABE BoYNToN's IDEA.
s'Day'S people would not stand their
ground" was the remark of Hon. Abe
BOynton, of LennoX, Oak, ''but they
preferred an inglorious retreat to meet
ing the regularly elected delegates in
convention and settling disputes in a
parliamentary manner. CoDceding
every claim that they made as to their
numerical strength, the friends of Mr..
Day could not be figured to exceed one
third of the convention, and they pre-
ferred cut and dried pro-
gramme to proceeding in a meth.
odical and Democratic style. This
was evidenced by the typewriter
composition of the committees and reso-
lutions, as well as by the fact that at no
time during their proceedings was
call of counties made TO determine the
question OF representation, but every