Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1891-05-18
FIRST ARRIVALS.
Delegates to the Cincinnati Ma.
tional Conference.
THE TALK AMONG THE RBroRMERs

| on Hand-ihe Important Question
That Will Have To Be First Settled
Shall New Party BE Organizede-
How the Delegates Feel on the Subject.
CINCINNATI, O., May 1s-The advance
guard of delegates to the National Union
convention, which opens tomorrow, was
struggling in all yesterday, and about 200
of the 1900 or more that it is expected
will participate in the deliberations of the
| gathering were on the ground by night.
| Many of them are men whose rough at
tire, bronzed faces and horny hands be-
token long acquaintanceship with the
| pillow and harrow. Others bear names
that are prominently identified with eco
nomic and radical movements.
| Some of the Leaders on Hand.
Among these are Congressman We'll
Ter, of Iowa, more Familiarity known as
Calamity Weller; General Secretary
Hayes, of the Knights of Labor; W. G.
Crum, of New York, editor of The Wall
Street Farmer and president of the re-
Gently formed National Union league; G.
l. Washburne, of Boston, president of the
Northeastern Industrial Alliance; Mason
A. Greene, of the Boston Nationalist club:
Col. 5. F. Norton, of Chicago; w. I.
| Wakefield, of the Lynn, Mass, Nationalist
| club; John II. Crouch, of Fort Scott,
| Hans, brother of the deceased Oklahoma
boomer, and c. c. Post, Georgia the AL
lance leader of that state.
The Lion of the Hour.
| The temporary lion OF the hour is
Farmer H. l. Brian, OF Winn county,
La, whose acceptance of deleg ate's mis-
| sion necessitated his riding fifty miles on
plantation pony to the nearest railway
1 station. His credentials bear the sigma
lures of l, 200 grangers out of a total vot-
ing strength of l, 200 in the county. Strag-
glers were also here from Maine, Ken
lucky, Texas, Tennessee, Minnesota and
other states, but the full delegations did
not begin to arrive until to-day. The
Kansas contingent, which came in on
4 a special train of ten cars, was met this
morning by the reception committee, all
/ the delegates in town, and a couple of
/ brass bands aud escorted to headquarters
/ in triumph.
! Control of the Gathering.
| Despite the fact that it is styled con-
vention, however, it Is apparent thus
early that the forth coming gathering will
! be nothing more than big mass meeting.
! There has been no idea Of conforming to a
| basis Of representation. While it is
anticipated that two thirds of the states
will be represented. yet two of them,
| Kansas with her 500, and Ohio with
nearly "a many more, will control at least
| third of the total votes that will be
| cast on every proposition. Hamilton
| alone furnishes credentials for nearly 100
participants, representing UGH heterogen-
! eous elements as the knights of Labor,
City Alliance, Railway Employees asso-
citation, Municipal Congress, the United
Labor Party composed of adherents of
| Henry George, and the Nationalist or
Bellamyites.
| southern Delegates Kicking.
\ good many of the southern grangers
| are kicking over this condition of affairs
| cJntending that it is unjust that after
trave ling long distances in order to repre-
sent the views Of their respective organi-
cations their votes and consequent inhu-
ence in shaping the ends of the gathering
! should be swamped by packed delegations
! from nearby points. An effort Es
being made to bring about feeling in
favor OF the adoption of the unite rule,
and unless some such solution of the diff
| Guilty i found there Will be trouble Just
| a soon as the body gets down TO BUSH
/ u=ss.
! Results Are Mighty Onsartin'.
As TO the outcome OF the con ference
| there was not delegate in town last
night who was willing to express himself
| with any degree of confidence or certain
| ty. There are two elements with widely
divergent intentions. One is DESTROYS
| that the conference shall bring a new
| party into existence, give it a name and
erect it upon platform Of declarations
| and principles. These are mostly from
1 the and rho Tho
Dp the other hand ,deprecate hasty action,
| and urge that it would be more polite to
simply reafiirm the views enunciated in
the st. Louis and Ocala platforms, ap-
| point an executive committee to continue
he propaganda, and Assem- ole again next
! spring TO determine whether a third par
y shall be brought into existence and If
so to christen it and place its candidates
| in the field for the next presidential cleo
| zion,
I he Knights Fighting for Time.
Men like Polk, of Georgia, and o 'Brien,
Of Louisiana, say that the Alliance men
of their respective states, who have hith-
erto been allied withthe Democracy
no yet prepared to change their political
coats and go into a third party movement
| On the other hand such delegates as
| Weller, OF Iowa, and Greene, of Boston are
working hard to bring about the formal
inauguration OF a third party, and are
| asking: What else are we here fors" 1t
is an open secret that the Knights of
Labor men, who will be reinforced by
General Master Workman Powderly.
Lecturer Ralph Beaumont, and John
DeNlin, OF the executive board, are here
to ght for time, with the view of putting
eff definite action until after the meeting
Of the Farmers Alliance in February
next.
The Fight To BE Promptly Begun.
Vle contest will be inauguarated on the
threshold of the conference. Col S. f.
Norton and Lester G. Hubbard publisher
of he Farmers Voice will voice the de-
maud for new party, a name and plat
form, to deal simply with finance, trans.
portation and the land question The
southern element, with its Knight of La
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