The record-union., 1891-11-27
SAN FRANCISCO BIDS.

When the people of San Francisco were
raisinga purse with which to purchase
the National Convention of the Repub-
lican party, the journals of that city usu-
ally referred to the matter under the
head of ''San Francisco Bids" The exact
extent Of San Francisco's bid, and the
manner of that bid in its minutest detail,
are set forth in the speech delivered be-
fore the committee by Mr.. DeYoung,
California's representative on the Ma
tional Republican Committee. What he
offered the committee for the convention
is clearly stated. The offer was presented
to the committee and was designed to in
fiuence its action. Mr.. DeYoung reports
his own speech by telegraph to his paper
in San Francisco, from which we make
the following verbatim extract:
We want the National Committee and we
want the convention We now offer to this
National Committee TO furnish each and
every member of it with a railroad ticket to
San Francisco and return, with Pullman car
fare, to pay his hotel bills during his stay in
San Francisco to attend the convention. We
also offer to the National Committee after the
expiration of the convention in San Fran
cisco, a trip TO Yosemite Valley for one week
all as guests of the city of San Francisco.
Subsequently Mr.. DeYoung offered the
committee $4,000 as contribution to the
discharge Of its debt, if it would locate
the convention in San Francisco. Thus
the committee were offered free hotel
bills, free passes to San Francisco, free
rides to Yosemite, free hotel bills at Yo-
semitic, as personal inducement to use
the power vested in it to locate the con-
vention at San Francisco; and the dele
gates to the convention were offered free
tickets to and from San Francisco by any
overland route, and the party itself was
offered a bribe of $4,000
1t would be contemplate puerility to
say that this is anything less than Doodle.
1t has all the moral qualities of Doodle
and it has the method of Doodle. 1t pro-
ceeded from Doodle instincts. How do
the people of the State of California ex-
pect members of the Legislature to be
honest when in this public and fragrant
manner they approach officers charged
with administrative functions and offer
them personal considerations to influence
their action in the exercise of admins
trative power? One of the peculiarities to
be noticed in this case was the Yosemite
stage-ride proposition. That should not
be forgotten in all time. Mr.. DeYoung
declared that San Francisco offered a trip
to Yosemite, but the delegates to Wash
ington, representing San Francisco, held
a telegram from the Manager of the Yo-
semitic Stage and Turnpike Company
saying that that company would give the
trip and pay the hotel bills and all other
incidental expenses of such trip.
1t is to be noted that the successful can
didate for the location of the convention
was represented by one of the Nations
ablest men. Washburne of Minnesota.
who offered the convention the guarantee
ola comfortable hall, capable ofseating H.
900 people. He said to the committee that
the city he nominated was connected with
all portions ofthe country by network of
railroads, that it was now the great met
ropolis of the Northwest, that the great
est growth in the immediate future would
be in the country lying north of the
southerly line of Iowa and west of the
easterly line of Minnesota, and that it
was desirable to hold the convention for
the influence it might exert in forming
public opinion. All these were dignified
public reasons. They were not backed
by free whisky or free wine; they were
not reinforced by setting up a bar in a
leading Washington hotel. They con-
tanned none of the flavor of corrupted or
corrupting instincts. They We're rea-
sons moving on a high public plane.
To the infinite credit of the Republican
National Central Committee and the
glory of the party it represented, these
high-minded reasons prevailed over the
free pass by rail and stage offered by San
Francisco. and the convention is to be
held at Minneapolis.
THE SCHENTE OF AN FCr,ENrrIorf,