Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1892-07-17
AND IT'S GREAT LESSON-GENERAL PATRICK
A. COLLNNS ARGUES
Ably in Support Of Excluding Mere Spectators rom
National OOnvsndons-Only Loud Takers Gan
Be Heard-WiA Newspapers and T'ls-
graph All the World Is Present


presented by me at Chicago.
/ am disarmed because there Is no
controversy. That climax OF aosurcl-
ties, the Chicago .Wigwam-the last
atrocity OF the kind, l trust, that ever
will be-made press and polltlclahS
unit for convention meetings In future
under conditions which will insure de-
bate and elaboration free from outside
pressure.
The Wigwam is a vicious growth,
mistakenly supposed by politicians In
only the present generation 70 lend, oy
the presence OF few thousand OF the
outside public, a popular ecidt to the
proceedings. The Wigwam at Chicago
was the last and ugliesC expression OF
this folly.
AN OBJECT LESSON.
The building itself was a moDstrous
dry goods box set In he mud. IL ,nao
no ventilation except through Sits be
tween the upright walls and the nat
roof. Those Sits were closed Win
canvas when the thunder rolled
and the rain came down, aud
the thunder did roll aud the
rain came down on the slightest provo
cation. Inside were some twenty-five
thousand human beings. Only about
fifteen hundred OF them had any real
business there-the nine hundred dele
gates and the six hundred reporters.
Add 20 these the alternates who, In case
the delegates were struck by lightning
or trampled TO death In a panic, might
take their places, relays Of reporters
and the sergeant-at-arms and his men,
and less than three thousand persons
were there for any real business pur-
pose.
The other twenty-five thousand were
there as spectators. II they were mute
and orderly on-lookers-or could be
the indictment against the Wigmam
would be drawn for 8 mlSdemeanOr In
stead OF for a capital Otfense. But the
hot and steaming crowd could hardly be
human and do otherwise than they did.
They could scarcely see, and they could
not hear, so they yelled, Kissed, hoOted'
howled and ieered. In that horrible
building we all felt as the live Holsters
and clans DO when they are put on the
hot stones covered over with Seaweed
and canvass and left tO-deiberate.
One Of the ablest men in the Union
bic. some Of the foremost Of American
orators fought TO reach even the nine
hundred delegates and failed. Only
one among them all, think. made
sustained speech that was not cruelty
interrupted. But William BOurke Coch-
ran can ''charm the birds of the bush
es.n Yet some OF the ablest men in the
United States cannot be heard at all in
\ very large audience. Shall we lose
heir wisdom and services and influence
sys:he substitution of mere lung power
or fascination.
GIVE GREAT MEN A CHANCE.
IL ought to DO possible for the wisest
man with the feeblest voice TO be heard
in the grand council Of his party. Most
OF the great men whom have known
Tilden and Gladstone, for examples
could not speak ia the face Of an east
ern gale and be heard. The loudest are
not always the wisest. IL is certain
that 10 great man yet produced by this
Republic could have been heard by all
people i'm that dreadful wigwam In Chi
cago, and il is equally sure that the
very greatest could not have been heard
there at all.
To what end, therefore, was that
thing Of ugliness and OF horror forever
erected on the shore of Lake Michigan?
To let the "publlc" IN.
The theory is that the people
should be admitted in order TO see what
their representatives are alto watch
them and see that they do no harm. IL
that Is not the idea, the idea then is
that the ''public should be admitted"
so that in the gaze OF the whole people
the work of the Convention should pro-
coed. Both mean the same thing.
Who are the people? There are sixty
FIVE millions or more Of them. Can
they all be present az any nariOnal con-
vention OF any party in person? II not,
can they better be represented by
local mob than by six 10 nine hundred
trained members Of the press in addition
20 the delegates and a-ernates? Why
should fifteen or twenty-five thousand
of the sixty.fve millions Of the Ameri-
can people, to the exclusion OF
the rest, be selected to look on
and howl while nine hundred men bear
ing commissions from their party are
trying to formulate a policy and to
evolve candidates for the chief offices
in the gift of great people?
WHAT II MEANS To BIZ A DELEGATE.
In ten minutes from the time a word
Is uttered in the convention the country
can read it now. Thus the "'public" is
present az all conventions. The repre-
sentatives OF the press are OF al pOliti-
cal shades. While they are present at
a psNtical convention-and they will be
-. ,-,b{Io our institutions pndurp-
no "crowd" supposed to protect the
tspeople" from the misconduct OF their
representatives will be needed In the
galleries.
But if there were no reporters and no
press, as there were practically none
hundred years ago, my contention would
be the same. For who and what are the
delegates, and what is q convention? In
as many places as you can find group
of families q caucus or primary meeting
is held. There delegate or delegation
il chosen TO attend the district conVen-
tion-one or many according 70 the
number in the communicate attend
A convention TO select two men to go to
the National Conventions. almost always
with full powers, "fOOt loose and
free" In some States all the delegates
nre elected In State conventions, but
this practice Is exceptional. The result
in general, however, is that more than
three hundred separate local conyen-
tions trust some nine hundred men to
use their best Judgment az a national
convention.
Can or cannot the opinions Of the
people be collected in some other way