Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-02-25

4
tive The man, who proved to be Ere,
Swayne, an ex-member of the Missouri Leg
lsiature. was forcibly elected. On motion
OF Powderly the delegates, without takin!
vote on the adoption of the platform, ad
Journed for two hours.
The Fight on Prohibition Begins.
A fight for the recognition of the. pro
hlbition issue in the platform was started
Immediately on the reassembling of tn,
| convention. Miss Frances Willard pre-
sented minority report, which she moveC
be adopted Immediately, as an amendment
to the majority report The report favored
woman suffrage and demanded the Sup
! preston" of the liquor traffic
Attempts to head Miss Willard's reading
of the minority report off with points oi
order were Intellectual. A strong speech op-
posing dragging in outside issues" by A.
S. Mann, of Florida, was answered by Miss
Willard in spirited address. She charged
that the full platform committee was not
present when the temperance plank was
omitted.
Potter, of Michigan, demanded to know
whether, if the minority report was adopted,
the Prohibition party in Michigan, for e1-
ample, would disband and their votes be
given to the Peoples party. Congressman
oeIIg SlHpSOn Qecldreu Iluseli satIsncu
with the majority report. They must cure
poverty before they could intemperance.
Remarkable Parliamentary Tactics.
On motion of Jerry Simpson, to lay the
minority report upon the table, viva yoce
vote was taken, showing the convention
split almost evenly for and against pro-
hi5ition plank Miss Willard called for a
formal division, but points of order and
parliamentary twists of every sort inter
vened
A Texas prohibitionist delegate declared
that he had been assured the National Pro-
hibition party would be satisfied with
either woman suffrage alone or the liquor
plank proposed by Miss Willard. Coached
by Mr.. Powderly, Miss Emma Curtis, OF
Colorado, handsome young woman with
swapping black eyes and dashing Gains
borough hat, captured the floor and pro-
posed this substitute:
We demand that the question of universal
suffrage be submitted to the Legislatures of
the different States and Territories for
favorable action.
Miss Curtis made clever speech, Jerry
Simpson shouted, "She has solved the
problem" and some one demanding the
previous question, the substitution was
made by rousing majority, amid cheers,
ing heartily at the success that had crowned
her effort Miss Willard seated upon the
platform, looked sober as if attending a
funeral.
Powderly Gets a Sharp Setback.
Powderlv hurried to the platform and
held hastv conference with Miss Willard
Soon afterward, before roll call, which
was demanded, could be taken, announce
ment was made in Powderly's name that
Miss Curtis proposition as part of the
platform had been withdrawn, to be offered
later on as a simple resolution. To the
surprise of everybody and the chasrin of
Powderlv, General Weaver and other
leaders, Miss Curtis arose and declared she
had done no such thing
The idea of dealing with the liquor ques-
tion by separate resolution instead of in
the platform, had been broached several
times during the confused discussion and
had been favorablv received. 1t was now
apparently the purpose of Powderly, hav-
ing kept Miss Willard's minority report
out of the platform, to placate her and her
friends by having the convention adopt the
Willard plank as a resolution in place of
that of Miss Curtis.
When a roll call was finally reached on
what had not become Miss Curtis minority
platform report, the vote was taken by
States. Secretary Hayes declared the mi
noritv report carried-254 to 240-counting
the knights organization as voting solidlv
ave. Unofficial tally keepers made the to-
tails very different-352 noes to 23S ayes, de-
feating the minority report, even counting
the Knights as voting 80 ayes.
Breaking Up Into Caucuses.
Powderly now shouted to all knights of
L L. IL n
for a caucus. They did so like magic, and
the Farmers Alliance, at the call of Nc
Cune, also temporarily withdrew, notwith-
standing loud protests of their National
Lecturer, Willetts, of Kansas, that the
action amounted to breaking up the con-
vention in a row. After a half hours
painful uncertainty the convention slowly
got together again. Ignatius Donnelly was
granted three MINUTES, and to The general
surprise declared all the business of the
convention could easily be finished within |
half an hour. Defer by unanimous con-
sent the little woman suffrage matter, he |
urged; adopt the noble majority |
platform report; appoint committee to act |
with the National Committee ofthe Peoples |
party to call a National Convention to NOM
mate a President and Vice President of the |
United States, and the thing was done
hungry delegates. Two minutes 4,
later the majority report had been swallowed |
at one gulp, being adopted without soli- |
ary voice of dissent.
Pent-Up Enthusiasm Breaks Loose.
A great pent-up volume of doubt and |
despair now seemed to be lifted to the roof,
in the enthusiastic cheering that broke forth |
at every hand. Hats, papers, umbrellas,
flags, everything portable within reach was
flung into the air.
The woman suffrage resolution, as a sub- |
stitute for prohibition, was lost sight |
of in the excitement, and the con-
Vention, instead, Endorsed laws forbidding |
option dealing, but did not specifically |
mention the proposed Hatch statute: in |
lorsed the stand of the Rochester, n Y,
K. of L., against a clothing combine and |
threatened a boycott, if necessary: in |
lorsed all goods bearing the K. of L. label |
When the women suffrage resolution did |
1t last come up, it was adopted without op- |
position, the understanding being that it
lad nothing to do with prohibition.
Numerous efforts to have the convention
proceed to appoint the committee suggested |
by DR. Donnelly, to act with the Peoples ,
Party National Committee, were wholly in
efectual under the rulings of Acting Chair |
nan TerriI and the insistence of National
Lecturer Willetts, of Farmers Alliance,
lpon motion to adjourn sine die
The Last Coup of Third Party Men.
McCune, of the Farmers Alliance, an
lounced, however, that all the delegates
would hold mass meeting in their individ-
lal capacity Immediately after the adjourn
nent. Without stirring from their seats,
he delegates, after Terrill's gravel fell, os-
ensibly adjourning the convention, went
light on, but with General Weaver in the
hair, and appointed the much talked of