The San Francisco call., 1896-07-03
1.-THE CALLS" HEADQUARTERS,
The AUDITORIUM,
Crrrf-. &c Tr1Ixy q

CHICAGO. July ~
The Democratic party is hkethe hero in a
political opera bouffe. The old Greek adage,
Whom the gods wish to destroy they first
make mad" needs an addition in their
case of the word ludicrous. The Democ-
racy is not only mad, but even funny. In
the desperate straits to which it has been
driven it has cut loose from its old-time
moorings and is drifting on the silver seas
toward breakers in the misty unknown.
Democratic principles have vanished from
discussion. They appear neither on the
stage nor behind the scenes.
In fact, it has ceased to be Democratic
convention. 1t is convention of silver
ties pure and simple. An old-time Demo-
crat surveyed the crowd in the Palmer
House to-day, listened to the extempo-
raneous debates, looked up and down and
around the room as though he had missed
something, and, turning to bystander,
inquired with bewi!dered air: Where
IS the Democratic party? don't see any
body here but silver men ana Populists
and cranks. / thought tile silver men and
Populists were going to meet in st. Louis
on July %" Then the old man, shaking
his head and squirting some tobacco juice
on the boot of gentleman from North
Carolina, walked out OF the hotel. No
wonder that the old man felt lost in that
crowd.
While the vase has been shattered, the
scent OF Democracy does not hang around
it still by any means. 1t is apparent now,
and it is not contradicted, that the silver
men have captured the National Demo
cratic organization, and that they propose
fa ir1f oir inf 70 vyifI h
out reference to those principles which
made the Democracy one of the stable
parties of this great Nation.
Anarchist Altgeld raised the black flag
with the death-head and cross-bones this
morning in Springfield, to which place he
had gone after having laid the mines and
set the electric wires with Governor Stone
of Missouri for the destruction of the
Democratic party and the resurrection
from its ashes of silver phenix. The
Governor said that the silver men wanted
one-day convention, and that he was of
the opinion that a one-day convention
would be all that would be required to ex-
plode the mine. He and his friends did
not wish to take the risk of delay, ad-
vantage of which might be taken by the
gold men TO muddle the platform and to
hamper the adoption of an out-and-out 10
to free-coinage plank.
This is a sufficient intimation to all par
ties concerned that the silver programme
has been completed, and that the work of
the convention will be rushed through in
one or two days at most. There was only
one erasure on the slate as originally pre-
pared by Altgeld and Stone, and that was
| the wiping out of Altgeld's name as chair
man of the convention. 1t was found that
Altgeld's record was so loud that the De-
mocracy or the new party to which it has
given birth would not be able to run a
| good race with Altgeld astride of its neck.
The leading Democrats, many of whom
were personal friends of the Governor OF
| Illinois, called upon him and succeeded in
persuading him to relinquish the honors
of tie chairmanship. This was a very
difficult task, and the gentlemen who
accom- plished the feat are being warmly
complimented upon their success, for it is
easier to get to heaven than to persuade
AltgeId to change his mind or to be politi-
cally decent. The saying is abroad that if
Governor AltgeId saw anything to dis
please him in the appearance of Peter he
would hurl defiance into the teeth of the
venerable doorkeeper and would go around
the back way and climb over the wall.
The men who are in the minority
those who are opposed to the free coinage
OF silyer-haye given up all hope and are