The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-07-28
The Cautious Mr.. Jones Was mt the
Telegraph Key and Corked Up
the Candidates Message.
SAME OLD QUESTION ASKED
POPS SPECIAL COMMITTEE TO FIND
"WHERE THEY ARE At"
POst-COnventiOn Action of Middle-of-
the-Roaders, Who Want to Know
What Bryan VIII Do.

ST. LOUIS, July 27.-The Republic will
tomorrow say: Mr.. Bryan's telegram
declining to allow his name to go before
the Peoples party convention and the cor
respondence that was carried on between
him and Senator Jones, chairman of the
Democratic national committee, on Satur-
day, were not made public, it is said. be-
cause Senator Jones and Governor Stone,
! of Missouri, saw fit 10 suppress them.
Early Saturday after Jones had wired
Mr.. Bryan that his friends in the conven-
tion intended to nominate him If possible
in spite of the fact that his telegram of
the previous evening declining to accept.
the nomination if Mr.. Sewall was not NOM
mated for Vice President Senator Jones
had previously notified Mr.. Bryan that
Watson had been nominated for Vice Pres
ident.
About o'clock an operator in the West
ern Union telegraph office at Lincoln Neb.,
the home OF the Democratic candidate for
President called up the st. Louis office
and said that Mr.. Bryan there and
would like to speak to Senator Jones. Sem
ator Jones came to the key and the follow
ing telegram was sent to Mr.. Bryan:
1.-The convention will surely nominate
you. Your friends seem to be in the ma
jority. They are about ready to proceed to
a ballot"
To this Mr.. Bryan sent substantially the
reply that was contained in the dispatch
sent out from Chicago Sunday night. At
the conclusion of the paragraph ending
with the words: American people cannot
afford TO surrender the right to legislate
for themselves on all questions, and so
long as the right is disputed to surpass
all of
interrupted Mr.. Bryan's message with a
query as to whether it would be advisa-
BILE to make such statement to the con-
vention.
Then the remainder of the dispatch was
sent by Bryan. To this Senator Jones re-
piled:
Il think your position has been clearly
stated and that il is clearly and fully un-
derstood. l will urge our friends to read
your statement"
AT this juncture a message was sent to
the convention hall over another wire to
Governor Stone, asking him TO come at
once and get MIR. Bryans telegram in or
der that it might be read to the convention
before the ballot was taken. Governor
Stone got the telegram and hurried to the
convention hall. where the scene between
him and Senator Allen. of Nebraska, who
was chairman Of the convention, was en-
acted.
Subsequent developments indicate that
neither Governor Stone nor Senator Jones
thought it would be good policy to read
the telegram TO the convention. While
this was going on at the auditorium, Mr..
Bryan sent this:
ITO Gen. j. K. Jones: Both friends and
opponents are entitled to perfect candor
and frankness on my part, and l think the
statement should be read SO that no crit
icism can arise hereafter"
After the failure TO have the kilograms
read to the convention Mr.. Bryan is said
to have wired Senator Jones TO give them
to the st. Louis papers, in order that they
might be given as wide publicity as possi
ernor Stone dissented. Senator Jones was
going TO Lincoln on the O'Clock train. So
the matter was turned over to Governor
Stone. who had another consultation with
Mr.. Bryan.
The latter urged that his statement be
given to the press but Governor Stone
said it would not be polite, and that his
case was in the hands of his friends. who
would do what they believed to be the most
polite thing to do as they viewed the sit
uation from the field of battle.
Il will bow TO the wishes of my friends.
but il is due to myself and the members of
the Populst party that i treat them with
perfect candor,'' is the tenor of one of Mr..
Bryan's messages to the Missouri Govern
or But the information was held from the
press.