The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-10-19
BRYAN WAS AFTER A JOB
HE WANTED TO BE 4 PRESS AGENT,
OR PRESIDENT, OR SOMETHING.
When n Nomination for the Second
Post Was Offered to Him He Was
Already Seeking the First.
New York Tribune.

ont doubt. in some respects. the most re-
markable that the country has ever seen.
But there have been few things about 1t
more remarkable than the story which
came to light yesterday of an application
made by William Jennings Bryan, the
Popocratic nominee for President, for a
position as a theatrical press agent with
in about two weeks of his nomination.
The application, or, rather. the applica-
tions, for there were two of them, were
made 10 William J. Block, the manager of
the company playing THE Heart of Mary
land" He was connected then. as he is
now, with the management OF the Herald
square Theater, in this city, and with the
attractions which make that house the
starting point for their tours of the coun-
try.
Mr.. Bryan and Mr.. Block. it appears,
were old friends and classmates at the
Illinois State College, in Jacksonville. They
had not met in a long time, when Mr..
Block visited Lincoln, Neb., about a year
ago, as manager of "P~udd'nhead wilson,
which was d play emanating from the
| Herald-Square Theater. Mr.. Bryan was
the correspondent of the Omaha World,
and he went to see the play, so that he
could write about it for his paper. AT
the theater he met his old friend Mr..
Block, and they renewed their acquaint-
ance.
OUGHT TO. HAVE BEEN AN ACTOR.
Mr.. bryan, in talking with the manager,
remarked that he thought he ought to
have been an actor. The notion of a theatre
cal career seems to have chung to him, for
about the first of the year he wrote to
MIR. Block, asking him whether he could
find a position for him as press agent. Mr..
Block and his associates seem not to have
haao in mood of an agent aft that time for
the letter was neglected. Later Mr.. Bryan
wrote again to the same effect. This was
in June, only a short time before the Chi
cage convention. Mr.. Bryan was at that
time a member of a contesting delegation
fICm his State. which was finally seated
by the convention.
Here. then. was Mr.. Bryan between two
strange alternatives. He had applied for
the position of press agent for q travelling
theatrical company, and in a short time
he was to pc nominated, as it proved, for
the greatest office in his country or in the
world. 1t has been limited that the NOM
ination of Mr.. Bryan was not so much of
intended by those who brought it about
from the beginning. In this case was Mr..
Bryan aefempi n ngd TO- get a position slfnht as a
some good employment to fall back upon
in case he did not become President of the
THE PROPOSITION ENTERTAINED.
At any rate a man. who is in a position
to know pretty well what he is talking
about said last night that the proposition
of employing Mr.. Bryan was actually en-
tertained by Mr.. Block and his associates,
and that he would probably have been so
employed if his nomination for President
had not taken him out of the field of COM
petitors for the somewhat humber position
under the management of the Herald
square Theater.
Every effort was made yesterday to get
n va rTn "a tic n~ ani ~ tIie
story. and all inquiries led to the belief
that it was true. Mr.. Block, to whom the
application was directly made. is in Phila-
delphia. where 1.-The Heart of Maryland"
IS now playing at the Broad-street Theater.
A dispatch from Philadelphia last night re-
ported that when asked about the story,
Mr.. Block at first would say nothing, but
finally he was persuaded to acknowledge
Yes he said. sit is true that Mr.. Bryan
applied for a position as press agent tor
friendship for him L can say nothing more
about it"
To all other questions Mr.. Block would
make no reply, except to say that he was
not responsible for the publication of the
story.
HOW THE STORY CAME OUT.
The whole story is set forth in this
weeks number of Leslie's Weekly. Arthur
Hornblow, the anna editor of that pa
per, yesterday made the following affidavit:
One day last week Bartlett Arkell, edi-
VI VI COL = NCNhlSy ~ lGu me me-
had heard that William Jennings Bryan.
the Democratic candidate for the presi-
dency, had a few months ago addressed a
letter to the manager of the Herald-square
Theater, applying for the position of press
agent. Mr.. Arl1ell asked me to cal! on the
managers of said theater and ascertain if
this were true. I did 50. and saw w. J.
Company, and Mr.. Block informed me that
it was to him, and not to Mr.. Evans, pro-
application for the position referred to was
addressed. He further stated that he was
a school friend of Mr.. Bryan's and that
the letter had been sent to him last Janu-
airy. | asked if l might see the letter. Mr..
Block said that he did not think that would
be fair to Mr.. Bryan. / then asked him
if he knew where the letter was. Mr.. Block
said that he had it in his possession.
The above is a true statement of my
ARTHUR HoRNBLOw.
dramatic Editor of Leslie's Weekly.
Notary Public; n. Y. G, No. 49,"
Several of Mr.. Blocks friends and asso-
ciates said yesterday that they had heard
the story before and believed it. They as
serted that to the best of their informal
written to him by Mr.. Bryan asking for
the position of press agent still in his pos
because he did not think that it would be
acting rightly towards Mr.. Bryan to do SO.
MR.. EVANs'S STATEMENT.
The proprietor of the Herald-souare
Theater, Charles Z. Evans. yesterday made
the following statement in regard to the
affair:
Zone of my lieutenants informed me
some time ago that MIR. Bryan had applied
for the office of press agent. We have a
press agent at our theater. and also en-
gage such a representative for each of our
road companies. When the matter was
called to my attention there was no va
cancy. much as | should have liked such
q brainy and versatile man as Mr.. BRYAN
on our staff. If MIR. Bryan succeeds to the
presidency he will, of course, nave no use
for the theatrical business as a medium of
financial gain. II he does not become Pres
ident-elect on Nov. 3, that will be a differ
ent matter. Mr.. Bryan is a brilliant news
paper man. as has been evidenced by his
work on the Omaha World-Herald and
other publications. Should he not be
elected, l can state that he will find me
willing to give him a good engagement, at
q salary larger than he ever received here
tofore in his newspaper career"
Mr.. Ziegfeld, the manager of "a Parlor
Match" which is now playing at the Her
ald-square Theater. told a Tribune reporter
last night that he had heard Mr.. Block saw
that he had received n letter from Mr..
Bryan asking for the position. Mr.. Block
had told him and some others of it one
night. sitting in a box in the theater. He
had never seen the letter. but he knew that
Mr.. Block had it. He was asked whether
he could tell anything about the date OF
the letter. I can tell about when 1t was
he answered, because it was when our