The record-union., 1896-09-15
Presided Over by Secretary Of Agri'
culture Morton.
William j. Bryan and Thomas E.
Watson Notified by Letter, the
Former by Senator Allen and the
Latter by Senator Butler, of Their
Nomination for President and
Vice-President by the Peoples
Party Convention.

OMAHA, Sept. 14.-Bourke Cochran
| spoke at the Coliseum tonight to
crowd estimated at 1900 people. Sec
retary of Agriculture Morton presided
Several thousand more tickets were is
sued, and what with heat and the
breaking down of benches and people
going out, it was twenty minutes be-
fore order could be gained Several
| thousand Bryan men, including several
silver clubs en- masse, were in the audi
ence and cheered every reference made
TO Mr.. Bryan.
Secretary Morton made q brief
speech on taking the chair, but even
the reporters could not catch his words
and 1t was merely pantomime to those
struggling for seats and yelling .Sit
down to those who stood in the aisles.
In the attempt to seat such a vast au-
clence planks were used, supported at
each end by a chair. People crowded
upon these until the boards broke, and
those who We're seated had to stand.
Hundreds of the boards broke, and the
result was the crowd was scattered
into groups Of standing people who
could neither get in nor out. Those
standing Obstructed the sight of those
sitting and there was frequent yells
of Sit down." The trouble was caused
by issuing tickets to vastly more than
the seating capacity of the hall and
then leaving the doors open for others
to crowd in
After this confusion was finally over
come Mr. Cochran was accorded a very
respectful hearing. Several avowed
Bryan supporters were given tickets by
the committee who had the meeting in
charge, and these men probably mad
visedly interrupted the speaker a few
times by prolonged cheers for their
favorite
Mr.. Cochran began by saying that
he was profoundly grateful for this
hearing, and that the West would give
20 q man from New York, State
which Mr.. Bryan had denomi-
mated the enemy's country"
such an audience. He hoped
never again to hear a citizen of this
land speak Of any part Of it as "the
enemy's county" He had the highest
respect for Mr.. Bryan's character. Per-
sonally it was above reproach. That
was, he said, what made his candi-
dacy on the platform that was made al
Chicago by PopulistS capturing the
Democratic Convention so dangerous.
1T the nominee were a dangerous man
| on that platform, there would be less
to apprehend.
If all Mr. Bryan had said about the
| crime of 1873 and the dealings with
European money changers We're true
! our Government must be a failure If
free coinage would raise the rate Of
| wages to the laborer, he, himself, not
protesting overweening love for the la
bGrer, but simply on the theory that it
would benefit him personally, would in
dorse free coinage. He had asked
Bryan upon what wages were based,
and Mr.. Bryan had not answered him,
| because he could not. To raise the
price of everything would accomplish
| nothing, and the agitation would be
| useless. If Mr.. Bryan raised the price
Of commodities above wages it would
be injurious to the laborer, while If
wages We're pushed above commodities
| IL would injure the farmer. No one
| would pay 50 for a days labor when
| he could get it for 81 so. Wages are
not regulated by philanthropy.
| Mr.. Cochran said ne had been a great
traveller. but he had never seen people
| SO prosperous or crops so abundant as
! those this year in the West, except that
| a cloud, the agitation of free coinage
| had been cast across the country. But
| this cloud would be cleared away in
| November by the triumph of national
honesty and honor. The best news he
| could take back East would be that
| he had seen in this city the largest
| audience he had ever seen, and that
the Bryan campaign had collapsed.