The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-06-10
At Chicago in 1880.

Perhaps the most tumult0us cOnyen-
ton ever held, writes Joseph Ii. Bish-
op in the Century for June, was that
Of the Republicans at Chicago in 1880.
Fully 1900 persons were in attend
anee upon its regular sessions, and
demonstration" were Of frequent Oc-
currence sometimes as often as twice or
three times in a single session. At
one of the early evening sessions the
mention of General Grants name
started a wild uproar, which lasted
thirty minutes The whole vast as
semblage appeared to take part in it,.
In the centre of the hall, where the
New York delegation sat, appeared the
majestic figure Of Roscoe COnkling,
standing upon chair, and slowly
waving TO and fro the delegations ban
ner, which was floating from the tall
staff, while from all parts of the hall
there came a roar "a steady and solid
and deep as that Of Niagara. In one
part Of the hall a great body of people
could now and then he heard singing
"GlOry, glory, hallelnjah," " and in an
other part others singing marching
Through Georgia." Thirty minutes by
the watch this pandemOnium reigned,
aud then it died from sheer exhaus-
ton. Scarcely had calm been restored
when the mention Of Blaine's name
started fresh outbreak, a great roar
rising from all parts Of the house at
once. Flags, parasols, umbrellas,
shawls and handkerchiefs were wav-
ing frantically in all directions, and in
the height of the din well-dressed
woman, who was standing on the
platform, leaped upon the pedestal Of a
small statue of Liberty in front of her,
and, leaning forward over its head,
waved parasol wildly to and fro, at
every swing of which the huge crowd
cheered. Then she caught up a flag,
and, winding it about her figure,
called anew for cheers for Blaine,
arousing an indescribable tumult. In
the Maine delegation was TO be seen
the figure of Senator Hale, standing
on the shoulders of his colleagues, and
holding high in air upon its staff the
shield of the State of Maine. All the
time the steady roar of thousands of
threats continued without a percepti-
ble break, till, having been kept up
for thirty-five minutes, five minutes
longer than the Grant roar, it died out
as suddenly as it had begun. Thu
for more than an hour the convention
had transformed itself into a bowling
mob, for no other purpose than to
show that one candidate had as many
friends present as the other. Previous
to these outbreaks there had been a
similar one, a day earlier, when
Blaine's name was mentioned, and
there We're still others when the nOm-
mating speeches were made; but moth
ing was accomplished by any or all of
them, for neither Grant nor Blaine
was nominated. There were similar
demonstrations for Blaine and others
in the conventions of 1881, lSSS and
1892, lasting from twenty minutes to
a half-hOur each.
II is fact that none of the most sys-
tematic efforts 20 stampede" a con-
vention by these methods has succeed
ed. Usually the mine has been eX-
plOded too soon. The demonstration
has been made so far in advance of the
ballOting that its force has been wasted.
Then, too, systematic preparations for
''stampeding" have been met by equal
ly systematic efforts to cOunteraot
them. Nobody is taken by surprise,
and consequently nobody is carried off
his feet. The balloting goes on pre-
cisely as if the demonstrations had not
been made. As matter of fact, the
power in nearly all the con-
ventions does not lie either in the dele
gates, or in the political bosses who di-
rect so many of them, or i'm the ten or
twelve thousand people who get into
the convention building. 1t rests in
the people WING are outside, but whose
influence is exerted during every mo-
ment that the convention is in session.
The final deciding question is not,
Which candidate do we desire to nom-
inate9 but, Which candidate can We he
most certain to elect? To answer that
intelligently the most sagaeiOus minds
in every convention look beyond the
shouting galleries, with their few
thousands of personally interested
spectators, to the twelve millions of
voters scattered over the land, and
seek in advance their answer at the
polls.