New-York tribune., 1896-10-29
THE EGG AS AN ARGUMENT.
POPOCRATIC MANAGERS MAKE A GREAT
TO-DO OVER THE INCIDENT


JONES EXCHANGE COMPLIMENTS
GOOD NEWS AT REPuBLI-
CAN HEADQUARTERS
Chicago. Oct 2s-Chicago woke up this morn
ing and found itself confronted by a new issue
Not an issue affecting the question of sound
money and the maintenance OF the National
honor; not one involving the relative merits OF
protection and free trade: not one demanding the
impeachment of government by injunction;
not one indeed calling for the repeal OF the
Civil Service law: nor n single one. in fact OF the
dozen extraordinary propositions contained in
the Chicago platform. but new issue, embodied
in the momentous question: Who threw that
egg?'
Chairman Jones. who is perfectly willing to
stand sponsor for most OF the campaign material
concocted at Popocratic headquarters. is under
stood to claim priority of invention also In the
case Of The Egg as an Issue In the Campaign"
He it was. so his admirers say. who at once saw
in the incident of yesterday an unanswerable
argument in favor of the proposition that 90
cent dollar is good enough for any man. especial
ly II he be a workingman His b,:"eau, therefore,
is. hguratively speaking. foaming at the mouth
to-day and directing all Ito energies into a chan
mel leading in a straight line to the slums OF this
clty, WneTe tnoS3 energies designed 10 arouse
all the passion and prejudice of an ignorant
rabbe. AS result. sound money meetings have
already been broken mp by rufiians shouting for
Bryan and Altgeld. small riots in different parts
of the city have narrowly been averted by the
prompt action Of the police, and the more enter
| prisng than discreet reporter of local news
| paper is compelled to nurse a broken head as an
outcome Of an unprovoked assault by Bryan
| heelers
The egg as an argument is of course neither
| convincing nor conclusive 1t gains in strength
| it grows old. IL is true. and its offensiveness
| increases in propOrtionate ratio. But the egg
| Of yesterdays incident was. according to the
| testimony of the chief victim even not more than
twenty-fou hours old. 1t, therefore, had not at
tanned the age or dignity. as it were of corpus
| delict. The application indeed. Of little soap
and water would probably have had the same
effect upon its remains as upon the rabble that
shouted itself hoa Sc to-day over the outrage
both would have vanished. In the heated magi-
nation of Chairman Jones and his assistants
| however there visions of whole crates full Of
| eggs Of all ages and sizes hurled at Bryan and
a deep-seated plot on the part Of the Republican
managers to compel the candidates farewell per-
! formance to he conducted behind a net. The
| crown of thorns so unctuousy displayed on the
! brow Of the champion of the "toiling Masses
| has been replaced hy a decayed omelet. AS a
political issue it beats anything ever heard Of.
II is the expiring szzle Of the POpOcratiC cam
| BOYS THE CAUSE OF 1T ALL.
The incident upon which all the ingenuity of a
detective bureau has been concentrated, and which
resulted this afternoon In the arrest of couple
of boys resolves itself into the throwing Of an
arlo,-
afternoon while Mr. Bryan. followed by motley
| crowd was making his way 10 Battery D Hill
in carriage. The egg struck the back of a city
| politician Of the Alderman variety. and as Is the
habit Of eggs under such conditions. there ex-
| pInded II missed the carriage in which Mr. and
Mrs Bryan were riding by at least twenty-five
feet Chairman Jones says that the egg was in
| tended for Bryan an assertion which is disputed
by eye-witnesses. If so. il was an erratic speci-
men Of Workmanship and an almost incredible
manifestation of brutality toward a woman il
is much easier to believe that the marksman in
| ,ended N decorate an Alderman than that he
sought to throw an argument OF this sort AT
Presidential candidate in the presence of his
wife
The papers are unanimous in their condemna
tion Of the act-as. indeed they have right t'
be-but they disposed to attach an impor
tance 10 the occurrence, involving, as they seen
10 think IT does the fair fame Of the city, whicf
| no unprejudiced and dispasslonate outsider car
ascribc to SO vulgar. hut wholly trivial. an Incl
dent The capital. indeed, which the Popocrati'
Committee is attempting to make out OF the
matter lends some color to the suspicion tina
the whole incident one of the committee:
own making The proceedings with regard t.
the parade projected for Saturday next, an6
abandoned when conflict with the authorize:
or tho airing Of a grievance at the very leas
seemed impossible justify any suspicion almost
POPocRATIC CAMPAIGN METHODS
Instead of arousing the indignation Of thu
country the incident is more likely to draw re
rewed attention to the dsreputable method
adopted by the Popocratic campaign managers
They early resorted everybody will remem
her. to misrepresentation and forgery The!
misouoted Lincoln. Hamilton. Webster. Blain
and Harrison: they sent out from London, New
York and other points letters written to mis-
lead they put in circulation fasehoods to TIL
, attitude Of prominent Republicans. and late
most outrageous statements as to tie conver
sion of prominent business men. They starte
! the cry Of coercion when they found tha rail
road men and aborers generally were drifting
away from them Weeks ago they abandone
argument. and resorted to the methods of III
a malcontent and the trickster. Their hope tn
day for success rests on their ability tn iniiane
D irritate and deceive the people.
!, The Republicans on the other hand. have r.
lied on educational methods. and have sen
Speakers and documents to every state count
l and precinct Where men did not undcrstan
, the questions at issue explanations were made
: where they were I'm doubt arguments were ad
vanced: where they asked questions answer
I were given There was no appeal to prejudice
but in every case appeal to principles and stron
r efforts were made 10 convince those opposed I
r Republican policy that there was no resort
= personal abuse. No roorback no msrepresent la