The sun., 1896-06-24
TIE rHo-rnIRDs RULE
A Sheet Anchor or Hope, Perhaps, for the
sonnd.mnnnr nemocrats In Chicago.

WASHINGTON, juno 23.-AlthouRh no neces-
sity for invoking 1t in the interest Of any cand-
date on the Democratic side has arisen for many
years, the "two-thrd rule" as an item of usage
| In Democratic National Conventions may prove
| to be the turning point this year of the fight be-
| tween the sound money and silverlte Democrats
In Chicago. The two-thirds rule is political
| legacy of the Baltimore Convention Of 1874. In
| the election of that year there were twenty-six
States. and thirteen of these-exactiy half
| were southern States, the other thirteen being
north of Mason and Dxon's line. Tho
| Southern States In which tho Democratic
| party had It's strongest hold were fearful o.;
being outvoted in the Democratic Convention
| under plurality rule, and they therefore en-
| forced upon the party In the interest OF sec
tional autonomy the rule whereby the thirteen
| Southern States acting collectively might have
| for the protection OF their material interests q
practical veto power upon the proceedings of
| Democratic Conventions and be enabled there
| fore to defeat any hostile candidate. Not until
sixteen years later did the two-thrds rule lead
| to a severance of harmonious relations between
| two Democratic factions in the Charleston Con.
| vcntion of 1860. The Northern Democrats were
able to summon to their support l05 delegates
| to 1873 from the Southern States, q majority,
| but not a two-thirds majority. In 1850 there
| were thirty.three States. Forty-seven ballots
| were taken at Charleston without result, and
| tlon adjourned, and later on there were
| two Democratic electoral tickets In the
| field. Historically. the two-thrds rule was es-
| taOlshed twelve years before the Convention Of
| 1874. but before 1t was first adopted In the Bal.
timore Convention OF May. 1882, presided over
| by Gen. Lucas. an Ohio man, and It was then
enHrafted on Democratic usage as future
| precaution, for there was no contest In that
| Convention. the nomination of jackson being
| le In
| Convention OF Baltimore, in May, 1896. there
| was no contest either, Van Buren, being unaui-
| mously nominated for tho Presidency, and still
again In 1910. at tho June Convention OF that
year in Baltimore, Mr. Van Buren was for the
| ond time unanimously chosen MS the candidate
| OF the Democracy for President. While. there
| fore. tho two-thirds rule had existed at three
| National Conventions previous. 1t power
not invoked seriously until 1874, and there 1t
operated to defeat the nomination of Van
| Buren, the leading candidate on the first ballot,
and to bring about on the last ballot the nomi-
| nation Of a compromise candidate, Polk; since
that time tho two-thirds rule has been regarded
as an agency for killing or favorite candi-
| dates in Democratic National Conventions,
| though with no very good reason, for at all re-
| cent Conventions the delegates have come to
choice with great rapldity and without recourse
| to many ballots under the two-thirds rule. In
| 1872 there was one ballot only. In 1876. at st.
| Louis there were two ballots. In 1880 there
| were three. In 1854 there were two. In 1883
| there was one only, and in 1892 there only
| r,Io tn n,,oo.o,,, Ca, r,,,t -, , -.
| a , hor to ,.o,,o,oIis, .n, =. -, 30
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,h nn,a..,i -, TtI
| utility OF this venerable Democratic rule
appears in new and unexpected way.
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v,,i,.h h,s ho., rorno,ro,.d hr o.. p.nntiIaa
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orv r-.,c,t nr n,omo,irr, ~. ca,,so ,, w.
us. =, .,r. ,vhi,. r,otoI" Tro, $50, ".'' WV
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