The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-08-25
As TO HULLABALOO.

heads "liullaDaloo.
The article considers, breezily, conven-
tions with the Chicago political gathering
in view as the climax of tasticality and
irresponsibility, and the most extraordi-
nary product OF the convention habit"
among our people. the development OF
which mas been frequently noted by the
observer and student OF contemporaneous
human tendencies. Nowadays, says
this bright fellow-Mr. GERALD STANLEY
LEE of Southfeld, Mass, by the way
Everything convenes, resolves, petitions,
adjourns." Indeed, ours may be said TO
be a government OF, by and for the peo-
pie through conventions. "Noihing
stays adjourned. We bavo RET o is that
think for ms, committees that do our
duty for us, and platforms spread their
wooden lengths across everything we
love, until there is hardly an inch
OF the dear old living earth to
stand on, where, fresh and sweet, from
day to day, we can live our lives our
selves, pick the flowers, look at the
stars, guess at God. garner our grain and
die" The metaphor is perhaps stretched
a little far, but we admit the grain OF
truth. ave have passed to the dsY OF
the convention fool'--indeed it really
would seem so. The convention fool
thinks--"but It takes ten thousand men
to make him think. lie has crowd
soul, O orowd-creed. With a sense of
multitude, applause and cheers he
warns his thoughts. lie exhorts, die
tates, places his little lever on the world
and jerks. To the bigotry of the man
who knows because he speaks for him
self, is added a new bigotry on the earth
the bigotry OF the man who speaks for
the nation, VINO with more colossal
prejudice than before returns from
mass meeting OF himself, and with the
effrontery that only conven tion can
give, backs his opinions with forty
States, and walks the streets OF his ma
tive town in the uniform OF all human
ity. This is a kind that has never been
possible before. A great nation grows by
laughing at its FOOLS" There is little
stretching OF metaphor here. j, is all
very expressive and very true. The con-
vention evil has reached its heig ht in
this day. 1t reached it at Chicago when
BILLY BRYAN was nominated. We may
laugh at IL, we may view it from the
is none the less an evil and menace,
this convention business. Even the
seriousness of the writer in the Critic
fails to disarm his Yankee sense OF
humor, though he would show US his
sober purpose. "From the National
Undertakers' Association and the Laund.
erers Lea que to the Christian Endeavor
tournament and the Worlds Congress,
the convention bestrides the world with
vociferousness. The silence that de-
scends FROM the hills is filled with its
ceaseless din. Every idea we have Is run
into constitute on. We cannot think
without chairman. Our whims have
secretaries, our fads bylaws. Literature
is club, philosophy society. Our re-
forms are mass meetings. Our culture is
a summer school. We mourn our mighty
dead with forty vice-presidents. We re-
member our poets with trustees, and the
immortality Of genius is duly arranged
by standing committee. Charity is an
association. Theology Ia set OF res o.
lutions. Religion is an endeavor to be
numerous and communicative"
This is bright and effective. Perhaps
after the laugh the sober thought will be
the more incisive. What finer picture OF
the extraordinary Chlcsgo gathering the
climax of the convention absurdity and
the convention evil, so far as development
Eaay have made 1t an absurdity and an evil,
than this: "The recent adventure when
the nation has experienced in Chicago is
one OF those expressive events which the
Great Spirit seems TO have substituted in
modern times for prophecy. 1t reveals
to popular government the fact that IT
will have to face-the fact that there is
nothing more whimsical, more egotisti-
cal, more irresponsible, more thoug htless
OF everything but itself, than a crowd.
Only in crowd, with a brass band for
soul, and the strongest voice for gavel.
could have been borne unchallenged ban.
ner so appreciatiye OF the Almighty as