The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-03-16
THE PATTISON BOOM.
Penn" in Philadelphia Bulletin.

Penn" in Philadelphia Bulletin.
Robert l.. Pattison's name as 4 presi-
dental candidate at Chicago Is as much
OF q possibility AS that Of any other of The
In a careless, happy -ao-luck way. Shrewd
old Jerry Black once said of Pattison when
at Harrisburg: That young man Is
dreaming Of the presidency. and he is
VIII be quoted against him in FEDERAL
politics." The ex-governor stil has
scores Of Philadelphia friends who firm
ly believe that destiny will eventually
still has at least six presidential elections
IN which he may stand chance al 1t
before he becomes as old as Allison, Nor
ton and Morrison now are.
ILL
1t has frequently been said that Patti
son could have had the nomination at
Chicago in 1892 If William +. Harrty, In
hSndling the Pennsylvaaia delegation.
for his own interests. There was some at
tempt to lodge this idea in Pattison's
mind, but prone to suspicion as he Is,
he has never been known to indicate that
It had taken root there. or course, there
is no doubt that the New York delegation,
Tammany and pretty much all Of the
anti-Cleveland outfit, on that occasion
would have gone over to Pattison II Har-
rity had put him In nomination. But
Harrty had been committed to Cleveland
from the start; he was one of the very
first Democrats I'm the country to see the
popular reaction that was settling in 'or
him after Hill had overreaced himself
with his snap game in New York; at least
a fourth of the Pennsylvania delegation
were plotting against Harrity under the
personal direction of Wallace, and Will
lam &. Whitney had taken him into his
confidence In the making of the Cleveland
plans. OF course, there would have been
a sort Of absolution for Harrity II he had
taken advantage OF an opportunity for
his personal friend and associate in his
own state, but IL Is questionable whether
there was ever time in that week Of in
trigue in the Windy City when the oppor-
tunity may be fairly said to have been
at hand. Campbell, Boies. Gray and Pal
mer all had the same bait thrust at them
by the Hin men. and there was more se-
rious interest in them as possibilities than
there was In PattsOn, who seemed to have
little personal attraction for anybody in
the convention outside of the Pennsylva-
mans Indeed. some of the Pennsylva-
mans who We're most strenuous In want
ing his name sprung on the delegates
were both his and Harrity's worst ene-
mics.
There has never been much doubt In
the minds Of cool and disinterested men
who looked on at Chicago in June. 1892.
and kept the run of the game in the vari-
possible to beat Cleveland In that conven-
tiOn than it had been eight years before.
when he was first nominated at Chicago.
Whitney had many more strings to pull
than Manning had on that occasion. and
Harrity in '92 recOllected how he saw the
Hendricks combination vanish into thin
air when some Of his colleagues went up
with it, If he had attempted to set up
Pattison, the chances were not in fifty
that he would not have shared the same
fate as Hendricks in 1884.
-:ll:-
There is no likelihood that Harrity will
civ
sylvania delegation to Pattison this year.
The ex-governor has hardly reached the
stage of national reputation but he is
certainly the best known Democrat Of
Pennsylvania outside of the state since
Randall's time. There is a good deal Of
solid respect for him in his party, even
among those who have been his factional
opponents. With Cleveland out Of the
race there would be as much Of an Oppor-
tunity for PattisOn as there Is now likely
to be for any other candidate. Pattison's
only chance would come, as 1t always did
in the years of his luck, in the event Of
big Republican blunder.
And yet there Is no man in the Demo-
cratic party who in some respects would
suit them better. His tariff opinions have
ton he has no record at all. and the
last time an interrogation on that point
was put to him with the purpose Of
printing his answer he refused to say
any views; he has been reformer, but
he believes in turning Republicans out of
office: he is a Methodist, but he has kept
his political conscience in the custody
first of Mr.. Cassidy and Mr.. Harrity, both
eminent Roman Catholics; he has been
president of a bank, but he has taken
care not to offend Democrats who do not
share national bank ideas: he can box
between william NJ, Singerly and Herbert.
Welsh. and he can look as solemn as Sam
uel j. Tilden when on public dress parade,
and talk as platitudnously as Grover
Cleveland himself. He has the same sim
pie, honest, democratic he bits that Cleve-
land has: always has led clean personal
life In his comings and goings; has done
very litt', at t 6 bar since he has engaged
In picking up a livelihood along with the
other ambitious young men whom Lewis
c. Cassidy sent Into the court from time
to time like hungry clubs. and has not
greatly increased the quantim of scholar
school course, his reading being chiefly on
lines relating to politics. finance, social
science and his composition smacking a
little too much of the demagogue rather
than OF the thinker.
tit
Whatever may become of his presiden-
tial boom. under Harrity's direction, those
who think that the oomplete downfall of
Pattison's luck in the Warwick cam
paign meant his politically extinction are
likely ultimately TO find themselves mis-
taken, The next quarter Of a century will
probably see-him q factor In city and
state affairs, and q stronger figure on. the
national horizon. In 1880 Sngerly pro,
claimed that the young upstart would he
sent back into private life for having
been fool in the controllers Office. and
ii has often amused me to think of the
day when ! saw Pattison hotly following
up the publisher of the Record in a car
fiage with a warrant for libel before old
Judge Findlay. In 1888 A. X Mcclure
announced with oracular gravity and ele-
giac emphasis that the youthful governor
had by making Cassidy his attorney gen
lie character In Pennsylvania. and that
there was nothing left to do but to put
an appropriate head-stone over the folly
of the rash young man.
-:II-
In 1886 he sat in the executive mansion
almost alone on the eve of the Democrat
ic convention which put Black i'm nomina-
deigning to notice him as an adviser:
when he came back to Philadelpha there
was apparently. no opening for him in
politics for many long year to come;
but only four years later, Mr.. Harrity per-
formed that brilliant piece of manage
ment at Scranton, by which the veteran
Wallace was completely outwitted and
outgeneralled In person. ana by which
Pattison again became governor before
he was past 10. venture to say that there
will be no man who will land on his feet
more promptly when the Democratic re-
action comes about some of these days
than this clear-headed. temperate. sober
garbed, we'll behaved Philadelphian. who ct
only iG has had the experience of vet
eran in official life.
TSlc cNCt ISn wAV 10