Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1896-07-01

e>>N~>>~>-S3
the Chicago convention remarkable.
The Republican convention threatened
to be overloaded with presidential ma
terial, and for a year before it met half
dozen active candidates were canvass.
ing the country for support. The DEM
ocratic party was almost without can
didate until six months ago, when Gov
ernor Matthews Of Indiana was in
dorsed Most Of the "fayorite sons"
who had been discussed were holding
off to see what the Democratic state
conventions had to say on the currency
question. Some Of them could not run
on free silver platform, and some OF
them would not. Some Of them were
pledged to silver without recourse.
Some wanted to see what way the cur
rency cat would jump before they de-
elared their principles.
Just as soon as there came an intima-
tion that the convention would probably
declare for silver, candidates began to
grow on the bushes. Some are ardent
silver men, some are compromisers and
some might be willing to run on any
platform that will suit the party.
Such growth Of presidential timber
in 80 short time is phenomenal. And
not satisfied with the great opportunities
offered in their own party, Democrats
in some places are discussing even the
possibility Of finding Republican bolter
from St. Louis to lead the party to VIC
tory. They think a Republican from a
silver state might carry the west and
south and hold enough Of his own party
in the east, if the Populists indorse
him, to assure his election.
And if the silver Democrats do not
centrol-f the administration influence
is strong enough finally to hold the con-
vention to the administration currency
standard, Mr.. Cleveland is always a
possibility, even though the Democrats
Of Virginia have declared the third term
idea to be un-American.
It is a very pretty situation. Who
could have foretold it? Six months ago
the Hon. ]. Sterling Morton, head of
the agricultural department at Wash.
ington, said to me: "There will be two
chief candidates for the presidency-a
sound money candidate and rotten
money candidate-and the Republicans
will have the rotten money candidate.
It is hardly necessary to say that Sec
retary Morton's idea Of "rotten money"
is silver, coined at the option Of the
owner; at the ratio Of 16 to 1.
Six months before that time Senator
Jones of Arkansas told me the Demo
cratic national convention would declare
for the free coinage Of silver, and that
Mr.. Cleveland was not possible candi-
date.
Who was the prophetp Not Secretary
Morton, certainly. '"-7-
The Two-thirds Rule.
It is safe to say the Democratic party
approaches the Chicago convention with
greater trepidation than any other in
its history except the memorable con-
vention at Charleston. The party is old
er than the convention, because ma
tional conventions were not known to
the Democracy till Andrew jackson was
nominated The Jackson convention was
held at Baltimore May 81, 1882, and It
followed the Endorsement Of jackson by
the legislatures of New York and Penn
sylvania. In fact, the convention mere
ly ratified the popular choice for the
presidency. But over the vice presidency
there was a contest, and in this origi-
mated the famous two thirds rule which
has had so much weight in determining
the action of many conventions since.
It is Democratic institution this two
thirds rule. No other party has adopted
it, but the Democratic party has clung
to it for "a years.
No one knows who was the author OF
the rule. Mr.. Saunders of North Caro-
lima reported it from the committee on
rules in 1889 in the following resolu-
ton:
Resolved, That each state be entitled In the
nomination to be made for tho vice presidency
to q number Of votes equal to the n;;mber they
will be entitled to in the electoral college un-
der the new apportionment In voting for pres
ident and vice president and that two-thirds
OF the whOle numDer OF VOteS III cOnVeutlOu
shall be necessary to constitute choice.
This rule ex-senator Martin Of Kan
sas says must be changed in the coming
convention. 1t has been attacked in
many conventions by the friends Of men
and measures which seemed to have the
favor of majority Of the delegates. But
it has withstood every attack. Is was
voted down in the second convention Of
the party, but the vote was reconsid-
cred, and it was adopted again. In 1874
it was attacked, but though there was a
majority of Van Buren's friends in the
convention some Of them held the
two-thirds rule to be above partisan
ship, and its adoption by the aid of
their votes defeated their candidate. In
1S49 the rule was Endorsed by vote
of IT'S to IS, and in 1852 by 279 to IS.
The rule does not apply to the adop-
tion of the platform, but controls the
nomination of the party's candidate. So
there can be no issue on it between the
friends of silver and the friends of gold.
For that reason the opposition to it may
fail, as it has failed in the past.