The San Francisco call., 1898-08-17

CALL HEADQUARTERS. SACRA-
 MENTO. Aug. 16.-This was the first day of the Democratic State Conven-
 ton, and it has also been a red letter day in the lives of certain politicians who hail from the metropolis
 The internal fires that have for months stirred the Democratic party and have threatened an eruption that + would disrupt the entire Democratic :. organization in the State came very near the surface to-day, and for a time t seemed as if the threatened catas- !. .trophe could not be averted. As it was there were grave mutterings and : .rumblfngs. a great emission of oratori- cal smoke and a little flame that . scorched some of the gentlemen who are mainly responsible for the condi- tions that now exist in the party.
 As has always been stated in these dispatches, the present Democraticcon- :: Tention presents conditions peculiar to .itself-conditions that have filled the hearts of the old-time warehouses of :. the party with amazement, and which : will no doubt result in making a very interesting chapter in the history of the party. The aspirations of candi- dates are only a secondary copsidera- 'tion. and even at that are passed over with notice so slight as to give the lie to the historic greed of politicians, . and particularly Democratic politicians, for office.
 :: The subject of initial interest has from the first been the contest between the two delegations, each claiming to represent the democracy of San Fran cisco.
  Diego have been lined up by either fac ton, and it was confidently expected that to-day would see the inauguration on the floor of the convention of some political pyrotechnics worthy of the .:tine-honOred reputation of the unterri- fled. The fireworks have been set, and that they were not touched off for the amusement and qualification of some > hundreds of Sacramento's citizens of both sexes who assembled at the pavil- ion this afternoon to see the fun, was due only to a miscarriage of the origin al plan of the programmers. As it was, .. both sides rnarshaled their forces and prepared for the real contest that is :. scheduled to come off tomorrow morn ing. rain or shine.
 .: Aside from the afternoon opening session, which meant so little to the iuninitiated spectators and so much to those who can see behind and beyond the fiimsy front of parliamentary show, the doings of the day were, no doubt, as interesting and instructive to Demo- .crats as they were satisfactory to the good people of Sacramento, who have given their time and their money to make the arrangements for the conven- tion an unqualified success.
 - The arrival of the morning trains noticeably augmented the crowd of politicians who came in Sunday and yesterday, and around the various ho- tels and eating places and in the lob .bies the crowds of perspiring delegates. candidates and out-of-dates were so dense as to almost preclude passage to and fro Many of the delegations that had arrived early on the ground held caucuses in the hotel parlors and in different meeting halls about the city, and decided what action they should take on the principal subjects that will occupy the attention Of the convention. The aggregate result of these caucuses was to show the truth .e of what has already been predicted re- garding the attitude of this convention