The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-01-10

2 sion except as he learns to adjust him
self to the representation of clients,
customers or stockholders. In thought
and word he may be called a leader.
: In truth ne may be a leader in the
best meaning of that term, but only
l because he has insight and force
7 enough to see the best way of reach
ing the ends which his supporters seek
2 9 @ 9
We are still prone to love of romance
Many me- who know better have by
t this time permitted themselves to really
| believe that Mr.. Bryan sDrang before
the Chicago convention unknown and
Unheralded, and unexpectedly waved a
, wand OF verbal witchery to which a
thousand strong men yielded before
they could recover mental indeDend-
ence.
Yet, before that convention, Mr. Bry-
an was as well known in the politics
of the west and south as any man in
the country. He had made great
speeches before, both on the stump and
in congress. Before the convention met
it was plain that he was more favored
then any other Democrat by the Popu-
lists, and by that very large clement
of Democrats who threatened to vote
with the POpuliStS il any compromise
were made on the money question. In
his Nebraska fusion campaign he had
been brought by the exigency of party
1
Populist leaders. and with the leaders
of that element of Democrats just men,
toned.
The convention itself, while composed
largely OF men who had attended few
| national gatherings, was, nevertheless,
by no means a meeting of novices The
! leaders OF the delegations were, with
out exception, veteran politicians. The
| other members of the delegations were
| thoroughly acquainted with state pol
| itics, and knew precisely what the vot-
ers at their homes would and would not
support in national ticket and plat
| form.
1t would be shallow observer who
would confuse their vigor of expression
with unbridled and unguided impulsive
ness. Day after day, and night after
night, not only during the convention,
but for weeks ahead, the qualifications
| of various possible candidates were dis
| cussed by these men and their friends,
carefully and extensively.
| j do not say that they went to Chi
cago intending to nominate Bryan, but
l do know that Bryan was not out of
their minds. and that each delegation
went to Chicago ready to continue the
canvass of qualifications and unite with
! other delegations on the man who
would best represent the issue and at
the same time produce the greatest vot-
ing strength in the respective states.
@ g @
Now we see how Bryan's nomination
! came about as a naturatreSult of forces
| and calculations at work in the con-
vention. Not only was the speech it
self a striking intellectual performance,
/ but the nomination of the speaker was
| erected by intellectual processes in the
! convention, and not by an outburst of
/ hot enthusiasm. 1t was not one man,
| but 500 men, chiefly from the west and
I, i
| the result was produced because the
| 500 men had been sent after the result
! by several millions of American peo-
pie.
| Up to the time of delivering the
speech, Bryan had little of formally
| organized strength in the convention,
| but he had a host OF friends and per-
| hapS no enemies.
This was a strinkingly advantageous
| position, in view of the fact that the
silver forces were divided among four
| or five candidates, not one of whom
had in hand or in sight enough strength
to nominate, and every one of whom
had encountered difficulties which had
brought him almost to d standstill at
that juncture
Boies was out of the fight, in the
judgment of impartial students, before
| the convention opened.
Matthews had outside of his own
state, no strength that could be de-
| pended upon to stick to him.
| Mclean had no grasp at all on the
forces which were really molding the
shape of the convention. ~
Bland was by far the strongest
among those around whom a structure
of organization had been built, and yet
we who were fighting for Bland had
| seen before the dawning of the Bryan
morning that the great Missourian's
-4r J, -
further accession came reluctantly and
with dubious reservations. Notwith-
standing the loyal and cordial support
rendered By such favorites in Populist
strongholds as Overmyer of Kansas,
the delegates from half dozen south
| ern states reported that the Popuilsts
would never unite with the Democrats
| if Bland were nominated. 3
60 not vet know the reason for
the Populist unwillingness to support
| Bland, beyond their vague statement
that he was too much of a Democratic
partisan to help them in, any way ex
cept along the one line of free silver
coinage.
At any rate, the stubborn belief of
numerous southern delegates that
| fusion in their states and counties was
impossible or difficult if Bland were
nominated, stood like barrier against
all our efforts to build up the Bland
strength.
Then the whisper of objection to
Bland on the ground of religious SYM
! pathies went around. 1t is an ugly
whisper, this of religious prejudice,
and particularly distasteful to broad
minded men, but it had an undeniable
power in the Chicago convention, as it
always has in gatherings where the
wishes of immense masses of men are
being anxiously considered.
G, 9 @
The evening before the convention I
sat on the coping in front of the Re-
publican headquarters, talking with an
old-college friend, who is now the man.
ager of a northwestern railroad. He is
a man of rather unusual political acu-
men, though he has never been regu-
larly in politics. His father was one