Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1899-04-16


New York, April 1.-THE dollar JEFF
ferson dinner of the Chicago platform
Democrats at the Grand Central Pal
ace tonight in point OF numbers was
one of the biggest affairs ever held in
this city.
Nearly 1900 men and women sat
down at long tables in the various
rooms in the big palace. There were
all kinds of people there, dressed in all
kinds Of clothes. White men elbowed
with colored men and white women
with colored women. There were four
Japanese and three Chinese present,
but the Chinese were merely specta-
tors and sat up in the second gallery.
They said that they had come to see
Bryan.
The main hall presented different
aspect from that of the Metropolitan
Opera House at the ten-dollar dinner
of the Democratic club. There was no
flower embellishments, but just great
long avenues of tables covered with
plain white plates. The only orna-
mentations were punches of celery and
granite ware coffee potts.
Looking from the top tier the hall
presented scene such as is seen at
western barbecues or Rhode Island
clam bakes. A brass band of 35 pieces
on the balconies discoursed music
throughout the evening. The diners
began to arrive at o'clock.
The women to the number of AIS
dined in the long hall just off the
second gallery. They sat down to the
tables at 80 o'clock. There was no
concerted attempt to seat the 5000
diners simultaneously All were told
to go in and sit down. About seven
O'Clock nearly every seat of the men S
tables was occupied, and the service
| began. Over six hundred waters
started out into the main hall with
| soup few minutes before seven
| o'clock.
The menu included soup, fish, roast
| beef, turkey, ice cream, coffee and
cigars.
Three thousand bottles of wine
were gratuitiously served by wine
company.
| William Jennings Bryan did not ar
rive until shortly after seven O'Clock.
| Crowds on the outside signalled his
appearance by tremendous cheering.
| He came in cab and was escorted
through the tremendous crowd to the
| waiting room outside the main hall.
| Here he shook hands with the COM
! mittee. Then he was escorted to the
| guests table, long table in front of
the platform.
! tremendous amount of cheering
and applause greeted MIR. Bryan when
| he arose to speak. He said Demo-
| crat has a right to pay whatever he
| pleases for a dinner If he has the
money. The character of politicl
! banquet is determined not by the cost
| of it, but by the sentiments which are
woven into the post-Drandial oratory
| We have not one word of hostility to
utter toward those Democrats who left
| the Democratic party in 1896, but there
! can be no harmony between those
whose opinions are as antagonistic as
| the opinions set forth in the Chicago
| platform and in the Indianapolis plat
| form.
| All that we ask is that those who
come into the Democratic party shall
| be. a part of the Democratic party. We
| Simply insist that man cannot be a
political 'bigamist- The Democratic
/ platform is satisfactory to those who
supported it in 1896.
Those who believe that we should in
wife into the Democratic party all
those who can share in the purposes
and aspirations of that party-I cannot
speak for others-I speak for myself
are wrong, and say that l would not
| abstract from it a single plank to get
back every man who left it. Nor do
believe that we could draw people to
| us by cowardice. The day for ambig-
| uity' has passed. That platform means
something, and if you ask me why 1,
was that in the campaign or 1896 the
hearts of the people were stirred as
they have not been lately stirred, l
| will tell you that it was because the
struggling masses found in that plat
| form an inspiration and aggregated
wealth found in it a menace 10 every
man who robs his neighbor for his own
benefit.
There is a plank IN the platform of
which l desire to make mention. The
Republican party and the Gold Demo
Gratis have been burying the money
question so often that I almost feel l
ought to apologize for speaking of the
dead before so large an audience.
| daughter and cheersC The Demo-
cratic platform denounced the gold
standard, called it un-American and
anti-American and pledged the party
to destroy it at once and substitute in