The age-herald., 1899-12-29
PRESIDENT-MAKING SYNDICATE
MT. Hanna and His Friends Proposing to
 Stay in Successful Business
rom the New York Evening Post.

From the New York Evening Post.
 It is now generally believed in Washing ton that MT Hanna's enthusiastic and ef- fective opposition to the Payne resolution for proportionate representation in the re- publican national convention means more than return for past favors. MT. Hanna finds himself today the idol of the southern politicians, as he doubtless expected would be the case MT. Payne and those who join ed in the movement to cut down the south ern representation are correspondingly dis liked Only eight years ago the Mckinley men at Minneapolis bitterly complained that their defeat by General Harrison had been due to the southern delegate and they were then most emphatic for the pro- posed reform in representation. What is the secret of Hanna's assertion of that cause now, at time when it could have easily been made operative?
 The knowing ones here assert That the Hanna syndicate does not propose to go out of business with the expiration of MT. McKinley's second term, but will go ahead and make other presidents as long as the syndicate plan finds no effective resis tance. It was originally designed for MT. Me Kinley, but it has worked so well for him and so proftably for the men back of it that they are not inclined to disorganize. So long as the democratic party keeps free silver in its platform they do not believe they need to fear popular disapproval of their method of nominating presidents. It will be recalled that this syndicate was organized about the time of Mr McKin- ley's financial embarrassment; it's members saw dn him available presidential material and they had ambitions themselves. Ac- cordingly they paid off his debts and fioateu him on the market
 It requires considerable capital to run literary bureaus, get control of the news papers, and send personal "persuaders" through the south, corralling the negroes. But so skffully was the syndicate organ iZed that all its plans went through with out hitch. And this was in spite of oL- stacles of no small dimensions. The fact that the campaign, and issues shaped them selves, was to be fought on the money question, would have been a discourage ment to most packers of a man who had been a lifelong devotee of cheap money, and had been most emphatic in his de- nunciaton of the Cleveland administration for maintaining the gold standard. An or dinary combination of political capitalists would have thought it useless to attempt to float such a candidate in such year. But the stock of this syndicate was in strong hands, and they never wavered. They set up their machinery soldly in one state after another that they knew just how they were coming out. MT. Grosvenor was able to predict how the delegates from Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and such states would vote with as much accuracy as a man who has been to market in the morning and brought roast of beef or quart of potatoes is able to predict what he will have for dinner.
 Mckinley was nominated on the first ballot. His success marked the turning of a corner in American methods of nom- mating presidents. It was felt at the time that henceforth the syndicate plan would find great favor, but it was not suspected that the same syndicate would remain con- tinuously in the business. It now appears likely to do so. While the southern dele gates may not be willing in 1904 to obey MT. Hanna's request out of love for him and nothing more, 1t is fair to presume that he will enjoy preferential votes over other bidders. In fact, the negro politicians of the south say he Is "man who can be depended upon," and "the kind they like to deal with" It is certain that any rival syndicate would have to bid very high to take delegates out of his hands. His repu- tation for meeting his due bills will make his offers more acceptable, even if they are not quite so large.