The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-07-02

| He led In every ballot to the sixteenth
| when he received 16S votes to III 10
Douglas and six scattering. Then Dougla
ended the battle by telegraphing that. a
Buchanan was clearly the choice OF tt
majority OF the delegates, he should b
| given the necessary two-thirds vote. Thi
was done on the next ballot, and the Con
vention completed Its work by nominatin
John C. Breckenridge, OF Kentucky, 10
| Vice President.
| The Democratic National Convention
| which met at Charleston, S. c., on Apri
| 90. 1860, was symbolic of the times. N
! candidate was chosen. though the Conven
| ton lasted many days, this because OF
| disagreement between the Northern AM
| Southern sections of the party on tn
| slavery question. The Southern end of tn
| party. supported by a few delegates from
| the free States, insisted upon the adoptio!
of the doctrine of absolute non-interfereEc
! By Congress or any other authority will
slavery in the Territories. while an over
| whelming majority of the Northern end o
! the party was committed to Douglas ant
his dogma of popular sovereignty. A Ion:
| and desperate wrangle reve aled an tmpass
| able gulf between the factions. and wEer
! a majority of the delegates voted for ;
sentatives of the cotton States Withdrew
| from the Convention.
Those who remained proceeded to ballot
| for President. Fifty-seven ballots were
| taken in three days with Douglas Away:
! in the lead. but the previous adoption OF
| the two-thirds rule made a choice impossi-
| BILE, and on May 3 the Convention adjourn
! ed to meet in Baltimore on June Is. When
| the Convention met in that place at that
| time there was a new hegira which this
time included most OF the delegations
which had replaced the previous seceders
from the Southern States. Then, after
taking two ballots, the Convention de-
cided that two thirds of the vote should
nominate, and Douglas was declared the
candidate. Herschell V. johnson. OF Geor-
gia. was afterward put on the ticket for
Vice President by the National Commit
tee, Benjamin Fitzpatrick. of Alabama,
nominated by the Convention, having de-
clined to serve as a candidate.
The Story of the Seeding Faction.
The story of the action of the seeding
faction can be told in few words Those
who bolted at Charleston met in another
hall in that city, adopted an extreme pro-
slavery platform, and decided to meet in
Richmond on the second Monday in June.
From that date they adjourned to June Il.
Meantime the seceders from the Baltimore
Convention organized a second convention
in that city. and. adopting an ultra-South-
ern platform. nominated John c. Brock
inridge, of Kentucky. for President. and
Joseph Lane, OF Oregon, for Vice Presi-
dent. These nominations were endorsed
by the Charleston seceders in their final
session at Richmond.
The Democratic National Convention
met in Chicago on August 30. 1864. Eleven
Southern States, being then in rebellion.
could not, Of course, be represented, while
in the North vast numbers, formerly asso-
ciated with the Democratic party had. at
the opening OF the war. allied themselves
with the Republicans.
Nevertheless, some very prominent men
took part in the Chicago gathering. Horatio
Seymour. Governor Of New York, was its
presiding officer, and one OF its active and
conspicuous figures was Samuel J. Tilden,
then Just beginning to be known beyond
his own State as an astute politician. A
few days before the meeting of the Con-
vention President Lincoln said to a friend:
They must nominate peace Democrat
on a war platform or a war Democrat on
peace platform" The Convention chose
the second Of these alternatives. 1t adopt
ed n platform which declared the war a
failure and demanded an immediate cessa-
tion of hostilities. and it nominated for
President the best known OF all the war
Democrats. Gen. George B. Mcclellan. The
nomination for Vice President. after a
brief contest. was given to George H. Pen
dleton of Ohio Only three States ratified
the Convention's action.
The Strategy of Samuel J. TiIden.
The unexpected happened in the Demo-
critic National Convention which met at
New York on July 4, 1868. The interest
thus given it for students of political his
tory is increased by the fact that it was
the first national gathering of Democrats
since 1850, to which all of the Southern
States sent delegates. Months before the
Convention met it had been decided by
Horatio Seymour and other Democratic
leaders that Salmon P. Chase, who had
become eStrangcd from the Republican
party. should be nominated for President.
and save for one man this plan would
have been carried into execution.
That man was samuel J. Tilden who de-
cided that the candidacy of Chase would
spell defeat Instead he planned with sub
tie and mastery strategy to nominate Sey-
'nour- 1t had been arranged that Sey
mour who had been chosen President of |
The Convention. was to leave the chair to |
dominate Chase. This moment was chosen |
1y Tilden for the fulfllment OF his purpose, |
Ind when Seymour called another to pre-
tide. an Ohio delegate, shrewdly selected |
or the occasion. sprang to his feet, and, in |
| brief yet impressive speech, demanded |
he nomination OF Seymour, the confessed |
eader Of the Democracy.
Instantly men in other delegations rose |
1laI 10 TO-
when some one of the New York delegates
oined in the cheering. the end became evil
lent to all. Your candidate / cannot be-"
aid Seymour. in faltering voice as he
eft the platform. but the wave sped on
md he was made the nominee by n prac-
ically unanimous vote.
Before that there had been twenty one
,allots. In which Pend,eton, Hancock, and
hendricks were the leading competitors
I was then that the nomination of Chase
vas expected to be made. just as the
domination of Seymour was made, through
he gensraiship of Tilden. Seymour. pre-
allied upon TO reconsider the subject, re-
uctanuy submitted to the result thus
chieved. and the Convention completed its
york by nominating Gen. Frank p. Blair,
I Missouri, for Vice President
The Democratic National Convention
ED at Baltimore. on July .. 1872, was a
ull and lifeless affair, it having been set
led before it met that the only hope
DR. the Democracy was TO endorse the ac-
ion of the Liberal Republicans. who rad
omirated Horace Greeley for President
n the other hand, the Convention which :
pened at St Louis on June 81. 1875.
as one Of the most interesting and in
.ructive in the history of the party. Its
sue proved Samuel ]. Tilden to be enc