The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-09-06
A MACHINE CONTENTION.


The Republican nominations for govtr-
nor and lieutenant governor OF New York
represent a very high testimonial t. the
skill and influence CT Senator P.att as
political leader. They make plain in the
most convincing way his absolute control
of his party in the Empire state.
The nonlina ton Of CDeH Ior give no.,
and Woodruff for lieutenant governor, at
this time has sven more significance than
this 1t means that Qdell at least has
held himself at the orders OF Mr.. F'latl,
and that his NOMINATION would not have
been made had the political stu alton nit
been such that Platt is convinced that
| there is no possibility Of Republ -can
defeat this year.
For many mohths PAST Udeii. the non1i-
nee for governor mas been assuring the
newspapers that he wes not candidate,
and that all other Candidates were at lib
erty to make their plans on the assump-
ton that he would not under any circun-
stances stand in their path. But the
| III TIC TduhS u Tie 1SltlOCISIS
has been steadily widening rather than
closing, and, that being the case, the
nomination of Senator Platts personal
choice became unavoidable.
The day after the nomination Ct GCv.
Roosevelt at Philadelphia senator P!att
made the statement that the nomination
was strong one, while the governors
/ denomination would, in his opinion, have
presented an unusually weak candidate
to the people This was his method Of
sustaining the line of political conduct
which he had adopted in removing a
man who might be and had been com
paratively an obstruction to rs schemes
from the office OF governor. The nomi-
nation of Odell is the complement of his
action then, and represents, pure and
simple, the success of Mr.. Flat in nomi-
mating for that high office, with strong
assurance of success, a man whom he
will own body and soul.
Tiny Tim" the euphonious dasigna-
ton which has been attached to Mr..
Woodruff, has submitted tc being twice
discarded by his leader as a possible
available man for high Office. His am
EDITIONS as possible governor have been
as cruelty wrecked as those he enter
tanned with reference to the vice presi-
dency. Whatever one may think of Mr.
Platt's action in forcing the nomination
20 Odau on bic nar+v his co0d SanSa iS
quite apparent In preventing the nominal
ton Of Woodruff for that office. The
public regards him as the merest politi-
cal CIPHER, and as candidate, either for
vice president or governor of New York
he would be a joke.
The fact that Senator Platt has brought
all the opposing elements among the New
York Republican politicians into co-opera-
ton on the nomina tons shows still more
fully the absolute nature of his control
With ex-Gov. Black, Gov: Roosevelt
Woodruff, OdelI and Payn each Playing an
instrument in the party orchestra, there
is a degree Of harmony produced which
must be very grateful to the ears of all
true imperialist politicians. 1t may be
that Senator Plat has counted without
his host in his assumption that there was
no occasion to nominate a strong man
for governor. The Democrats Of New
York are badly torn up. Hill and Croker
are at war, and the war is one TO the
knife and the knife to the hilt Croker
organ has proclaimed that the purpose
Of Hill and his followers Is to destroy
any chance of success in the state which
shared by the rank and file of the adj
herents of Croker and the opponents of
Hill. Recent political history, considered
with reference to Hills cowardly ana
tricky attitude in the Kansas City con-
vention, conveys the same view. Yet
there are many misadventures in politics,
and Senator Plat has had his plans dis
arranged before To-Day.
The real lesson of the New York Repub-
lican convention, after all, is that party
conventions are each day citing less and
less of figure. Party leaders determine
convention results beforehand, and these
gatherings have become little II any
thing more than the media chosen to rat
ify the will of the leaders. In this re-
gard the Republican state convention
was an exact parallel Of the national
convention of both parties recently held.
4