Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1900-06-09

ing that in the cost Of any article OF
(which so many had to be purchased
the difference of only few cents
would count greatly in the total. AS II
lis, about s32, 900 will have been expend-
led in putting the hall into readiness for
1.-THE convention. Whether this sum VIII
come out of the 800, 900 offered by the
city of Philadelphia, or be In addition
Ito it. seems not yet to be decided. Ihe
lefty has raised the round sum- ana VIII
do the best it can towards paying the
other expenses, but may not be able
RI mass over the check without some
few bills for the national committee to
settle.
while it seemed like an act of extreme
liberality to offer this amount OF money
| for the privilege of holding a political
| ratification meeting here, ii now appears
to have been very shrewd piece of
| business. Every man who gave 30 gets
| a ticket for each session OF the conVen-
| ton In "A hall no larger than this in a
great city on tha Atlantic seaboard which
| is in the centre of an enormous popula-
| ton, quite different from that about Min
neapolis or St Louis. the rivalry to get
| into the convention will be very intense,
| ana the price Of seats. ii is predicted will
20 up to nearly the S25 mark. Ten thou
sand people in Philadelphia alone, it is
estimated, have made up their minds to
attend the convention. The thousands
upon thousands who Will come as march
ing clubs and other political organiza-
tions would be unwilling to go home
without attending at least the sessions of
one day OF course, there Will be many
tickets to give away, for each national
committeeman is entitled to twenty-five.
and each delegate to two, in addition to
his own; but most of these will be taken
by persons who come to Philadelphia on
invitation to accept and occupy them
The great army of people who arriv.
here unprovided will have to look to the
curbstone venders and their supplies will
be drawn from somewhat limited sources.
Besides having tickets at their disposal
of a commercial value not much below
the 100000. which Philadelphia offered,
this city will reap rich harvest from the
entertainment of many people and
he advertisement which the presence of
strangers from all parts OF the country
always gives TO the Institutions Of
town. There will he little OF the eXtor-
ton practised here That Is disgracins
Kansas CAty. Philadelphia is 50 much
larger that a crowd can diffuse itself to
better advantage in the city ana the out
lying suburbs. Then again, the Kansas
city eXtortion may be related to the fact
that the party which meets there is des-
ined to fire "A powerful gun at the trusts,
and so the hotel beneticiaries of the con
ycution doubtless felt called upon to or
ganiZe a trust right under its nose in or
der to show how bad such things are. and
also to show how free Democrats always
from the tdlill Oh any SuCH HtldIlbuS
thing.
The convention hall here is well sup
piled with cafes, SO that the crowds need
not return to the city for midday
meal. Barber shops and news stands
have already been established on the
grounds. which, with an army Of vend-
ers of eatableS and drinkables, VIII make
the day tolerable from the middle OF the
forenoon until six o'clock. 1t appears not
yet to have been decided at what time
the sessions will begin after the opening
Ia. ptF..1N n .ln ~. a
for very short session. Ii has been Gus
tomary at other conventions to begin on
the succeeding days at about half past
ten, but there is some suspicion here that
twelve o'clock may be the hour every
day. The great objection to that hour IS
that il does not leave enough of the pro-
ceedngs of the day to the afternoon
newspapers except in the West, which
profits by the difference in time. lnas-
much as more than half Of the readers
of the country get their information
from afternoon newspapers. which CON
tain the news Of today and not of yes
terday, it would seem only proper that
more businesslike hours for opening the
sessions of this great convention should
be taken advantage Of. The interest OF
the reading public outside Is hardly sec
ondarv to those Of the great body Of
spectators within. The facilities for re-
porting this convention and telegraph
ing its proceedings have never been eN-
crled. Five hundred seats At tables 70"
reporters have been provided, ana tu!l-
nels through which messenger boys can
pass out Of the hall. underneath the
spectators seats. to the telegraph room
have been ingeniouSly constructed. Their
will be no obstruction between the re-
porters tables and the wires. and both
telegraph companies announce their
equipment for handling business the most
ample ever offered.
In spite of the crowd. the heat ana the
hard seats there is strange fascination
about national convention which makes
those who attend once invariably eager
to go again. 1t is great hiStory-mak-
ing occasion. People like to remember
that they We're present ana actually saw
all the delegates who put In nomination
for the presidency Abraham Lincoln or
ulysses s Grant. Moreover. the practice
of inviting as guests the surviving dele
gates Of fOrty-four years before, winch
this year has been inauguratcd here. VIII
add to the sentimental interest Of the oc-
casion. Significant contrasts VIII suggest
themselves on every hand between that
convention of 1856. held in this same city,
ana On June IS in the old Lafayette han,
the convention which meets here thi|
year The field for c9ntrast5 Is N"Iy
tional convention to meet in Philadei-
phia each typifyins an important stage
in the party'S history not only IN feli-
ton to its own organic life, but also 10
that earlier convention which assembled
here in l776 and promulgated as a result
of its deliberations the Declaration "i
American independence Setlins h3Ith AZ 4,
it does the fundamental principles o.
free government the world over Ere
mont'~ nomination in this city aimed 70
max. ne principles Of freedom enjoned
in that declaration more real than it
slave-holding author had eyer dreamed.
ana Grants denomination siSnallZed an
important stage in their accomplishment
Mrkinlev's denomination will necessarily
he accompanied by the first declarations
i'm our national history in favor Of a new
world policy. That this can ne squared
Inpir,liv with the precepts Of the dec
i 9T,'i,I is the Republican belief, and in
I'LL Mort orators and rhetoricians have 4
worthy field for the display OF their skill