The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-05-19
POLITICAL NOTES AND GOSSIP.

Worrying senator COcl<rell.-News
of the quiet but determined effort being
made by group Of influential Eastern
Democrats to induce Senator Cockrell Of
Missouri to enter the race against Mr..
Bryan was telegraphed all over the coun-
try Thursday night From Washington.
kilograms of enquiry poured in upon
friends of Senator Cockrell in this city
! from all points Of the compass yesterday.
| Senator COckrell, as usual was too much
engrossed with the business of the Senate
| to respond to the cards of tile newspaper
| men that were sent in to him by the
| score. A close friend of the Missourian,
| however, said that the Senator was very
much worried by the annoyance and that
! he was utterly at a loss to understand
| what had caused II all. The Senator, 1t
| is said realizes fully that IL is practically
too late for anybody to enter the lists
against Mr.. Bryan, and that the Nebras-
kan Will be nominated at Kansas City on
the first ballot. Democratic leaders in
both branches Of Congress discussed the
| Cockrell movement yesterday with
great deal Of interest. 1t is possibly sig
nificant that none Of them would consent
to be quoted on the subject. Four Demo-
cratic Senators and seven Democratic
! members of the House told Times rep
resentative that they had been aware for
more than week that strong organized
effort was being made to project Senator
Cockrell into the race against Mr.. Bryan.
Each also added with startling frankness
that the Missourian would poll more
votes than the Nebraskan. 1t was pointed
out that If it were possible to nominate
Senator Cockrell no attention would have
to be paid to the South by the campaign
managers, as, Of course, that section
would be solid for him. In the West 1t
is believed he would be as strong as
Bryan, while the advantage his nominal
tion would offer would be the certainty
that Northern Democrats would rally to
his support enthusiastically and solidly.
The New England Senator who first sug-
gested through The Times that Senator
CockrelFs nomination would guarantee
Democratic success In November de-
clared yesterday that after testing the
sentiment of the Senate on the question
he had satisfied himself that the fact Of
the Missourian having been Confederate
brfgadier would not count against him.
There is not vestige of sectional bitter
ness In this country today. as those Of
us who went through II for twenty-five
years after the civil war understand it,"
said this stalwart Republican from New
England. Il don't believe Cockrell would
lose vote by reason of his having been
Confederate soldier"
Bnrker at the White House.-The
visit which the Hon. Wharton Barker made
to the White House on Thursday ito see
his old friend Mckinley is regarded rs
something Of fine joke by Democratic and
Populist members of Congress. All along
they have contended that the Mid Readers
have set up In business for themselves
solely for the purpose OF running a side |
show attachment to Mr., Hanna's big hippo
drome, and they declare, that the confer |
ence between the mid-road candidate and |
Mr. Mckinley only confirms their suspicion. |
Before the Cincinnati Convention, which |
nominated Barker, was. held the charge was |
openly made by Senators Butler, Allen, Pet
tigrew. and other sPopulist leaders in |
Washington that all Of the expenses Of the |
convention were being borne by the Re-
publican National Committee. This charge |
has been silently ignored by Mr.. Hanna,
as well as by all OF the mid-road leaders.
Frequent efforts have been made to induce
Barker. Donnelly. and others to discuss the
charge. and 1t is commented upon as a
remarkable fact that not one Of these ex-
tremely loquacious statesmen. who are ever
ready to talk on any subject, has said q
word about It. Those who believe the
charge is true interpret the astonishing
silence of the mid-roaders as meaning that
they think the surest way to stop the dis
cussion is for them to say nothing. Caudi-
date Barker's talk while In this city
abounded in denunciation Of Bryan and the
Democracy. This Of itself, is accepted as
plainly indicating that the Mid Readers
boldly have thrown of the mask and are
now in the fight simply as allies of the
Hannaites. There is considerable fear in
Democratic circles that the Mid-Roaders
will make a considerable stir In Kansas,
and that possibly they can poll enough
votes in that State to give the Kansas
electoral vote to Mr.. Mckinley. Kansas
Populism is founded upon such a strong
of Republicanism that the
managers do not seem to have
the same degree of confidence in holding
Kansas in the Bryan column this year as
they would have If the Barker-Donnelly
had not given the hysterical bolt
ers in the Sunfower State some semblance
of excuse to repudiate their former alliance
with the Democrats.
Plates Mastery Complcte.-The ap-
made by President Mckinley
Yesterday of officers for the new Federal
judicial district OF New York, with Buffalo
as its centre, show conclusively that the
Hon. Thomas Collier Plat is. as New
York insurgent put 1t, 1.-The whole thing"
In tb.t Ctata From the HIM IOhn