Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-04-17
GOSSIP FROMGOTHAM
Tammany Small Fry at Sea as to
Bryan and Dewey.
WAITING FOR CR0KER'S GUIDANCE
Ex-senator Hill Watching Their
Hesitancy With Interest.
STATE REPUBLICAN POLITICS
Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.

Special Correspondence of The Evening Star
NEW YORK, April 49, 1900.
In the absence of orders from Richard
Croker, who is still on the other side of
the Atlantic. the average Tammanyite is
exceedingly chary about going on record in
favor of either Bryan or Dewey Some, how
ever, argue that Croker is already on rec
ord as favorable to Bryan, saying that it
| Is no crime to shout for the free silverlte
| until they receive orders from the chief,
to shout for the admiral. Hence most of
| the men who have gone on record at all
have gone on record as being in favor of
| Bryan. 1t is true that jefferson Levy, the
only out-and-out gold standard democratic
| congressman on Manhattan Island has
pronounced in favor of Dewey but then
Levy is wealthy in his own right and he
| Is not in politics for a living. Perry Bel
mont. whose recent dinner with the ad-
mlral caused some interest in this city, is
also quoted as being in favor of Dewey
but, as matter Of fact. since his bolt in
1896 Perry Belmont has been without even
| the shadow of a political following in this
city, and since his marriage he is known
politics.
Several of the gold standard democratic
congressmen from the Brooklyn end of the
Dig bridge are also supposed to favor Dew
ey as against Bryan. But the hopeless char
acter of the fight is shown by the fact that
David b. Hill and James Shevlin men
who have never been recorded as extreme
| ly favorable to Bryan men who are never
known to quit as long as thew have a
chance Of winning, have refused to be en-
ticed into the Dewey political game, and
nave repeatedly reiterated the statements
That Bryan will be renominated at Kan
| sas City.
Hill Holds Bryan'a Fate.
This leaves Rryop,c fa+a IN, Na,, vor,,
! state. so far as the state delegation is con-
cerned, in the hands of ex-senator Hill
For if Tammany Hall pronounced for Dew
| ey, Hill would undoubtedly hold the balance
| of power. And If there is an art that Hill
! has cultivated it is the art of holding the
balance of power. Now, Hill is on record as
saving over and over again that Bryan
would be renominated at Kansas City
With the upstate counties for Bryan, with
the city districts for Dewey, Hill would I'M
doubtedly lose no time in pronouncing for
Bryan. In the first place. this would put
him on friendly terms with the national
democratic organization. This is something
| that Hill has longed for since those
dark days of 1896. In the second place it
would enable Hill to turn down Tammany
| Hall, and it would make the Sage of VOL
ferts Roost' the undsputed master of the
New York state delegation. Hill has never
forgiven Croker for turning him out of the
leadership two years ago and putting Ed
ward Murphy in his place. Hill IS nothing
| If not vinoictive, and he would lose no time
! in getting even with Croker, provided an
opportunity presented itself. At the same
time it is doubtful whether Croker who oc-
casionally presents symptoms of political
sanity, would deliberately walk into this
Boer-like trap, merely for the sake of
beating. 1t is true that Robert +. Roose-
welt has gone across the water: it is also
| true that he has carried with him quarter
OF ton OF newspaper clippings collected
by Joseph Wlletts commercial travellers
organization, showing that Bryan cannot be
elected If nominated. and that Brother
Gus" Van Wyck would sweep the country
But Roosevelt, who. by the way, is gold
democrat, and is not in touch with the rul-
ing spirits of democracy upon any issue
save the opposition to the administration in
the matter of the Boer war is likely to find
Croker possessed Of considerable backbone
SO far as this Dewey boom is concerned In
the first place. Croker has changed once
from an eXpanSioniSt to an anti-eXpanSion-
list; from an anti-Bryan man to a Bryanite
and 1t is asserted he cannot again commit a
political somersault without committing
political suicide. In the second place
though a weakling in national politics.
Croker is a master of ward politics, and the
first question he is likely to ask when
Roosevelt begs him to support Dewey or
Van Wyck is what will Hill do and say?
Unless Roosevelt carries in his pocket
pledges from Hill promising to support
Dewey or Van Wyck, his mission is certain
doughnuts that he is without letters from
Hill of this character.
What Puzzles the Tammanyites.
The one thing that is puzzling local poll
ticians more than anything else in the
world is the proposed meeting between
Bryan and Dewey at Chicago early in May.
What does it mean? they are all asking.
Does it mean that a treaty for purposes of
offenSe and defense against Mckinley will
de signed by the admiral and the colonel?
Does it mean that Dewey will consent to
take second place, and that the ticket will
read Bryan and Dewey? Does it mean that
Bryan will consent to take second place
and that the ticket will read Dewey and
Bryan? Or does it mean that Bryan, fig
uring that his election this year is an i'm
possibility, will withdraw and allow Dewey
to be nominated, Bryan taking his chances
on a nomination and an election four years
hence? Any who can say for a GER
tainty what will be the result of that con-
ference can save the politicians of New
York city and, in fact, of the country |
many sleepless nights.
The most that can be expected from the
New York state delegation, the most that
can be hoped for by the conservatives who
still cling to the coat tails Of the old dem
ocratfc organization, is that the New York
state delegation will go to Kansas City
unpledged, Micawber-lke waiting for some
thing to turn up And when they reach
the Valley of the Kaw" and find that in !
spite of the extreme hot weather that is |
likely to prevail there on the week of the |
Fourth of July it is exceedingly chilly for
any delegate found without a Bryan badge