The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-09-05
MR., HANNA'S CONTROL
SOUTHERN DELEGATES "HIs TO
 CoMMAND.n
Already Preparing for the Presiden- tial Contest of 19o4-what His Own Presidential Boom
 Really Amounts To.


 Although the Republican National Con- ventton Is still three years distant. one Of, oi,r,a the ,1 most important strokes for se- complished. The Southern delegates will. unless present plans greatly miscarry, be responsive to the nod of Marcus A. Hanna, and the group of Republican in- ner managers of whom he is the head. This information comes from excellent sources. Of late there have been several occurrences in Southern politics bearing upon this fact. which have been misun- derstood; speaker in the Virginia Re publican State: Convention. for example, 1 proposed Mir. Hanna for the Presidency, | and the applause which followed was sig nificantly prolonged. From Alabama ink | iings of like feeling have recently come | to light. Now this has been construed as indicative of a desire. on MT; Hanna | part to be a Presidential candidate, and that his friends were setting up pins Such an enf vet IS cds mot | to regard himself seriously as Presi- | de ntial candidate. but he does desire to | control the next Republican Convention, | and he has found so easy way of doing 1t that to lay down tEe sceptre of power already in his grasp would indeed be ex- | traordinary.
 l organization which he built up in the | South for the Convention of 1S9;: his | lie uterants have told the colored brethren who principally compose 1t to keep their as possible. and whenever, from death or | other cause. the admission of new | sary, to see to 1t that the. newcomer | will adhere to the old understanding. These men are told not to worry about tefore tse s1 the Soes time comes ~ Mr. Hanna viii communicate to them his wishes. They are. in the meantime. to retain control 0eonmss,fs 0e ne .ofa rhis is ali that | the South ern outbursts for Hanna for President have meant; they have been public re- cognition of allegianGs to him T1,,,n in I; any ing for concrete expression. these Southern organization men cheer for him much as they would for the abstract idea of justice or patriotism. or for an em-' blematic figure on monument But these cheers will be commutable into di- rect votes for whenever he decides up-
 In this movement Mir. Hanna stands for a small group of men who are the real masters of the Republican Party. They ihln though .ts affairs were thrown open to everybody throughout the country wno cared to claim the Republican name. ganization which in 1904 will astonish the country.
 The country has not forgotten MT which did so much to strengthen the hearts of the McKinleyites. everywhere The totals were so gratifying that tew readers analysed them to see how large ly they were made up of Southern dele gates who represented practically nothing but the financial resources of somebody: greatly to strengthen MT. Hanna's hold. A proposal, it will be recalled, was made by Henry c. Payne to cut down South ern representation in Republican conyen. tions to a basis approximately dependent on the vote actually cast. This alarmed the coloced politicians of the South about as much as a reported, 5, attempt m, to diDert id now alarm the population of Beaumont, The Southern Republicans came on here in considerable force and made an ap- peal to be allowed to retain their only remaining political asset. They were vic torious, largely because of the personal appeal of President Mckinley, and Of the tlreless work of Mir Hanna. MT. Dick inner organization. With becoming grst- itude the Southern delegates went pack home, declaring of Mi. Hanna that they were "his to command"
 The history of Southern delegations in Republican conventions Is interesting crIded from politics and it's rewards that he wants to make tn" most or what re- mains to him, for the Democrats Of the South do not care hoy active he, he IS m | penses are high, and the practice long ago arose on the part of Northern can" didates of putting out some oS mHheS hlIs nd IOd
 
 some incidentals: an occasionaLS trip through the North. to Niagara Falls or some such place, was thrown in But competition soon forced up these rates General Alger, according to John Sher- mans trustworthy memoirs, did his part towards pulling the market. By 1896 the colored politician of the South had come to regard his right to attendd the Ma tionaI Convention and to nave voice in it equal to that of the Northern del egate, as a very valuable asset. To har.
 
 ideals" of politics of Northern states men, a delicate euphemism grew up. It was said that if the colored delegates or the men who could be .I'et'h as dsle, ,t,, | gates would help secure the lom'ntllo1 of certain cand late. his fr!crls wouId give them money for use tn iheif rt E. | coIored delegates took an uni ejt fcted endowment of this sort With Lrc 'nlns l seriousness; as they lived in their dis- money was actually ''used'' there. but | not necessarily in hiring brass bands Tor torchiight processions: Allowances o5 this tl1; n sind |, wene IeHs au''e "'e'" III -''''
 Mir Hanna and his associates have not | vet made up their minds to whom to
 II may be Roosevelt, if they see sach a | marked tide in his favor throughout the | West as to make crowding him on the | track hazardous to the Presidential con test But the Hanna strength would rot | in that event be thrown for hooseve!' | unfii he was made to realize his obli- 1 cation. The same is true of other can. | didatey And while MT. Hanna should
 be accredited with sincerity in his de-
 nial of any personal aspirations towards l the Presidency, it is not inconceiVablt | that he might himself at last consent tc ] be the beneficiary of his own power. !h!s l would depend much upon the obvious ] rlans of the opposition. If the Demo ! crats should eeem disposed to give MT
 Bryan a third run, for example, MT
 Hanna might not hesitate to take tf6
 Republican nomination.. But With th'
 prospects of a normally strong Demo-
 CT atlc candidate. he would probably pre-
 fer being the power behind the throne t1
 riskinR an attempt on the thrOn2 itself This would suit much hettrr the bust
 ress' packers of the Hanna combination
 Iegislaticn has now come to have such large financial bearings that the great business interests of the country Ike the
 sort of control which Mir. Hanna eX ar- | cises. and unless his plans m3Catry, will
 continue to exercise through at least on
 more administration. Railroads desire to
 be protected against hostile legislatiun
 Peneficiaries of the tariff who are sell
 ing abroad at one price and here at an
 other can afford to contribute hrerallN
 rather than risk ursetting their ii |i
 leges All these commercial forces g' dN'
 it9tc towards Mir. Hanna; they want bin
 to control the Republican Convention
 with all that 1t signifies. and if he doe
 that, they will help through generous l contributions towards carrying the con I
 try And in this chain of forces thj
 Southern delegates constitute an impor
 tant link.