The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1902-02-27
CAVE HIM A BOOST
First District Congressional
Convention Was Unanimous.
Curtis Could Easily Have Had
Senatorial Endorsement.
EFFECT JUST AS GOOD.
Temper of Delegates Did Much
For Senatorial Boom.
Candidates For State Offices
We're Placed on Exhibition.

little J0aC Congress-
man Curtis boom for United States
senator received big boost in the First
district at the Holton convention which
renominated him for congress yester-
day, although a resolution endorsing
him for senator was not passed. Mr..
Curtis could not well make announce
ment of his candidacy for senator at
the time he was candidate for con-
gresham, but the convention Wednes-
day answered the purpose as well as an
announcement and gave his torial
candidacy a big shove to the front at
the same time.
1t may be that Governor Stanley fore
saw this when he gave out the an
nouncement of his own candidacy last
Saturday. thereby leading the senatorial
candidates in making a declaration of
intention And next Wednesday the
Congressman Long just what the First
district convention did for Curtis We'd
nesday.
The old politicians said they had
never attended a more harmonious con-
Vent1on than the one Wednesday. There
was SO much harmony that the town
of Holton could not contain it and it
oVerf1owed in all directions. It even
reached as far as Doniphan county, and
Captain Shreeve, of the Doniphan coun-
ty delegation, made a speech seconding
Mr. Curtis nomination. There were
numerous other SecOnding speeches but
none were more heartily cheered than
that of the Doniphan county man, be-
cause it was unexpected. 1t wasn't part
of the "cut and dried" programme.
A. K. Rodgers, Mr.. Curtis manager,
had every detail of the convention pre-
pared and the only real business of the
convention was to ratify Mr.. Rodgers
plans. The usual committees We're ap-
pointed, but they had practically no
business to transact, all their work
had been done beforehand. The COM
mittees even were all made out before
hand, and when some one made a mo-
tion that the chairman appoint the four
usual committees, all Judge Horton, the
chairman, had to do was to pull the list
out of his pocket and read it.
c. D. Walkers speech placing Mr..
Curtis in nomina ton for congress- was
short and to the point. He eulogized
the popular Kansas congressman but
did not carry it to any great length,
not nearly so much as did some of the
speakers who followed, and the conven-
ton was surprised when he stopped.
w. J. Granger, of Nemaha county, led
off in seconding the nomination. The
Seconding speeches were all impromptu
and most of the speakers had something
to say of Curtis senatorial boom. A. G.
Pyle one of the delegates from the
Leavenworth Soldiers Home, made one
of the best of the Seconding speeches.
He is an old soldier preacher and is
totally blind, but he spoke effectively.
are especially grateful to Mr.. Curtis for
securing the passage of a law allowing
the old soldiers in the home to vote,
and he predicted that 95 per cent OF
them would be for Mr.. Curtis for United
States senator.
This gave Major Tom Anderson an
idea and he introduced an innovation
by leading the Shawnee county delega.-
tion in Singino I'VE Believe YOU to a
good old revival tune.
If the friends of Mr.. Curtis had desir-
ed to do SO, they could doubtless have
secured the passage of resolution e1-
dorsing Mr.. Curtis for senator by an al
most unanimous vote. Such resolution
was Incorporated in the original draft,
but before the convention called few
of Mr.. Curtis friends decided to strike
that portion out Judge Horton, who
prepared the resolutions originally is
said to have advised against it to start
with but put it in at the request of
few who thought it would be a good
send-off. But il was afterwards decid-
ed that the unanimity of the convention
was so great that such a resolution
would add nothing to it, and it might
offend the friends of some of the other
candidates.
CANDIDATES MAKE SPEECHES.
All the candidates for state offices
chance to speak. Cole, Bailey and NIL
Ter, three of the gubernatorial canGi-
dates, left before the convention opened,
but Esnright arrived about the same
time. He was the only gubernatorial
candidate in the convention, and he
spoke al some length.
W. NJ. Glenn, of Greeley county, can
didate for lieutenant governor started
laugh by addressing the convention as
Gentlemen and postmaster" "
Harry Bone and Judge West, both of
whom are sprinting after the attorney
generals office, made brief pointed
speeches. Mr.. Bone said he had a
speech but did not want to deliver it
now because he expected to have to
make it around over the statesafter the
state convention.
He can't help it. The habit cropped out
several times yesterday. In some con-
ventiOns there would have been a riot
call turned in when he began his speech
by saying that he and Coleman, of Clay
Center have a Bone to pick between
now and the state convention. And in
closing he suggested that the attor-
ney generalship ought to do like the star
of empire. go Westward.
There were three candidates for state
auditor in Holton yesterday. but only
one of them was in the convention and
had a chance to speak-Kelsey of Atch-
ison. The other two. Davis Of Brown
and Wilson of Republic, We're called for
but as they were electioneering on .1e
outside they did not present themselves.
One of the best speeches made was
that of w. d. Ross, of Jefferson. who
is a candidate for state Superintendent
He said in beginning that he had been
told that oratory is a disease He had
been Vaccinated for it when a boy, he
said and it took SO that he had nor
been troubled with it since. This was
Nelson by those who are acquainted
with Nelson's fame as an orator But
the funny part of it was that after Mr..
Ross had made this declaration he gave
about equal to any of Nelson's famous
stunts in oratory. 1t was SO good that