The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-10-21
WHAT IS THE ExPLANATIoNr


 piled to an interviewer of The Washing ton Post:A
 They are saying that should Grover Cleveland get the termination. he would necticut. and that he could be elected. The number of men that I heard express themselves in this way astonished me. particularly since few of them belonged to what might be called the Cleveland wing of the party. These expressions were not accompanied by any declaration Of belief that he would be nominated. Tn Iact, It was not even suggested that he could get his own delegation in the con Vention. My own view Is that 1t Is not worth while to consider his candidacy, nor do think that Mir. Cleveland has the remotest idea of aspiring to the nomina- ''V''''' ''V'''''' s.Av E34 ~s sy T63Ts
 While in Mobile, some days ago Con- gressman Charles W. Thompson of the Fifth Congressional District of Alabama, gave the following opinion, when asked about the nomination:
 Grover Cleveland. regard Cleveland as the greatest living American. thor oughly disapprove of the ex-President's s course in 1S96 and 1900. but we must face facts and one fact stands out boldly to observant men, that Grover Cleveland is the strongest man the party could nomi- nate. He has the confidence of the con- servative element of the country. The and East whom we must have in order to win would vote for him solidly In preference to Roosevelt Cleveland might lose few thousand Populist votes in the West and South. but not enough to Echangeth electoral vote of any normally Democratic State. doubt very much his being nominated. but if he should he se- iected again as the party's standard bear CT. he would sweep the country.
 These opinions of observant and we'll informed Democrats disclose the curious fact that they consider Cleveland the strongest man that the Democrats can nominate. and at the same time 1t is sug- gested that he cannot get the nomination. Can anybody give a credltable reason for this political anomaly? We say credit able advisediy. for the failure to nomi- nate Mr-aCleyeland, if he is really the strongest. man woud be discredltable to the Democracy of the country. It is say ing to the world that Democrats will not nominate the one man who has a chance to win.
 There can be no explanation given of this state of affairs except political pre- Judice and personal pique. The third term bugaboo is not worthy of serious consid- eration, for we do not believe 1t would lose the party one electoral vote. It will be used to prevent his nomination and may succeed but if 1t fails in that object there Is nothing more to fear from it. If he is nominated the votes which will be cast against him will be cast for some more tenable reason than the ghost of a third term can supply.
 That there Is a political prejudice against him because he refused to sup port the regular ticket in 1896 and 1900 is unfortunately true. MT. Cleveland is not politician. in the partisan sense of the word, but he Is a patriot, which is some thing better. He could see that the suc- cess of the free silver movement, and of the country. Many of the most promi- nent Democrats who honestly believed in Mir. Bryan's financial theories, and faith | fully followed him in his efforts to fasten
 
 | since seen and admitted their error. What | they learned from the course of events was plain to MT. Cleveland at the time He placed patriotism and the welfare oi the country above partisan regularity and refused to follow his party in a course 1 likely to wreck the government on the | shoals of fauacious theory of finance For this he has suffered political ostra- cism by those who place party above the general welfare. It is the same spirit which, almost two dozen centuries ago | banished Aristides, surnamed 'The Just from Athens, and 1t Is the same spirit which has retired to private life some of the best Democrats and strongest men the South has produced. Mir. Cleveland has been practically banished from the coun- cils of his party because he declined to | follow that party along the road to finan- | cial dishonor.
 Hut there Is also an element of personal plque in this opposition. Of all men who have occupied the Presidential chair in | half a century Mir. Cleveland has been | least amenable to dictation and personal IAnfiuence Having his own notions of right infiexibly fixed, trusting to his own l honesty, courage and patriotism, and guided by what his conscience told him was best for the country he was always restive when nlera politicians attempted to dictate to him. He offended them time and again by refusing to be governed by their opinions and by refusing to yield to their dictation. For this the mere noN- | ticians, the place hunters and the nIacc gctters. turned aganst him. They will be against him next year, because they know they can't use him.
 And these two classes of opponents nav prevent his nomination--those who can ! forgive no one who failed to support Rry- an and those who do not want President whom they cannot control. Their infiu- ence would be powerless to prevent his election, but 1t may prevent his name getting before the people. This is the oRly explanation We can find for the be. lief. expressed by the. two Congressmer and by many newspapers. that the strongest man in the Democratic party cannot be nominated.
 
 The Muskogee q. T.) PHenix thus pune lures a good story:
 There was a very interesting story sent out from South McAlester about Miss Lu- cile Mulhall winning a prize of OO0 in