The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-07-05
Democratic Headwinds.

Tomorrow the twenty-first demo-
cratic national convention will begin
its sessions at ST. Louis.
It was in 1882 when the party,
abandoning the less scientific prac-
tice Of nominating to the presidency
thru congressional party caucus or
state legislatures, met in Baltimore
and renorninated Jackson to the 'presi-
dency and nominated his close friend
and secretary Of the treasury to the
vice presidency. The party held its
national conventions in Baltimore in
1885 Ca year and half before the
election) in 1910, 1914, 1s4s, 1852,
1850, 1872, the party at the latter
convention turning in despair to Hor-
ace Greeley, the nominee of the liberal
republicans, and indorsing him.
Perhaps one of the most melancholy
of democratic conventions was the one
held in Chicago in 1864, while the war
for the union was still in progress,
and thousands of democrats, who had
stood by the union, had come into the
republican party. The design OF the
convention was to hold the organiza-
ton together in some shape, for 1t was
threatened with dsintegration, but,
altho such an astute politician as Sam
Tilden was a conspicuous worker
there, the party nominated General
George B. Mcclellan to the presidency
on a platform, the leading feature, of
which was denunciation Of the war
as a failure and a demand for the
cessation of ,hostilities. The ticket
received only twenty-one' electoral
votes. .
The democrats meet in st. Louis
tomorrow, under somewhat improved
conditions-not that they, have en-
tirely thrown off the Bryan incubus,
for that chronic marriott and absurd
dreamer arrived in st. Louis, Sunday
with the air and language of the
partys boss" assuming that he is
the dictator of the work of the con-
vention and of the future Of the party
Bryan's assumption practiced in 1896
and 1900, so disguised the party thai
they lost confidence in him as pollt1-
cal leader and hence, Of the 1914 dele
gates who will vote in the convention
off the radical collar of Bryan, while
27O are instructed for Parker (conserv'
ative), as against 146 instructed fol
Hearst (radical). There is a clearly
defined gravitation to conservatism
which is becoming numerically strong
The two-thirds rule is fatty agains
some of the ambitious candidates
When old Romulus Saunders intro
duced his two-thirds rule in the frs
democratic convention in 1882 ant
supplemented it by requiring eacf
state to cast it's vote unit, thu
object was to bring order out Of con
fusion, for some of the states sen
only one delegate and some sent fit
teen, twenty or thirty, but it was an
nounced that the two-thirds. rul
would not be binding upon any subse
auent convention Of the party TIL
democracy however, have usuall
recognized 1t as a tradition Which
should not be ignored. In operation
has had the effect, not infrequently, o
nominating some very poor presi
Dental timber. AT the present time
while a considerable portion of tn
conservatives are sure that Parker ha
strength enough to lead in the ballot
ing and win in the decisive cast, tn
Tammany determination to defea
Parker and his manager, David Ben
nett Hill, by falling back on Grove
Cleveland or Mcclellan Is not to b
ignored, and the question whethe
Grover is "out Of or en- the politi
cal arena and approachable with
nomination may be decided within tn
next three days.