The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-06-27
ION THE WAR PATH
BRYAN SEEKS TO DIsoRGANrzr
 CONVENTION.
Visits Mayor Harrison cf Chicago--Re- ported Propositton for Mu- tual Assfstance.-To Con-
 test all the Way.
Chicago Dispatch.


 can to control the organization of the coming Democratic National Conyen- | ton was proved by his trip to Chicago early yesterday morning to talk with Mayor Harrison says The Tribune. The offer he made to the Mayor was that he would use his influence in the demo- cratic National Committee to have the Harrison contesting delegates seated on the temporary roll call if the Mayor in turn would vote them in favor of the Bryan organization of the Conven- tion-
 | All the Mayor would say about the matter yesterday was this: 4 | Corporation Counsel Tolman is pre- pairing the contests for presentation to the convention"
 | All of which was generally under stood to mean that the Mayor had agreed to the Bryan plan.
 | Bryan believes he controls the ma 1ority of the National Committee. Whether he does or not will be shown in St. Louis. If he has this majority he can seat on the temporary roll call all contestants whom he favors. He can also name the temporary officers of the convention if. on the temporary roll call he can show majority. Illinois is an important factor in the matter. l The unit rule adopted at the Demo- cratic convention at Springfield was a double-barreled affair. Part of 1t was in the platform and part In a subsid- iary resolution. The part Tn the platform read that the Illinois dele- gates to the national convention should | vote as a unit on all questions. as the majority might decide. The resolution was simply that they should vote for the nomination of William Randolph Hearst as long as his name was before the convention.
 The unit rule in the platform al- lows the majority of the delegates to decide how the entire delegation shall vote on such questions as temporary and permanent officers and other mat ters which go to make up the organi- zatfon of the convention.
 On the face of the returns Hopkins has the necessary majority. He and his friepds could vote the entire dele gation of Illinois against Hearst if Hearst were a candidate for tempora- . ry chairman, although instructed to vote for Hearst when his name is pre- sented as the nominee for the presiden- cy. The platform unit rule was put in to control this matter of organization. Mayor Harrison has contests in five districts fin Chicago, meaning ten dele- gates in all. Were these delegates seated by the National Committee on the temporary roll call, and did they vote for the Hearst delegates from Illinois, then the majority would be shifted and 1t would be the Harrison Hearst people. not the Hopkins ones who would say how the Illinois dele- gation was to vote on all propositions It is reported that MT. Bryan also of- fered the Mayor, if he would go into tho agreement, that this majority of tho Illinois delegates should select him as the next member of the National Committee from Illinois,
 Some Democratic politicians who had never seen a National Convention where the unit rule was applied, got unduly excited during the day over the announcement made by James H. Eek els that he would demand. on the roll call for Presidential nominations, that his preference be announced. They de- clared he intended to bolt the Hearst instructions. It happened, however, that Mr. Eckels was simply following precedent It has always been custom ary in Democratic conventions when tho unit rule was on for the chairman of a State Convention working under is to announce first the individual choices of the delegates and then the result under the rule. as in Chicago in 1884. when Daniel Manning stood up, roll call after roll call. and said New York stands thirty for Grover Cleveland. eighteen for Benjamin But Ter. and, under the unit rule. casts for ty-eight votes for Grover Cleveland" The vote of the delegation was re- corded under the unit rule, but the an- nouncement was made to relieve the faoltnnd of Tnhn KalIv nF Tammany, who was fighting Cleveland Kelly grinned every time it was done. The same thing has been done since whenever asked for.
 It Is taken for granted by the older Democrats in Chicago that the activity of MT. Bryan means a contest all along the line at St. Louis; that the fight will start fin the election of temporary off, cers and never stop until a ticket is at last nominated and 6 platform adopted.
 As regards the Illinois situation Mir. Bryan showed his position in the last issue of The Commoner when he had these things to say about John P. Hop kins:
 '"The Hopkins crowd has destroyed all hopes of success in Illinois this fall but there is still a chance of appeal to the National Convention, and this ap- peal should be taken. Democracy is a mockery with a man like Hopkins in control. The sooner he is repudiated the sooner the party will be put on sound ground
 '"rhe National Convention is an ap- pellate court to which the Democrats of Illinois ought to be able to look for Justice. It Is alleged the same tactics were resorted to in Indiana. If so, there ought to be contests from that State also"
 It was reported yesterday that peti- lions seeking the placing of the name of Clarence Darrow on the ballot as an independent candidate for Congress in the Eighth Congressional District were in circulation. Mir. Darrow said if 1t was true it was being done by friends of his without his knowledge.
 ToLsTOI BOASTS RUSSIA.