The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1904-07-03
Parker iii the Lead, But the
Utmost Uncertainty
Prevails. II
BRYAN MAY BOLT .I
/. I. HE is NOT SATISFIED
Will Make an Attempt II t6sta1i.-,.
pede Convention John Sharp
Williams for Temporary.
Chairman and Possibly
SCI. for Vice President, 8
The Work.
{From our regular corrcspondent.)

(Fron1 our regular correspond dent)
WASHINGTON D. C.. July Perhaps
half the people III the United states
believe that the next Presi ident will be 4
named at st. Louis by tRe convention
which meets In the great Coliseum Ii,
that city on next Wednesday.3 Thous;-.S& IN
sands will Journey hundreds, many Of
them will travel thousands Of miles to
see the selection made, though barely ono \
thousand Will have g vote in; +. the great
assembage The turn OF the others will
como at the polls on the ei ghth OF next
November. * realization t hat with the
people OF this mighty coun try rests the
power to reject or approve the no1nt-#
nations made in conv ton amid the
sblare of trumpets. waving bunting. and 4
hllzzas Of excited partisans, clnphas s zeSs
as scarcely nothing else will. the grea e,
fact that In Anne erica the every scisi-ss
5zens rule, and that the hind fill who ara 4
most conspicuous in he public. eye, at-
ter all 81 can do f little ms ore than follow
along the way pointed out for them,
The Uncert tainty Of I've erlts.
Il TIE approac hing Lem perat tlc5 n a .ional
Convention will be in solr1e respect the
most Interesting held lin this $conntrysiil8
many years. The result he names of
the mon selected for the office Of Presi-
dent and Vice President. and the nature
of the platform--will be In as Ere eat dollbt btS
when National Chairman ones cal $thas
great body to order at noon "Wednesday
as 1T is now. and 1t is as difficult to
assert anything positive to-day regarding
tho outcome of the convention as 1tiss
was six months ago. before a. de.egate5
q lad been chosen. 1t Will be quite 8tli
different affair from tho convention
which has Just adjourned at S5 Chicago
In that case, Roosevelt and tialrbanksi i
were known as the ticket long before the
convention assembled, and there was not
5adelcnration in the platform that Great
ed surprise or was in the least llnex-
gpected, unless an exception be. ma de Of
q the one which declared for the reductio
gof Southern representation in 4 Congress-
The Convention was "a ra tlflca lion meet
ing. and what was ratified was only tha e
which had been decided on and arranged
by the gentleman in tho White Kouse.
Democrats have been twitted BY Re-ss
epublicans because of the uncertainty
which hangs about the results OF the (.
approaching Convention. but to- the
thoughtful this very uncertainty must
appeal as Indicative of an9lindepend denoe3
strength Resides, this is not the first
Convention In which the result has been
iii such great doubt. There has seldom
been a more protracted Convention strug-
gle than that which nomlna ted Garfteld Z
\ in 1850. And Garfield and lArthur were
elected. But four years before that
Tildcn was not chosen the nominee on
the first ballot. And Tilden was elected. "
In that same year, Blaine was a strong
favorite In the Republican Convention
and he would have been nominated had 7
his opponents not succeeded In forcing
an Adjournment to the next day. when.
Hayes was nominated on the seventh
ballot. And he went into the White
House. Blaine led from tho first ballot
in the Convention OF 1854 and was nomi- \
mated on the fourth, Bayard was n poor 4
second In the race with Cleveland for
the nomination In that year, and C'eve-S
land was nominated. In 1885, Cleveland
received the honor, which had not been
bestowed since 1s4s OF nomination by
resolution. without roll-call, But it
took eight ballots to nominate Harrison
that year. Harrison was elected. In
1899 both Harrison and Cleve'ana lWero
nominated OH the first ballot LIN, 1888
Mark Hanna had fought his battle so