Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1904-07-22
Especial Washington Letter.

l0poGihA WdbuNlSt On A6Itcr.J
"HH convention of 1904, for bet
ter or for worse, has gone into
history, and, whatever else the
annalist of our times may say
OF 1t, he must say that a more earnest
Or enthusiastic set Of freemen never
met together to consider the state of
any country. From start to finish
there was not dull moment in It
The cream of the nations Democracy
was there consulting as to tho future
Of the great party Of constitutional
liberty. The surroundings were most
inspiring. The convention was held in
st. Louis. the greatest city In the Lou
isiana purchase, which Thamas Jeffer-
bon. the father Of DEMOCRACY, added to
the Union, and 1t was his greatest act.
When he wrote his ewn celebrated
epitaph 1t was in These words: "Here
was buried Thomas Je6Rson, author
Of the Declaration Of Independence,
Of the statute OF Virginia for re-
lig1ous freedom, and father OF the
University of Virginia" By some
strange oversight he neglected to add
land maker of the Louisiana pur-
chase" The three acts which he did
enumerate were immortal deeds, en-
tttling him to the undying love and
gratitude Of all Americans, but IL he
had never lived somebody else would
have written q Declaration OF indie
pendence-not such a stately and glow
ing paper as his, but 1t would have
sufhced. II he had never bsen born
somebody would have written vir-
ginia's statute for religious freedom,
tor that, too, was inevitable. II he had
never beheld this glorious world some
body would have founded great uni
versity IN Virginia. for great uni
sersity is a necessary possession Of q
great state. But II Thomas Jefferson
had not been president in 1903 the
chances are thousand to one that we
would never have owned square foot
Of land west Of the Mississippi and
that today, all over the vast extent Of
territory between the Father OF Wa
tiers and the Pacific ocean, in place
OF the stars and stripes there would
be floating the tricolor Of France, the
banner OF the Spanish Bourbons or
the union Jack Of England. Conse-
Quently 1t was particularly appropriate
that the party founded by Jefferson
should hold its national convention in
the land which he added to the Un-
ION at the very time and in the same
city in which is being splendidly cele-
ibrated the hundredth anniversary Of
his stupendous trade in real estate.
Everybody now knows that it was
great convention. and most persons
who read the signs Of the times be-
Aeve that 1t named winning ticket.
SO much has been said about Judge
Parker in these letters and in the pub
Nc press generally that It is superhuous
10 say more about him at this time.
Those who know him best speak most
highly Of him, which is the best sort Of
certificate of good character.
Ex-United States Senator Henry g.
Davis of West Virginia has been out of
public life several years, devoting him
self to his private business, SO that not
much has been said about him. His
career is the ideal American one-such
as will appeal to every American. He
began life as brakeman on the Balti-
more and Ohio railroad and worked
himself up to place in the senate Of
the United States, where he served
twelve years. He has also accumu-
lated considerable property by devel-
oping the vast and multifarious re-
sources Of his state. Nobody ever
claimed that he got one cent dishon-
estly. His name will restore West yir-
ginia to the Democratic column and
help carry Maryland and Delaware
also. His nomination was most for
tunate.