The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-05-27
THE DEIEGATEs.

lOOASl W1lH JHtcEtSl lo cSC WAoe ~ANN D~--e> Convention will do.
 When they come to select delegates tc the National Convention they Will name Hugh s. D. Mallory, who Is and always has been a straight Democrat open ano candid. fair and true. Then they vii name Edward l.. Russell of Mopite. nov and always a strict party man, open ane candid, fair and true. .
 Then will come the selection or In' other two delegates. One of these is VII liam Wallace Screws of Montgomery, ont of the noblest men in the State, open ane candid, fair and true. He dld not sup port the party in either campaign wneI MT. Bryan was csnd,aate, tna |. H wo,,id sp poi i do so and daily he stated his position ano did what he could to defeat the party Rut every man in Alabama knew where MT, Screws stood. Every man in tne
 The Ledger believes that only straight nnrty men should be elected. MT. Screws has not been one of these.
 The above from The Birmingham Led ger of last Tuesday is the most palpabie example of "strilxing below the belt" thai has recently come under our observation It is not decent journalism. Just on the eve of nominating convention 1t goes out of it's way to make a false statement about a candidate upon whom only few weeks ago it poured streams of adulation and praise. Not only this, 1t took the patriotic position that the particular per son referred to represented large ana influential portion of the Democratic Party in this State, which was entitled to consideration, and that the considera- ton should be shown by making him one of the delegates at large to the National Convention. That kind of spirit IS the one which should be encouraged 1T we are to have success in coming elections. There should be no spirit of prescription for diyergencies in '92 or '96. The Ledger was either dishonest In motive when 1t talked as it did a few weeks ago, or it is dishonest in motive now, when it makes false accusations and seeks to cover them with the veneer of inslncere compliment. Compliments under such conditions are neither desired nor appreciated.
 Now that the Convention has been held and it's action taken, there can be no charge of using The Advertiser for per sonal ends We areIhappy to believe that there are few of the narrow, proscriptive kind represented by the above diatrtbe Of The Birmingham Ledger. If so the party would remain long divided, for there were 50 GOO men in Alabama who voted the Democratic National ticket in '92 who did not vote in '96. They did not vote for Palmer and Buckner, it is true. but they remained away from the polls. An an- alysls of the vote will show this. MT. Cleveland received in round numbers 140,- 900 votes in '92. In 1896 Bryan and SeWall, the regular Democratic nominees, receiv- ed coo Of these fully 1s,00O voted in '92 for Weaver, leaving not over 9O,0OO oi the Democrats of '92 voting in '99. Does The Ledger and it's sort want to keeI up warfare on such men. Many thous- inees in '92, '94 and '96. What man with proper regard for his party would want l to shut the door in their faces and say they shall have none of the honors anC rewards of harmonious party? Yet The Ledger's demands as to undertaking sup port of nominees would put those thous ands of now straight Democrats outsid, the pale or recognition.
 | If The Ledger is fit to seek to ipstruc
 the people, 1t should at least be moder
 ately informed as to matters of curren
 history. If The Ledger knows anything lit should know that The Advertiser and it
 Editor supported the Party and candidate
 in 1900, and there is no excuse, unless l that of ignorance or malice for state
 ment to the contrary. Mir. Bryan wa
 nominated at Kansas City on July 5. 1900
 and an article of some length appeared
 the same hand that is writing these lines
 An extract from 1t was wired by reques
 to many papers in different parts of tn
 country and published simultaneousl!
 with It's appearance in these columns
 This is the extract and is in keeping witt
 the tone of the whole article:
 There are questions confronting the peo
 pie of the South which require that ther
 be no Democratic division. The Republi can Party, in its recent Convention, de veloped clearly and unmistakably a de termination to deprive the Southerl States of a portion of it's Congressiona representation, whenever it could secur 1.-the numerical majority to warrant the at tempt It is of vital importance that tn next House of Representatives contain Democratic majority, and that cannot b secured unless Democrats everywher support the Kansas City nominations
 | So far as MT. Bryan is concerned he i a man of convictions and has shown in thousand ways. The Advertiser however much it may disagree with hin
 oi some things. is in accord with him or most of those which are now of suprem importance. He is a man of ability, O honesty and integrity. and would striv U administer the affairs of .Governmen upon honest and economical lines.
 1 What the country now needs is a Dem OCratiC administration and the oVerthrnu