Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-08-29
RANK AND FILE SORE
New York Voters Disguised
With Personal Issue.
LIKE BARKERS ON THE PIKE
The Candidates Beat Tomtoms and
Yell.
The Candidates Beat Tomtoms and
W. R. HEARST SITS ON A TACK
Jerome Steps on a Few Democratic
Corns With His Last
Statement.
Special From a stafr Correspondent.

talk which you hear from the rank and
file of the people in these parts who take
passing interest in politics, there is growing
disgust with the present situation in both
parties and with the men who are making
or trying to make that situation. There is
not a principle at stake anywhere in this
game, nothing in the world but personal
interest and it Is the continual exploita-
ton of that interest which is contributing
to the disgust of the voters at large.
1 cannot think of better simile for the
New York political contest in it's present
stage than the picture of a group of bark
ers'' in front of side shows, loudly beating
their tomtoms, and in tones more stem
-torian than convincing raucously exhorting
the public to enter and look over their
wares.
Even that very st. George himself, Will
liam Travers Jerome, is not exempt from
being included in such a picture He is
doing a lot of shouting of condemnation of
the other fellows and their campaign but
1t is all directed in the end to soliciting
support for himself. He does not announce
any specific principle or policy, but, on the
contrary, in his latest pronunciamento.
made public last night, he takes high and
mighty attitude toward the very voters
whose aid he solicits. In column or more
of generalizations his statement carries one
utterance which is not rellShed Oy demo-
Gratis. He says:
THE success of my fight, If ii should
come, would mean that l would not be a
democrat governor l would be simply gov
ernor, and l would not use the patI onage or
powers of that Office to buiid up tine democ-
racy organization or to repress the repub-
licanS.
Growls and Grumbles.
There were grumblings among democrats
today over that statement They said the
democratic party in New York state is not
in need of any such h.gh-handed cavalierly
leadership as that. What is needed, they
said, is some big, clean, strong democrat
to lead the disordered and disorganized ele-
ments into militant body, holding to some
definite set of principles and fighting the
republicans, not trafficking with them.
Mr.. Hearst continues to beat his TOM
toms and shout to the passers-by to come
into his tent, but as pointed out in these
dispatches last Monday, he is in somewhat
of predicament now as to the placards
over his show. If he labels 1t strictly an
independent side show, he has, 1t Is claimed
no right to demand democratic support
If he admits that it is but an offshoot Of
the big show under the democratic main
tent his Independent followers will refuse
to enter So he is having hard time.
They almost cornered him when they put
the proposition to him plainly whether he
would accept the democratic nomination
see hom embarrassing it Is to his independ-
ent followers, republicans and mugwumps,
to admit that. So he compromised by
saying he would be glad to have demo-
Gratis vote for him, but that he would NOT
take the democratic nomination II 1t was
handed him on a platter that also con-
tanned a platform and declaration of prin-
ciples objectionable to him.
On the other side of the midway are the
republican ..barkers''-Odell and Platt and
n,,io hoi haZ00-an6
gins and Dunn and Parsons trying to out
bazoo their loudest. So the whole spec
tacle is getting rather tiresome to the plain
people in the street, who show signs of los
ing interest in the petty squabbles OF the
politicians.
Democrats Need Ginger.
The arrival of Bryan may bolster up the
democrats and put some ginger into them,
yet the leaders are very nervous, not know
ing what the Nebraskan may have up his
sleeve to spring on them at an unexpected
time and embarrass them. They will be
mighty glad when he has spoken his little
piece so they may know what new ideas, II
any, he has taken up on his trip around
the world.
The members of the Indiana delegation
to the Bryan reception are boiling mad this
morning because the local committee of ar
rangements apparently has snubbed Tom
Taggart, the democratic national chairman.
In the published list showing the arrange
ments of carriages, and those who will ride
in them to escort Mr.. Bryan, Mr.. Tag
CARTS name does not appear. The Indiana
men say 1t is inconceivable that the chair
man of the democratic national committee
should be omitted from function in honor
of the head of the party. The protest of the
Indianians will probably result in a cor
rection of the Oversight and Mr. Tag
gart given seat. The incident looks
ominous, however, in view of the attacks
on Taggart and the alleged fight to be
made to GUST him.
To Capture Bryan.
The democratic national committee Is
this afternoon. A quorum of the regular
while proxies of absentee members are p.en-
tiful.
1t is stated that the meeting has no po-
litical significance save in the national
gathering of the committeeman. who find
themselves assembled In the same city at
the same time on another errand
1t develops that there is method in the
plan of the local managers to virtually
kidnap Col Bryan when he arrives and
keep him under cover until the hour for the
reception in Madison Square Garden.
The plan is that he is to be taken aboard
a yacht in the lower bay and landed in
Manhattan just in time to drive to the hail.
The motive back of this plan is to enable
a number of the big men in the party to
get at Col. Bryan and have some heart
to heart talks with him before he gets a
chance to talk to the newspaper men and
to the public.
He will be advised of the general state of
the democratic party militant and passive,
and warned of such pitfalls as his advisers
may see in his path
Naturally. there Is great eagerness on the
part of leaders to have first word with him.
The great fear seems to be that he may
come out in advocacy OF government owner
ship of public utilities. None of the leaders