The National tribune., 1907-12-19
The DEMOCRATIC
CONVENTION.
To Be Held in Denver, July Mot a
Deep Interest in the Meeting OF the
National Committee.

A National Convention is going into
the far West. When the Democracy
went to Kansas City eight years ago 1t
was regarded as a radical move Inc
center of population is nearer Chicago.
To go west of Chicago meant, as men
then reasoned, that large portion OF
the convention-going population would
have to take an extra long journey to
satisfy the ambition of a far Western
city to entertain National Convention.
Now the Democrats are going TO
Denver. The Colorado orators came to
Washington last week with eloquent
stories about the climatic wonders of
Colorado, her sune kissed mountains,
from which the snowy expanses would
look down upon convention hosts. The
orators also hung up purse of $780,
600 of real money. As some material
istic minds expressed it, the Denverites
offered eight buckets of gold. The
Convention went to Denver with rush,
and it will be held there beginning
July z.
These Two determinations-the hold
ing of the Convention July and the
holding of it at Denver-were the priH-
cipal work of the committee, which
met Thursday and transacted all its
business in one day. The committee
men came in without much flare oil
trumpets, and folded their tents as
DIS pOtllSdl i"oc "hSiA
their work was done. In other words,
the meeting of the Democratic Com
mittee was not as much of local fea-
ture and was by no means as demon
strative as the two days meeting of the
Republican Committee the previous
week Several of the old Democratic
wheel horses were in attendance. There
We're Chairman Tom Taggart, of In
diana; Mayor Tom Johnson, of Cleve-
land, O.; Daniel j. Campau, of Michi-
gan; Lieut.-Gov. ]. Taylor Ellyson, of
Virginia; Norman E. Mack and John
B. Stanchfield, of New York, the latter
holding the proxy of a New Hamp-
shire committeeman, and SO on thru
quite list of notables.
Little Show for Conservatives.
The conservative wing of the Democ-
racy was represented, but it did not
get much of a showing. Several of its
Representatives, including John Sharpe
Williams, of Mississippi, protested
against the acceptance of the
big purse of 100000 from Dem
yer, for it is well understood
that a Convention actually costs only
about $4,000. But the committee
wanted that extra $4,000 very badly.
It has some debts still unpaid, and it
needs money with which to start the
campaign next year. The $4,000 will
go far toward paying rent for head
quarters in New York, presumably, and
toward paying postage and clerk hire.
In fact, it will start the committee
very comfortably, where it would 9TH
erwise have to skimp and pass the
hat 1t will go to some extent toward
euualizng things with the Republicans,
who have a nice fund in bank as a
surplus from the corporation contribu-
tions of 1904.
Of course Denver wanted the Con-
I, 5l,- will 10
advertise the city. No National Con-
vention ever went so far West before,
and it may be a long day before an
other goes that far West. The railroad
fare from the Atlantic seaboard States
will be something like $40, to say
nothing of Pullmans and other extra
accommodations The travelling time
will be about two days coming and
two days going. The South did not
want the Convention so far West;
neither did the East. The Middle West
did not mind SO much. while, of course
the sparsely-settled West was delight
ed, and the great throngs at the Con-
yention will be distinctly Western peo-
pie The Democrats argue that a good
impression will be made upon the vot-
ers of Colorado and adjacent Western
States, hut it is hardly to be expectei
that the Democrats VIII carry any of
those States next year. If Mr.. Bryan
Is elected IL VIII De Dy the
votes of the big Eastern States.
Newspapers Grumble.
The ne. --s will do some grum-
bling when the Convention is at hand,
for Denver is two hours later than New
York. Boston, Philadelphia and Balti-
more and one hour later than Chicago.
This means a vast deal in the making
of daily newspapers which the reading
public does not realize. For example
when ii is 10 o'clock in Denver il is
noon in New York. and after the noon
hour Ii is increasingly difficult every
minute to get anything into an after
noon newspaper. 1t is doubtful wheth-
er telegraph wires can be successfully
operated from Denver to New York
without relaying, which means extra
delay Between Chicago and New York
or Boston wires can be operated direct,
but probably messages from Denver
tc the East will have to be relayed az
Chicago, which means that they Will
be. received by an operator at Chicago
and then be repeated by another oper-
ior to their Easte- n destination. All
those things take time, and time is
everything in the making of a news
paper The readers Of afternoon pa
pers in the East viii be fortunate II
they read anything more than q hastily
written account of the morning session
of the Convention.
The situation will be quite as bad
for the readers Of morning papers be-
cause, except in the densely-populated
centers, the editions of morning news
p>pers close al midnight or ! o'clock
so as to catch the outgoing trains foI
the country. That is 10 o'clock or II
O'Clock at night, which means that il
will be difficult TO get much news from
Denver TO the East after s or 9 o'clocf
in the evening. But the city editions
of the newspapers can take matter W
TO 2 O'Clock or later in the morning
y and the city readers will know about
all that is done at Denver the day be-
fore.
The committeeman were very gen
orally for the nomination of Bryan
altho the conservative members were
sullen about the prospects of his nom
ination. The efforts to boom othei
candidates continue, but these cfforai
are largely from the corporations
friends, who would like to have somC
Democratic candidate they could sup.
port, and thus punish the Republicans
Congress seemed 10 pay little atten
ton to the meeting of the Democratic
Committee, whose members were les
In evidence at the Capitol than tn,
members of the Republican Commit.
tee had been. But Congress was in
session but little last week, and nobody
was paying much attention to it. TIL,
Speaker was busy making up his list o
I..w. To-.