Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-07-09
CUFFEY MEN BARRED
Credentials Committee Report
Adopted at Denver.
NOT A TW0.THIRDS VOTE
Division Not Regarded as Test of
Bryan Strength.
ELEVEN DELEGATES ABSENT
Gov. Haskell Of Oklahoma Bitterly
Denounces the Contestees in the
Pennsylvania Cases.
NOT A TWo-THIRDs VOTE
ELEVEN DELEGATES ABSENT

DENVER. July 9-When the democratic
rational convention at 1875 o'clock last
night adjourned until II am. today,
after an hours acrimonious debate over
the report of the committee on creden-
tials. one snag had been removed from
the channel through which the candidacy
OF William J. Bryan had to pass on the
way to his nomination for the presidency
of The United States. By vote an
nounced as 8l5 to 3S7, the convention re-
jected the minority report from the COM
mittee on credentials and adopted that Of
the majority Of the committee, the prin-
cipal practical effect Of which was to un-
seat the group of contested delegates from
Philadelphia hostile to the candidacy of
Mr.. Bryan. and, more particularly, friend
~ to the interests of National Committee
man James NJ Guffey Of Pittsburg. In ad-
dition to this, the report as adopted added
four to the representation from Okla
homa. and thus four to the total strength
of the convention. These four are Bryan
men,
To how great an extent this vote really
represents the ultimate anti-Bryan
strength in the convention was the inter-
estiug and highly important question de-
bated on all hands this morning when
the convention. 1t requires a two-thirds
vote to nominate. and 3S7 is comfortably
more than one-third of 1,OO6 The sup
planting of the ten Guffey men by ten
twenty. and the addition Of the four Bry-
an men from Oklahoma would increase
the gain to twenty-four, but even in that
would leave the anti-Bryan strength more
than the one-third necessa airy to prevent
his nomination-if this vote had been on
the nuo4tinn Of nnnin tinn Plt II
not. and comparatively few observers this
morning profess to regard the vote as
really a test Of the strength of either
side on the question of nomination.
The Report on Contests.
After Richmond Pearson Hobson. Charlie
Towne. Fiddling Bob Taylor and a couple
Of other political warblers had torn off
several yards of oratory apiece the con-
vention got down to business and Chair
man Callahan of the credentials commit
tee read the majority report, which 1ol-
lows:
Your committee recommends that in.
each OF the following contests the delega-
lions as named by the national commit
tee be entitled to seats as the regularly
accredited delegates and alternates to
this convention. namely:
THE state Of Idaho.
THE first. second, third. fourth, fifth,
sixth. seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth
"The second. third. fourth, fifth. sixth
and seventh districts OF the state Of New
York.
THE nineteenth district OF the state of
Ohio.
THE thirty-second district of the state
Of Pennsylvania.
THE District Of Columbia.
"In the matter of the contest from the
first. second. fourth, fifth and sixth dis
trifs 70 ~ fhn orc 70 1T Sv1H op{o
recommend that the contestants shall be
seated and recognized by this convention
as the duly accredited delegates and alter
mates from said districts in the state of
Pennsylvania, to wit:
First district-Neil Bonner and Michael
Francis.
Second district-Ryerson W. Jennings.
Fourth district-A. Raymond Raft and
Horace F. Foge1
Fifth district-Patrick F. Koran and
Paul Wise.
sixth district-P. ]. Hallahan
I'm the matter Of the contest from the
nineteenth district of the state of Ohio
your committee recommends that the
following be seated in this convention as
the accredited delegates from said dis
trict: e. A. Powers and DR.. William
Watts.
Friends Of Guffey.
During the reading Of the report by Mr..
the Illinois delegation. which it was gen.
orally understood would stand by the in
dignant and outraged Guffeyites. was
Hopping round the Auditorium like
decapita ted Plymouth Rock, comforting
with the leaders of other delegations and
lining up the anti-rollers for the fiattening
about to begin.
When Callahan read that part of the
majority report most interesting to the
tod nS1y1y, Y,to
little kissing, little applause and a num-
Der of expiring means from the direction
of the keystone delegation.
In the matter of the two lists of COM
mittee appointments from Pennsylvania,
Chairman Callahan reported that the Gre
dentials committee recommended that. in
view of the contest decisions. the lists
be referred back to the delegation for
further action
Mr.. Callahan closed by moving the
adoption of the report.
Il second that notion shouted dele
gate from Indiana.
The Minority Report.
The chairman stated the question and
then recognized l. l.. Straus of Mary
land. who read the minority report, which
recommended that the contestees in the
Pennsylvania cases be seated. d
The report gave the following reasons:
'First-That there was no evidence adj
duced by the contestants before the COM
mittee to support their claim to said
seats.
"Second-That the contestants produced
no credentials conducive to accredit them
in any way to membership in this con-
vention.
-'Third-That they made no protest or
appeal to any convention of the demo-
cratic party Of Pennsylvania. or to any
tribunal or functionary of said party, or
to any country in said state, as provided
by the primary election law of the state.
"Fourth-That the credentials of said
contestees were unexceptionable in every
respect"
The minority report was signed by the
representatives on the committee from
the following states: Maryland, New Jer-
sey, New York, Louisiana. Illinois. North
Carolina. Georgia, Virginia, Minnesota,
Delaware. New Hampshire Kentucky and
West Virginia.
These states have a total of $40 votes.
Stratus Wants to Speak.
Loud cheers were called forth by Mr..
Straus' statement that the action of the
majority Of the credentials committee
was a staggering blow at the democrats
of a sovereign state. and. somewhat en-
couraged By the vociferous sympathy.