Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1908-07-22
The Great Denver Convention.

The people Of Denver, the giant
metropolis Of the west, that is To-
Gated where the prairies end and
where the mountains commence,
redeemed every pledge that they
made to the democrats of America
| when their national committee de-
cided to hold the party's 1908 con-
vention in that city.
For the use of their invited guests
the people of Denver built, Of stone,
| steel and concrete, the safest and best
auditorium in which a national con-
vention was ever held. In this i'm
mense audience room there is not
a post or pillar or beam to obstruct
the view, and the acoustic prop
critics are admirable. There is not
a poor seat in the place nor enc
much better than another. Those
who occupied the rear chairs in the
top gallery saw and heard almost if
not quite as we'll as those on the
main floor.
And the people of Denver decor
ated their streets and buildings
with elaborate lavishness.
They did more, they looked into
the faces of their thirty thousand
visitors with eyes which said to
them, 1--WE like you. and we want
you to know it" In brief, Denver.
was given chance and Denver
made good.
The Opening Session.
For a time it was thought
that the damage to the rail-
ways by the great floods in
eastern Nebraska would prevent
Temporary Chairman Bell and
many Of the delegates from being
present at the time fixed for the
opening session, but the marvellous
powers of great railway systems to
speedily repair breaks in their lines
solved the threatened difficulty to
the satisfaction of everybody.
Just before the convention was
called to order, Mrs. Alice Roose-
welt Longworth, accompanied by
her husband and number of bril-
liantly arrayed ladies', net Mrs.
Ruth Bryan Leavitt in passage
way near the speakers desk and ex-
changed few friendly words OF
greeting. The daughter of the
president Of the United States and
the daughter Of the Great Common
er, candidate for the first position
in the United States, shook hands
and smiled just like any other or.
binary American girls and passed
on to their private boxes, which by
design or coincidence bore the same
relative position on each side of the
chairman's box.
The first session was as formal
and free from demonstration as a
church service. The temporary
chairman's speech, admirable in
thought and delivery, produced no
/ discernible enthusiasm.
Every delegation was requested
to select its two best men for the
two important committee resolutions
and credentials, and call Of the
roll of states and territories 70,
membership of these committees
showed how well the request hae
s|'been needed. Iowa was represented
q shs resolutions A q platform CON
MONIES and on the. credentials com
lmittee by Claude r. Porter of Cen
| terville. These committees ha,
workof the first Importance to per
/ form.
4 Tho committee on credential
Twas charged with the importan
duty Of eliminating from democrati
Ecouncils two standard oil chiefs
Guifey Of Pennsylvania an
McCarren of New York. $50 far a
t las McCarren was concerned th
/ work was reasonably easy. Th
Tammany Indians only needed
word and they stood ready to do til
rest. But in Guffey's case cond
tions were quite different. Guffe
) is one Of the heads of the Standar
, Oil company. He is worth tens
not hundreds of millions. He hs
all the power of money at the end
r Of his fingers. A few days befor
{ the convention assembled, M
! Bryan made speech in which /
denounced Guifey and said i
: substance that he was a spy frol
the camp of the enemy and shout,
be treated as such. Guffey re
/, piled in fierce diatribe agains
Bryan and had himself re-eIecte
as the Pennsylvania member of th
democratic national committee
The seats, however, of a number !
the delegates who voted TO
Guifey were contested and if til
contestants won the anti-Guife
faction in the Pennsylvania dele
CATION would be strong enough t
unseat Gutfey and elect real demo
crat to represent that state. Il wa
known in advance that the tria
> would be fierce and lengthy ant
that no matter what the conmitte
might do the final decision woul,
depend upon roll call vote of th
entire. convention.
), And the platform committee ha,
work which required time to care
fully and properly perform. Ant
inasmuch as no business as no. bust
ness of any Importance could b.
transacted until these committee
reported, or at least untilxthe com
mittee on credentials was ready t,
report, it was expected by those bes
informed that the second and DOS
fsibly the third session would be un
eventful. Subsequent events proved
that those best informed did no