The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-06-25
CONNECTICUT DELEGATION
 ENTERS WITH BANNER
 BEARING BALDWlN'S NAME
Lively Scene Marks Period Just Before
 Opening of Democratic Convention
Applause as Scarlet Robed Figure of Cardinal Gibbons Appears 1exas Shows Wilson Banner and California
 One For Champ Clark

| c 4 q ] Fifth Regiment Armory. Baltimore,
 June 25-The arrangements for the first session of the delegates and the spectators were the worst in the his tory of any snational qconyention. As a result there was indescribable con- fusion about the many entrances to the rambling structure. The force of door tenders were green on the job and this morning an army of police on duty spent good part of their time seeking shelter frcnf g 4penetrat- ing rain that was falling when the doors were thrown opEM
 The big barn-like building hads been made spick and span for the occasion. The. steel girders had been covered with. vari-colored cheesecloth Yellow and white bunting was ssuspended from the roof caves. Directly behind the speakers chdir was an oil paint ing of Thomas Jeferadn festooned with bunting.
 At one end of the hall was as picture of Washington with the motto, May the virtue and happiness of the people be preserved and the government which they have instituted for the protection of their liberties be perpet- ual'' . sg ;. 'sz.sis.y~-;ss,- .ef. < of Andrew J Jackson and the following: Who never sold the truth to serve { -Around the balconies twas draped red, white and blue bunting. Yellow banners bearing the State seals of the various States were distributed at in- tervais on the sbalcony rail.
 Although the dosrs opened at 10 clock there were not 150 people in the hall three quarters of an hour af- terward. This was due to the mixup at the entrances when the ticket talk CTS could not get the hang of their jobs.
 Three Ohio men were the first dele- gates in their seats. A couple of Michigan representatives next strolled in. and from that time on the men who will make party history during the ne1tas,few days came leisurely z During the hour preceding the open an andaxing amount of band wagon sentiment. many frankly admitting that their only concern was to get aboard the proper vehicles. These delegates came mainly from States In which Democratic victory Is a. remote possibility. Heretofore. when there was no particular reward or penalty to TO with loyalty to a faction these delegates were swayed only 4y their conception Of the principlas stnvolved Now. with the possibility that many 6flces may fall into Democratic hands, the prospect has developed new state of mind among delegates.
 Aside from its mere humorous side, the situation means that an actual band wagon stampede is an early pos- sibility of the big battle-a feature on which the Bryan followers are count ing heavily and which the conservA- lives admittedly fear.
 By the time the rival contestants toed the line, in the temporary chdir- remarked as something more than coincidence that the convention should be parallel to that in Chicago.
 It was generally conceded that Bryan, fighting against the selection of Judge Alton IB. Parker for temper ary chairman. was battling with ai- most identically the same forces of conservatism represented in this case by different individual field captains that fought the s'steamrollered" Roosevelt at Chicago.
 During the morning, Judge Parker. August Belmont, William F. Sheehan and Charles F. Murphy called on Thomas Ryan. but no one had any thing to say regarding their confer-
 At n o'clock. band in the gallery started lively tune and the delegates and spectators who had been lolIfng easily in their chairs sat up and began taking active interest.
 There were still less than 100 of the delegates in their seats, and in the galleries were many vacant spaces with here and there little group of men and women.
 A peculiar arrangement of the seats of the delegates brought New York, Indiana and Illinois in the very mid- de of the hall on opposite sides of the big aisle. This insured Tom Tag gart, the Indiana boss, Murphy of Tammany Hall and Roger Sullivan. of Illinois, being close enough for whenever necessary. Ne- braska. where the interest centered on w. J Bryan, was on the side of the hall to the left of the speakers plat form.
 The front rows were occupied by Nebraska, New Jersey, Missouri and