Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1912-06-29
Mont M'Conkey Writes Bis.
marCk Friend NdrrdtiOq
Events Of Opening Day
Chairman and Delegates Con-
verse With One Another
Through McgaphoneS
Clashes Between Bryan Ad'
hereDtS and Parker follow.
els We're Frequent

Montgomery MCCOnkey, formerly
of Bismarck, who is now holding
down a civil service position in Wash
ington, wrote a personal letter to one
of his friends in this city, describing
the opening of the Democratic Ma
tional convention. The description is
50 clever that it is published here
with:
Deacon:
This won't be exactly letter. mas
much as the same thing, practically,
has already gone to Bismarck to an
other friend, but if send it to you,
it will ease my conscience of brain
power, it being already in shape, as
aforesaid. l went over to Baltimore
yesterday to see the fight over the
temporary craftsmanship, and between
spells of yelling, took shorthand de-
scription of things, of which the fol-
lowing is a partial transcript:
have just returned from watching
William J. Bryan lead the progress
sive cohorts to glorious defeat at Bal
timore. Baltimore is one of the dirt
lest cities that grace, or disgrace, the
earth, and today it was raining. BY
the strength of my. will assisted in
some slight degree by the strength OF
my muscles), I obtained six square
inches of space on an apology for a
street car, convention-bound, resur-
rected from the scrapheap especially
for the occasion. By the grace OF God
and Ralph J. Burton, was possessed
of ticket to a seat back under the
south gallery within seeing distance
Tor within several hearing distances)
of the platform. Thus was | saved
from the fate of some tens OF thou
sands of presumably intelligent hui
man beings who gathered about IN
the vicinity of the armory in the rain,
afterward finding out what happened
by reading the evening paper at din
ner. AS aforesaid, l stoWed myself
into a seat between Clark man from
Georgia and a Wilson man from
Pennsylvania or Michigan, or some OF
those southern states. Such loca-
ton, while not conducive to peace OF
mind, was at least very interesting
and edifying. The Clark man sup
ported Parker for chairman and the
Wilson man was a strenuous Bryan
tie, l serving as neutral "butfer
state" and preventing bloodshed not
so much by presence of mind as by
presence of body. The quarters were
so narrow that neither could pass. me.
The armory hall as decorated in
gold and white; at one end was a pic
ture of Jefferson, the work | was told
of the John P. Jones Carriage Paint
ing Co. Glaring balefully at him from
the other end of the hall was Andrew
Jackson, the one live wire democracy
has yet produced. Above the platform
was Washington, clothed in black
suit and a sanctified smile, pursuing
middle course between Jefferson and
Jackson-apparently a compromise
candidate for the place above the
speakers. NoSman Mack called the
convention to order shortly after
noon, after which Cardinal Gibbons
offered prayer and the band played
"Oh, You Beautiful DOLL" with no
personal reference, l believe, to Mr..
Gibbons. The crowd, being unable to
agree on the comparative merits OF
the two numbers, made the only COM
promise of the day by cheering both.
Thereupon a secretary read the for
NAL call for the convention, and an
other read the report of the national
committee as to temporary chairman,
placing in nomination the name of
Alton B. Parker. Thereupon Bryan,
who had slipped in quietly and had
been hitherto unobserved, rose to
speak, and pandemonium broke loose.
When he quieted the crowd, he NOM
mated John w. Kern, and spoke near
ly an hour, discussing recent political
history and the present situation.
When he came to his final plea for
Kern's personality, he started out,
And what better man could we have
when a mingled roar of Bryan and
Parker" started softly in far gal
lery and swept in wave over the
convention. When the noise subsidized
he tried again, with the same result.
The third time, an obstreperous bone
head up under the roof yelled "Hurrah
for Teddy" but was Immediately OBJ
liberated by storm of hises and two
policemen.
Bryan omitted personalities and
dealt solely with Parker's wall street
connections. After each knock" he
made at Parker. the Parker men
would punctuate his remarks with a
roar of "Parker" When he closed
there was more noise than if Baker
had knocked out another home .'un.
John W. Kern was greeted with
derisive outburst by both factions,
hut he came bravely to bat, and
bought over the stands by a beautiful
sacrifice hit, declining the nomination
and placing in nomination the name
of William Jennings Bryan of Nebras-