New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-06-20
By SAMUEL G. BLYTHE.
1912. by Samuel C Blythe,

f,bicago lime 1Q-The great news VI
,o,,,.a-+ior io not whether Roosevelt
ar Taft shall he nominated; not whetheI
Rhoseyelt will bolt II he Is deteateu' not
The identity Of a possible third or com
,,r,n,ise candidate: not the character OF
the platform
These are interesting and important
details Of a notable gathering. but they
are not the vital details. The great news
o. this convention IS this.
This convention now in progress II
chicago marks the passing Of Repubh-
can national conventions Of similar
character. There never will be another
convention like this. 1t is quite possioIe
there never will be another Republican
national convention OF any kind, that
this is the last: but. whether or not, there
will never be another like this one or re-
sembling in any regard the conventions
NJ nrevious wears running away back 10
1860.
Noreover-and this is even more I'M
portant-this convention gives date 10
the death Of the Republican party as II
81 at present constituted and as II mas
been constituted for many years. the
name Republican may live, but the Fe-
ppbIican party that name has typed
.,noe 1855 is dead. The funeral services
are being conducted in Chicago at the
present.
Political Systems Changed.
rake these two propositions in order
;ese,nning with the passing OF the pres
emf stvle of conventions. There never
will be another Republican national con-
vention like this one, or like the one VI
fopr or eight years ago. or those OF SIX
teen or twenty years ago, for the reason
that the political system that maze con-
lvent,ons easily possible in the past anu
,barely possible now has changed Inc
old nolitics are gone. The old politicians
nave been shifted out Of power A new
lranerat,on is almost in command, new
idea prevails. a new system Is IN process
OF development.
The Republican party is no longer
cohesive. fighting. definite organization
Pot instead il is really two parties-a
"staud-pat," or conservative party, anu
radical or progressive, party mere
isn't the slightest doubt II there hao
heep primaries in all the states insteao
of in a few Of them the old crowd wouIu
have a pitifully small representation
here M matter whether Mr.. Roosevelt
was a candidate or not.
So far as that eminent candidate Is
concerned. he grabbed progressivism
progressivism didn't grab him. nor
does that mean. necessarily that the
RApublican party has outgrown its old
systems and its old leaders and that the
reopls demand a new method Of select
ing their candidates They found the
right TO have q hand in the selection IN
stead of being told Of those selections
after they are made.
II a census could be made II would be
found that the radical element in the
Republicans party Is not so much greater
than the conservative element, as has
been claimed. There are many con
servative Republicans, but even the con-
servatives are fully alive to the def
oiencies Of the present system, and many
Of them are az anxious for readjustment
as the progressives. The fact Of II all Is
that the Republicans, conservatives and
progressives have advanced beyond the
method OF twenty years ago and that
neither wing is wholly in sympathy with
the present methods.
No Mere Committee Rolls.
II is quite probable that before &
comes time to nominate another candi-
date for the Presidency enough more
states will have adopted the preferen-
tisl primary system to make whatever
convention shall be held merely rati-
fication fete-about the same sort Of
gathering as meeting Of the Electoral
College; but even that does not come for
eight years, say there never will be an
other Republican national committee
that can make up temporary roll and
where a prearranged credentials COM
mittee can have the last word on the
confirmation of that roll.
There never will be another Repuhli-
can national convention where delegates
from the South, where there are no Re-
publicans in number and where no Re-
publican electoral votes can be obtained.
can hold the balance Of power as those
delegates do In this convention. There
never will be another Republican ma
tional convention where there can be the
pre-convention manipulation and contest