The Washington times., 1912-03-20
POLITICIANS HERE
STIRRED BY REPORT
Of BOOM FOR BRYAN
Nebraskan Said to Be in
Highly Receptive Mood.
Talk of Stampede,
BY JOHN sNURE.

Within the last day or two there has
been A. mighty stir in Democratic circles
in the Senate and House over a report
that William Jennings Bryan Is In a
receptive mood as to the Democratic
Presidential nomination. In fact, the
report indicates that Mr.. Bryan is ac-
tually desirous of the nomination in
case President Taft gets the Repub-
lican nomination.
Along with this goes the rumor that
Mr. Bryan Is getting ready to help
shape things at Baltimore so that the
convention will be finally stampeded to
h.mi
The report runs that Mr.. Bryan has
let some of mis- friends know that he is
willing TO take the nomination under
certain circumstances. Indeed the
Commoner in a recent issue intimated
that conditions might arise wherein it
would be advisable for Mr.. Bryan to
accept the nomination. Mr.. Bryan does
not want to run against Roosevelt. But
he would be perfectly willing, II ap-
pears, to enter the lists against Taft.
Whether Mr.. Bryan does not want to
run against Roosevelt because he be-
lieves that Roosevelt would beat him Is
not positively stated, but that is the in
depreciation generally put OH his un-
willingness to run against the colonel
in Republican and Democratic circles
here.
The situation as Mr.. Bryan sees it
Is, briefly, about this:
When the convention meets at Balti-
more no one of the candidates will have
enough to nominate him either on the
first ballot or on the first several bal
lots. The most of the progressive DEM
ocratic strength will belong to Wood
row Wilson. The conservative strength
and the near conservative strength will
be split up among Harmon, Underwood,
and Clark.
The opposition to Wilson among the
conservatives is strong. Not willingly
will they go to him, even if he is found,
q majority of the delegates. Finally
there will come talk of selecting some
man other than the active candidates.
At the proper psychological moment
the Bryan stampede will be initiated
and forced to a conclusion If possible.
1t has all along been much talked
under the surface here in Democratic
quarters, and in Republican quarters,
too for that matter, that in the last
analysis the man nominated by the
Democrats was likely to be Bryan. 1t
has been widely felt that 1t was not in
human nature for man to lead his
party through three defeats and then,
Just when high hope of success appear
ed, to submerge his own ambitions.
OHe man guess Is as BOOO as an
other as to what would happen next
November If Mr.. Bryan were the nomi-
nee on the Democratic side and Mr..
Taft on the other No question can be
raised as to the potent grip Mr.. Bryan
has on his party 1t is doubtful. too,
II he ever had more admirers on the
Republican side than he has now. Even
I that redoubtable member of the Old
Guard Republicans, Senator Gallinger,
remarked not long ago that there were
a lot of good points about Bryan. To
what extent the progressive Republi-
cans in their dislike for President Taft
would go to Bryan Is a question. 1t
is safe guess, however. that it would
he found many thousands of them would
line for the Nebraskan in every State
where progressive Republlcanism is
strong. On the other hand, as between
Bryan and Taft, many conservative
Democrats would go to the President.
Interesting in this connection is the
fact that Bryan and Governor Judson
Harmon recently lunched together at
Cincinnati 1t is stoutly maintained at
Harmon headquarters here that the gas
tronomic communion had no political
significance and did not indicate any
political alliance.