The Palatka news and advertiser. [volume] (Palatka, Fla.) 1908-19??, 1912-02-09

C. Bulge, George w. Allen, ]. MizelI,
]. F. Horr, E. Livingston, ]. w. Howell,
NJ B. MacFarlane, L. c. Lynch, w. r.
O'Neal, w. L. Gable, H. w. Bishop, c..
]. Schoonmaker, II. S. Chubb, G. A..
Alba, w. A. Allen, L. Kilbourn, B. E..
RaulerSon, G. w. Bean, George W..
| Nevill.
On the adjournment of the state con-
vention the various congressional CON
ventionS were held.
The first district nominated Geo. w.
Bean for Congress, and elected John F.
! Horr and H. W. Bishop as district dele
gates to the national convention. 1t in
structed the delegates for Taft.
The second district nominated John
w. Howell of Nassau for Congress, and
elected Geo. E. Gay of Putnam and
VIM. H. Lucas of Duval as district dele
gates to the national convention. They
were instructed for Taft.
The third district did not make con-
greSSional nomination but elected T. F.
MCGOWAN and M. Page as delegates TO
the national convention and instructed
for Taft.
All the conventions unanimously in
Structed the delegates TO the national
convention to vote for Hon. Henry S.
Chubb as national committeeman.
Side Lights on Convention
The convention was composed of 1856
delegates. Of this number 66 were
whites and 120 were negroes, OF the 90
white delegates present 81 were either
Federal officials or clerks.
OF the 32 members of the state central
committee 20 are Federal office holders.
Joseph E. Lee, the presiding officer,
is the collector of Internal Revenue for
the district of Florida. He has held the
office through several administrations,
and il is said that his conduct of the Of
flee has been such that the only objec-
ton that can be urged against him is the
fact that he is negro, and that sort of
objection ought not to have weight in a
republican administration. Lee is fine
parlimentarian and his address on taking
the chair was one of the Smoothest
pieces of political oratory the convention
heard.
Not one of the speakers mentioned
the name of Roosevelt. They didn't
dare Had they done so the regular
slate would have been broken and the
convention would have stampeded for
the Colonel.
A framed picture of President
Taft was on the stage, and the PreSi-
dents name was mentioned by each OF
the speakers. There was, however, but
slight applause at the mention of his
name. This was mostly by the white
office holding delegates and only here
and there negro delegate. Row after
row of negro delegates kept absolute si-
lence at every mention of President
Taft's name. They had been instructed
by Joe Lee and the 90 white delegates
10 behave themselves, and they did
pretty well, considerin'.
The report of general bolt from the
convention as published in the Times
Union of Wednesday is absolutely with
out foundation.
There was a convention of negroes
held in a hall up Lemon Street, but
there were only three or four boiling
delegates from the regular convention
present. The balance were alternates
or contesting delegates whose contests
were not allowed, and negroes from the
street. That meeting had no standing
either in law or morals.
The regular convention was regular
and its proceedings in perfect harmony
with parliamentary usage, and yet a visi-
tor could not escape the conclusion that
its order was maintained by an invisible
stuffed club, of which all but a few OF
the negro delegates were afraid.
The work of the convention was all
done by the Office holders in control
outside the hall. The convention
simply ratified their werk.