The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1912-06-26

Baltimore, June 25-A rapid fire
routine session tonight closed the first
day OF the Democratic national con-
Vention, which began with the defeat
of w. J. Bryan for temporary chair
man this afternoon. Scenes of disor-
DER on the floor made further proceed
ings impossible and compelled Alton
B. Parker to suspend his keynote
speech until the evening session.
Tonight the delegates on the floor
gave earnest evidence Of their desire
to do everything in a hurry. The com
pletion Of Parker's speech and naming
the convention committees was all the
convention did tonight.
Bryan was not at the convention
tonight His failure to be on hand re-
suited in the almost immediate ad-
journment of the resolutions commit
tee, which met after the convention
adjourned. 1t was practically certain
Bryan would be elected chairman of
the committee. The other committees
got together for immediate organiza-
ton.
At s:S4 the convention adjourned to
meet at II o'clock tomorrow.
JUDGE PARKER TALKS.
Judge Parker said in part:
I'VE meet while the hills yet echo
to wild cries of thief and traitor and
furious walls of fraud, bribery, treach-
weary with the din Of the articulate
sArieking and passionate villification
of the most shameful brawl of our po-
litical history.
Our candidates, however, are, with
out exception, men OF such lofty mien
that we meet immune from the dis
temper which seized the Chicago con-
vention and privileged to discharge n
solemn duty calmly, deliberately.
The cause of government by tho
people the world over has been mate
rally checked by the disgra ceful brawl
" hich terminated in the bedlam Of Chi
csgo. Every good citizen has been
put to shame by the brutality and the
abuse which characterized this wran
gle between a president and ex-pres
dent Gratitude, friendship, party 10y
atty, patriotism and common decency
were forgotten in the tussle.
The assault upon the unwritten
Prohibition against a third term made
in the wild scramble for the Repub-
l;can nomination warns us Of the vital
necessity of Incorporating in our con-
stitution a safeguard against repeated
telms.
TN the very beginning OF our legis-
intion- making 1t was urged by dele
gates participating that safety re-
uuired a limitation of the period of
years one man might hold the office
Of president. History warned them OF
the coming of a man whose Unsuitable
lust of power would be as consuming
as Caesars. towering high above his
love Of country. The danger seemed
even to the pessimists to have passed
with the establishment OF precedent
hy Washington, Jefferson and their
! successors. Indeed, where lives the
man who has not either heard or said
that an unwritten law forbids more
/
be so foolhardy as to seek further, he
would be crushed by the wrath Of a
patriotic and intelligent public.
I'm this great country which boasts
OF a wealth OF one hHndred and thirty
billion as against eighty billion for
! Great Britain, sixty five billion for
| France and sixty billion for Germany,
all are conscious that too large a part
Of our wealth has been secured by a
small percentage Of our population and
that the cost OF living rises faster than
| the average income.
TARIFF THE CAUSE.
THE principal cause Of all this is TO
be found in the tariff statutes and
| competition restrained, created for the
pl rpose of wringing from the public
ever dollar which the tariff statutes
nlske possible.
THE average Of duties under the
! tariff of 1883 was 1-2 per cent. Now
| the average is so per cent.
In 1912 the average was 80 per
cent. In 1S46 II was reduced TO 25 per
cent which worked so well that a re-
/ duction to an average of 20 per cent
| followed in 1857.
| Probably II would never have beer
| again Increased but for war, for the
census of 1850 disclosed q higher per-
centage Of increase OF the national
wealth during the preceding ten years
than for any other decade before Or
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