The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1912-06-24
Some Convention Observations

!, Roosevelt. But the Taft men had
/ carried one of the districts and they
insisted that that district was entitled
I to its two votes. 1t was wholly reas-
enable contention. The rule OF the
people also includes the rule OF the
people in district. The Taft men in
iowa might as we'll have insisted that
! the ten Cummins men should have
voted with them because the Taft
| men had the majority in the state
convention and carried eight out of the
/; thirteen districts. Each district was
allowed to be represented in its own
way. States rights were not insisted
on. In Iowa the two sides sat amic-
! ably together in the convention. In
/ California the twenty four would not
let the two sit, with them, under pen
/; atty Of being pounded into Jelly. The
sand lot influences are still rampant
| in California;; civilization was in evil
dence in Iowa.
! In Ohio's case 1t was argued that
i Roosevelt should have had the dele
gates at large because of the popular
majority for Roosevelt in that state.
/ But in Massachusetts they used the
exact opposite argument. In that state
the popular majority was for Taft, but
! the eight delegates at large in spite
i Cf hof cot ~ a. nd
{ voted for Roosevelt. When the major,
lity was announced in Massachusetts,
Roosevelt in a spectacular manner
handed over the delegates at large to
| Taft, in obedience to what he called
the will of the majority. That was
much made Of as showing of fair
ness. But how did those eight from
/: Massachusetts vote? They voted, for
Roosevelt throughout the convention,
and not for Taft, in spite Of the m
/ jority for Taft in Massachusetts and
! in spite of Roosevelt's pre-convention
declaration conceding them to Taft.
/ The popular majority and the peoples
/ will was vital talking point In Ohio
/ and other states, but it was not a
| vital point in Massachusetts. The
truth is that both sides took what they
1 could get-and then they accused the
other side of being unfair. That is the
rule of politics.
The two national conventions this
year are probably the last Of their
kind. For better or for worse, the
primary will do away with these
great bodies of men, or at least min
! ify their Importance There may still
be national meetings, but the duties
will be few. The candidates will have
been designated before the gavel falls
in these gatherings and the conven-
lions will perform no more important
services than to provide the resolu-
tions. which also will have been fore.
Swallowed and to organize the party
machinery for the work Of the cam
| paigns.
There are bad features about con-
ventions, but there are also good
features. A convention is great ma
tional crucible in which differences OF
4 opinion are fought out. 1t is train
! ing school for men and many men
have been made in these gatherings
A gathering of the kind is a free for
all one and men are tested and tried
in them. A man who ventures into
them, as a speaker or director, is cast
ing himself into a vast and roaring
sea, and he must be able to swim the
rolling waves and buffet the winds, If
he would survive and come out with
glory. Few men, after all. are equal
to the task. Most men who appear
make very ordinary showing. But
to the man who has something in
him, who is good fighter and fair
one, ready talker and logical one,
there is great glory to be achieved.
The Judgment of such gathering is
intuitive. Men are sized up readily
and they are sized up very nearly cor
rectly. No speaker can flimflam such
gathering, and no speaker can make
poor argument appear either reason
able or we'll even. The man who has
the goods" and who knows how to
deliver them will always get across in
such convention. There is an APP
parent sense of unfair play and of
prejudice and of passion even, but
these are, after all, only on the sur
/ face.
The big gatherings are submissive
to reason, to appeals along the higher
lines. But not only right and reason,
but also courage counts great deal.
/ The big crowd likes man of courage.
The other day, when Serene Payne APP
peared to defend the action of the ma
jority in the California case, they
friad To he,of hi,,, do,,r., tn. IL = ..~4