The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-30
Bankhead Says Nebraskan Will Still Play Part in the Democratic Convention
HUGHES SEEMS ONLY
 HOPE OF ANY UNITY AMONG REPUBLICANS
R0osevelt's Attitude Is That No One Is Acceptable to the People Save Himself
By HUGH W. ROBERTS


 Washington, April 29.-tspecinI)-If the republicans, in their convention in Chicago June :, adopt a platform com taining vigorous preparedness pre- vision--and they. wiII--nnd if the democrats, in their convention in St. Louis. adopt platform containing vigorous preparedness provision-snd they wiII-what would he the natural procedure of the irrepressibIe William Jennings Bryant
 The formation of a peace party
 His ally in -chief would be Henry Ford, the millionaire automobile manu- facturer, who has proved that in an effort to disarm nations and terminate warfare, he would stop short at noth- ing, not even world wide ridicule. With these leaders-the one an orator and strategist, the other capitalist and persuasive sentimentalist-the new party could easily draw from tho democrats and republicans. the dis gruntled elements-the socialists, tho pacifists, the pro-Germans. the suffra- gettes. the prohibitionists, the antt- Wilsonites.
 BANKHEAD EXPRESSES VIEWS
 Let no one dream that Bryan
 dead" said Senator Bankhead of
 Alabama this afternoon.
 In the first place, he will play a part in the democratic conven-
 tion, the expressed will of the peo-
 pie of Nebraska to the contrary.
 notwithstanding.
 .He has already been offered
 proxies by at least 30 delegates--
 some, I am informed representing
 southern states. If proxies are
 barreds-and I hope they will be-
 Mr. Bryan will be seated at re-S porter's desk For where is there
 8 newspaper which would not be
 glad to receive the daily express
 sion of progress-apd his own
 viewpoints and opinions?
 And subsequently,. do you think
 that Bryan will sit by supinely and
 see the summer. with it's polftf-
 cal turmoil, drift away without
 himself taking hand and sharing
 tHe dO uOt. Tt is my idea that he, a so-
 called democrat, and Henry Ford,
 so-called republican. both imbued
 with extravagant ideas of their
 own strength and power of per-
 suasion, will form a peace party
 and invite into it's fold, all the dis
 gruntled of the ol dor ganiza tion."
 DEMOCRATIC GOSSIP
 There is no other idea entertained but that President Wilson will be nominated by exclamation. With tho country prosperous-and at peace-the best opinion is that he will be elected: that the Germans, the rule-or-ruin Percivals and the all-sufficient suffra- gettes will prevail nothing against tho bulwarks of democracy sustained by the patriotism and intelligence of the American people.
 Hut should there be war with the distress which war alone can produces should the idea gain general circu- Iation that the President, personally. Is so strongly pro-Britain that 1t fa in the interest of Britain that he has re- peatedly cudgeled Germany, shouId the Mexican policy he presented even more emphatically as . policy weak, vacillating and inefncient-another re- suit, in the opinion of capital polftic- ians, might he the natural sequence There is on foot at the present timo
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