The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-06-09

Chicago June S.-(Special.) .)-Convention 1 sideights! Innumerable.
 For instance, there is William Jen-
 nings Bryan. How like Wolsey-lett i naked to his enemies.
 | The commoner, the former magic Of 1 whose name was sufficient to electrify a l nation, who, by the eloquence of his
 speech, was transformed from a news paper reporter into presidential cand- l date, and who for sub sequent years was perhaps the most potent figure in Amer
 ican politics. is now an object of com n,isera tion
 Mir Bryan, looking neither to the right ! nor the left, passed almost unnoticed | through the lobby of the University club | tonight-and yet it was only year or more ago that his most casual appear | ance was hailed with the salvos of an idolatrous nation.
 | Incidentally, the Nebraskan is again a reporter. He is serving a Hearst syndi- cate.
 I And yet in this mornings Examiner, Mr. Hearst, though profiting from the stuff that Bryan turns out, declared in a 1 signed statement the former hero to
 have been "the worlds most sublime op- portunist."
 | Yes, Bryan, with his pencil is here. And just 20 years ago he turned world topsy-turvy with bit of theoretical elo-
 quence which possibly could not have
 wfthstood the test of analysis. | But Bryan is not the only celebrity in | the press gallery. There is Irwin Cobb. rhn I, ioy yrr,-if iycr oUc I is expressing, in humorous manner, his views. Like the majority of other re- porters, Cobb declines seriously to re- gard the maneuvers of the astute bosses of the republican party. And yet, so ex- cellently poised is his sense of humor that he cannot see still deeper into the horrid maw-cannot see, it is apparent,
 the trafficking of politicians in busi- ness which should be left to patriots. And thus Cobb laughs with his pen and is a humorist. Otherwise, he would | be a cynic. 1 Everybody in Birmingham knows Cobb, I for he was one of the stars in the recent | reunion. It is, therefore, no secret that he is not an Apollo Belvidere. And yet, there seemed to be a bit of sacrilege in ! the expression of the Arkansas delegate, who today declared the writer to be "the ugliest man in the world" There are l times, as matter of fact, when Cobb s | get everything but the unforgivable fact that he wears wrist watch. 1 Sam G. Blythe is another celebrity of | the pen who, without working very hard earns a prodigious wage. | Blythe is popular with the other mem- l bers of the profession. He is human. One never talks with him without won dering if the yarns of his autobiograp phy are true For he relates, as may be recalled, the melancholy fact that once. ! in the beginning of his repertorial ca reer, so distressing became his hunger l that from a feed counter in a railroad station he stole six nice, little, round apple pies.''
 ] At the present time, Blythe, despite his
 rhetoric his punch and his experience 1 is as much fin the air. as any other newspaper man. All of them with a 1 flood of words are endeavoring with
 commendable zeal to hide all of the great deal they do not know and cannot ac- , curately guess.
 1 Attending the convention are not less than 1000 reporters. Practically every paper of note in the United States is represented by staff correspondent The number of newspaper men is as great as the number of delegates-and
 their combined influence is practically as great.
 | It is rather peculiar but true that the dominating individual is the absentee l Roosevelt.
 l The colonel, it appears, cannot win the nomination. The "Old Guard" will not
 take him. But the "Old Guard, at the
 .~~~~~~~~-~~- 1 adjourn just as word came from the re- | publican convention that the peace pro- posal was brought up for consideration l there.
 John McGrath, Colonel Roosevelts sec rotary, Chairman Robins and other lead CTS rushde to the front of the stage and urged the delegates to remain.
 | Governor Johnson then announced that Senator Smoot had moved adoption of 8 resolution to have the republican conven' tion appoint peace committee. The con-
 vention then reconsidered it's adjourn ment.
 Chairman Robins suggested that ir courtesy the progressive convention should reconvene officially. motion te that effect was hastily passed with but one opposing vote.
 A motion to authorize Chairman Rob- ins to appoint a peace conference com.
 mitee of equal size to that of the re
 publicans was agreed to unanimously. I Chairman Robins explained that thu conference committee would have no au
 thority except to confer with the repub lican committee and then report to tho I convention The convention then ad journed until 8 o'clock.
 | BAND STARTS EXCITEMENT Il At o'clock, the hour for the progres
 sive national convention reconvening, thu
 hall was barely one-third filled. pa
 triotic medley by the band started tn evenings excitement.
 The opening prayer was delivered b.
 the Rev. William Otis Waters of Grac
 Episcopal church, Chicago. He asket that "the spirit of American patriotism
 inspire and control the convention
 The invocation ended impressively, a
 led by the rector, the entire audenc
 joined in reciting the Lords Prayer
 Before the session opened the delegate
 amused themselves by tossing around
 toy watermelon shaped balloon and b.
 exchanging state yells and variety o Teddy calls.
 Chairman Robins gavel dropped at S:21
 but there were many vacant seats. Onl.
 a few hundred spectators were in tn
 balconies.
 ters between the two conventions regard ing the conference committees. Whel
 former Senator Crane's name was req,
 as 8 member of the republican conferenc
 committee there was a murmur of pro test The name of Senator Borah brough
 forth applause and that of Dr. Nichola
 Murray Butler grOans and hissing. T APPLAUSE FOR COMMITTEE
 The personnel of the progressives' con
 ference committed, appointed by Chair
 man Robins. created tumult of ap
 plause. Chairman Robins announced tha