Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1916-06-07
Plans All in Talk Stage.
By Perry Arnold.

Chicago, June 7.=AThe hosts of re-
pubiicaEs met in quadriennal session to-
day with about as much knowledge OF
who they would choose some time this
week as q presidential nominee as Noah
had about the probable duration of the
deluge The smile is imminently fit
ting-for outside the great Coliseum
full drab skies spat ceaseless down
pour of cold rain, just as they had been
giving vent to feelings since yesterday
morning.
Today's session was to be mercy as a
transfer of talk from the hotel lob
bies to the convention hall. The pro-
gram was meet, listen to a Remote
speech by Temporary Chairman War
rem G. Harding, receive and accept the
temporary roll of delegates, announce
the convention committees-and ad-
iourn for more talk in hotel lobbies and
rooms.
The talk part of this convention is
getting on the nerves Of the delegates,
May be two days of depressing Chicago
rain, fog, and wind aided. But the fact
remained today that OF the millions of
words of conversation, conference and
conflict not syllable has yet been
transferred to concrete action. Murray
Crane still pussyfooted today, which is
another name for whispering; George
w. Perkins conferred; favorite son
talks; Frank Hitchcock moved about
with mysterious words trailing along in
his wake; Boise Penrose listened to
talk; Barnes emitted few well chosen
words anent 7. R., and then became a
receptive well of conversation; the lob
by crowds talked.
Things Generally Conceded.
Out of the waste of words it was
possible to develop any hypothesis and
arrive at any decision, according to the
wish of the listener. A modern Diogenes,
however, would probably have sifted
out the following facts from the talk
of the convention leaders:
The old guard still has the situation
well in hand.
1t is playing .chord of harmony;
being real pleasant and nice with its
power.
Hughes will have a good lead on the
first ballot
The allies have figures to support
their claim that combined against
Hughes they have more than three
times the number of delegates credited
to the justice.
Senator Borah, of Idaho eliminated
himself as a presidential possibility.
Get together plans Between progress
sive and republican leaders are proceed
ing-but the headway on candidates
has not yet reached much further than
the eternal talk stage.
How Candidates Stand.
OF the above, the allies claim of
enough votes to kill off Hughes seemed
most vital today. Midnight conferences
resulted in the following tabulation set
of claims of votes on the first ballot;
Fairbanks. 100.
Burton. 10.
Weeks, 175.
Sherman, 20.
Root, 85.
DUPONT G.
Borah, Is.
Cummins, 10.
LaFollette, so.
Roosevelt 10.
Total, ISL.
On the first ballot Hughes will not
have more than 30 votes. Frank
Hitchcock Is answer was to point to his
only claim since he started the talk for
Hughes here-more than $40 votes for
the justice.
Rain SOaks Delegates.
Seldom have $4,000 dampened per-
sons met in the fashion they did to.
day. The rain.washed began arriving
at the Coliseum early. A band, whose
drums sagged from the cloggy, muggy
atmosphere thumped and footed valiant.
ly from somewhere way up in the air
back of the hall Tn the air was the
smell of rubber overcoats, and Of water
soaked umbrellas, with a suggestion of
moth balls where some disciple of pre-
paredness had been able to dig down in
his trunk and get out a winter suit in
stead of shivering around in summer
tweeds.
The gorgeous yellow and white bunt-
ing decorations filtered the drabness Of
the outside in a little more mellow
glow inside the great hall and helped
the dampened and chilled spirit to thaw
l 'uN hHu NAg Oul u Allilts buuuN IlD-
bons that had once been badges and
had curled up on the watersoaked
coats of the spectators and delegates,
began to unkink and perk up little
So did the wearers Of these badges
Then began the ever lasting talk, talk.
the buzz, buzz of conversation that
welled in a continuous roar of noise.
The roar shattered now and then by
the crack of yells for some favorite
son or greetings for some delegate
All Roosevelt and Hughes.
Here in the convention hall as in the
hotel lobbies, the principal topic Of the
conversation was Roosevelt and
Hughes The G. o. P.-ites were very
much interested in what was about to
happen mile or so north in the audi
torium, where the bull moose cohorts
were presumably singing "Onward
Christian Soldiers" and doing other
moosish things. The consensus Of OPP
inion was that Roosevelt was done with
the republican convention-but then
you never can tell, especially when
there was so much talk and George
Perkins was supposed to be equallng
the pussyfooting performances Of Muir.
ray Crane.
Going back to schedule again, the
convention met to talk and expected to
talk for perhaps three hours. Then
there was TO be two hour stOppape of