Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-07-03
DEMOCRATS REJECT
ALL LIQUOR PLANKS
Platform as Drawn by Commit
tee Adopted by Con-
vention
WILSON MEN IN CONTROL.

sympathy for ireland and said nothing
at all about prohibition.
Bryan led the fight for adoption ot
his bone dry plank but II was buried
by n vote Of 02Oi9 to 1GIia. and then
''the Commoncr. thoroughly awake TO
the onslaught. did not oven nsk for roll.
calls on his four Other minority reports
for a national bulletin, for proftecr
ing. for compulsory military training
and for peace treaty.
The convention went over him
roughshod. rejecting dcri-vclv tho nro.
3ectg put forward by the autocrat OF
the party.
State after state. "dry" for years be-
fore the advent Of nation wide prohibi'
tion by constitutional amendment, voted
against the Bryan dry plank. state
after state where BRYAN one" held sway
as a political genius turned away from
him. The voice of the reading clerk.
borrowed from the House OF Represent.
atives Of Washington. grew moro
funcreal for BRYAN hopcs aud OrcStgC
at every state. The effort Of rho Nchras.
kan to regain the mantle Of leadership
was proving n sad spectacle. The Bryan
Of 1Sl6, of 1000. of zoos. of 1912. was
going west; he was not the Brvan
whose political star dominated at Chi.
cago, at Denver, at Baltimore. The
administration had planned an eclipse.
The program prevailed.
Wilson Victory Complete
The platform fight resulted in clean.
cut victory for Woodrow Wilson. II
was the Presidents dav throughout.
The White House scored on every point.
Mr.. Bryan was 1attcncd out every time
he raised his head in protest against tho
administration program. Wilson had
been waiting from January 3. when
Bryan had his inning at the Jackson
Day dinner. Tho Presidents friends
made good job OF rebuking tho
Nebrasknn.
In tho battle for tho platform. as
led by Secretary Colby and Senator
Glass. Of Virginia. during dcbato in
which both sides stirred delegates and
spectators TO repeated bursts Of emo.
tional enthusiasm.
I The Bryan prohibition nlank rejected
by the convention was M follows:
"We heartily congrH' 'ulntc the Demo
cratic party on its Snl ndid leadership
. IN the submission and ratification of
the prohibition amendment to the fed
eral constitution. and we pledge the
party to the strict enforcement Of tho
present enforcement law. honestly and
IN good faith. without any increase in
the alcoholic content of perm tied bover.
ages and without any weakening of any
other of its provisions.
The next minority plank to come m
for action was the dry pronosals bv
Richmond Pearson Hobson. He asked
for rollcall. but the request was not
sufhciently seconded and the plank was
voted down in great roar of disap-
proval.
The official total which boat the
Cochran moist plank was 7261R against
II and 800 voting for it,. Eleven and
q half votes were absent.
The text of the substitute rlank Of
fered by W. Rourke Cochran is as fol.
lows:
The validity of tho eighteenth
amendment 10 the constitution has been
sustained by tho Supreme Court, and
any laws enacted under its authority
must be enforced, In the interest Of
personal liberty TO conserve the rights
OF the states We favor federal lcgisla
tion under the eighteenth amcnlmcnt
allowing tho manufacture and sale for
home consumption only of cider. light
wines and beer. preserving 10 tho vayi
Gus states power to fix any alcoholic
content thereof higher than as fixed by
Congress as may br demanded by the
opinion or wishes Of each locaity."
Service Men Win Point
Chairman Glass won his fight to
strike four words from tho platform
plank relating to treatment of service
men men in the late war after tn" platform
had been adopted by the convention
today He declared that tho resolutions
committee did not think the change Of
signal Importance. but X. G.. Murchie
national committeeman from New
Hampshire. who argued for tho minority
plank on the subject which tho convcn-
tion had previously turned down BY
close vote, asserted the correction car
ried tho plank far toward meeting the
view of the service men.
The sentence altered originally read
Tho hne patriotism exhibited
by American soldiers, SqIorS.
marines constitute sacred
heritage of posterity, the worth Of
which can never be- rccompenscd from
the treasury. and tho glory Of which
must not be diminished b. any such ex.
pedient"
The words "br any such cxprdiont"
were eliminated, but the preceding nor.
uon of the sentence was lcfr unchanged.
Beginning his speech with an argu.
ment in favor Of tho eighteenth nmcnd
ment, Mr.: Bryan soon got the convon
ton to cheering. Every Democratic
state he said, had ratified 'hc amend
ment and every Quo recognized that tho
liquor trafhc is dead, never to be-
resurrected. "
The only question is whether wc
shall recognize it as dead " Ac con.
Ntinued. "or allow it 10 lie out on tho
eround uncovered. Doconcy rconirc,
that a corpse be put out Of sight. ="
The liquor interests Mr. BRYAN aid
were not trying to reopen tho question
but now had come down 10 advocating
wine and beer for home consumptjou
only. He argued that 10 remain silent
on the subject would leave open tho
/. possibility of change in the law to in
crease the alcoholic content
Cochran In RebuttaI
"God speed the right" repeated W.
Bourke Cochran in introduction TO pre.
senting his minority report
with that the last speaker con.
eluded and with that ] begin. we have
heard a great deal here that was highly
interesting and picturesque and ex.
travagant. But it is a peculiar thing in
history that most of what is bad was
conceived by people who were good, by
I'll. .digested efforts to coerce people in
their daily lives.
II am opposed to the word prohibi-
tion. abhor il. 1t Is the word you
will find chalked UP in all the penitcn-
tiaries. II IL is necessary 10 have
prohibition and force the people TO do
what they do not want 10 do. then
say they are not ft for self. govern
ment and are ready for submission to