Perth Amboy evening news., 1920-06-28
TAKE UP WORK
Of CONVENTION
Delegates and Leaders Pre-
pared for Fight on Both
Platform and Nominee.
CUMMINGS HAS FEATURE
impending Fight on Liquor Is
sue is liveIiest Subject Be-
ing Discussed in Frisco.

BY The Associated Press.
SAN FRANCISCO. June 2s:-
Delegates and leaders were pre-
pared for a fight over both platform
and candidates as the Democratic
national convention assembled for
its opening session today.
Actual work was only preliminary
and perfunctcry but the arrival of
convention days served to bring fur
ther into the open questions which
have been dividing delegates and
perplexing the elder politicians in
their pre-convention conferences
The keynote speech of Homer 8.
Cummings, as temporary chairman,
was the principal feature of the
days program. Later in the day
newly selected convention commit
tees were to furnish the real devei-
opments as they began their tasks
of writing the platform, hearing
appeals from contests over delegate
seats and making UP convention
rules and slate of permanent con-
vention officers.
The livest subject in mind of the
delegates. manifestly was the i'm
pending prohibition fight, but talk
OF candidates was gaining more and
more impetus as rival managers got
down to cases with the big body of
uninstructed and unpledged dele
gates.
Today for the first time the entire
convention personnel was near. and
opposing elements were taking de-
finite bearings.
The latest turn of the McAdoo
bomb furnished a new angle to con-
vention preliminaries, but its pre-
rfc he 10 cf<r
was not yet clear. Announcement
that the former secretary of the
treasury. despite his declaration.
that he did not want the nomination
would be willing to accept it was
seriously accepted by several ele-
ments In the hght.
BY some 1t was declared the de-
ve1opment meant that Mc4do0
whose supporters had planned to
keep him in the background for sew
eral ballots now would be an active
contender from the start and as a
consequence the convention would
have a big three running close to-
gether on the opening roll call. The
possibility of such a development
brought the newest claims of con-
Palmer and Cox and set the dark
horses champing impatiently as
they recalled what happened to the
big three at Chicago.
The Palmer and Cox managers
sought to discount the apparent
significance of the McAdoo an
nouncement which was made last
night by National Committeeman
Love of Texas, without saying
whether he had any direct authorize
ton from McAdoo. 1t was apparent
that McAdoo workers who had been
for votes accepted the
statement at its face value. Among
the best informed politicians the gen.
eral opinion was that it was still too
early to definitely forecast what
would happen. They suggested that
the Love statement only put the
Mr.. McAdoo announced that he did
not care to be considered a candi-
date. At that time both Attorney
General Palmer and Governor Cox
were candidates and their supporters
were claiming victories.
In the preconvention scramble for
delegates many who had been
McAdoo supporters promised to vote
for other men, but McAdoo men de-
clared today that possibly every one
of these could be brought back into
the fold.
There was frequent mention of
Secretary Meredith of the agricul-
ture department as possible running
mate for Mr.. McAdoo. Mr.. Mere
dith's headquarters were closed Sat
urday when he announced he was In
no sense candidate.
Discussion of candidates still was
in minds of many dele
gates to the prohibition issue and
they regarded the inevitable prelim-
inaries of the opening session with
as they waited for the
time when the differences of vets
and drys could be thrashed out. 1t
seemed a foregone conclusion that
the question would be settled only
bringing into play the best orator
ical and strategical fireworks of a
typical Democratic convention.
The league of nations and the
Irish question also threatened to get
out of control of the resolutions
and shower the conven-
tion floor with pyrotechnics.
There were many expressions OF
hope that both might be threshed
out to satisfactory conclusion be-
hind committee doors In the or
ganization of the resolution commit
tee itself a fight was growing,
though it was not apparent how Sc
rious it might become. Senator
Glass, chosen by the administration
as its candidate for the committee
ship, was certain of election though
a movement has been started
against him by western delegates.
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