New-York tribune., 1920-07-01
By Haywood Broun


SAN FRANCISCO, June 30.-i-here
was once movement in America for
tittle theaters to save intimacy iand
truth in the drama. The movenb emit
died, but not before it brought some
OF the best work American playwrilS,ts
have ever done. To-day we oughtS to
agitate for little conventions. The op-
portunities for the chuckleheaded tin
such mass of men are prodigious;
few have been overlooked
Already this unwieldy Democrat sc
mob has taken a Senator and canonized
him. 1t took little stumpy district;
leader whom they know in Kansas Cityt
AS the rabbit Boss and gave him a.
heart and a halo. He rose to protest
against the unseating Of "Jim" Reed
and they called him to the platform.
He was a timid, shambling little man
as he edged forward, blinking, into the
big blue lights which the movie men
focus on the speakers.
II am here" he said in a thin voice,
TO make my formal objection against
any committee, county, state or ma
tional. coming into our district and
interfering with our choice"
Throw him out" shouted the dele.
gates.
SIT down. Aw, go soak your head"
cried the men who would not have
Reed because he opposed Wilsonian
idealism. Mingled with these tags
there was the incoherenr loud. menac-
ing noise Of big crowd which feels
that it only has single man to fight.
rabbit Boss" Becomes Giant
Suddenly it seemed as if the little
rabbit Boss" increased in stature.
Certainly he stood straighter and his
voice grew stronger. He was no longer
brother of all the mighty and luminous
men who have gone down under the
heels of impatient mobs. And when
the crowd snarled and tried to shout
him down, the rabbit Boss" did not
retreat from the roaring but came one
step forward and shook his fist.
All the glamour Of great me memories
scended upon him. He might have been
Wycliff burning for his Bible or John
Brown about to hang for fighting
slavery. instead of the spokesman of
Jim Reed fighting for a seat in the
Democratic convention at San Fran
cisco. The rabbit Boss" eyed the
shouters down finally and said:
I'm going back to Jim Reeds dis
trict and will report to our people that
testing against your coming into our
district and setting aside the unani-
nous choice of our convention"
And then he turned and let them boo
and shout to their hearts content, and
somewhere above earth or below it
good men said:
"Ataboy Rabbit"
Of course. there is q better thrill
in these big conventions than in little
fair. Little conventions would be more
truly Democratic. 1t is the very un-
wieldiness of such huge deliberative
bodies that invites manipulation by
little groups in back rooms. There
would be less chance for tricksters
among LOO men and women than 1000.
You could watch hundred, but here
there are too many rings and too many
shows.
Without disparaging Democrats it
may be said that this convention seems
much more clumsy than the Republi-
can. Perhaps that is tribute to the
native quality Of these delegates. The
simplest question of parliamentary
procedure throws them into snarls At
one moment yesterday there were three
motions, an amendment and a question
of privilege before the convention at
once, and all being debated simulta-
neously.
Also the Democrats are forever pass
ing resolutions Of thanks or coincidence
or congratuation to somebody or
other. The citizens of San Francisco,
the Mayor, the telephone company and
Mrs. Woodrow Wilson were all recipi-
ents of such attentions yesterday. In
addition to resolutions there are inter
minable announcements of band con-
certs and teas and excursions down the
harbor and exhibitions. If any enter
prising tailor were to send up an an
nouncement that he was selling clothes
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