Americus times-recorder., 1920-06-12
HARDING IS NOMINATE
THRILLING BATTLE ROYAL
AS BALLOTING GOES ON
Hickey Tells of Plot of Big interests to Put Wood
Over Despite Protests of
Many Leaders

dignity and credit to themselves and
to the millions of women whom they
represented. In word the average
of their oratory, what they said and
the manner of saying it, was much
higher than the average of the men.
Willis Speaks Best.
Former Governor Willis, of Ohio,
in presenting the name of Harding,
took first prize among the orators.
He made friends for Harding. G. S.
Wheeler, of California, who nominat-
ed Johnson, took the BOBBY prize.
Instead Of starting a stampede for
the California senator he almost
started stampede away from him.
All of Johnson's friends regretted
that Borah had not been selected for
the job. He, at least, would have
had the good sense and the good
taste not to attack the other candi-
dates and their delegates, considering
that the only chance johnson had
for the nomination was that after
the first few ballot he could get sup
port from them.
Judge Miller, of New York, pre-
sRnted HoOver's name in speech
that was masterpiece of logical ar
guments. He asked for Hoover1s
nomination on the ground of his
proven ability as an administrator
and statesman and emphasized the
fact that of all the candidates be-
fore the convention Hoover would
be the surest of election if nominat-
,I MILL, |,
Lodge and before he began speaking
he received a five-minute ovation, the
most enthusiastic and spontaneous
greeting accorded to any of the nom
inators when introduced. When at
the conclusion he named Hoover the
not the delegates, burst into
cheers and for thirteen minutes the
building fairly rocked and the gal
leries were a sea of waving Hoover
flags. The demonstration was in full
swing and would have continued in
definitely had not acting Chairman
Smoot stopped it with his gavel
During the whole time the delegates,
with the exception of two or three,
sat mute.
Visitors for Hoover.
The Hoover demonstration was the
most significant event of the day
for this reason: The visitors tickets
are for the most part distributed by
the national committeeman to their
friends and not one of the commit
teemen is a friend of Hoover or
wanted to see him nominated. The
only ticket which the Hoover mana
gers had were twenty which they
purchase from the local committee
for one hundred dollars apiece. And
yet thousands of men and women in
every part of the galleries cheered
until they were hoarse and waved
flags for Hoover. Hoover's name
was more enthusiastically responded
to by the galleries than that of any
other candidate. And yet he was.
the only candidate for whom the
galleries had not been more or less
packed.
If on the fourth ballot the $4,000
visitors, as we'll as the 984 delegates,
had voted, the Republicans would
have had a candidate for president.
His name would have been Herbert
Hoover. And the Republican nomi-
nation for the presidency would not
today have been on the auction block
for sale to the highest bidder
That it was on the auction block
and that the most shameless methods
were being used both by the steel
and banking interests backing Wood
and the machine politicians backing
Lowden are facts so well known to
everybody connected with the con-
vention that nobody takes the trou-
BILE to deny them.