The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-06-21
Bryan's Arrival Awaited With Fear-'Come-
 back Promised
KHAN ISSUE LOOMS
 AS BREAKING POINT
Repetition Of 1920 Chica- go Style Of Selection
 Thought Likely
By RAYMOND CHAPTER, lRv Leased Wire to Age. e.Heraldl

NEW YORK, June 2o.-Old guard democrats are engaged in one task, for which everything else must wait-the task of sappins enough of McAdoo's strength to prevent him piling up a majority on the early ballots.
 When this is done, old guard leaders will feel that they are safe against a McAdoo stampede and they will then turn to the real busi- ness of picking a nominee in some what the same fashion that republic an bosses did in a back room at Chicago, four years ago.
 No one, not even George Bren- nan himself, has any idea yet who the man will be. There is much lobby gossip about coupling John W. Davis, Morgan lawyer and Sena- tor Thomas J. Walsh of Montana, the man who exposed Teapot Dome. But whether this gossip will mate rialize into fact is a question for the gods to answer.
 Here are the outstanding de- velopments of Friday:
 1. McAdoo frightened up lines to pre- vent opposition from sapping delegates, and outlined strategy for long battle on floor.
 2. Al Smith declared flatly that he expected to be nominated.
 3. Bacekrs of John w. Davis opened up quiet boom coupling the New York lawyer with Senator Walsh of Mon- tana as vice presidential possibility.
 4. Klan leaders assembled to push McAdoo boom and prevent anti-klan plank from slipping into platform.
 5. Tom Taggaret's friends began overtures to McAdoo group in search of second choice pledges.
 6. Platform framers settled down to preliminary work.
 Hope For Swing
 McAdoo leaders, having dropped their fight against the two-thirds rule, are now concentrating on the work of hold ing their delegates intact so that they can produce a majority in the early bal
 
 the convention will swing over bodily.
 Meanwhile the platform question en- gagged much attention in the secret con- ference rooms. Homer $. Cummings, McAdoo leader, slated to be chairman of the resolutions committee, is work ing out a tentative draft in callabora- tion with Senator Carter Glass of Vir- ginia, Senator Key Pittman of Nevada, and others.
 They are a trifle worried lest Will liam J. Bryan, who staged a spectacu- lar comeback in the Florida primaries recently, will break into the platform committee and kick over their work. He has announced his intention of be- ing made a member of this commit tee and the old line democrats, know ing Bryan's knack of breaking into the picture, are expecting him to play a spectacular part here, as he has at all other demOratic conventions for 30 years.
 Wouldn't Be Complete
 No democratic convention would be completed without Bryan comeback" A practice run by the old fire-horse has come to be regarded by the dele gates as part of the entertainment pro- gram. His momentary triumph at San Francisco four years ago gave the convention one of its greatest thrills, notwithstanding the fact that a few moments later, Rainbridge Colby swung the crowd back and swept 1t ruthlessly over the great commoner.
 Pending the appearance of Bryan on the scene, the group now in con- trol is arranging it's platform sugges-
 (COntinued on Page TwO.)