Evening star., 1940-07-28
Capital SideIights
By viii P. Kennedy.

Three score years ago another draft"
third-term convention was held-also IN
Chicago After Abraham Lincoln lad
served two terms-frst elected from 33
States and then from 25-the idolized
victor, Gen. U. S. Grant, was elected
from 81 States, and the second time
he received all of the 286 electoral votes,
after his rival Horace Greeley, had died.
Then came the Tilden- Hayes fiasco,
when Hayes received 185 electoral votes
to 1874 for Tilden-although Tilden
received 42S4S85 popular votes against
4,033,950 for Hayes. Next followed the
historic third term convention which
resulted in the election of James A.
Garfleld-to be followed by the defeat
Of the Republicans and the election of
Grover Cleveland over James G. Blaine
in 1884.
After this second term Gen. Grant
made a triumphal world tour, followed
by a coast-to-coast swing from San
Francisco to Philadelphia, thence to
Cuba and Mexico and up through the
Southern States. He was heralded as
candidate for third term And like
President Roosevelt, he declined to take
the voters into his confidence. The
most he would say was Il will neither
accept nor decline an imaginary thing I
shall not crafty my enemies by de-
clining what has not been offered me-"
Finally at big ovation ne attended in
Chicago it was formally announced that
he would accept the nomination if it
came in the right way.
The brilliant, but arrogant and sar-
castle Senator Roscoe Conkling Of New
York was leader in the convention of
the Grant forces, while Sen. Eugene
Hale of Maine championed the cause
Of James G. Blaine. First Conkling put
through resolution binding the con-
vention to support the nominee, whoever
he might be. Then he attempted the
coup of trying to have the unit rule
enforced on all legations-and there he
met his waterloo. There was open re-
bellion led by Garfield, who was chair
man of the Rules Committee. and whose
battle cry was because it is eternally
vidual rule" While there were rotous
demonstrations for Grant, he did not
have a Mayor Kelly of Chicago to
ballyhoo the demand" Garfield won
his fight against the unit rule and sub
sequently won the nomination and the
election. Garfield received 4,449 ,053
popular votes against 4.442035 for Han
cock, and 214 electoral votes against
l55 for Hancock
1t is to be noted that Grant had
been out of Office for four years, while
Roosevelt is still in office, so that if
elected his three terms will be con-
tinuous.
Representative William F. Allen, Della
wares lone Congressman in the last
Congress, has been visiting at the
Capitol and announced that he will run
again this fall for the United States
Senate -Four years ago he ran for the
Senate against Senator James H. Hughes
and was sent to the House after being
defeated by only couple of votes in the
State Democratic convention. Now he
is going to be the candidate against Sen
ator John G. Townsend, jr., chairman
of the Republican Senatorial Committee
Mr.. Allen was employed for 20 years by
the Pennsylvania Railroad, served in the
State Senate and was president pro tenn
pore. He is president of fruit and farm
products packing company and of two
oil companies.
Representative Louis Ludlow of Indi-
ana, sponsor Of the war referendum bill,
calls attention to an old book enshrined
in the Library of Congress for which the
United States paid million dollars 10
years ago-"one of the most outstand-
ing relics of all the ages" visited each
year by pilgrims from all the world-the
Gutenberg Bible. He says this book is
held IN highest estimation" by man
kind because: First-it is the Word of
God. in which nearly 700,000,0OO people
on the surface of the earth rest their
hope of. resurrection and life eternal;
Aecond-it Is distinctive because 1t Ii the
drst book ever printed.