Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1948-05-21

performance put on at houston,
Tex, where Al Smith was named as
the party's standard bearer, there
was included an act that probably
will never be repeated. Smith, for
whose benefit the act was played, is
gone, and it is not probable there
ever will be another to take his place
in the affection of the performers.
The role was played by Tammany,
recognized nationally as democ-
racy's bad boy. Tammany was de-
termined to make that Houston per-
Torrance an Al Smith show, and the
braves were present in large num-
bers, but not in their customary Bad
Boy role.
The Tammany braves, several
hundred of them, travelled from New
York to Texas by boat. was at the
dock when the boat landed at Calves
ton and saw them disembark. As
they sedately marched down the
gangplank I realized it was not the
Tammany of Broadway, of the East
Side, of Brooklyn or the Bronx. Each
brave was arrayed in striped trou-
sers, a Prince Albert coat, white col
lar and silk hat. 1t was the Bad
Boy gone visiting and on good be-
havior. There was little hilarity,
barely so much as smile.
When they poured out of the
trolley cars at Houston and
marched to their hotel there again
was no evidence of the rough stuff
that had been expected of Tam
many. There was not even slight
hurrah for Texas and no intimation
that the braves were interested
in AL Smith. They would do moth
ing that might be misconstrued
by the delegates, especially those
from the southern states.
In the convention that unusual role
continued. Massachusetts started an
Al Smith demonstration but the Bad
Boy took no part in it. The braves
sat quietly in their seats near the
New York state delegation. Their
silent composure continued even
through the uproar that greeted the
Smith name when he was presented
as New York's candidate for the
nomination.
1t was not until the roll call of the
states had been completed, the votes
of the delegates recorded and Off
came the Tammany known in New
York City. At that moment, led by
the Tammany braves, bedlam was
let loose in that convention hall. The
women who had been aboard that
boat - the wives, relatives and
friends of the braves-flocked into
the big hall at the hoped-for mo-
ment and were as hilariously wild
and unruly as their menfolks. Wilted
collars were torn from suffering
necks. Discarded and tramped upon
Prince Albert coats relieved suffer-
ing backs. The Bad Boys pent-up
hopes of his days of good behavior
let loose with all the fury of Texas
tornado. Nothing could stop it, and
nothing did throughout the day and
night in the hotels and streets Of
Houston.
The Bad Boy had worn his COM
pany manners so long as it was
essential-until the votes of the dele
gates were counted. He had pre-
served the dignity of democracy so
long as dignity was needed and then
came his time to howl, and howl he
did. That wild outburst came too
late to have any effect on the vote
of the convention delegates. Whether
it had any after-effect on the vote in
November, I do not know. Certainly
many a southern Democrat turned
thumbs down on the man who in
spired the outburst of the Tammany
braves at Houston.
A day after the closing of that
Houston convention it was a hat
less, and largely coatless, crowd
that found its way back, singly or
in small groups, to the boat at
Galveston. The convention and the
celebration had been a success.
Should you attend the Democratic
performance at Philadelphia you will
not witness a repetition of the act
put on by the Tammany Bad Boy at
Houston. But there will be some
other. There always is. The Demo-
cratic show is the spectacular one
Of the two political performances.
I sit in the sunshine of an autumn
day fishing in the stream Of men,
cries. Many incidents, Of varying
sizes, rise to my lure, but the names
associated with those incidents do
not strike, do not even nibble at my
bait. I wonder if mine is an ex-
ceptional case or if there are many
who fail to attract names from the
stream Of memories during autumn
days.