Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-08-05

remark by William Jennings 3
AS the Missouri Democrat
his tenth time as convention
unfinished comment of the
Great Commoner at the 1924
marathon meeting in New York
City. Mr.. Cannon has completed
it as a commentary on the run
ming of national political con-
ventions.
AS House parliamentarian
since 1917, he also told why
convention rules are so much
better understood and how the
sessions, despite deliberately
planned enthusiasm and excite
ment," rest on fundamental
common sense and hundreds of
years of parliamentary expert
ence.
II sat on one side of Chairman
Walsh (the late Senator from
Montana and William Jennings
Bryan sat on the other" he
related about the 1924 conven-
ton. Mr.. Bryan looked out
over the crowded auditorium
and said: 'Three-fourths of these
people have never attended a
national convention and three
fourths of them will never attend
q national convention again.
Starts to Draw Deduction
HE started to draw deduc-
ton but just at that minute the
convention adjourned and the
usual crowd swept over the plat
form. No one knew national
conventions better than Mr..
Bryan and was much interested
in knowing what deduction he
made from those two state
ments I never saw Mr.. Bryan
again. But I think I know what
he intended to say. He would
probably have concluded by say
ing: and the other fourth runs
the conventions
Mr.. Cannon makes no pre-
tense of trying to run conven-
tons or promote candidates..
The 77-year-old legislative vet
eran, however, has set a lot of
personal precedentS as we'll as
having compiled official prece-
dents of the House since he
entered Congress in March. 1928.
This chairman of the House
Appropriations Committee is an
expert at saying mo" On oc-
casion he has engaged in fist
fights with colleagues. Although
a fluent orator, his rapid-fire
forensics are sometimes the de-
spair of press galleries and of
official stenographers on the
floor.
Yet, on many matters of legis-
lation and rules, he is co-opera-
tive to the point Of personal in
convenience. In his few leisure
moments he, like another famous
Missouri Democrat, plays the
piano. He urged that this extra
curricular activity be soft
pedaled in published interviews.
Appointed by Hull
He became the Democratic
National Convention parliament
tartan by design rather than by
accident in 1920. He was ap-
pointed by the then National
Chairman Cordell Hull. 1t was
customary to have the House
Democratic parliamentarian for
that job. Mr.. Cannon became
House parliamentarian under
Speaker Champ Clark. He was
retained by Speaker Gillette
when the Republicans took con-
troll of the House. That set a
precedent because the House
parliamentarian subse quently
has served without regard to
political makeup of the House,
DR.. Cannon explained.
In his SO years as national
convention parliamentarian, Mr..
Cannon said. he has never known
a convention to get out of con-
troll despite the demonstrations
and enthusiasm which some
times give spectators the i'm
preston that the meeting has
deteriorated into mob session. /"
Mr.. Cannon nevertheless re-
ports tremendous change in
national conventions since the
first he attended in 1912. Much
of the change has come with
the advent of micfophones, TV
and radio, and air conditioning.
In the old days / usually
wrote out the organizing motions
getting the convention under
way" he said. I'VE had a sched-
ule on the lectern for the chair
man. The proceedings were or
ganized and the resolutions
passed without anybody being
able to hear what was going on
in the pandemonium. Today the
program has been completely
changed both as to time and