Year: 1874




when its annals are dull, so political party
has reason to congratulate itself when its
nominating conventions excite but little in
terest Wars revolutions and civil convul-
sions furnish materials to the historian and
impart animation to his pages, and in like
manner political convention which gives
promise of great row causes the public to
prick up its ears with expectation. The
Charleston Convention of 1860, which broke
up the democratic party, was watched with
deep interest, as the recent Convention at
Syracuse was in smaller way. If. as seemed
probable last Tuesday, Judge Church had
given, if not his consent, his connivance,
his friends would have presented strong
array and have enlisted most Of the unpledged
delegates. Tilden's opponents failed only
because they had no candidate, and after
Church failed them 1t was too late to extem-
porize one on whom they could unite. On
the assembling of the delegates there was un-
certainty enough to excite the kind of interest
which attends a game Of chance, and pas
sionate animosty enough to divide the SYM
pathies of the spectators. The play did not
come up to the promise of the bills, but it
kept attention awake till the denouement


The Convention which meets at Utica to-
morrow will be comparatively fiat and tame,
like race in which only one horse is en-
tered and it is known that he will walk over
the course. There will be no strenuous cau-
cusing in the Utica hotels tonight, no watch
ing the trains to see who will first get hold Of
the arriving delegates. So far as relates to
the Governorship the Convention will be
mere registering body to authenticate the Sc
lection already made by the spontaneous pref
erence of the republican voters. The pro-
ceedings will not excite much more interest
than ratification meeting Nor is this by
any means Fictitious unanimity or false ap-
pearance Of unanimity, like that sometimes
produced by an active clique which steals q
march on rivals and gets a convention Sc
curely packed. The universal agreement to
nominate Dix is a necessity imposed on the
delegates by the unconstrained choice of the
party The most powerful republican clique
is that which centres in the Gus
tom House, but that clique has not
lifted finger to promote the can
didature of Dix. Its leaders would have
preferred one of their own confederates, but
the will of the people was too manifest for
even a show of resistance. If the Utica Con-
vention is mere registering body its Office is
to register the well known preference of the
republican masses, not the decree of wire
pulling clique. A great body of soured and
disguised delegates will not return to their
homes to render heartless lip service to the
ticket No republican journals will have tc
face about, as some of the democratic organs
have done, and support nomination which
they had publicly deprecated. Unless some
wholly unlocked for change should take place
in the relations of the republican factions
there will be no quarrel to be composed ol
insults to be pocketed by the supporters O
Governor Dix The harmonious action of thu
Convention, in obedience to the united wishes
of the republican voters, will make the repub


lican canvass an easy launch in smooth water
and present striking contrast to the Conven


ton OF last week.