People's Pilot, Volume 5, Number 49, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 11 June 1896 — THE LEADERS CONFER [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

THE LEADERS CONFER

PRELIMINARY WORK OF REPUBLICAN CONVENTION. Determined Effort to He Made by Me- . Ktnler'a Friends te Placate the Sliver Men —National C< mmlttee Meets to Decide the Contests for Seats. St. Louis, Mo., June 11. —The McKinley men, headed by Mark Hanna, are bending every effort to placate the silver men. Last night McKinley’s chief advisor and Chairman Carter of the national committee were in

consultation over three hours. Colorado, headed by Senator Teller; Idaho, led by Senator Dubois; Utah, by Trumbo, are regarded as hopeless by the McKinley men, but such silver men as Carter, who has never formally announced that he would bolt the convention, will be held in line if possible by the convention managers. Mr. Hanna, as well as all the other men who are looked upon as being close to McKinley, still assert that the convention will come out boldly for the present standard. Mr. Hanna is talking the Indiana platform to the silver men. He is urging them to give way to the majority of the convention, and insists that the same results can be accomplished by protection. After the conference with Mr. Carter and the other silver men, Mr. Hanna and those who were closeted with him refused to detail what took place in the private room. Mr. Carter admitted that silver had been touched upon, but would say nothing further. Mr. Hanna said he had promised himself he would not be interviewed and intended to keep his promise. During all the talk about free silver, these men who have talked with Mark Hanna say that he has not shown the least sign of weakening on the money question. He has given out the im

pression without saying so that he is positive the convention will be “sound on the money question,” as he is that McKinley will be nominated. The radical silver men, however, declare that no matter what.MoKinley wants or Hanna declares they will not let up in their fight. Senator Teller is due here June 15, and will at once take control of the silver movement. Some few of the silver men are advising against any sensational bolt. They say the delegations can remain in the convention until the vice president is nominated. By that time they will know what the chances of silver will be. Then they can stay away from the last sessions of the convention and the dramatic feature of a bolt will be avoided. This class of silver men favor waiting until after the national democratic convention, and then, if its action does not suit them, to issue an address defining their future plans. Senator Hansbrough, a member of the national committee, in an interview said: > “The convention should at least pledge the republican party to labor faithfully in behalf of an international conference on the money question, with a view to securing an agreement in behalf of a permanent and settled equality between silver and gold, and the nominee should be instructed by the convention to force the gold nations of Europe, through trade discriminations in our commercial intercourse with them, to establish bimetallism as the universal rule. What the people of the United States want from this convention is a substantial promise that the republican party will give them genuine financial reform.” John R. Tanner says: '‘The currency question will be the paramount issue of the«campaign. All republicans are for protection and perhaps one-half of the democracy. This convention should adopt an emphatic sound-money platform, declaring in favor of our present gold standard. Any other course would be disastrous.” Perry Heath, one of the McKinley men here from Ohio, announced that

he had seen a letter from Senator Allison of lowa to an lowan who is in 3L Louis formally withdrawing from the presidential contest. Reed, Quay, Morton and Bradley still have their headquarters. Reed’s friends who are here admit that they are largely dependent upon Platt for the show they will make in the convention. Quay’s friends declare they will stick to him to the last, although their leader is said to be in daily communication with McKinley in Canton and Hanna in St. Louis. Morton's friends are not many in number, but they also say they will stick to him to the last. The convention hall was dedicated Wednesday night by impressive exercises and in the presence of a large number of people, for the most part from St. Louis, who wiil see the inside of the building for the orily time during the convention. HOBAKT HIS CHOICE. New Jer*«*v Mid Favored by Senator Ihureton for Second FI ce* St. Loui3, June 11. —Senator Thurston, member of the national republican committee from Nebraska and delegate to the convention, was among the early arrivals. “It is prety well understood." said the senator, “that I am for McKinley for flret place. With his nomination assured, as it is, we want an eastern man to be his running mate, and I believe Hobart to be the available man. He meets the requirements of the situation in all respects. We want to keep New Jersey in the republican ranks now that we have it here. Furthermore, Hobart is strong in New York, where he is personally well known and much esteemed.” Asked what course he thought would be adopted by the convention upon the financial question, Thurston replied

that he believed the Indiana declaration upon that subject would form the modwl upon which the money declaration would bO based. . The senator expressed the opinion that the Indiana platform would be satisfactory to all the western states, except the five silver-producing states —Colorado, Utah, Montana, Idaho and Nevada, and possibly Wyoming —but he said that as they have, all told, only nineteen votes in the electoral college, the party could afford to lose them. Mr. Thurston said, in reply to a question, that he had no doubt some of the delegates from the eastern seaboard .vould make strong contention for a more pronounced and explicit declaration for gold, but it would not be wise to concede their extreme demands. “They will in the end be satisfied with a conservative pronouncement,” he said, “and they will be glad enough to take it in preference to the unequivocal free-silver declaration the Chicago convention will give out.” Referring to other questions of which the platform will treat, the senator said he thought first place would be given to the tariff, as that is'and has been ,a .distinctive issue of the repub-

lican party. He thought there would be a declaration demanding in strong terms a distinctively American policy, but he was of the opinion that the A. P. A. question would not figure in the convention. MEETING OF THE COMMITTEE. Entire Day Given to Connideration of t!ie Many Conte.tM. St. Louis, M 0.., June 11.—The meeting of the republican national committee to decide the contests for seats in the national convention absorbed the general interest in affairs pertaining to the convention Wednesday. The entire day session was given up to the Alabama contests, which involved the seats of the four delegates-at-large and all the nine districts except the 2d, making twenty-two seats that were in dispute. Of the eighteen delegates whose cases were decided either by vote of the committee or by withdrawal sixteen are for McKinley and two for Reed for president. There was no division upon any of the contests except that made in the case of the delegates-at-large, and this was

overwhelmingly in favor of the Vaughn or McKinley delegates and against the Mosley or anti—McKinley men. The committee met at 12 o’clock with the national chairman. Thomas H. Carter of Montana, in the chair. It was discovered as soon as the committee announced its readiness to take up the Alabama contest that the parties were not prepared to proceed immediately. A recess was therefore taken until 2 o’clock, when it was announced that the states would be taken up in alphabetical order to hear contests.

Chairman Carter stated that the territorial contests would not be taken up until those from the states should be disposed of. A committee was appointed to prepare resolutions expressive of the committee’s sense of bereavement over the death of Committeeman Campbell of Illinois. The announcement was made that J. W. Fifer had been appointed to fill the vacancy occasioned by Mr. Campbell’s d c ath. The resignation of Gov. Bradley of Kentucky was announced as was the appointment of Mr. Yerkes to succeed him. The first contested case taken up was that of the delegates-at-large from Alabama. Powell Clayton of Arkansas moved the Buckley (McKinley) delegation. Senator Gear of lowa moved to substitute the Moseley delegation, and Mr. Sutherland of New York, moved to refer the whole matter to a committee of three to sift the evidence and report tomorrow. This motion was voted down without division. Senator Shoup of Idaho moved to seat both delegations, with half a vote each. This was also voted down and the vote was taken on Senator Gear’s motion which was defeated—7 to 38. The motion of Mr. Clayton was then adopted without opposition. From the First district, P. D. Booker and A. N. Johnson were seated. W. E. Aldrich, one of the contestants from the Fourth district, appeared for the contestants in this district. He and Fletcher Corry were the contestants against Thomas G. Dunn and W. G. Stevens. Mr. Youngblood moved that the StevensDunn (McKinley) delegation should be seated, and the motion was carried unanimously. The hearing on the contest from the Fifth district was postponed until today, and it was announced that the contest from the Sixth district had been withdrawn, leaving Iverson, Dawson and Dan.el Cooper as the delegates from that district. They are not instructr l, but are understood to be for McKinley. From the Seventh district C. D. Alexander and George Curtis were recognized. They are said to be favorable to McKinley, though they are not instructed. The contest from the Eighth district was withdrawn, giving the seats to H. V. Cashin and Walter W. Simmons, both of whom are McKinley men. The contest in the Ninth district was decided in favor of the contesting delegates, Hanlon and Wimbs. They are avowedly for Reed for president. The committee took a recess until 8 o’clock. The evening session was presided over by Vice Chairman M. H. De Young. The Georgia contest on the delegates-at-large -was taken up, and the Doveaux-Rucker delegation was seated without a word of debate. Both ore McKinley men, though not instructed. » The hearing of the California, Delaware and Florida cases was postponed until today. Except for two districts in Alabama and one from Georgia, those two states were entirely disposed of. The total of the day’s work was the disposal of twenty-four contesting delegates, eighteen in Alabama and six in Georgia. Of the twenty-four delegates seated all but two favor McKinley. CHICAGO AS HKADOUAKTERS. Leaders Hope to Divert the Silver Sentiment In Illinois. St. Louis, Mo., June 11.—Headquarters of the republican national committee will probably be located in Chicago immediately after the convention ends here. The McKinley men, it is understood, realize the strength df the silver movement in Illinois as much as the republicans who reside in the state. ..The managers claim that after the nomination of McKinley the combination will disband, and each state delegation, now tied down by instructions, will be allowed to cast its vote eb it sees fit on all other questions. Out of the multitude of candidates for vice president the men who really speak for McKinley claim that they have no choice outside of Reed, and they are convinced that he will not accept the nomination. The strength of the silver movement has grown in the eyes of Tanner and Jamieson until It now endangers republican success in Illinois this fall; The only way to-save the state, they are telling the republican bosses here,

ia to locate the national headquarters in Chicago. It is also being pointed out to politicians that the facilities for directing the * campaign at Chicago are far greater than those of some eastern city. Now that the McKinley men are looking with favor on the plan, the Illinois politicians are almost certain that they will gain their point. “McKinley will decide where the national headquarters are to go,” said John R. Tanner. I have been given to understand that Hanna is interested in Chicago, and that as soon as he gets the details of McKinley's nomination fixed up he will declare himy seif. lam also told that McKinley himself has considered the matter and spoken in favor of Chicago.” Dr. Jamieson expressed himself in much the same way. It is given out that McKinley will turn a cold shoulder on the National League of Republican Clubs. One of the men high in his confidence said that the league had served its purpose, and that it was now time for it to be left alone by the candidate for president. This man asserted that McKinley did not want two republican organizations, and that he would probably adopt the same policy that Tanner did in 1894, of Ignoring the organization, and make all republicans who desired to take an active part in politics work through the regular organization. ARRIVAL, OF HARK HANNA Mcklnlry** Director-General 'Reaches St. Louis and Directs Leaders. St. Louis, Mo., June 11.—Mark A. Hanna came to St. Louis in a private car Wednesday morning. Mr. Hanna has spacious headquarters on the parlor flood of the Southern, where there is a big reception room, the door of which is always open. “McKinley will be nominated on the first ballot,” he said. The greater part of the day was taken up with Senator Thurston of Nebraska, Joseph Smith of Ohio and the men who are close to the Ohio candidate. It was given out at Hanna’s headquarters that Senator Foraker, who is to make the speech nominating McKinley, would also be the Ohio member of the committee on resolutions. Senator Foraker is counted as a goldstandard man. What followers of the Foraker faction are here say that the senator, regardless of McKinley‘3 wishes, will fight for a bold declaration on the currency question. The Illinoisans who are here say the republicans have already realized they made a mistake when they refused to send the convention to Chicago.

MAY NOMINATE WEDNESDAY. Business of Convention Will Be Executed Without Loss of Time. St. Louis, Mo., June 11.—Said Col. Perry S. Heath, in charge of the McKinley headquarters: “We may be able to make a nomination as early as Wednesday. It will be made not later than Thursday. No time will be lost. There will be only one ballot for each place. McKinley will win sos first place; that is conceded.” Cel Heath declined to be interviewed on the vice-presidential possibilities. McKinley leaders almost to a man declare that Speaker Reed will be nominated unless he declines peremptorily. If he does so Garrett A. Hobart of New Jersey is second in favor. Some of the New York delegates are pressing his claims. Proctor Not a < a ididate. St. Louis, Mo., June 11. —Senator Proctor, who has been mentioned as a candidate for vice-president, says: “I do not want to be vice-president of the United States. My name shall not be presented for that office before the republican national convention. Ido not think that my name will be presented to the convention. Whenever I am satisfied that such action is probable I shall take steps to prevent it. My state is sto 1 for McKinley. He will surely win on the first ballot.” The Vermont senator says the republican platform should be so phrased that nobody the world over could mistake, distort or argue its meaning, and that meaning should be unqualifiedly for a single money standard. He does not expect a single delegate to bolt, no matter what the declarations of the convention regarding money. Munloy Admits Defeat. St. Louis, Mo.. June 11.—Mr. Manley of Maine said yesterday: “In my judgment the convention will nominate Gov. McKinley on the first ballot for the presidency. Mr. Reed’s name will be presented to the convention and he will be voted for, and I am authorized to say that under no conditions or circumstances can he or will he e inept the nomination for vice-president, and if it should be tendered to him the great majority of the New England delegates will be loyal to Mr. Reed, but it is evident the convention is for Gov. McKinley and will nominate him.” It is said that in the face of this certain and admitted defeat delegates could not be expected to vote for Reed and that probably all of New Hampshire, 1 all of Rhode Island and all but one in Connecticut would be cast for McKinley. May Not Handle the Crowd. St. Louis, Mo., June 11.—Many of the delegates are growing restless over the probability that St. Louis cannot handle the crowd. It is estimated that between 75,000 and 125,000 republicans will be here to see the end of the convention and that the city will not be competent to handle the crowd, notwithstanding the assertions by the members of the local committee. The hotel managers, however, claim that they will make a reputation for St. Louis as a convention city and that all of these fears are needless.

THOMAS H. CARTER.

MARK HANNA.

JOHN M. THURSTON.

GARRETT A. HOBART.

JOSEPH MANLEY.