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Image provided by: Kansas State Historical Society; Topeka, KS
Newspaper Page Text
YOL YIIL, NO. 23. TOPEKA, KANSAS, JUNE 3, 1896. $1.00 A YEAR PROHIBITIONISTS FOR GOLD The National Convention Adopts a Platform Containing Nothing bat Prohibition and the Broad-gauge People Bolt. The National convention of the Pro hibition party convened at Pittsburg May 28. The, National committee, through Chairman Dickie presented the name of A. A. Steveua, a single-issue man of Pennsylvania, for Chairman, and A. B. Wilsoh of Illinois for Secretary. Chauncey M. Dunn of California at tempted to submit a minority report, but Chairman Dickie would not recognize him. This brought on a spirited fight which resulted in such. confusion that police were called on to remove several obstreperous delegates from the hall. Mr. Dunn presented the name of E. J. Wheeler, the recently v deposed editor of the New York Voice, for Chairman. The latter is a silver man. Stevens was seated as Chairman, and when order was restored he made a speech in which he declared that the convention should de claraJor prohibition and ignore all other questions. The convention seemed to be divided into three factions. One was made up of those who wanted woman suffrage retained in the platform, another was the broad-gauge element which wanted a live, up-to-date platform, in cluding free silver. The third faction was the gold standard crowd, which was opposed to any reference to the finance question at all and which wanted the platform to contain nothing but pro hibition. The leaders of the last-named faction were Joshua Levering of Mary land and Dr. Funk of the firm Funk & Wagnalls, owners of the New Y ork Voice. The broad-gauge faction was led by John P. St. John, and it desired to nominate Rev. Charles E. Bentley of Nebraska for President, on a platform of free silver, woman suffrage and prohibi tion. Mr. Levering stated in an inter view that he would not consider the matter of accepting the nomination if a silver platform was adopted. The principal fight was over the adop tion of the report of the resolutions committee. The majority report favored the single issue idea and the minority report was in line with Mr. Bentley's platform. The first vote was taken on the question of laying the minority report on the table, and the motion was defeated by a vote of 492 to 310. The reports were then taken up section by section. The entire afternoon was spent in discussing the money plank. It was finally rejected by a vote of 387 to 427. Resolutions referring to Sabbath ob servance and against appropriations for sectarian schools were then adopted. An Illinois delegate threw the convention into confusion by moving as a sub stitute a platform excluding everything but prohibition. Mrs. Helen Gougar made every effort to save the suffrage plank,but the substitute was adopted by a rising vote. A caucus of the broad gauge forces was then held, in whifh many serious threats of a bolt were made, but it was finally decided to await developments and to attend the evening session. The only names presented for President were those of Joshua Levering of Mary land and ex-Governor Hughes of Arizona. The name of the latter was withdrawn before the vote was taken, and Lever ing was nominated without opposition. Hale Johnson of Illinois was nominated for Vice President on the first ballot. During the evening session tha broad gauge people withdrew from the con vention and organized the National party. A national chairman and secre tary were elected and arrangments were made for headquarters. The new party will not put a ticket in the field just now, but will send committees to the conven tions of the three other great parties to confer with the dissatisfied elements. The platform of the new organization is substantially the same as that proposed in the Prohibition convention. The leaders of the new organization are John P. St John and Rev. Bentley. In the National pirty convention there were delegates from twenty-four States. Two Democrat Tickets. Senator Blackburn of Kentucky, who leads the silver Democrats of that State made the following statements in a Washington Interview: "There will be two conventions, two nominations and two platforms at Chicago, and Grover Cleveland will be at the head of one of the tickets. "Do I think he will be elected? Such a thing is impossible. He could not carry one of the Southern States. He will be supported only by the money class. The men who have bought the the bonds he has issued will vote for him, and he is entitled to their votes, but the people who pay the interest on these bonds will 7ote for someone else. The President's bump of self-esteem is very much more developed than his bump of caution, and he is going into campaign dependent upon a very narrow following." In reply to an inquiry in regard to Carlisle being a candidate, he said: "No, my esteemed fellow citizen, who has mismanaged the finances of this government in such a complete and comprehensive manner, is only a decoy which Cleveland has sent out in the West, just as Billy Russell is the decoy he has sent in the East, to attract the attention of the public until he gets ready to disclose himself." At the coronation of the Our a feature of the festivities was a feast to be partici pated in by the people generally and ar rangements had been made to feed nearly K million persons. In some way, probably through mismanagement, a panic ensued and men, women and children were tram pled to death. Official figures place the number killed at 2,500. The Czar has or dered that the dead be buried at his ex pense and that 1,000 roubles be given to the families of each of them. THE ST. LOUIS CYCLONE. The Moat Diaastroua 8torm Reported for Many Years Vlalts the Missouri Metropolis. A cyclone in the country districts where buildings are isolated and scat tered does damage enough, but when one of these twisters strikes a city the results are absolutely indescribable. St. Louis had an experience of this kind between 5 and G o'clock on the evening of May 27. The damage done has not been even approximately estimated, and no accurate list of the lives lost is yet obtainable. It struck the city from the southwest and reached over and included East St. Louis, which is across the Mis sissippi river. On the island there is but a single dwelling left standing. Telegraph wires were thrown down in such confusion that it was several days before the city had anything like rea sonable communication with the outside world. Hundreds of people on both sides of the river who escaped with their lives lost their homes and their all. The city hospital building, with 416 patients, was wrecked. Several of them were killed and nearly a hundred were seriously Injured. The yards of the various railway lines were blocked with overturned cars and wreckage of freight houses. An early estimate of the financial loss was $25,000,000 in St Louis alone. The street car service was terri bly demoralized for a day or two but is now getting straightened out in good shape. The loos of life on the river was not so great as was at first supposed, but a large number of boats and land ings were seriously injured, and some were destroyed. The Eods bridge did not escape damage, but it was cleared of wreckage and repaired so that trains were running over it within twenty-four hours. Fire added to the damage done in the city, and property valued at $200, 000 which escaped the storm was burned. The big convention auditorium was damaged to the 'extent of about $5,000, which it is believed can be repaired in ten days time. The loss of life as reported in the latest dispatches, will reach nearly 300. The number of injured is enormous and very hard to estimate. At least 10,000 families are homeless. St Louis is taking bold, and caring for her own people with the vim and energy char acteristic of the city. Fifty thousand dollars has already been raised by private subscription and the City Council is considering a bill to appropriate $100,000 out of the city treasury. The results are terrible. Nothing equalling it has happened in years. Morrill Should be Conelatent. Governor Morrill has written the following letter to President T. W. Eckert of the Board of Directors of the Penitentiary: "State Accountant J. E. Challinor has called my attention to the fact that some of the appropriations for the Pen itentiary have been diverted from what was intended by the Legislature to other purposes. I find upon examining the statu J.i that nearly fifty appropriations were made for specific1 purposes, and that in section 4 of the act it provides that 'in case of any unforeseen reason specifio appropriations should become exhausted or for any other extraordinary reason it should become necessary to make expenditure of money for the ben efit of the Penitentiary or its appurte nances, the Warden of the Penitentiary shall make an estimate minutely stating the purpose for whioh the money esti mated is to be expended.' "Now, to use money appropriated for one purpose for another is direct and open violation of the law and ought not for a moment to be tolerated. It is no excuse that it has been the custom ever since the State has been admitted to the Union. It is a vicious custom at best and the law ought to bo literally and strictly compiled with. I therefore ask that you give the Warden instruc tionejthat this practice cannot be allowed. "I learn also that in providing for the rebuilding of the building destroyed by fire you have entirely disregarded sec tien 4 and have gone on without making any estimates or without submitting that estimate to the Executive Council. I therefore ask that a detailed estimate be made at once, and that it be sub mitted to the Executive Council as re quired by law." Governor Morrill's ideas are good. He is not altogether accurate in his statement of facts. It may have been the custom of Republican Wardens of of the Penitentiary to use funds appro priated for a specific purpose for some other; but the statement includes the term of Warden Chase, and in so far as it relates to him it is absolutely and unqualifiedly false. Not one dollar of any appropriation was used by Mr. Chase for any purpose whatever other than that for which it was intended. If Morrill desires to be sltogether con sistent he should put a stop to the use of State funds for the improvement of the State House grounds in the absence of an appropriation for that purpose. He should also recommend that the s alary of the members of the Board of Public Works be not paid because there is no appropriation for that purpose. Money is being paid for both of these purposes, and it must necessarily be paid out of funds appropriated for an other purpose. The "business" Governor should look after these matters while he is calling down the Penitentiary management. If he fails to do so he must lay himself open to a charge of inconsistency. The Oklahoma Democrat convention In structed its delegates for Bland for Presi dent, passed free coinage resolutions and Instructed the delegates to vote for no man who was not a pronounced silver man. Res olutions indorsing Cleveland's administra tion and the Territorial Democrat admin istration were defeated by large majorities.