The San Francisco call. [volume], February 13, 1898, Page 9, Image 9

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

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LINCOLN DAY
FITTINGLY CELEBRATED.
Li IS ANGELES, Feb. 12.— The an
nlversary of the birth of Abra
ham Lincoln was this evening
made the occasion of the second
annual banquet of the Young
Men's Republican League of Los
Angeles. A most enjoyable and enter
taining time was had by the 400 guests
•who gathered at the banquet table to
observe the natal day of the greatest
American President, and to hear again
the grand doctrines which he gave to
the world, and which are to-day the in
epiration of the Republican party of the
nation.
Music Hall had been elaborately dec
orated for the occasion. Everywhere
■were visible portraits of Lincoln, of
Grant, of Blalne and of the heroes and
plants of the Republican faith, pastand
present. At 8 o'clock the guests had all
been seated, and after a pleasant re
past Hon. A. W. Kinney, president of
the California State League, introduced
the toastmaster, Luther G. Brown, the
local president, who opened the "feast
of reason and the flow of soul" with
the following words:
THE FEAST OPENED.
ReroarKs by Toastmaster
Brown, League President.
"Fellow Republicans — In assuming
this too great honor. It is not my pur
pose to presume upon your patience
with any extended remarks. It is im
possible, however, to resist the tempta
tion to express in some slight ti
the intense feeling of gratification that
the unquestioned success <>f this aus
picious occasion must produce in the
breast of every one present. One ar.d
all, I bid you welcome, and may this
be a genuine Republican love f< ast.
"It was the purpose of the Young
Men's Republican League, in giving '
this banquet, not only to honor the
name of that exalted character whose
memory, like an inspiration, hovers
over us to-night, but also tir bring to
gether here a large concourse of faith
ful Republicans that we might be
moved to sink all party differences,
clasp each other's hands, and pledge :
ourselves anew to those great principles
of which the Republican party has ever
been the protector and the preserver.
I can say that we have succeeded be
yond our most sanguine expectations.
Never before have the Republicans of
this city either planned or exeeiu.
great an undertaking. It is without
precedent, and will probably remain
without a rival until the league gives
Its next banquet at the beginning of
the next Presidential campaign two
years hence.
"I say the next banquet, for the
T"ung Men's Republican League is
here to stay. Wo are ready and will
ing to fight the battles of our party.
for we know that when we are fighting
the battles of our party we are light
ing the battles of our country. This is
the opening gun of the fourth cam
paign in which the league has taken an
active and aggressive part. We are a
permanent institution, and a duly ac
credited part of the State League and
of the National Republican League.
We were represented at the last two
National League conventions, and will
participate in the State League Con
vention this spring and send delegates
to the National League Convention in
Omaha next June.
"We have no quarrel, or even any
Bpirit of rivalry with any Republican
club, save a spirit of emulation not to
be outdone by any in our zeal for the
Republican party. We realize that oth
er clubs are necessary to the proper
organization of the party; we bid all
euch welcome, and assure them of our
cordial cooperation in all plans that
will tend to the success of the princi
ples of the Republican party.
"The Young Men's Republican
League has no candidates for any of
fice from Governor down to Justice <,f
the Peace, but when the Republican
party, in delegate convention assem
bled, has nominated its candidates, we
will be with them till the day of vic
tory, fcT we know not defeat. Vnere is
but one thing that we iVm&nd, and
that thing we have a right to demand,
and that is that the best men in the party
be nominated to office. The league does
not desire to boss the party or to run
tilings, but don't ask us to fight a los
ing fight. Give us the best men, and
we will give you victory."
The toastmaster then caused patriot
:' lc. letters to be read from Republicans
prominent In the affairs of the nation,
among the authors being President L-
J Crawford of the National League,
Hon.- Nelson Dinglcy, Hon. Frank Mo-
Laughlin, Senator George C. Perkins
and Congressman S. G. Hilborn. The
sentiments in the various letters were
vociferously applauded.
Hon Thomas Fitch was then intro
duced and responded with a master
piece of eloquence to the toast "Abra
ham Lincoln."
In responding to the toast. "The Cali
fornia Republican League," Colonel
<;eorge Stone of San Francisco, among
other things, said: "The scope for
r.'jlitical usefulness of the National Re
publican League is not understood in
this State. There is no other political
organization possessed of such elements
f of strength and power. Its principles
are of the highest and its methods the
most dignified. The rule of non-inter
ference with local caucuses and con
ventions appeals to that large number
of citizens who, while recognizing the
necessity under certain conditions of
caucus manipulation, personally dislike
to engage in such work. The loyalty
nrifiy which the league always supports
regular Republican nominees com
mends it to the party leaders and all
true Republicans.
SAFE IN THE FOLD.
Senator Bulia Srjows Califor
nia Is a Republican State.
In responding to the toast: "Califor
nia a Republican State," Senator Bulla
proved by statistics the fidelity of Cali
fornia to the Republican cause, and
concluded as follows:
"Having demonstrated that Califor
nia has been Republican in the past,
has there been any such change of
litionfl as would tend to defeat the
Republican party at our coming elec
tion? I do not think so. The tariff
question will not be an issue in the
next campaign. That problem has been
solved, and s<> largely in favor of Cal
ifornia and her particular interests
that he would be a bold free trader
indeed who would advocate any modi
fication of the schedules affecting our
industrial interests, but should such
ification be attempted by the Dem
ocratic party it would redound largely
to the benefit of the Republican ticket.
Whether or not the IMngley bill has
restored the degree of prosperity which
its advocates claimed for it, the fact
remains that thousands of mortgages
in every State in the Union are being
discharged, and even though that may
be due in part to a shortage of crops
in foreign Jands while 'our own fruit
ful fields laugh in abundance,' a kind
providence has seen fit to bring this
about during a Republican administra
tion, and our party will be the bene
ficiary of this benevolent action of the
Almighty. Of course the currency
question is still an open one, but our
party is certainly in no worse position
with reference thereto than it was one
year ago.
"The only danger which has threat
ened us at any time upon that issue
was the defection of the sound mony
Democrats, or rather their possible re
turn to their own party, but the intro
duction and passage in the Senate of
the Teller resolution has emphasized
the fact that the issues of the last cam
pa ipn are not dead, and every friend of
sound money will see the necessity for
the same d"jrree of vigilance that was
required at that time to maintain the
honor of the nation. Thus we have
every reason to expect the continued
co-operation of all friends of sound
y until this vexatious problem
shall have been satisfactorily adjusted
In some way. Upon other national ques
tions, the Democratic conventions
throughout the different States have
Indorsed and declared their adherence
x<> the principles and declarations of
the Chicago platform, and upon these
Issues the pi ople one year ago emphat
ically declared their opposition to its
revolutionary statements.
"There are some things, however,
which Republicans must do. They
must act harmoniously, adopt a plat
form fair to all classes, nominate good
men for office, renounce ana denounce
all bosses, faithfully discharge their
political duties as citizens, adhere to
their patriotism and respect for Gov
ernment in all its branches, and organ
ize thoroughly and effectively for the
work of the campaign. These things
being done, I am unable to see any
sufficient reason why we should fear
the failure of the Republican party at
the next election, and I confidently
predict for our entire ticket, from Gov
ernor to Constable, a most glorious and
triumphant victory next November,
THE SAN FRAXCISCO CALL, SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 1898.
and that we may then as now rejoice
in the fact that California is a Repub
lican State."
ROLL OF HEROES.
Hon. F- R- Davis Pays Tribute
to Great Republicans.
The Hon. Frank F. Davis responded
as follows to the sentiment, "Our Re
publican Heroes."
"Mr. President and Gentlemen: The
field of heroism Is as limitless as
human endeavor. Wherever the
genius of man has crystallized human
effort into a system there shine Us
splendid examples. It has been the
creation of religion, of business, of po
litical life in all ages of civilization.
"Circumstances and exigencies cre
ate political parties. Into that new
creation as its essence of life comes the
burning: question of the hour. That
question may be as selfish in char
acter as what shall be the standard
medium of exchange, or it may rise to
the splendid ideality of human liberty;
but when that question, whatever it
may be, becomes vital and aroUnd it
gather the hosts which make a polit
ical entity, then dawns the day for he-
roic action. It is the glory and boast
of the Republican party that its he
n>es are the nation's heroes, and their
immortal names the common heritage
of the republic. The foremost figure
in the field is the pioneer hero. He is
born, reared, perfected under circum
stances of trial, and in the fire which
tries the hearts and souls of men. He
is the man of the ax. Beneath the
strokes of his arm fall the tangled
forests of human error, and he bares
his breast to the impending rocks of
human opposition. His the unfaltering
courage, the clear and well-defined
purpose, the never-tiring brain, the
never-ceasing progressive movement,
the unalterable faith in the certainty
of prevailing truth and the undying
hope that in the end all things will
work out for the welfare of humanity.
"Such in character was Abraham Lin
coln. What a birth and training for
the field of heroism. A log cabin in
the wilderness, a chore boy upon the
farm, a clerk in the corner grocery, a
struggling country lawyer. His sphere
of action the field of Western politics,
a farm wagon for a rostrum, the
scarred and worn toilers of field and
forest for audience, the political bat
tle fought by night and by day In
school -house, in open field, in country
church, on village square, and amid ail
the struggle for daily bread, with mis
fortune, sorrow, opposition keen, some
times almost overwhelming, the daily
and nightly wage. So born and trained
he came to wield the destinies of a
great nation.
After stirring eulogies of Lincoln.
Grant and Blame, the speaker closed In
this eloquent manner:
This hour of uncertainty demands the
genius of the hero statesman. The
crisis demanded and received the splen
did leadership of the Plumed Knight,
James G. Blame. Then was born the
watchword, "The American workshop
for American labor, protection to home
industries." Under the broad utilitari
anism of that gifted genius mark our
country's progress. Out into the wil
derness stretches the iron threads of
numberless railways; the whistle of the
steam engine, the roar of the forge and
the crash of machinery awaken the
echoes of the forest, and on the broad
fields of the public domain where wild
Indians and still wilder beasts have
made their haunts and lair rise the
humble cabin of the homesteader. Into
every line of human activity come
strength and prosperity. New fields of
action open, the unemployed millions of
other shores invited to participate in
our prosperity join the advancing hosts,
and the unfed and ill-clad millions of
the unemployed find he-nest work for
honest hands to do. The population
doubles, national wealth increases by
the thousands of millionß. capital finds
safe investment, and labor steady and
remunerative employment. It is but a
sketch, an outline. Time forbids more.
Tears for the heroes dead, cheers for
the living. Grant and Linco-In and
Blame have passed from the theater of
active life, but the field still demands
Republican heroism. In that field of
action stand the young men of to-day.
From their ranks must spring the he
roes of the future. The strength of the
Republican party is In its young men.
That strength is well founded. The
face of youth is ever toward the dawn,
and on the uplands of the rising day of
action it fights and wins its battles.
From the ranks of the Republican par
ty, as the hour shall demand, whether
for the work of the pioneer In new and
untrod paths, that of the soldier on the
field of battle, or that of the statesman
BY THE
YOUNG MENS REPUBLICAN LEAGUE OF LOS ANGELES
A BRILLIANT ORATION BY THOMAS FITCH.
n ON. THOMAS FITCH, in re-
I \ spending to the toast, "Abra
| I ham Lincoln," said:
*J It Is 89 years since Abra
ham Lincoln was born. It Is
nearly 33 years since he climbed to
immortality. We may now Impar
tially discuss his character and his
acts, for time wears out prejudices,
tranquilizes passions and induces
men to respect the integrity of mo
tive of those from whom they have
radically differed. If Wendell Phil
lips were alive to-day he would
propably incur no personal risk in
addressing an audience in New Or
leans. If Jefferson Davis were still
in the flesh he would certainly be
accorded a patient hearing in Bos
ton. The men of this generation
can scarcely realize that less than
half a century ago slavery was not
only powerful but popular in the
North as well as the South, while
those whrr claimed themselves in fa
vor of its abolition incurred social,
business and political ostracism in
the North, and insult, assault and
expulsion in the South. Few post
masters south of Mason and Dixon's
line would have delivered a copy of
the New York Tribune to a sub
scriber, and few subscribers would
have ventured to receive a copy of
it except in a sealed envelope. The
Northern man who Journeyed south
ward padlocked his lips when he
crossed the Potomac or the Ohio.
In the streets of Southern cities
slaves marched to the auction block
with the clank of their manacles un
muffled, but the voice of freedom
was hushed to silence, her dramas
were unpresented, her songs un
sung. A despotism more drastic
than that of Russia ruled in fifteen
States. The vast amount of capital
invested in slave property was ap
parently safely intrenched behind
barriers of Judge-made law, bas
tions of commercial power and bat
teries of social prestige. In all of
the Southern and in many of the
Northern States the great forces of
society were enlisted in the inter
ests of the slave holders. The con
servative influence of the churches,
always exercised in favor of exist
ing authority, was allied to the prej
udices of the slums against the ne
gro. The power of the banks — millions
upon millions of whose money was
loaned upon the security of human
chattels— was linked to the ambi
tion of politicians whose nomina
tion and election depended upon the
favor of the slave-holders. The en
ergies of merchants anxious for
Southern custom and the power of a
press seeking for commercial adver
tising were all massed against anti
slavery agitation. The millionaire
and the proletariat marched in the
lock step of comrades and bowed to
Dagon, and slavery officered onir
army and navy, ruled our courts
and Legislatures and Congresses,
dictated our foreign and domestic
policies, dominated our political
parties and selected our Presidents,
Pabinets, Embassadors, postmasters
and customs officers. Yet, even
with the combined power of all
these forces, agitation for the abo
lition of slavery could no more be
suppressed than could the waves be
stopped from dashing when the
Btorm king rides the seas, or the
earth be stopped frnrn quivering
when internal fires throb in her fur
naces.
Radical utterances on the one
side instigated utterances equally
radical on the other. A Southern
Senator characterized the constitu
tion of the United States as "a prof
itless compact with Northern mud
sills." while Garrison denounced it
as "a league with death and a cove
nant with hell." Toombs boasted
that the time would come "when
he could call the rail of his slaves
on Bunker Hill," and Seward de
clared that the hour was approach-
Ing when "New Orleans must cease
to be a mart for the bodies and
souls of men."
Yet, notwithstanding, the rising
tempest of agitation, the dormant
and drowsy conscience of the North
slept on, until the slave-holders
themselves aroused it by repealing
the Missouri compromise which they
themselves had enacted thirty-four
years before. Their action was bit
terly denounced at the time by men
of all parties, yet its logic may not
at this day be justly criticized, for
slavery was aggressive by that very
necessity of its nature which de
manded expansion as a condition
precedent of continued existence.
The world was weary of it. Pro
gressive civilization called for its
extinction. It was a relic of bar
barism out of touch with the times.
The nineteenth century had become
for it the enemy's country where
to halt was to die, and bo it defi
antly smote the nineteenth century
in the face and marched out Into
the open with drums beating and
colors flying. Then the freemen of
the North awoke with the spring
and roar of lions aroused from
slumber. Out of the farms and fac
tories, out of the forests and mines,
out of the shops and counting
houses they came. They formed the
grandest association of freemen
that the world has ever known, and
they named it the "Republican Par
ty." For it and its beneficent pur
poses the tongue of the orator has
been kindled with fire from the al
tar. For it the strain of the poet
has swelled to the sweetest song.
For it the sword of the soldier has
flashed along the line of victorious
armies, and whatever the future
may have in store for it, its glori
ous past will live as long as the
English tongue.
It may not always have been in
fallible in its selection of measures,
and it may not always have been
wise in its choice of representatives,
but its purposes have ever been
high and patriotic.
It was officered at its inception by
captains, whose names now stand
high on the rail call of fame — Sum
ner and Wilson and Fessenden and
Hale of New England; Seward and
Greeley and Curtis in New York:
Winter Davis and Cassius Clay and
the Blairs in the border States;
Chase and Wade and Giddings and
Trumbull in the Northwest; Baker
on the Pacific.
There were giants in the land in
those days, intellectual caryatides
who upheld their age. Small men
with large bank accounts had not
then excluded large men with small
bank accounts from the high places
of state. The pretorian guards of
politics had not then inaugurated
the practice of shamelessly selling
Senatorial togas to metallic acci
dents, whose dense and unsensitive
egotism made them unaware that
a seat in the United States Senate
Is not of itself distinction, but only
an opportunity to achieve it. The
passage of the Kansas-Nebraska
bill made no longer available the
honeyed glue of compromise with
which Henry Clay had bo often
linked repellant atoms in inhar
monious alliance, and in 1856, for
the first time in our history, the
forces of freedom and slavery were
aligned for battle. Candidates for
the Democratic nomination for the
Presidency were numerous, but the
chief contest was between Douglas
and Buchanan. Douglas was com
paratively young, ' his fidelity to
slavery had not been tested, the
Blave-holders needed the Keystone
State, and they selected the morally
cartilaginous and mentally unossi
fied Pennsylvanian as an affable
availability. Out of the ultimate
West came Fremont to lead the
forces of freedom. Pathfinder was
he, seeking untrodden ways in poli
tics as in the exploration of moun
tain and desert. With the light of
freedom in his loyal eyes and the
bronze of Western suns on the face
that never feared a foe or shirked
a contest, he led the Republican
party to a battle which, though lost,
yet proved the Bunker Hill of our
new revolution. The contest of 1856
was the midnight sun of an emanci
pated North, for its setting rays
glowed with the presage of a vic
tory that was to bring the illumina
tion of freedom to a nation.
Four years of fruitless struggle,
in which slavery vainly sought to
fasten itself on the new North
west, and then the hour of tri
umph arrived. A leader of
leaders was needed, and all eyes
were turned toward Illinois. A man
for the times was demanded, and
the God of the eternities presented
him in the person of Abraham Lin
coln.
He was the child of poverty and
toil. Not the hopeless poverty and
cringing toil of those who labor
amid the din of European marts,
but the manly submission to priva
tion, and unmastered toil of the
Western pioneer, whose eye of faith
beholds the star of hope shining
above the clouds, and who in his
dreams of the future drapes himself
with the Senator's toga or the
Judge's gown. Abraham Lincoln
was self-made and self-reliant, but
never self-seeking or self-sufficient.
He was honest, not with that nur
tured integrity which too often
proves an exotic that dies at the
first blast of adversity, but he was
honest by instinct, and because it
never occurred to him to be other
than honest. He was in spirit as in
fact one of and one with the peo
ple, and he needed no guide to find
the way to their hearts. He loved
liberty of action, of speech and of
thought, and in so far as his gener
ous and chivalric soul would suffer
him to hate anything, he hated tyr
anny and meanness and shams. His
was a personality so vital that it
cannot die, and after all these years
he seems a living presence rather
than a memory. He was a master
of speech, his passion and pathos
and humor were matchless, and as
as a logician he was peerless. His
iron-limbed syllogisms crushed
Bophisms as if they were eggshells.
His wit, his philosophy, his strong
saving common sense, his quaint
forms of expression have filled our
political literature with familiar
apothegms. What better rebuke to
dogmatism than the phrase, "Ev
erybody is wiser than anybody";
what clearer description of a repub
lic than "government of the people,
by the people, for the people."
What more complete destruction of
sophism than his answer to the con
tention of his opponent than slav
ery must be excluded from a terri
tory by unfriendly legislation.
"Judge Douglas," said he, "holds
that a thing may be lawfully driven
away from a place where it has a
lawful right to go." What annihi
lating sarcasm in his reply to those
who insisted that Republican vic
tory would entail negro equality and
miscegenation. "Because I do not
want a colored woman for my
slave," said he. "it does not follow
that Ido want her for my wife. My
understanding is that I can Just let
her alone."
His argument against secession is
stated in a sentence, "Can aliens
make treaties easier than friends
can make laws?" What grander
plea for liberty than his appeal to
Congress in behalf of the 13th
amendment? "In giving freedom to
slaves," he said, "we assure free
dom to the free, honorable alike in
what we give and in what we pre
serve. We shall nobly save or
meanly lose the last best hope erf
earth."
What more comprehensive state
ment of trie duty of the hour than
the familiar sentence, "With mal
ice toward none, with charity for
all, with firmness for the right as
God gives us to see the right."
There are many words of Lincoln
so fitly and grandly said that they
will burn In the sky of history like
fixed stars, even when the master
pieces of great orators shall have
vanished with their train of rhetor
ical splendors into space. There are
ideas of his which victorious arm
ies have placed upon their eagles
and carried to a grander fruition
than ever prophet foretold or poet
dreamed. Never was ruler or. rep
resentative truer to a trust than he.
His reigning animating purpose was
to preserve the geographical integ
rity and political unity of the
United States of America, and hia
determination to extend the bless
ings of freedom to every human be
ing dwelling beneath the shelter of
our flag was an outgrowth of the
original design. He never lost sight
of this purpose. He was conserva
tive when the premature adoption
of radical measures might have
alienated the wavering and weak
ened the Union cause. He was rad
ical when the power of time and
circumstance had crumbled the bar
riers of prejudice which for years
had obstructed the road to justice.
His individualism was never ab
sorbed or subverted even by the
genius and power of the great men
who daily counseled him. Without
being egotistic or dogmatic or stub
born, he was firm. He "took each
man's counsel and preserved his
Judgment." Without previous train
ing in the conduct of public affairs,
he was called upon to grasp the
reins of government when the char
iot of state was rocking amid the
convulsions of war. But he kept a
steady hand, and neither the terri
fied counsels of o'er-cautious con
servatism, nor the demands of un
thinking and Improvident zeal could
drive him from the road along
which he believed the safety of the
natio-n demanded he should guide
his countrymen. It was his privi
lege to select the best policy for the
time, and his gift of discrimination
was marvelous. He stands ap
proved by the popular judgment,
both of his times and of later his
tory, as seldom having made a mis
take. He was sometimes deceived
in his judgment of men, but he was
hardly ever at fault in his judg
ment of measures. Understanding
the American people better than
many men of more experience in
statesmanship, he never entertained
a doubt as to the final iss\ie of the
contest. When disaster encompassed
us and defeat hurled back our arm
ies, he called for more men. Sus
tained by his imperturbable trust
in the righteousness of our cause
and in the power and willingness of
the people to meet aft requirements,
he pressed steadily onward to that
perfect consummation of national
peace, unity and freedom which,
with the faith born of presence, he
felt would be sure to come, and
which he almost lived to see.
Shall we of this day not profit on
the performances of public duty by
recalling the life and teachings of
this patriot and martyr? On the
morning after the news came of
Lincoln's assassination, crowds
surged in front of the United States
Government buildings in Wall
street, and the air was charged with
panic. Then there arose upon the
granite steps a son of Ohio, who
years afterward worthily, though
briefly, occupied Lincoln's chair and
quieted the fears of the multitude
with a sentence now historic, "God
reigns, and the Government at
Washington still lives."
A month ago another son of Ohio,
emerging in triumph from a politi
cal contest, the mephitic odors of
which still poison the atmosphere,
paraphrased, and shall I not say it?
burlesqued Garfleld's great utter
ance by telegraphing to the Presi
dent of the United States, "God
reigns, and the Republican party
still lives."
Yes, our goddess lives, not because
of the result of the Senatorial elec
tion in Ohio, but in despite of it.
May she live hereafter as in Lin
coln's day, an expression of the
brains and conscience and patriot
ism of the nation, and not as a sat
rap, scourged and gasping and
weary at the chariot wheels of Plu
tus! May she live unswindled by
the hucksters of the caucus and
undebauched by the bawds of the
lobby! May she live with ears un
attuned to the clink of the briber's
gold and with brow unbranded with
the scarlet letter! May she live
with her foreign policy unshaped
by the magnates of the sugar trust
and her finances unruled by the
mouthpiece of a banker's syndicate!
May the harvest of prosperity which
her rule is bringing to the nation
not be blighted by the hot and
greedy blasts of selfishness while
the corn is still in the milk, and
may those who now control her des
tinies turn their backs upon Wall
street and their faces to the western
stars, and so guide our ship of state
that from his place above, Abra
ham Lincoln,
The firm patriot there,
Who made the welfare of mankind his
care,
Shall know he conquered.
in the halls of legislation, shall be born
as the hour demands new Lincolns, new
Grants, new Blames, to guard the eter
nal welfare of the republic.
Hon. H. C. Gooding, Hon. R. J. Wat
ers and ex-Governor John L. Beveridga
also responded to toasts.
The enthusiasm during the evening
was simply unbounded. The banquet
was a success in every way, exceeding
any previous event of the character
that has ever occurred in Los Angeles.
LEAGUE HISTORY.
Crjief Incidents in the Career
of the Organization.
The Young Men's Republican League
of Los Angeles is the pioneer organi
zation of this city, having been formed
in 1592. Its members are always in
the front of the fight, bold, aggressive
and never discouraged by reverses.
The league was organized in Febru
ary, 1892, with A. W. Kinney presi
dent, H. P. Platt secretary and W. F.
Hemming treasurer. Its first head
quarters were on West Second street.
This was in the Harrison-Cleveland
campaign, and the league, being a
uniformed organization and the first
composed of young men in this city, it
at once took an active part in advanc
ing the welfare of the party, visiting
during the fall Pasadena, Wilmington,
Santa Monica and other cities. This
activity so stirred up the opposition
that a party of "unknowns" entered
the league's headquarters and smashed
its furniture and fixtures.
However, the organization continued
to prosper and its efforts were indorsed
by the County Convention. During
this campaign the club assisted in en
tertaining the drill corps of the Union
League Club of San Francisco.
The league reorganized in the Estee-
Budd campaign with 400 members.
George Francis was elected secretary
and Edward Booth treasurer. The
headquarters were located on South
Spring street. During this year many
oganizers and speakers were sent to
neighboring places to form auxiliary
clubs. This work was recognized by
the county convention in a fitting man
ner. The county platform was first
established in 1594. and the Young
Men's League contributed much to its
welfare. Commendatory letters were re
ceived from Mr. Estee and State
Chairman D. M. Burns.
In 1596 President Kinney and Secre
tary Francis were re-elected, F. Down
ing being made treasurer and S. G.
Brown vice-president. The campaign
was formally opened on March 4 by
the first annual banquet of the league.
This was a memorable occasion. Let
ters were read from Thomas Reed, J.
S. Clarkson, Mr. Quay and others high
in the councils of the party. Hon. Wil
liam MeKinley wrote: "Ever sin<?e the
organization of the league movement
I have recognized it as a factor in
shaping the policy and destinies of our
party. It affords me pleasure to send
my best wishes for the success of your
banquet and to express to you my con
fidence that the great principles of the
HON. THOMAS FITCH.
(Photo by Taber.)
Republican party are now universally
recognized throughout the United States
as being absolutely necessary for the
progress and prosperity of the coun
try."
The League opened up elegant quar
ters in the Stowell block, and Its 700
members immediately got to work.
Strong resolutions were adopted favor
ing San Francisco as the city for hold
ing the National Republican Conven
tion, and these were sent to the mem
bers of the National Committee.
At its annual election in 1897 the
league elected the following officers:
President, Luther G. Brown; first vice
president, George B. McLaughlln; sec
ond vice-president, W. M. Hiatt; third
vice-president, F. P. Frost; treasurer,
Alexander Caldwell; secretary, George
Francis; assistant secretary, O. R.
Staples.
In the coming battle of '98 the Young
Men's Republican League will be found
in the thickest of the fray and with its
banners well toward the front. It will
not attempt, as an organization, to
bring out candidates or influence con
ventions, but when the nomination,* are
made its members will support them
loyally until the polls are closed on
the first Tuesday in November.
The members of the executive com
mittee for 1898 are: P. J. Kennedy, T.
Hughes, F. Brakesuhler, G. B. Mc-
Laughlin, A. Caldwell. L. R. Garrett,
S. McClure, F. P. Frost, C. C. Bonnell,
C. R. Staples, W. Knippenberg, W. E.
Ludlow, C. McStay, H. J. Hutchinson,
George E. Pillsbury, Edw. Booth,
George Phibbs, A. Walshe, Z. Swable,
R. E. Drummond, George P. Adams,
W. M. Hiatt, George Francis.
The Young Men's League is repre
sentative of the hope, the vitality and
aspirations of the Republican party,
and as Hon. Charles Emory Smith ex
pressed it: "It is the flower of the
great political force which, as a crea
tive and constructive organization will
rank in history with the party of Chat
ham and the younger Pitt, and with
the party of Washington, Hamilton and
Marshall."
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