CHAPTER IV.

REFORM CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT.

IT was altogether natural that there would arise a movement in favor of the nomination of such a man as we have in the preceding chapters seen Governor Cleveland to be—a man in the prime of life and with so strong a record.

It was likewise favorable to his nomination that the agitation in his behalf had arisen only a short time before the Democratic Convention met. It was certain that New York would use her influence for Mr. Tilden, if he did not again decline the nomination in an emphatic and definite manner. And until he did this the movement for Governor Cleveland's nomination was necessarily kept in the back-ground. But as soon as Mr. Tilden's letter was published, in June, the "boom" for Governor Cleveland began to develop in a definite and forcible manner; and there was not time left between then and the meeting of the convention for the people to grow weary of hearing his name. There are many people

who believe that conventions have in a manner ceased to nominate men whose names have been

persistently pushed for months. The nomination of Mr. Blaine, however, after three earnest "booms" does not accord with this theory of the action of conventions.

Another circumstance favorable to Mr. Cleveland's nomination was that he had at his back the seventy. two votes of New York. This is no trifling factor in a National Convention.

There was, moreover, a very general feeling that some candidate must be named who could carry New York at the next election; and the fact that Governor Cleveland carried it in 1882 by 192,000 created a strong belief that he could carry it again. Those candidates who live in the most populous States have a decided advantage over those who live in small States. There is little doubt that Mr. Bayard would have been nominated either this year or in 1880, if he had lived in a populous State of the North.

There is one more circumstance that had great weight in favor of Governor Cleveland, and that was the relation of the Independents to him. Fortunately for him the Independents, immediately after the nomination of Mr. Blaine, held three very important meetings-in New York, in Boston, and in New Haven-at which they declared against Mr. Blaine and in one way and another made it pretty evident that they would support Mr. Cleveland if nominated at Chicago. These three meetings exerted

a much greater influence than was proportionate to the numbers present at them, because they were attended by an unusual number of men prominent in the higher callings of life, of men favorably known for their intelligence, culture and character, and who had heretofore been active and representative members of the Republican party.

Other Independents scattered over a wide extent of country were encouraged by these three meetings to await the action of the Democratic Convention.

All reasonable Democrats at once recognized the expediency of nominating a candidate who would draw this Independent vote, and, what was equally important, would gain their influence and assistance in the approaching campaign. From that day the probability grew stronger that either Governor Cleveland or Senator Bayard would be nominated.

The nomination of Mr. Blaine immediately rendered all differences in the Democratic party as to the tariff and some other questions secondary; it was evident that the issue was to be one of Reform against "machine" methods of government, or Reform against the spoils system, provided the Democrats would put forth a progressive, pure man as their standard bearer.

Thus various circumstances conspired, as it were, to raise the whole Democratic party to the level sometime occupied by its best men.

There is no doubt that public sentiment has been

educated up to certain important measures without the active co-operation and even with the opposition of many of the leaders of the two parties. The cause of Civil Service Reform has been opposed, ridiculed and snubbed by many of them. But that it has taken a deep hold on many of the more progressive and intelligent men in both parties, and thereby on public opinion, is clearly shown by Mr. Blaine's circuitous expressions of sympathy with the movement, as given in his Letter of Acceptance.

When a man so thoroughly identified with the spoils system as Mr. Blaine has been finds it necessary to throw such a sop to Cerberus, it is a clear indication that public opinion is ready for this Reform if pressed prudently and by the proper men.

Upon the whole the Democratic Convention could not have been held at a time better calculated to give the guidance in important matters to the progressive elements of the party, and better calculated to bring about the nomination of a good man.

The convention met in Chicago July 8, and was organized by the selection of Gov. Hubbard of Texas as Temporary Chairman and Col. Vilas of Wisconsin as Permanent Chairman.

While the convention was waiting for the Committee on Platform to finish its work, the following different candidates were put in nomination: Senator Bayard of Delaware, ex-Senator Thurman of Ohio, ex-Senator McDonald of Indiana, Hon. John

G. Carlisle of Kentucky, Governor Cleveland of New York, Governor Hoadly of Ohio, and Hon. SamuelRandall of Pennsylvania.

When the State of New York was reached Mr. Manning arose and said that his State presented the name of Grover Cleveland, and desired to be heard through Hon. D. N. Lockwood of Buffalo. Mr. Lockwood is the gentleman who nominated Mr. Cleveland for Sheriff of Erie County in 1870, for Mayor of Buffalo in 1881, and for Governor of New York in 1882. Probably no other case has occurred in our history of a man's being nominated four different times for four different offices by the same man. I gave Mr. Lockwood's Syracuse speech in the preceding chapter; the following was the speech at Chicago:

MR. CHAIRMAN AND GENTLEMEN OF THE CONVENTION: It is with no ordinary feeling of responsibility that I appear before this Convention as the representative of the Democracy of the State of New York [applause] for the purpose of placing in nomination a gentleman from the State of New York as a candidate for the Presidency of the United States. This responsibility is made greater when I remember that the richest pages of American history have been made up from the records of Democratic administration. [Applause.] This responsibility is made still greater when I remember that the only blot in the political history done at Washington, an outrage upon the rights of the American people, was in 1876, and that that