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Show 1 'inside storiesTf wsl;Misi . A BY GILSON GARDNER. The McKinley convention of 1S96 was a "fixed" convention. It had been fixed by the famous Marcus Aurcllus Hanna, businessman of Cleveland, 0. It wns fixed that William 'McKinley, ex-congressman from Ohio, should bo nominated. It was fixed by a carefully-planned campaign of publicity and organization in the Republican party. There was no uncertainty, no "drama," no action. The country had experienced several sever-al years of "hard times" following the panic of 1893. In tho west the depression de-pression was groatest. The farmers had suffered poor crops and wore unable un-able to pay their mortgages and interest in-terest to eastern capital. Mark Hanna was quick to realize the psychology of the situation. Ho picked out McKinley,. whaliad been prominent as a high tariff champion while In congress, and who was a conservative, conventional and "safe" businessman's type of candidate. " Hanna raised money without trouble among businessmen to finance tho plan to make McKinley the Republican nominee. For more than a year before tho convention tho work went on. The practical workers In the Republican Repub-lican party organization were con: vlnced that McKlnloy would be a good tariff and prosperity candidate, and in various parts of the country little paragraphs para-graphs began to appear in tho papers educating the voter to this idea. At tho end of the year the public was "educated" and the delegates "hand-picked." A iow weeks before the convcn-i lion took place, an effort was made to bring out Tom Reed, spenker of the House of Representatives, as a rival candidate. The Reed movement never developed devel-oped any strength. Long before they met in the convention hall, it was so well recognized that McKinley would be nominated, that the only Interest was that which centered about the platform. This was the beginning of the free silver controversy. The Democratic convention had not been held; but the Republican managers had noticed the mutterings of free sliver. These mut-" terings were coming from the west, and it was evident that the money issue would have to bo faced. Everybody crowded the rooms occupied occu-pied by Mark Hanna. He was the recognized leader, and overybody wanted to know what he intended to do about the money plank in the platform. plat-form. He was frank and determined. He said tho convention would have to come out flat-footedly for tho gold standard. It did so, and the tariff issue was crowded into the background. "Sound money and prosperity" were the issues, is-sues, and the campaign slogan was the famous "full dinner pall" a tribute to the inventiveness of Mark Hanna. The convention went quickly and timely through tho forms of nominating nominat-ing speeches and the roil calls, and adopted the monetary declaration handed, to it by Hanna and got ready for the veal fight which was precipitated precipi-tated when the Chicago convention a little later nominated William J. Bryan, following Ms famous "Cross of Gold land Crown of Thorns" speech. |