Class Book Xi^!: COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT y^ W / y-A. I CONDITIONS AND EVENTS WHOSE COMBINATION FORCED THE NOMINATION WILLIAM McKINLEY ...FOR PRESIDENT ,^-%^ i^m^i''"^)^ ^'' OUTLINED BY D. LAMB. WRITTEN BY JOHN BEMER CROSBY. COPYRIGHT, 1896. BY JOHN BEMER CROSBY PRESS f THE UMBDHNSTOCK CO. ' CH CAGO j DESTINY. A HERO FOR 1:\1:RY EPOCH. William McKlxlly. the ALw of the Hour. The blindinij- whirl of events rolls within the heavy cycles of time, and every revolution inevitably raises once to the top the sorrowful side. Every crisis has its master, dragg-ed by Fate from none knows where, as every evil has its end, though the path to it be long. There came a time of unrest in the United States. In the past there had been times of trouble, periods of national travail, but their causes had been compara- tively extraneous. They had not been born of poverty so prevalent as to domi- nate national thought. Bad government caused this time of unrest. And, in a Republic, who, if not the people, shall be blamed for bad government? Their error here was not one of insanity, it was merely one of bad judgment. Surely the nation at large was not afflicted with the suicidal mania. The people had comparatively good times, yet contentment was a stranger. "With them there seemed to some to be the paradoxical condition that sufficiency was not enough. So they tried an experiment. Its other name was disaster. What they con- ceived was a promise of greater strength and beauty proved to be a threat that breathed extraordinary venom. They drank of the promise, but not long for suddenly the nation was seized with convulsions. Soon there was utter stagnation of what business was not actually paralytic. This state, of its own quality, reacted and aggravated the very condition that was its cause. And so swung to and fro the pendulum of negative prosperity, each arc shorter than the last before, slowly but incessantly nearing the instant when motion would cease and the world of business and of peace would be dead. But the people of the nation, both those whose palms were calloused and those whose hands were soft, had clear eyes, eyes through which now operated a keener discernment and a resultant vigor of determination that was puritanic. And, in the instant that they saw the terror of the conditions, they saw, also, the remedy that would prove itself at first a cooling emolient and at last a cure. Men of all parties, of all beliefs, of all classes, and of all minds, turned in \ f CHARLES G. DAWES. their thoughts instantly, instinctively, unerringly to one man of all the nation — William McKinley. This man they knew, trusted, respected, admired, and, if sex may love sex, they loved him. They conceived that here was a man who, among his contempo- raries, stood alone; who was in company onlv with the great of the past, who on their plane of manhood are an all too meager party; that not for more than thirty years had so clean and so strong a figure been in the public eye. Had there been an equal crisis between the day of Lincoln and the now, doubt- less some man would have sprung from some crevice of obscurity to ride it, but there had been no culmination of a trouble great enough to hurl the great from home to the saddle of the chief. And now had come the time. And the man had come to rule it. And the people were to rule him. for he was of the people, and he could rule himself. rHI< SWAY OF ILLINOIS. No " Empire State of the West '" is Illinois. Rather call her the Mentor of the Republic, for the political suzerainty of the extreme east has vanished in the ripened power of the whole, now in better concord with its parts than when one section held dominion. Illinois' political importance has not usurped the place of New York's. It has met and fused with it. Yet its geographical position gives to its opinion a pronounced and peculiar prestige. And so the pioneers of relief, as the bona fide " original McKinley men" might be termed, turned covetous eyes toward it at the beginning. Marcus A. Hanna, of Cleveland, Ohio, was a life friend and apostle of McKinley. He had the inherent aggressiveness of the man born for commercial strife, and he had the bold conservatism and persistent self-reliance of the man of great success in that strife. So, of his own act, from motives of personal admiration and a broad concern in the nation's material well-being, he undertook the seemingly not great task of crystalizing the prevalent McKinley faith, that existed all over the country, loose, ungarnered. In the largely pivotal state of Illinois he delegated to Charles G. Dawes the task of organizing the working forces and of then resolving into concrete form this known desire of the people in that state. He made no error. Dawes was a voung man who bad wrenched from circumstances a pronounced personal success. He was a man of retined dcmcani)r that had not the ultra-refinement that grows on the grave of vigor. His innate strength of character was leonine and yet discreet, and therefore doubly potent. His Napoleonic grasp of the situation and deter- mined use of its often hidden advantages, backed by the sincerity, loyalty and abilitN of a few other men whose fealty was not fed on prospective spoils, achieved an historical triumph over the resourceful scheming of as .y^ CHARLES U. G()Rl;()\'. compact and staunch a political coterie as ever weig'hed its own eagerness ag'ainst the people's wishes. These men had to take a great swirling- volume of public preference, incom- pressible as water, often merely undertow and not discernible on the surface, and sluice it without waste toward the then unknown place of the convention. And they did it. It was not easily handled because it was too strong and virile to be plastic. These qualities are good but hard to manage. It was too free and sweeping to be subjugated or even judiciousl}- directed by means other than of the subtlest diplomacy. This thev had. In Illinois, as elsewhere, the people spoke of Reed, the popular tonic of the Repul)licanisin of the east; they mentioned Harrison, the honored pillar of the center; they discussed Allison, their conservative champion in the west and they suggested other admirable men, but they thought only of William McKinley. Underlying all was idolatry of McKinley, back of all was a magnificent trust in McKinley, and enveloping all was a determination to get McKinley. Reference to others was a controversial condiment, nothing more. His name was synonymt)Us with the great principle of protection, from which depended their hope of the peace of the states and the prosperity of the nation. Public confidence in revived Republican triumph was strengthened by the results of the elections of l.S')4 and 1895. The party's motto was not resurs^am, for it had never been down. Pro patria was the broader and more accurate phrase. This positive state of the public mind regarding- party prospects was the father of the first obstacle that challenged the progress of the legion of McKinley. This very assurance of part}- triumph bred arrogance in the hearts of the profes- sional politicians. These hearts are ever unstably balanced and, by the natural law of avarice, lean toward the side whence they feel the magnet of a plastic man. They knew that this man was submissive to nothing but his own sense of duty. So, at first, with insidious argument, they persistently opposed his candidacy. He became formidable. Then they openly fought with the desperation of futility his progress toward his destiny. But they found hini as invincible as the logic of right. In the campaign preceding the nomination the part taken by Herman H. Kohlsaat, both as an individual counselor and through the power of his great newspaper, the Chicago Times-Herald, is easily discerned in its effectiveness, but it is with difficulty defined in its scope. That it was an agency of tremendous power is beyond controversy. It unified the McKinley sentiment already in ex- istence and it created such sentiment where it had not been before. And the power of the paper was enhanced by its honorable a'ostention from easy suppression of occasional incidents adverse to the cause it labored for. Kohlsaat's conscientious- ness as a publicist outweighed even his deep friendship for McKinley, and by that very fact was the prestige and potency of his chamjiionshi]) increased. ALEXANDER H. REVELL THE SEQUENCE OF EVENTS. In December, 1894, Charles U. Gordon, then president of the famous Marquette Club, of Chicag-o, went with the late John Worthy to New York to invite Dr. Parkhurst to be a jfuest of the club at a prospective banquet. While in New York he met Major McKinley, who chanced to be sojourning there, and took advantage of the coincidence to present to him another in,vitation to become the club's guest at some convenient time. The invitation was as cor- dially accepted as given and the time was set for Lincoln's birthday in the suc- ceeding year, 18'»5. Already was it the unpublished but ardent desire of Gordon and a few other prominent men of Chicago, to do all within their power to secure to McKinley every chance of the presidential nomination. He was their ideal candidate and the sooner public sentiment could be awakened the more potent would it be in its efforts to secure the nomination of a man from out itself rather than the choice of an}' dominant political clique. The months passed. Shrewd eyes read well political signs and accurately diagnosed political conditions. It seemed wise to defer for a year McKinley's assured ovation in Chicago. So, in January, 1895, President Gordon suggested to the prospective guest that postponement would be desirable and Major McKinley courteoush' acquiesced. It was at this time, also, that another man of national fame was designated as a guest and speaker for the 12th of February, a year thence; he who afterward presided over the Saint Louis ratification of the people's choice. Senator John M. Thurston, of Nebraska. And during these days the brain of Marcus A. Hanna, of Cleveland, was not idle. Having bv now determined that his course in his old friend's behalf should be one of activity, he, with habitual skill and ra])i(litv, first systematized his ideas. This done, he employed the tactful force that had achieved for him suc- cess in private endeavor, and i)ut intcj instant operation the preliminary plan. It was a plan of absolute singleness of purpose, — public endorsement of McKinley by every congressional' district, by every Republican organization and b}- every individual whose prominence was such that his opinion would weigh with others; a plan of utter non-intervention in everything that did not directlv bear on and aid tliat purpose; a plan of positive intent to secure explicit instruc- tions for McKinley by every district convention wherein such could be gained. Local issues and factional disagreements were to be left severelv alone; friends were not to be bought with enemies of equal power as the price. Discreet men were dispatched to various parts of the state outside of Chicago. With care and vigor they canvassed among men of local power in politics and of standing in business. They strove to implant and to nurture pro-instructions sentiment on all sides and were wary to not urge one or another individual for ■****, GENERAL JOHN MCiNULTA. position as a deleg-ate. They desired only to secure instructions, whoever mig'ht be selected. These canvassers were placed in communication with Charles G. Dawes, and to him thev constantly reported the results of their work. Likewise, all who wrote from Illinois to either McKinley orHanna, and they were many and eminent, were referred to Dawes, who counselled them when they asked for advice and thanked them when they sent encourag-ement. Thus the campaign was, from the beginning-, maintained upon a basis of definite system and complete sub-autocracy merged in a central despotism of rare acumen. In November, 1895, Hanna went to Chicago to review the situation and to establish what might be termed a board of home missions. He wanted to ascer- tain the sentiment of the prominent Republicans of Cook county toward his candidate. General "William M. Osborne, of Boston, was also there at the time on a not dissimilar errand. A number of well-known citizens who were known to be advocates of McKinley were assembled for consultation. The meeting was one of mutual encouragement and mutual gratulation. When it was dissolved each had as definite intent for the future as he had positive knowledge of the past. The continuance of the campaign, thenceforward to be more concertedly energetic than ever, was determined in detail. Hanna returned to his home, leaving the absolute charge of the state under the keen eye and firm hand of Charles G. Dawes. Early in December, 1895, Charles U. Gordon gave, at the Union League Club, an informal dinner to about twenty-five men, numbering those akeady actively inter- ested and those whose future co-operation was valued. The entire evening was de- voted to exhaustive discussion of ways and means. There was born the plan of ward sub-organization and there the work was partitioned and the portions were assigned on the discreet basis of individual qualification. Prior to this time a handful of men had done the greater part of the active work. Thereafter the task, growing ever greater in scope though not in difficulty, rested on greater numbers. Then began persistent and incessant individual missionary work by the con- ferees among their widely diverse friends. Alexander H. Revell was a tireless advocate and worked with the energy born of the sincerity of motive that animated the entire band. His sacrifice of his personal affairs was probably greater than that of many others owing to the nature of his business! But however great the cost to him, he is rewarded with full appreciation by all. WASHINGTON PORTER. John McNulta was one whose yoeman labors in the field were equalled in value by only his sagacity in the privy council, w^hich in those days was an exceedingly active body, whose sessions were so often spontaneous and impromptu that they were all bnt incessant. His sound and ever ready wisdom served to span more than one crisis. A. W. Clancy labored with the well-directed enthusiasm characteristij of him, and with the success to which he had become accustomed by the events of his life since, in the service of his country, he lost an arm and gained a regimental title. To Charles U. Gordon is due and justly given by those conversant with the campaign, the highest and most genuine credit for work whose effectiveness was equaled by that of but few others. His wonderful management of the contest in the seventh congressional district gave to him a national fame because the triumph was of national import. Washington Porter was a participant and a valued one. His work was lent efficacy bv his wide and successful experience in other fields of endeavor of similar nature relating to the Columbian Exposition and other great affairs. Samuel W. Allerton's stability as a political anchor was as undeniable as was his solidity as a commercial landmark. Elden C. DeWitt, always a prominent member and afterward president of the Marquette Club, more than justified, as a field oflicer, the confidence placed in him by his co-workers and others. The careful, effective methods of George V. Lauman won for the cause many reliable supporters and for himself consequent honor. George E. Adams found his temperamental conservatism of value in his endeavor to aid McKinley, because it gave quality to his utterances and weight to his acts. As a man of impulsive sagacity in the direction of affairs. Edward A. Bigelow was a very potent factor in the production of the compact engine of determination that drew McKinley with irresistible certainty to succes.s. William P. Williams was another man whose capacity for incessant and judicious work was displayed in a manner that emphasized his value as a mission- ary of patriotic purpose and exceptional resourcefulness. J. L. Fulton was a manolith of strength as a recruiting officer and his sturdy wisdom and accurate political judgment formed a very important element in the ultimate compound of triumph. H. Dorsev Patton cintributed his immeasurable prowess as a proselyter and his vehement logic firmly planted on the rock of reason many a man of indecisive «r^ MAJOR A. VV. CLANCY. poise. His peers as an invincible debater were so few that his service to Mc- Kinley's cause was greater in tang-ible results than that of many men of equal intent but of less energ-}' of execution. He was one of the men the number of whose converts was practically identical with the size of his audience. Freelv and libcrallv g-iven was the ver}- considerable social and financial power of John J. Knickerbocker. Wilton C. Smith and J. H. Strong were loyal and very effective members of the original finance committee of the Business Men's McKinley Club, mention of which will hereafter be made in the chronology of events. William P. Williams was the able chairman, and Samuel W. Allerton, John J. Knickerbocker, William J. Chalmers and J. W. Maxwell completed the list. They formed a coterie of rare prestige in monetary circles and were therefore espeeinlly effective in the field of work placed in their charge. J, McGregor Adams gave his aid in more than one effective way and Walter H. Chamberlin was at all times a valued co-laborer with the active leaders. I). F. Crilly's efforts to place beyond doubt McKinley's chance of success, were tireless and his methods were liberal and counted well. And so, in ways divergent but concerted and by means distinctive but well- planned, these men more than other men, from the beginning influenced sentiment and blazed the path for the column of success that ultimately came, in step to the in- spiring strains of the people's song of triumphant desire. Clubs, restaurants and firesides were the scenes of conversion. From men of silent leaning toward McKinley were evolved active workers ; ad- vocates of a moderate tariff became vigorous partisans of the great protectionist and out of his theretofore passive adherents developed energetic campaigners. The system was the most effective of all systems, — that of interminable sequences. In the early part of January, 1896, Washington Porter, long previously an ar- dent and sincere McKinley prophet, fathered the first definitely and exclusively McKinley Club in the state of Illinois. At his residence, in the thirty-second ward met several citizens of prominence. They all were anxious to promote McKinley's interests and the latter's friend, Porter, desired their advice regarding methods. The consultation resulted in speedy approval of his plan for the early establishment of ward organizations, and it was determined to then and there inaugurate the series. A ward mass-meeting was at once called for an early date. It was wonder- fully successful. More than fifteen hundred enthusiastic men at once enrolled them- selves, and so was born the William McKinley Club of the Thirty-second Ward, which grew to a membership of more than four thousand and soon was a famous and very powerful institution. Vji .Jtli^»k% «, W- SATv^LELW. ALLFl TON. Washington Poiter, its instigator, was properly and wisely made its president and David S. Gear became its secretary. Its roll emiu'aced many of the prominent men of Chicago and a club having four thousand members confined within a single ward was surely distinguished by that fact alone. Incidentally, it is said that Porter was the earliest prophet in Ilhnoisof McKinley's destiny, he having, during a visit of the latter to Chicago seven months prior to his last nomination for the governorship of Ohio, pr phesied to 1 im his nomination and re-election to the latter office and like- wise his nomination for the Presidency in 18'.)6, which was then a long time away. The next incident of importance in the pre-convention campaign was the meeting of the State Central Committee at Springfield. Its purpose was the discus- sion by the members from various parts of the state of the conditions in their respec- tive districts and the arrangement of the preliminaries of the campaign. Its intend- ed nature may be inferred from its colloquial designation as a "love feast." Here were the fortunes of McKinley safe-guarded by the presence, as unosten- tatious spectators, of Charles G. Dawes, Charles U. Gordon, Elden C. DeWitt, Wash- ington Porter, W. D. Washburn, George V. Lauman and A. W. Clancy from Cook county, and W. W. Tracy, A. J. Lester, General C. W. Pavey, W. F. Calhoun, Judge C. W. Eaymoiid, \\ . (i. Edens and others from the state at large. The prioj- plans of the state organization comprised the nomination, afterward effected, of John Pi. Tanner for the governorship and the defeat of instructions to the national delegates for any presidential candidate whoever, thereby securing to themselves a very powerful leverage in the National Convention and practically in- suring post-election favor in exchange for pre-nomination aid. Already was McKinley's incipient strength among the people becoming mani- fest and the organization was consistently adverse to him because he was well known to be anything but a man of sculptor's clay. It was claimed that the committee was partial to anti-McKinley men in granting admission to its sessions. Senator Gullom had been induced, it is said against his judgement and desire, to leave Washington and attend the meeting tor the purpose of furthering his own perfunctory candidacy for the nomination. During the session ex-Governor Joseph W. Fifer spoke eloquently for the sen- ator and in his peroration chanced to refer incidentally to McKinley. There instantly ensued a scene of riotous enthusiasm that astonished and appalled the anti-McKinley contingent. The majority of the committeemen were brought to their feet by the simple utterance of the name and the demonstration lasted for several minutes. This was the first pronounced indication of the underlying McKinley sentiment that would X COLONEL GEORGE V. LAUMAN. HONORABLE GEORGE E. ADAMS. H. HORSEY PATTON. I). F. CKILLY. brook 110 attf mpt at subjugation by even the regularly constituted authorities of its own party. At this time it was that H. Dorsey Patton brought upon his loyal head the re- monstrance of his confreres for his persistent and vigorous espousal of McKinley's cause. From tlie counter of the Lelaud Hotel lie made a speech that did much to solidify the sentiment that afterward dominated so unexpectedly to the other leaders. TWU CLUBS. On the twelfth of February occurred the long contemplated banquet of the Marquette Club, at which Major McKinley was the guest of especial honor. It was in every respect an extraordinary affair. Its scene was the Auditorium Hotel. It was ably presided over by Elden C. De Witt, the president of the club, and its historic success was largely due to the tactful labors of the banquet committee, which, with Edward A. Bigelow as chairman, embraced George E. Adams, George R. Peck, George H. .Jenney and Fred W. Upham. John H. Johnson, chairman, and the members of the invitation committee, discharged their duties with great credit, and Charles U. Gordon, chairman of the reception committee, with the valued assistance of ex-pres- ident Alexander H. Eevell, ex-president George V. Lauman and some fifty other mem- bers of the club, was enabled to contribute a liberal share of the cause for the subse- quent gratification. Covers to the extraordinary number of one thousand and fifty were laid, entitling it to rank, lieyond all cavil, as the largest banquet ever served. The arrangements were perfect in every detail and spoke for the foresight and indus- try of aU concerned in their direction. It was there, under such rarely auspicious conditions, including the enthusiastic friendship of every man present, that Major McKinley delivered his soon famous oration on Abraham Lincoln, a speech that was as eloquent in substance as it was magnetic in delivery ; a speech that won applause from even his most radical political antagonists. The occasion was full of inspiration and the man responded to the opportunity. It was not designed to be a political speech but its effect on its author's unavowed candidacy was tremendous, though thi speaker was unwitting of it. It showed the public what sort of man was McKinley, and that simple knowledge of his character was as potent a leverage for his ambition as any man could covet. Senator John M. Thurston, of Nebraska, was another speaker whose eloquence met cordial response. # ^:^' {% WILLIAM P. WILLIAMS. Altogether, in conception, direction and appreciation the affair was a tremen- dous success, and McKinley was deeply affected by the warmth of the friendship evinced, this sentiment being second only to his depth of feeling because it was the day of Lincoln's nativity. Marcus A. Hanna more readily perceived its political effect and his gratitude to the Marquette Club, which he designated a "mascot," was then and repeatedly ex- pressed with warmth to its members. Men who had attended the banquet for patriotic reasons left it full of personal partisanship and those whose adhesion to the orator dominated that to the memory of his subject left that night yet moi-e enthusiastic. A few days later sprang into life the organization that, perhaps after the Mar- quette Club, did more effective work than was done by any other similar institution in Chicago or elsewhere. It was the Business Men's Wilham McKinley Club of Cook County. y EDWARD A. BIGELOW. J. L. FULTON J. H. STRONG. Its immediate precursor was a mass-meeting, of which Alexander H. Eevell was chairman, in Central Music Hall. This meeting was provoked by the arrogant action of the Eepuhlican state organization in caUing premature, otherwise "snap," conventions in the various congressional districts, the palpable object of which was ad- verse to McKinley. The latter's friends considered that action was urgently neces- sary. Their appeals availed nothing, hence their public protest. By this meeting committees on action were appointed. They justified the de- scription. A private consultation followed East in its wake came the definite or- ganization of the club. Eevell was unanimously chosen president, A. W. Clancy became its secretary and Elden C. DeWitt was elected treasurer. The executive committee was made to embrace General McNulta, chairman, George V. Laumai George E. Adams, J. L. Fulton. D. F.Crilly, Edward A. Bigelow and Walter H. Chamb- erlin. The personnel of the hst of vice-presidents, which comprised Samuel W. Aller ton, William J. Chalmers, Charles U. Gordon, Washington Porter, J. C. Magill, J. (4. Everett, John Kralavec, Francis Beidler, Franklin S. Hanson, G. F. Swift, Peter Scheuttler, General Charles Fitzsimons, D. B. Scully, Edmund G. Fiedler, J. Mc- Gregor Adams, George W. Linn and Charles P. Stevens, and of the finance committee, before mentioned, was of great strength viewed in either social or commercial light. Eneigetic work at once was instituted. Correspondence was started with Mc- Kinley men in every part of the state, the nuclei consisting of the members of the state, county and precinct committees. C. W. Eaymond, of Watseka, the president, and W. G. Edens, of Galesburg, the state organizer of the Illinois Eepuhlican League, gave material aid in this work. Circulars, carefully thought out and adroitly written by General McNulta, were dispatched everywhere and almost immediately resulted in a mail of from two to five hundred letters daily. The writers of these became the mediums of a very effective propoganda. Headquarters were established and became a well of courage into which dipped many a man thirsty for good news. Funds for the prosecution of the settled plans werecollected without difficulty, J. L.Fultcm being, at the request of Samuel W. Allerton, the first contril ntor. AUerton and WiUiaras were men of such repute in the financial world that as solicitors of pecuniary aid for a good cause they were well nigh invincible. This was largely because they were known to have never asked it f.)r a bad one. Tliere is great leverage in a clean bill of business health. HONORABLE WILLIAM H, CALHOLLN, DECATUR. WALTER H. CHAMBERLIN. GEORGE H. JENNEY. DAVID S. GEER. General McNulta, who finds recreation in the direction of great affairs, was, during all of this period, giving his counsel and some more tangible aid to the club, to the wonderfully forceful state canvass in progress under direction of Dawes and to individual workers allied to the general system Credit is due to D. A. Fraley, his secretary, for much capable assistance. Clancy, Revell, Porter, Gordon, Fulton, Bigelow and Williams were probably the most active members of this most active institution and the lack of their hearti- ness and vigor would have seriously handicapped the general movement in many an important step and in many a vital hour. Practically, it was by the Marquette Club that McKinley's candidacy was publicly laum-hed and by the Business Men's Club of Cook County that it was equipped for saihng. A NOTABLE VICTORY. The seventh congressional district of Illinois in one short week achieved a fame that was national and a victory that is historical. Its convention was held on the fourth of March, 189(), a time when McKinley's nomination was likely but was far from assured. Its valiantly won endorsement of McKinley's candidacy by instructing for him its two national delegates was the first of the long series of local successes. Its date and its precedence in this action, coupled with the fact that it had been theretofore considered an almost invulnerable stronghold of the anti-McKinley contingent, made its emphatic endorsement pregnant with moral effect on other portions of the state whose conventions were imminent, on similar bodies in adjacent states which were soon to say yes or no and on the entire nation in an impalpable but very real way. Here it was that in convincing manner Charles U. Gordon demonstrated be- yond dispute liis extraordinary capacity in political generalship. His keen acumen and skillful vigor of mind had already served McKinley's cause in ways innumerable but here in definitive Hght he showed his power. George Edmund Foss, the sitting congressman, sought renomination and was peremptorily denied it by tlie regular organization. During his illness in Washington the district convention was called for a time ten days distant, with two Sundays in- tervening. This, like many subsequent events, may not have been just but it was shrewd. Foss instantly returned to Chicago. He discovered that general opinion said that his contestant for the nomination was practically invincible because of his cham- pionship by the dominant coterie of professional politicians. If this were to be dis- proven great vigor and perspicacity were needed. To stipply these qualities Foss f.hNERAL CHARLES FITZ SIMONS. FRANCIS HhlDI EK". FRED W. rPHAM. enlisted Gordon, who consented to take charge of what seemed an all but predeter- mined failure. Arrayed against them were the multiform and multifarious agencies of the regular party machinery. It was so-called mainly because of its regularity in pur- suit of office. Foss was full of faith in the power of the people l)ut the task was to get them to the primaries. Gordon was daunted by nothing. He knew that they could be awakened from the lassitude that everywhere and always breeds bad government. He rapidly laid his plans and carefuUy selected his lieutenants. In accurately analyzing the complexities of political conditions, in shrewdly planning for the utilization of obscure advantages and of then heartily working side by side with those under his able direction, he showed himself to be superior to many a manof greater pul)lic claims. Like Dawes, he was much too good a general to court publicity or that newspaper fame so blighting to success. This avoidance of personal advertising of even real triumph is a definite sign of the traits of leadership. His selection was a wise one for another reason than his special ability. He was known everywhere as a staunch McKinley man and this fact instantly enhsted on his side the large volume of McKinley sentiment theretofore indifferent to struggles comparatively local. Foss himself was partial to McKinley but considered that his duty as a repre- sentative was in aiding his constituents to secure their choice, not his, — unless they were identical. He, therefore, in his several speeches of the short but tierce cam- paign, tested the public preference and found it for McKinley in absolutely over- whelming ratio. Thus his duty and his desu-e trod the same path. Among the coadjutors of Foss and Gordon, Luther Latlin Mills was pre-emi- nent, because of the prodigious power of his personahty, because of his thorough c;on- versance with political methods, because of his keen penetration of the public temper and because of his very high position in the eyes of that public he read so well and trusted so fully. No man had greater influence and none more carefully conserved it^ -Tolm C. Scales, a prominent South Water street commission merchant, was untiring in his labor for McKinley and Foss and had the prior distinction of having originated and successfully organized the South Water Street McKinley Club, which by the strength of his personal effort attained a charter membership of three hundred and twenty of the merchants on that famous street. With Scales as its president this organization, as such and thi'ough he individual labors of its alwnys hard-work- ing members, exerted a very considerable effect over the whole of Cook county. ^r«* HONORABLE CHAKLE^. W. RAYMOND, WATSEKA. COLONEL CHAK-LES P. BRYAN. ELMHiiRST. WILLIAM G. EDENS, GALESBURG. HONORABLE'(,EOK'(,E R. LETOURNEAU. KANKAKEE. Sidney C. Eastman, ill presiding over the convention with his characteristic firmness and urbanity, put a tittingclimax on his virile and telling work in the field. George H. Jenney was a lieutenant of great efficiency and his brain helped to bridge with assurance many a chasm of logical doubt. Earl L. Hambleton, in concert with Scale?, made the great fight in that por- tion of the district containing the powerful Sucilish vote and won it after a herculean struggle. Daniel F. Flaiinery and George W. Powell, of Edgewater, were shi-ewd, strong and indefatigable workers and their aid was worth much to the cause of the people's rights. The greatest majority achieved in any district whatever was the result of the brilliant campaigning of Ben M. Smith, a young attorney resident in Roger's Park. Here it was that the above record was made. Smith's strength told in other portions of Evanston township, in the twenty-fifth ward of Chicago and in Lake county. He, too, was the man who in the convention so ably placed Foss in nomination and broached McKinley's name with result so reassuring to the friends of instructions. It is seen that the need was felt of calling into requisition the energy of youth and the political sagacity that is so frequently a concomitant of legal experience. Among those early enlisted to supply these needs was W. R. Heath, who in the convention was made a member of the committee on credentials. During the eight- day campaign Heath was one of the leaders of the hard fight in the twenty-sixth ward. He succeeded in shrewdly enlisting many men whose antipathy to Foss' opponents was a greater motive than was their partiality to Foss himself, but whose aid was no less valuable for that. Washington Van Horn, subsequently a presidential elector, and Samuel Powell of Ravenswood, labored side by side with Heath and helped to render possible the suc- cess that at tii'st seemed so remote. William Herbert Johnson, of Glencoe, distinguished himself anew, for hi puli- tics he was not so much a tyro as were some, by his authorship of the resolutions for McKinley, that as a report from his committee, were so triumphantly adopted. In the committee on resolutions he had to fight for their passage because some of the mem- bers asserted that endorsement of McKinley was "poor politics." It was only after two conferences that .lohnson's motion carried. The convention considered the move anything but poor politics and adopted the report \vith great enthusiasm. Herbert R. Wilson was president of the .Junior Twenty-fifth Ward Repuldican Club and was active in valuable work in that, the hardest fought section of the whole >y^ HONORABLE GEORGE EDMUND FOSS. tUstrict. Ill Ev.instoD, Johu Cliild, editor of the Evaustoii Index, did most a.ssiduous and profitable work and with the energetic cola boration of George P. Englehard, accom- plished niuch good. E. P. Chatfield, the delegate from the Argy e Park district, in which was the cl.sest finish of all, ably directed the Foss forces and with McKinley at the top of his ticket was at last victorious. In the twenty-lifth ward of Chicago the Foss Piepublican League, Charles U Gordon, i:)resident, and W 1!. Piennacker, secretary, deserves mention as a reully po ti nt f.icior in the general result. Rennacker accomplished great good by his eonscien- ti( us efforts among the young men of his locality. In general it may be said that the victory rested with the young men of the district, business men to whom primaries were strange things, men who never be- fore had known of half of the political strength vested in their own modest selves. The struggle was full of incidents that are as amusing in the perspective of time as th y were portentous of dread in the crucial hour. The devices of the organiza- tion, not so much to get votes for its own candidate as to deflect support from Foss, and the maneuvers of the alert dissenters to crush trickery by sheer weight of num- bers would make a liook-full of humor and interest. The Foss men had gre it difficulty in finding vehicles to hire. They found it almost impossible to rent halls for meetings, for with few exceptions the available places had been rented for the whole period with no intent to use them. It seemed that Foss' opponents were acute enough to fear more than anything else public gatherings in his Itehalf. They apparently knew that the path of the martyr leads often to triumph, yet illogically they sought to emphasize martyrdom. They spent money with freedom that forbade discretion and they devised numberless schemes to mislead the careless. For instance, they sent broadcast appeals for Foss with a duplication of the arguments against themselves that were being used by the Foss managers. These circulars contained even donnnciation of themselves as a body, l)ut enclosed was a headless ticket bearing the names of anti-Foss delegates. Tliese methods proved vain, however, against the unremitting energy they sought to nullify. Tlie adherents of Foss and JMcKinley deluged the district with buttons ; they formed processions of women and children ; they placed in the car-liarns signs adjur- SIDNEY E. EASTMAN. LUTHER LAELIN MILLS. EARL L. HAMBLETON. JOHN C. -SCALES. ing voters to exercise their rights in behalf of clean government ; they called attention to their activity by hiring men to ring bells in the streets ; they enlisted, by the justice of their cause, the most active services of all of the great newspapers and lastly but most important of all, they apportioned the territory between them and assured a personal call on every voter in the district. A house-to-house canvass it was and it brought to the primaries many men of wealth or pre-occupation, known as the "four year voters." For these it was an unaccustomed sacrifice, l)ut they were sliow^n that never had an issue between the people and the politicians lieen more clearly dctined, and that the sacrifice of time and comfort was in a cause of vital interest to themselves. In the vulnerable business record of the "regular" candidate they had a strong argument as a gift from himself. Sunday-rest scruples were forsaken for the time, and the work went on without recess, and in the cases of the leaders, actually without sleep for much of the time. On the Saturday prior to primary day the Cliicago Record hurled a bomb of grape and canister into the camp of the anti-Foss men. It published conspicuously an expose of the questionable business connections of their candidate and of the earher sources of the wealth he was reputed to be so freely using to further his politi- cal desires. The article evoked similar attacks from the Times-Herald and the Evening Post and the bold action of these papers seemed to demolish the remnant of a chance that still remained with the object of their charges. The cap-stone of the success of Foss was a circular of personal appeal ad- dressed by Luther Laflin Mills to his fellow citizens, exhorting them to assert for once their right to select their own candidate. This exerted all of the power that was in its author's name and this was great. In the locality where hved Foss, Gordon, Mills and several other active leaders, they brought out the largest vote ever recorded in Cook county in a primary district, the number being nearly eight hundred. McKinley's endorsement in this district, the first in the country to hold a con- vention was practically the first f;orousl\- used in support of the republican party. His newspaper, the Peoria Journal, is one of the best-known papers in the state, and its uncompromising advocacy of William McKinley was one of the most potent factors in securing instructions in the fourteenth congressional district. This district is distingui.shed as one of the first three in the United States that endorsed for the presidency the man of Ohio. Randall H. White, for the last thirteen years one of Chicago's justices of the peace, was a cla.ssmate of McKinley in the Albany Law School, New York state, in 1S67. He has quietly aided McKinley 's political advancement since first the presidency l)ecame his obvious destiny. John B. Jeffery, who was a delegate to the state convention from the third ward of Chicago, is one of only three men who, having been elected delegates on a ticket bearing McKinley's name, remained true to their trust. Local conditions were at that time such that this was a severe test of loyalty. In the convention his xote for McKin- ley instructions but comported with his earnest work in the past for the Ohioan. He has been a Chicagoan for thirty-tliree years, and during that period his achie\ements as' a journalist and as a man of busine.ss have made him prominent on the roster of Chi- cago's successful citizens. From a reportorial position on The Republican, under Charles A. Dana, he passed through the various gradations of newspaper work and succeeded in issuing the first paper printed in Chicago after the great fire. This edition appeared f MAJOR C A. VAUGHAN, THOMAS W. SENNOTT, ^ r^'is CAPTAIN ALBERT J. ^TONE. JOHN H lAl IjMADGE. within twenty-four hours after the catastrophe. His eminence as a practical printer was afterward recognized by President Garfield, who offered to him the position of public printer. He is high in masonry, and is a member of the B. P. O. E. and of the Union League, Washington Park and Press clubs, of which latter he was one of the principal founders. J. C. Baldridge, of the thirty-second ward, Chicago, has the distinction of having written to McKinley a letter of prophecy and encouragement just after the election of 1892, and of having been one of the few men who at that time of disparagement of the prophet of protection, sent commendation. In Baldridge's home ward his wisdom in coupling McKinW with James R. Mann in the latter' s congressional contest was the means of cementing the interests of both without cost to either. Walter H. Chamberlin is one of the "original " McKinley men of Illinois, and one whose energetic work and professional standing materially aided McKinley in the pre- convention campaign. He was educated in Detroit, and prior to leaving there for Chicago, which he did in 1890, he was a partner in the practice of patent and other law with Wells W. Leggett, son of General M. D. Leggett, who was commissioner of patents under President Grant. His practice has been successfully continued in Chicago. General A. C. Hawley actively assisted Congressman Foss in his notable struggle for renomination. After the victory there he began a tour of the state in McKinley's behalf. Paying his own expenses, he attended fifty-three county conventions, working always to secure McKinley instructions. The result was manifest in the state conven- tion, which he also attended. He is a resident of the twenty-first ward of Chicago. Major C. A. Vaughan was the organizer of the Cook County McKinley club. This institution, which was chartered in September, 1893, was one of the earlier organizations having in view nothing but championship of William McKinley's pres- idential campaign. He resides in the twenty-sixth ward of Chicago, and it was there, in the seventh congressional district, that most of his political work was done. David S. Geer was secretary of the William McKinley Club of the thirty-second ward of Chicago, which was organized on the twenty-second of January, 1896. This club acliieved the feat of enrolling twenty-eight hundred members within ten days from its organization and became at once a recognized political factor. George R. Letourneau is an American of French-Canadian extraction, and a man whose active connection with the republican party dates from its birth. He early championed McKinley's cause and assisted in creating a favorable sentiment in his home county of Kankakee. He has been clerk of the circuit court of his county, sheriff and later county treasuier of the same, and is now a state .senator. C. W. Bickel was the president of the McKinley Republican Club of the thirteenth ward, the date of whose organization is August first, 1893. He was one of the dele- gates from the thirteenth w-.rd, nl' Chicago, who voted for McKinley instructions. WILLIAM R. KERR. HONORABLE ISAAC M, HAMH-TON. CISSNA PARK. HONORABLE RANDALL H. WHITE. .^ \4 ^ I CHARLES L. HAMMOND. Howard O. Hilton, one of the prominent j'oung republicans of the state, is the political editor of the Rockford Republic. He wrote, and introduced in the ninth district convention, the resolutions instructing; its national delegates for McKinle}'. He is now serving his second term as a member of the republican state central committee and is likewise an active factor of the executive connnittee. Sidney P. Hostler, a delegate from the thirteenth ward of Chicago to the state convention, is a native of Ohio. He is a young man, but has had no little success in political life His support of McKinley has been unswerving. He is a mason, a member of the Menoken Club, of the National Union and of various other societies. Charles L. Hammimd is a prominent real estate dealer, and rejiresented the thirtv-second ward of Chicago in the state convention. He was selected as a delegate without his knowledge and at once undertook to learn the choice of his constituents by sending postal cards to the voters. Eighty per cent of the responses favored McKinley and gave to him the satisfaction of voicing at the same time the vvi.shes of both his ward and himself. He is a graduate of West Point, has served as an officer in the Third United States Cavalry and is a member of the Loyal Legion. J. E. Smith, one of Kankakee's prominent business men, is young in active political work and until this campaign did little more than persistently vote the republican ticket. This year, however, he was one of the " originals " in his section and his energy was of no slight value. He was born in the county in which he now resides. Fred W. Upham has never yet missed an opportunity to vote for William McKinley. He began in 1892, when, as representative of the eighth district of Wisconsin, he first found it possible to officially express his admiration for his party's future leader. He was born in Wisconsin in 1861 and in 1895 1^^ moved to Chicago, where he is now a prominent lumberman. John O'Neil, widely known as oneof Chicago's most able and industrious aldermen, was a representative of the thirty-fourth ward of Chicago in the state convention. He was there one of the strongest advocates of McKinley instructions. His early activity in behalf of track elevation in Chicago has won for him credit as the father of that movement. A. F. Doremus, one of the delegates from Chicago's eleventh ward, and who also represents that ward on the Cook county republican central committee, is credited with having been a McKinley man from the time when the Ohioan's candidacy was first broached. He it was who named the delegates from his ward who refused, despite all pressure, to abjure what they considered was their duty. John Z. Vogelsang, of Chicago, served in the state convention as a delegate from the twenty-first ward. He is well known in commercial circles and his political activity was of value to McKinley both in general and in tin- convention, wherein he voted for instructions. mi.' '%, . PETER BROSSEAU, KANKAKEE. SIDNEY P. HOSTLER. JOHN T. CLYNh, JOLIET. AMZI W. STRONG. Josiah Cratty, by his effective work as president of the McKinley Chib of Oak Park, Cook county, won a position as a delegate to the county convention. Later, as a delegate to the state convention, he worked in conjunction with the McKinley forces and accomplished much good. Albert J. vStone, whose republicanism dates from his fifteenth year, when he enlisted in the seventy -seventh Illinois infantry, served McKinley well both in and out of the eleventh ward delegation from Chicago. He is a member of the Illinois, Lincoln and Cook County Republican Marching clubs, of Columbia Post, number 706, Grand Army uf the Republic, and of the Union Veteran League. L. J- Ray nor, of the real estate firm of Paige & Raynor, Joliet. is one of the earlier Illinois admirers of Major McKinley, in whose ]iresidential destiny he has believed ever since the death of Blaine. He has iit-ver been else than a republican and his party's appreciation is manifest in his present secretaryship of the Will count>- central com- mittee. He was a vigorous supporter of McKinley instructions in his county's convention. Local masonic bodies count him prominent. Addison A. Adair was the organizer of the original McKinley Club of Oak Park. Cook county, which assumed form early in May, 1896, and soon attained a member- ship of over two hundred voters. Its campaign work, like that of its sponsor, was good. The latter is the senior vice-commander of the department of Illinois, Grand Army of the Republic. John W. Parker, who efficiently served as secretary to the McKinley forces in Springfield, made himself well known in the state when in 1894 he aided William E. Mason in his tour. His ability as a man of affairs was acknowledged by Mayor Swift, who appointed him to the assistant city sealership. He, throughout the campaign for the nomination, co-operated with the McKinley leaders. James L. Campbell, whose connection with the McKinley movement dates back to October tenth, 1891, when was chartered the McKinley Political and Social Club of Cook County, is now serving his seventh term in the city council of Chicago. He was one of the twelfth ward delegates from Chicago to the state convention and there officially voiced his McKinley preference. He has been from the first the president of the club above mentioned, which had for secretaries W'illiam H. Phelps, who has held several political offices of trust, and John N. Cunning, who has creditably served on the board of commissioners of Cook county. The club met McKinley in the winter of 1892 and at the Grand Pacific hotel President Campbell delivered to him an address, the appreciative response to which is one of the chili's most pleasant recollections. Amzi W. Strong, whose energetic fight in the first primary district of the twenty-fifth ward of Chicago resulted in a majority for Foss of forty-seven votes in the home district of his opponent, is a well-known lawyer. His adherence to McKinley is of long standing, and from the first, prompted his constant counsel and aid to his associates in the cause. ^'^^ ^^>^ A. F. DOREMUS. O. N. HUTCHINSON. JOHN W. bAI-lrADAY. JOHN M. OK'HEN. A. R. Adams, well known as a member of the Wisconsin State Board of Emigration and as an early and active McKinley advocate, is a native ot Scotland. He is president of the A. B. Adams Land Company and of the Chewelah Mining and Milling Company, of Washington, and his identification with colonization in the western and northwestern states enabled him to do valuable work through correspondence. By his thorough knowledge of the character of the colonists, his dictation of letters to them in McKin- ley's behalf carried great weight. John T. Clyne was born in New York state in 1S57 and until recent years was known as an owner and fancier of finely-bred horses. He is a resident of Joliet and was a delegate from there to the state convention. He supported the plan to in.struct for McKinley, but three others from his county standing with him. De Witt C. Riker, of Momence, is a successful merchant, whose adherence to the republican party has not depended on preferment. He is one of the two, ( out of the twelve, ) delegates from Kankakee county to the state convention who voted for McKinlev instruciions. He is an energetic worker for the republican cause and his partisan stabilitv prompted him in the November of 1892 to write to Major McKinley an expression of his confidence in the latter's future vindication. He still preserves McKinley 's letter of acknowledgement. He is a native of Vermont. Albert W. Brickwood, of Chicago, has been a republican since he reached his majority and a McKinley man since the latter's achievement of national fame. He has been a member of the bar since 1876 and has resided in the same precinct during the past seventeen years. He was one of the stalwarts of the eleventh ward delegation tfi the state convention. Michael Collins is the president of the Citizens' Bank, of Peotone. In the Will county delegation to the state convention he was the leader of the pro-instructions sentiment, which was held by but three of the others. His business standing and his earnest belief in McKinley served the latter well. He was a member of the thirty- second Illinois general assembly and has served contnuiou.sly for twenty years on the board of commissioners of Will county. Peter Brosseau has taken an active part in the republican politics of Illinois ever since his first vote helped to swell the majority for Abraham Lincoln. Three times has lie been elected sheriff of Kankakee county. His residence is, and for many years has been, in the city of Kankakee, and he was one of the first men in that part of the state to actively enlist under Mclvinley's standard. William Henderson, as a delegate to the state convention from Chicago's eleventh ward, was privileged to cast his vote in favor of instructions for McKinley, the man of his personal choice. John E. Nohren found that his connection with the Lincoln Club, of Chicago, of which he is one. as well as his position as a delegate from the eleventh ward, gave to him a not incon.siderable leverage in his purpose to promote McKinley 's prospect ot nomination. JOHN W. PAKKF.k. L. J. RAYNOR. JOLIET. A. B. ADAMb. E. P, CHAIHIKI.U. Thonla^ W. Seniiott, who was chainnan of tin.- unxiL-Uliiig delef^ation from Chicago's eleventh ward, is widely known, first as a staunch republican and then as one of the most active of the central committeemen of Chicago. He is a member of the Lincoln Club, the Illinois Club and the Columbus Club, and his political experience is of much value to an\ candidate to whom he gives support. O. N. Hutchin.son was a delegate from the thirty-fourth ward of Chicago to the state convention and was one of the reliable supporters of McKinley instructions. Prior to this campaign he was much more of a business man than a politician. He is a native of Massachusetts and is a resident of Grand Crossing, Chicago. John H. Tallmadge, who was a delegate from the eleventh ward to the state convention, supported McKinley because, to use a not uncommon phrase, he took "a business man's view " of the political situation. Lewis D. Sitts, who is a mason, a member of the Lincoln Club, and who was one of the unswerving eleventh ward delegation in the state convention, finds the gratifica- tion from these connections exceeded by his pleasure in the success of the man who.se nomination he helped to compa.ss. William R. Kerr, commissioner of health for Chicago, represented that city's thirty-second ward in the state convention. Consistently with his opinions theretofore known, he voted for instructions for the president-to-be. He is a prominent member of the Civic Fetleration. Francis Beidler has been for many years known as a lumberman of Chicago, and for a long time as a McKinley advocate. He was a vice-president and active member of the Business Men's William McKinley Club, of Cook County, and gave freely of his time and of his money in furthering its aims. In general, he is a prominent citizen of Chicagii and resides in the thirty-second ward. Franklin S. Hanson occupies a very stable position in Chicago's commercial world, a position to which he is entitled by his long residence there no le.ss than by his business succes.ses. He was elected vice-president of the Busine.ss Men's William McKinley Club, and in that connection his work was judicious and counted well. William A. Strohm, an eleventh ward delegate, gave at all times ingenuous support to Major McKinley, whom he rightly deemed was the choice of the republican masses. John M. Green is a native of Illinois and a veteran of the war of the rebellion. His regiment was that known as the "Second Chicago Board of Trade." He was president of the board of commissioners of Cook county during 1S91 and 1892. He was a strong McKinley advocate from the beginning and did effective work prior to and during the state convention. As first vice-president of the McKinle\- Club of the Twelfth Ward, whcse charter is dated October 9. 1S91, his labors had precedence of many others. ALDERMAN JAMES L. CAMPBELL. WILI lAM H, PHELPS. JOHN Z. VOGELSANCi CALVIN t. BK'OWN. John W. Salladay, of Chicago, is the president uf the Raseiisuood l\.ei)uliUcan Ckil), and in the seventh district campaign his services to the Foss-McKinley element were of real worth. His eflSciency and that of his co-workers was demonstrated by the outcome in his primary district of the twenty-sixth ward, which was carried for Foss notwithstanding the strongest of opposition. Doctcr J. R. Corbns, of Chicago, although not a native of Illinois, occupies in that state a professional position and possesses political relations that make his political friendship of value and that served McKinley well. His work was quiet Init effective, and was done in co-operation with the early leaders of the movement. He was educated in the Ohio Wesleyan lTniversit>-, the Ohio Medical College and the Univer.sity of Wooster, from which he graduated. He is a veteran of the Union army, having served as surgeon in the sixth Illinois cavalr>- regiment, wherein he was distinguished as the youngest medical officer in his department. After the clo.se of the war he became, by President Grant's appointment, an examining surgeon for pensions, stationed at Ambo>-- This position he held throughout Grant's incuml)ency. He afterward removed to La Salle. Here he was appointed resident surgeon for the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway. A few months later he was elected chairman of the congressional central committee of that district, which comjnised the counties ot L,a Salle, Grundy, Will and Dn Page. He retained this office until his removal, eiglit years later, to Chicago. Here he again became the local examining surgeon for i^ensions b\- designa- tion of President Harrison . R. M. Patterson, of Chicago, has a more than local reputation as an aggressive campaigner, and his forceful manner as a pubic speaker was of value to McKinle\- from he beginning of the campaign. He is cla.ssed as one of the " original McKinley men" tof Illinois, but did not confine his labors to that state. He spoke, !)y invitation, in several eastern cities and alwa.vs with good effect. His part in the campaign in Chicago was ably conducted and to him is given a large measure of the credit for the surprising action of the first ward, long known as constitutionally democratic, in yielding a majority for McKinley. His challenge to joint debate with Senator Tillman attracted national attention. .Among the organizations best entitled to mention for stable adherence to the fortunes of McKinley is the Cook County 'Veterans' McKinley Club. Its inception was in a gathering in March, 1S96, of about one hundred ex-union .soldiers. It was incor- porated in June, with a membership of five times that number, and prior to election day it had grown to a membership of over four thousand. Its work during the campaign comprised especial efforts to enroll veterans who theretofore had not been republicans; distril)Ution to .smaller organizations and to individuals of effective literature, and organ- ization of meetings in various parts of the city, volunteer speakers for which were furnished by the club. It also furnished speakers to the state central committee. Its claim that it is the oldest organization of its exclusive kind in the country has not been di.sputed. It has adopted permanent organization and is officered as follows: President, George Hunt, ex- Attorney General of Illinois, whose valuable campaign services are mentioned elsewhere in this book. CHARLES GEORCiE. GENERAL A. C. HAWLLY. . ^^ #1^- 'K ■• ^H>^-, ADDISON A. ADAIR. D. A. FRALEY. \'ice-prt-siilem^, Thomas J. Coen, who is also chairman of the executive committee, and who deHvered some able and effective campaign speeches, which elicited a letter of thanks from the state central committee, and M. Umbdenstock, who is a consistent republican and a successful printer. Treasurer, C. F. Gooding, who is also chairman of the finance committee, and whose political connections, like his excellent war record, have always been in conso- nance with the motives of good citizenship. Secretary. O. L. Barbour, who, as an adroit spy, won a reputation in the army, and is now a well-known pension attorney. Assistant secretary, E. F. Priddat, who is a successful insurance broker and who has been a strong McKinley republican ever since the latter became a public figure. The executive committee embraces Coen, chairman, Priddat, General John McNulta, Doctor J. R. Corbus and General Charles FitzSimons; and the finance com- mittee comprises Gooding, chairman, Umbdenstock, Patrick McGrath i who combines high character with no little political reputation, he having been clerk of the superior court of Cook count\'). Derrick Lamb, and David Soper (who is a life-long republican and widely known in Chicago and throughout the we.st as a lumberman and through his connection with lake transportation.) Charles George was one of the reliable citizens of the eleventh ward of Chicago whose known preference, and strong support of it, won for him position as a delegate from his ward to the state convention. Therein he labored and voted for McKinley instructions. William O. Robinson, of Chicago, is prominent in the group of native Ohioans who have achieved success in Illinois. His interest in politics has always been patriotic rather than acquisitive, his allegiance has always been republican, and he is rightly considered an " original " McKinlej^ man. He stands well toward the front in the list of the successful attorneys of Chicago, in which he has lived during the last twenty- five years. He is an active and popular member of the Hamilton Club, in connection with which most of his work for McKinley was accomplished. «ni 9*?^ 1 I rj r D T \\ ■ n 1 » 1 / - L' \ » ' / ^ r^ r\ w r I t I \ M / 1 K'/ ID I \ *.:r A\' JOSIAH Cf^ATTY. C. W. BICKEL. JOHN E. NOH^tN. HENRY WULFF.