lessness and persistency, with his legal skill, won the victory there, and led the way ultimately to the various enactments by the legislature concerning registration and the ballot, which, since 1894, have made honest elections possible throughout the state.

Mr. Black is a man of domestic tastes, finding his chief recreation with his family.

WOODRUFF, TIMOTHY L., was born August 4, 1858, in New Haven, Conn., son of John Woodruff, representative in congress. After a course at Phillips Exeter Academy, he entered Yale Univer

WILBUR F. PORTER,

NEW YORK.

sity, graduating in 1879, and receiving the degree A.M. in 1889. He took a course also in the Eastman Business College at Poughkeepsie. He became a resident of Brooklyn in 1881. Since his entrance on political action as one of the executive committee of the Young Republican club in the campaigns of 1881 and 1883 for election of Seth Low as mayor, he has been repeatdely chosen delegate to republican state conventions, and was in the national convention of 1888. He has high repute in business circles, being prominent in large and varied enterprises, and a corporator, director, or trustee in numerous financial institutions. He is a member of well-known clubs, and he and his wife are prominent in the social and charitable life of Brooklyn. They are members of the Presbyterian Church.

The Democratic State Convention.-This body met on September 16, in Buffalo-the second gathering of the party in the state during the year (p. 397). It "unreservedly endorsed" the Chicago democratic platform: "cordially approved" the nomination of Bryan and Sewall; condemned the Raines liquor law; demanded revision of the laws in order to secure justice to employed and employers; denounced the republican policy for violating home-rule in cities; and arraigned the republican governor and legislature for extravagance and flagrant corruption and misrule."

William F. Sheehan resigned his membership in the democratic national committee, on account of the convention's approval of the Chicago platform.

One ballot decided the nomination for governor, for which the candidates were noticeably few: Wilbur F. Porter received 20 votes, William Sulzer 90, and John Boyd Thacher 333. Mr. Thacher (mayor of Albany), at the democratic conven

tion at Saratoga on June 24, had denounced any departure from a gold standard in silver coinage. This inconsistent nomination of a goldstandard man on a silver-standard platform, which naturally caused bitter dissent in his own party and surprise in the public mind, was generally attributed to an expectation urged by David B. Hill and others, that the sound-money democrats also would nominate Mr. Thacher in their conventionthus keeping the whole party in the state in line with the regular democratic party led by Bryan and Sewall.

DANIEL G. GRIFFIN.

Its first effect was seen the same night in the refusal of the populist state committee to indorse Mr. Thacher's nomination.

For lieutenant-governor, the nomination of Wilbur F. Porter of Watertown, and for judge of the court of appeals that of Robert C. Titus of Buffalo, were made without opposition.

On September 20, Mr. Thacher made public a letter to the chairman of the state committee, in which he declared that he had not changed from his former belief in a sound currency; yet that, regarding the democratic party as the trustworthy "vehicle to carry the will of the

people into effect," he advocated the election of Mr. Bryan as the regularly nominated democratic candidate, though he opposed Mr. Bryan's financial principles and those officially set forth by the party that nominated him. This letter was considered a political curiosity. On September 22 open war broke out: Mr. Bryan indignantly advised Chairman Jones of the democratic national committee to abandon the campaign in New York unless Thacher withdrew. The state committee met in New York city in the evening, and was with difficulty prevented by Mr. Hill from formally demanding Mr. Thacher's withdrawal. There was evident rebellion in Tammany Hall against his nomination. At the adjourned state convention of sound-money democrats, in Brooklyn, on September 24, there was not the least sign of a movement to nominate Mr. Thacher; and on September 26 he declined the democratic nomination for governor.

The democratic state committee met in New York the next day to reconstruct the ticket. They nominated for governor, Wilbur F. Porter of Watertown; for lieutenant-governor, Frederick C. Schraub of Lowville, Lewis county; for judge of the court of appeals, Robert C. Titus of Buffalo.

PORTER, WILBUR F., was born in Herkimer county in 1832. He removed to Jefferson county in 1842; studied in an academy and taught school; went to Watertown in 1860; and was admitted to practice law in 1875. He has been five times elected mayor. He is of quiet and unostentatious habits.

SCHRAUB, FREDERICK C., was born about 1856, and is a resident of Lowville, Lewis county. He is a lawyer, and was appointed by President Cleveland district attorney to fill a vacancy; and by Governor Flower, dairy commissioner to supervise dairy interests and prevent illegal sale of oleomargarine. He is regarded as having especial favor with the farmers of the state.

The People's Party.-The populists, in state convention at Syracuse, September 2, nominated Bryan and Watson electors, but decided to seek for fusion with the democrats. They got no official recognition from the democrats; but, on assurances from William P. St. John, that populist indorsement of democratic nominations for Bryan and Sewall electors would bring fusion on congressmen in several districts, a second populist convention, at Syracuse on October 1, withdrew their former ticket and nominated the democratic ticket, state and national, except that Lawrence J. McParlin of Lockport, was nominated for the court of appeals.

The National Democrats.-The New York "state de

mocracy," in a meeting of its committee in New York, July 15, denounced the Chicago platform, rejected the nomination of Bryan and Sewall, and called for a new democratic organization.

The sound-money democrats met in state convention at Syracuse, August 31. Their decisive and uncompromising action, unanimously taken, showed the strength of the organized "bolt" from the regular democratic party, and indicated that the national democrats would oppose the "regular" democracy in all elections, national, state, congressional, and county. A large proportion of oldtime leaders and eminent men of the party were present. A platform was adopted, repudiating the action of the Chicago convention, commending the administration of President Cleveland, opposing republican tariff principles and rejecting McKinley, advising the nomination of a presidential ticket, and appointing two electors at large. Delegates were elected to the sound-money democratic convention in Indianapolis.

The same convention, in its adjourned meeting in Brooklyn, September 24, completed its electoral ticket; and nominated for governor, Daniel G. Griffin of Watertown; for lieutenant-governor, Frederick W. Hinrichs of Brooklyn; for judge of the court of appeals, Spencer Clinton of Buffalo.

GRIFFIN, DANIEL G., was born about 1846, and is a resident of Watertown, a lawyer of high standing. He has been president of the democratic state committee and chairman of its executive committee. He early announced his conviction that no true democrat could either uphold the Chicago platform or vote for McKinley.

HINRICHS, FREDERICK W., was born in Brooklyn September 12, 1851, son of a native of Germany. His early education was in Dresden. Germany. He studied law in Columbia College, and afterward in Germany. In democratic politics in Brooklyn, he has always been known as an uncompromising independent, working for the election of Seth Low as mayor, and in 1893 for the election of Mr. Schieren, the republican candidate. Mr. Schieren appointed him registrar of arrears, in which office he gained high repute for thoroughness and economy.

Discord in Tammany Hall.-Signs of a serious split appeared in Tammany Hall in the middle of July, on the question of promptly indorsing the Chicago platform and ticket. Henry D. Purroy urged haste in ratifying to the full, not being satisfied with the promise of John C. Sheehan, Richard Croker's successor, that in due time Tammany would indorse the Bryan and Sewall ticket and "preserve its regularity "-a temporizing course which bears marks of Senator Hill's policy. Later, on motion

of John C. Sheehan, the nomination of Bryan and Sewall was approved by a great majority in the executive committee; but the omission of approval of the platform raised threats of mutiny in the general organization. The contention increased in bitterness on September 21, when Mr. Sheehan succeeded in defeating a motion demanding John Boyd Thacher's withdrawal as democratic nominee for governor.

JOHN C. SHEEHAN,

MANY HALL.

The Raines Liquor Law. The democratic platform urges as a present issue the repeal of this law. The law, however, is giving much more general satisfaction than was expected. Its early opponents, if not favoring it, seem reconciled to it. Some of its faults, as revealed by a year's trial, will doubtless be corrected in the next legislature. Moreover, its repeal will, for two years, be impossible, as the republican senate was elected for three years. According to a decision of State Excise Commissioner Lyman on September 22, the law is such that the hundreds

of "social" clubs formed to evade its provisions will be compelled to take out licenses to sell liquor, inasmuch as the "Adelphi Club decision" of the court of appeals related to the excise law of 1892, and has no application to the present law.

Proposed Greater New York Charter.-The Greater New York Commission made public on July 27 the first five chapters of its tentative draft of the proposed charter for the new city, as prepared by the sub-committee on draft, and submitted by William C. De Witt. The first four titles of the sixth chapter were made public a few days later. The whole draft is merely tentative and is