1916 by Christian Schneider

Author:Christian Schneider [Schneider, Christian]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Christian Schneider
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

June 11, 1916

The streets of Chicago this week have seen the largest parade in this nation's history, the formation of America's first women's political party, and the nomination of the man who will surely become the next president of the United States.

But all of these events pale in comparison to the events of last night.

It all began just prior to the Wednesday morning opening of the Republican National Convention. On Tuesday night, fistfights broke out in hotels all over town, with competing bands of candidate loyalists duking it out in public. At the Congress Hotel, a fight between Teddy Roosevelt supporters and those loyal to Illinois Senator Lawrence Sherman went on for a half hour, continuing a skirmish that had begun earlier in the day. (The local paper said the second fight made the first one look like a "pacifist sewing circle.")

The two major men’s conventions – Republican and Progressive –have brought trainloads of what the local paper called “crude men and stylish women” from far states. The women wore gay summer gowns – “cut high enough to reveal a glimpse of silken ankles” – and followed “Negroes of portentous solemnity, who stopped now and then to shake hands with white political managers whose cordiality seemed a trifle forced.”

In fact, with the two major men’s conventions running concurrently, Chicago has seen an overflow of men desperate for companionship during the week’s after-hours festivities. After the first night of the parties, the mayor’s entertainment committee made a frantic appeal for ladies to come to the city to ply the men with late-night relationships.

"The downtown hotels report that they have hosts of men, but few to dance with them," said Harry Fowler, chairman of the subcommittee on programs. "We particularly want the suffragists who showed their pluck by marching today. We want Progressive women, and everybody."

To which, the convention goers released the following statement:

“Let’s not get crazy.”

It was only on Tuesday that Justice Charles Evans Hughes made his first public statement, finally admitting he may be interested in seeking the presidency. He even gave his not-yet-official campaign a slogan, which will surely be used for noble means in the future of this nation’s politics:

America First!

As the convention opened, the five major planks of the Republican Party’s platform were unveiled: Preparedness, Peace, Americanism, Tariffs, and Mexico. The floor of the convention was chaotic, as the decision to bar Teddy Roosevelt from the proceedings angered TR’s supporters (and likely led to the fistfights in which they frequently engaged.)

Of course, even physically barred from the convention, Teddy Roosevelt is casting a significant shadow over the process. If Republicans continue to block him, TR has threatened to walk down the street and seek the nomination of the progressive Bull Moose Party. If he were to do that, he would undoubtedly sink any chance a Republican would have of beating Woodrow Wilson in November, as the non-Democratic vote would be split as is was in 1912 when Roosevelt ran and handed Wilson the White House.

But, at the

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