Today -100: October 1, 1910: It’s Icicle-Dix in NY

The under-emotional Barack Obama figure of his day? Henry Stimson says, “I want to overcome the impression which I am told is current among newspapermen that I am an icicle. I am not an icicle.” He says the impression arose because the public has hitherto only known him as a US district attorney.

And the vote (of Tammany Boss Charles Murphy) is in: the Democratic nominee for governor of New York is one John Alden Dix, nephew of a previous governor and Civil War general of the same name. Like Stimson, he’s pretty obscure and has never held elective office, though he did run for lt. governor in 1908 (the term for state offices like governor was two years). Dix had to have his arm twisted to run, and his wife pleaded with him in tears not to.

Here’s how it worked at the D. party convention: yesterday I said that there were 14 named candidates for governor. But then Boss Murphy made his choice of Dix and the others all dropped out except for one joker, Congressman William Salzer, who insisted his name be put forward and lost 434 to 16. Murphy’s choices for all the other offices were put through “by acclamation.” Oddly enough, one plank in the party platform is direct primary elections.

Artist Winslow Homer dies.