The intimate papers of Colonel House arranged as a narrative by Charles Seymour.

BEFORE THE BALTIMORE CONVENTION 63

McCombs and spending long hours with the leaders of the
Texas delegation, which was promised the r61e of Old Guard
in the approaching battle.
'On June 1 [the Colonel recorded] McCombs and I went to
Beverly, Massachusetts, where we had taken a house for the
summer. McCombs was so run down in health that I did not
think he would be able to go to the Baltimore Convention on
June 25. Governor Wilson thought I was mistaken about
this and that he was tougher than his appearance indicated.
I was sure, however, he needed the rest; and I was also sure
he needed what suggestions and coaching I might be able to
give him in regard to handling conventions, because he had
never had any experience in such matters.'
In these consultations Mr. T. W. Gregory and Mr. T. A.
Thomson of the Texas delegation played a prominent part.
They were to hold the fort against Clark, who had already
secured a majority of the delegates and who, if his strength did
not weaken on the early ballots, threatened to gather enough
more to obtain the necessary two thirds. Underwood was
strong in the South, but among the Southern delegations
there was bitter opposition to Clark which the Texans were
able to capitalize.
'It looked to me [recorded House] as if Wilson had a good
chance, but nothing more. I urged both Gregory and Thomson to use their influence with the Texas delegation to hold
it as a unit and to stay in the fight in the same way we had
been accustomed to do in Texas. The history of the Convention records the work of those forty delegates from
Texas, without whose loyalty and intelligent support the
President could never have been nominated.'

What House advised was to assign to each influential