GENTLEMEN OF THE CONVENTION: I am profoundly sensible of the distinguished honor you have conferred upon me. To be selected for the Chief Magistracy of such a State as this, by even a bare majority of such a Convention as this, would be a distinction of which any citizen might justly be proud. To be nominated for that position, as I have been, with such unprecedented unanimity, and to know that your preference fairly voiced that of the great party you represent, is an honor which not only fills the measure of my ambition, but overwhelms me with anxiety. For how shall I deserve such generous confidence? How can I make return for your kindness, your trust, your friendship? I can only say, at this time, that I accept your nomination with sincere gratitude, and that the duties and responsibilities it imposes on me I shall endeavor to discharge faithfully, honestly, and to the best of my ability, conscious that I have behind me, to guide, counsel and assist me, the best brain, the best thought, the highest and most enlightened intelligence, the purest and bravest purpose—in short, the Republican party of Kansas. This State has been my home for nearly twenty-eight years. With its growth, its interests, its thoughts, my whole life, since boyhood, has been identified. I have watched, with anxious solicitude, every step and stage of its wonderful development, and every year my pride and confidence in its great future have been more than justified. I have, too, during all of that period, given my conscientious adherence to the Republican party. Doubt or question as to what party my allegiance was due, has never entered my mind. From the date of its admission into the Union until the present time, the Republican party has steadily controlled the destinies of this State. Can anyone truthfully assert that it has not governed wisely and well? Let the results of its rule—the abounding prosperity that fills the homes of Kansas; the peace, order and sobriety prevailing throughout its borders; its marvelous growth, unparalleled in the growth of any other American State—let these accomplished facts make answer. In its infancy the Republican party of Kansas enriched the history of a dark and troubled period with a record of duties bravely and humanely discharged. In its youth, when war-drums were throbbing and battle-flags were waving, the government it inaugurated not only protected the borders of the State against hostile invasion, but sent more men to the war, in proportion to population, than any other State of the Union. In its manhood it has given to the people an honest, economical, stable administration; has dotted every hill-top with schools; has made generous provision for the unfortunate; has sternly repressed outbreaking crime; and has made life and property as secure as they are anywhere under the shining stars. This is, briefly stated, the record of Republican administration in Kansas. Match it, if