New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1876-12-28
"COLD As 4 CLAM"

"COLD As Il CLAM"
It pains us to hear that the Democratic
statesmen who have been i'll communication
recently with their late candidate for the
Presidency are commenting unfavorabiy upon
the personal characteristics of that eminent
representative of Reform. They say he is not
magnetic that he is bloOdless; that he does
not draw men to him that he does not kindle,
never seems to "Warm up" to anything or
anybody that he is fishy and some of them,
we understand, have expressed themselves
with an emphasis liable to be mistaken for
profane, in the remark that "he il as cold as
"a dam clam.n We have heard before OF the
Little Neck clam, the GuilfoId clam, the Duxbury
clam, the hard clam and soft clam, the long
clam, round clam, and quahaug, but the
" dam clam" is species new to us. we do
not know whether he is caught above the
dam or below the dam, but We INFER that he
wouldn't be called "dam clam" unless he
lived somewhere in n mill stream by dam
site. The "dam clam" whatever his habits
or bis habitat we Judge must be unusually
cold else why the comparison For the or
binary purposes of illustration the ordinary
clam has hitherto been deemed sufficient.
The average clam, not any specific but the
generic clam, notwithstanding his proyerblal
closeness, has generously given his name to
sensation; the world long ago learned to de-
scribe an otherwise understandable touch "a
"clammy," and the sensation experienced as
feeling of clanminess. But here seems to be
an extraordinary case demanding an extraordi-
nary figure And so these statesmen, with
l~nl 10 narfNa-
ton of the p0WerlesSness of language and
the poverty i'll illustration of familiar speech
hit upon this unusual clam as the only living
creature competent to convey the idea OF the
unusual clamminess of the late Democratic
candidate. So when the visiting statesmen re-
turned from their fruitess search III GTamercy
Park for something to kindle the Democratic
bosom and electrify the country, they could
only say in answer to the inquiries OF the
earnest patriots who are waiting an opportu-
nity to reform the Government from the III
side, "Oh! he won't do anything; he's as
"cold as a dam clam" And though they
didn't gather much political information, they
do deserve credit for enriching the language
with a new figure of speech, and possibly the
markets with new kind OF clam.
cratic statesmen should speak 50 disrespectfully
of their late leader for We do think it is not
altogether respectful TO compare him with a
dam clam or any other kind Of clam, whatever
may be the merits of that happy biyalve. 1t
was so little time ago that they were all call
ing him "Uncle Sammy and applying to
him other terms of afiectiOnate endearment.
The change seems sudden and abrupt. There's
q very wide difference between Sammy" AID
"cammy,n and they who called him SAMMY"
before election ought not to begin calling him
"clammy" so soon afterward, just because he
happened TO be defeated. Gov. Tildcn does
not, it is true, impart glow of enthusiasm to
the average Democrat who picks him up in
conversation. He does not habitually mag
nctize people, unless his putting people 10
sleep when he strikes out on n mOnologue
upon some favOrite theme may be called
magnetism. His manner is not ut all that of
Col Bob IngersOll, and is somewhat diff
ferent from that of John h. Cough.
The late James Buchanan, we are
told, was open TO the same objection.
1t may be because neither of them ever mar
ried. However that may be, the party leaders
knew what Gov. Tildcn was when they nom
mated him. They knew he was cold, though
perhaps they had not discovered then how cold
he was, and that it would be necessary 20
hunt up the dam clam for comparison But
because he turns ont to be colder than they
supposed is no reason for their going back
"on him.r And if he is disappointment TO
them now, what would he have been if he had
been elected, and been obliged to meet the
whole Democratic party face TO face and answer
their applications for Office with his stereotyped
"pll see you later"i The disappointment of
the Southern Democrats came earlier, when his
letter on the Southern war claims appeared.
But they took it with becoming philosophy.
When one Of them was asked what he was
going to do, he answered, "Why, we can't
"do any hing. We're in the same fix with the
fellow down in Texas years ago, who, having
"committed murder, was advised by friend
"tO run away. Run awayl' said the fellow /;
." where in - can run TOT Pm in Texas
"now.n The Southern brethren accepted
the situation as they had learned to. Why
cannot their associates, the leaders of the
Northern Democracy. be rs wise, and not go
round saying their late candidrt" is as cold