New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1876-08-14
DFvOCP1TyC "STr4TEG T."

The Democratic organs which made so bitter
opd ner.istcnt a fight against Mr. Tildcn's
nomination at st. Louis have discovered too
te that the line of attack to which they re-
sorted was not only weak in itself but diSas-
trous to their influence III its subsequent
effects. The Republican newspapers are now
Onoiing them with great effectiveness, using
Democratic arguments against the Democratic
candidate. No amount OF explanatory wriS-
cling aaa evasion can help their case. Either
they believed the stories affecting Gov. Ill
den's personal integrity were true, and that
lie was not a fit person TO he President or
Presidential candidate, or they dlsbclieved
them and only used thcm for the purpose OF
killing him off as a candidate. All The
facts connected with the charges which
were paladed with staring head lines Ill
the Anti-Tilden Democratic organs before
the nomination, were as well known then as
now. No more light has been thrown uDon
any of the transactions referred to, nor have
| auy new facts appeared. And yet the news
papers and the party leaders engaged III the
! raid against Tilden before the nomination are
! almost without exception urging his election
! to-day, because ne is not the sort OF man they
| then said he was. A couple of months ago
they were dcClaiming that the nomination OF
! 1'ilden would be disastrous to the party and
! c,,amt0us to the couGtry. Now they are cry
| Ing with equal vg0r, and no doubt equal
| honesty, that his nomination was IN undis-
l,lisca blessing, and that his election is essen
.ial to tLe salvation of the country. They
| know 10 more about him now thar they did
then. The only change in the situation is that
produced by his nomination. That circum-
stance has metamorphosed him from "A schcm-
ing, intriguing, dangerous, and dishonest poll
tician to an upright and honorable, wise and
patriotic statesman.
It is not strange under these circumstances
that the Republican newspapers busy them
selves ,aaSInG extracts not two months old
from the Tildcn organs, and let the latter an
swcr and contradict themselves. The only oX-
PLANTATION that has been offered of this sudden
and remarkable revolution of opinion j. that
the attack upon Tilden before the Convention
was "a piece of Democratic strategy" which
cannot fairly be cited now as "a matter OF
"fact and history" This may be true. But
ii is not easy to discriminate between STRAIT
"cgy" and "fact." These persons talked
about Mr.. Tilden in very earnest way and
seemed to believe what they said. They talk
in much the same manner now, though they
are saying lust the opposite OF what they sand
then. SO far as can see, it is impossible
to tell whether they are telling the truth oil
iniulcing in strategy" How do We
know, how can we tell, whether in THEN
present advocacy of Tilden as a rcformer and
hard-noncy man they are sincere or are only
giving US more Strategy 7" If they turn
around now and say it was only "stratcgy
when tley charged 1ilden with dishonesty and
denounced him az unfit two months ago, What
is there TO hin cr their turning about again a
few months hence and saying chat all theii
sui sCuucnt talk about reform and rctrcnch'
ment and economy, etc, was not also 'strlt-
"egy Z" And when they go to Mr.. IIldcn, III
the improbable event of his election, demand
ing-as they most assuredly will-ihat he tui1
his back upon all his own and the party's
promises and give them the spells OF victory
end the run Of the treasury, OF what avail
will it lie to refer them 10 platforms or letters
of acceptance or campaign promises or theiI
own pro.eslations "Strategy" Strategy f"
thew will answer, and insist upon division oil
the plundcr.
The trouble with the men who are support
ing Mr.. Tildcn is that you cannot tell what
they mean by what they say. When con
frontcd with yesterdays contradiction Of the
assertion of to-day they say, "Oh, that wa
:" only strategy In other words, they confess
that they lied about Tiidcn before the nOmi
nation. but insist that they are telling tho
truth now. This business Of strategy" looks
very ruch like cheating. One dose Of it is
'. A.