New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1878-04-11
THE yEW MAN At THE DOOR.

We congratulate Congress and the country.
The old score has been wiped ont. Alr. Cox
has expressed the opinion, that "n all our
Functions of Government we should turn to
"amncsty, Kindness, and gentlencss," and
added the fresh suggestion that we should
"let the dead past bury its dead" Mr.. Black
burn has avowed his willingness to "dcspise
"hcre or elsewhere the man who seeks to make
"eiiher personal profit or political character
cont of reyamping issues which belong to
L" the darkest period of this cOuntry's his
"tory.n Mr.. Clymer has distinctly stated that
he considers everything in political history,
EXCEPT the results of the last Democratic eau
Gus, rs bygones that ought to be let be, be-
longing to past that ought to be buried; and,
to crown all, there's a new DoOrkeeper at the
door. This is, we believe, the fourth Door
keeper the Democratic party has blessed the
country with since its accession to taste of
mower So that whenever IN coming cam
paigns the eloquent advocate and defender of
the party on the stump is assaulted by irrever-
cnt persons in the background with the stale
conundrum, "What has the DemOc rattle party
" done for the country ?D he need not answer.
1T has reduced the expenses of the Govern
"ment land take the chances of being
answered that a Democratic majority in
one Congress cut down appropriations for
their successors in another To make up
in deficiency bills, and that they cut
down all salaries but their own, and crippled
all other departments while increasing their
own patronage. They need not take any such
chances now For when any scOffer asks what
the Democratic party has done for the coun-
try, the orator may strengthen himself up
proudly and reply, "Done for the country
- More than any other party ever did or at
tempted in the same length OF time. Ii has
d" given the country four DOOrkeepers i'll less
/" than three years" Four DOorkeeDers And
then he can point to the last one possibly
with pride, ard bury the past.
OF the new DOOrkeeper's capacity for the
duties of the important Office he has been
called from Egypt to I'll, we cannot yet speak
adyisedly. The country, and the Democratic
marty especially, will watch his bookkeeping
for the next three or four months with the
profoundest interest. He has yet to prove that
he is capable of the tone and quality of door
keeping which the country and his party de-
mand. He knows, or should know by
this time, what difficulties and what
temptations and what perils beset his
three predecessors, who boldly barred their
breasts to the whole Democratic party in the
imminent deadly breach they were appointed
to keep door in, and fell before the fearful
onset. He has not merely to open and shut
door he must provide places for a hundred
thousand Democrats in the bookkeeping de-
partment And not merely find places, but
snug places, where they will escape public OBJ
servation and draw regular pay. He has been
Maj0r-G dneHl-nOt that we wish to re-
vIye the past or recall bygOnes; we allude
to the fact only because it was doubtless the
occasion of his being selected for tile place
he must exhibit in this position not simply
tho fighting quality necessary to resist the
onset of an army. but the abilities of chief of
the quartermaster's and commissdry depart
ments. Herein was where his predecessors
failed They could not furnish supplies for Il
hundred thousand from the limited re-
sources of the department pay-rols. He
has been recalled from Egypt for the purpose
of illustrating and demonstrating the capacity
/! Of the Democratic party for bookkeeping. 1t