New-York tribune., 1880-04-10
MIR. TILDEN'S TEMPORIZING.

The lively paper which published the other
day the news of Mr.. Tildcn's retirement from
politics, in consequence of the result of post
mortem examination held upon his body by
" five eminent medical practitioners" is natur-
ally impatient at the inexcusable hesitation of
the remains to gather themselves up and get
out of the way. 1t charges Mr.. Tlden with
tcmpOrizing" This Is a good word. 1t cx-
presses with sufficient emphasis, and yet with
the suavity and decOrm which bcft the pres
ence of death, the irritation of the eXpcctant
heirs of the departed at n needless and wholly
unwarrantable pOstpOncmcnt of tho funeral.
Mr.. Tildcn's Characteristic readiness to see us
later is carried too far when it causes him to
tempOrize about a question of 'this sort and
we are not surprised AT the anxiety of Mr.. John
Kelly and his party to have the matter settled,
at once and forever.
1t is alleged that the Gramercy Park states
man is unable to feed himself without the as
sistance of a waiter, and that when he attempts
"to execute the ordinary motions of diner,
earned with knife and fork" the result is a
horrlfying exhibition OF spasms and cOntor-
tions lie rolls his eyes lie makes mouths his
teeth rattle; and he spills the gravy.
Moreover, he ia sucked upn when he
goes to bed; and he submits rs patiently
as q child. Of course such wreck as
this would not look well mt the head of a
Democratic administration, and would be
dreadful at a state dinner in the White House :;
and if the account given by The Star is correct,
Mr.. Kely's hostility is sufficiently explained.
The author of that account is prepared to back
his statement with the most impressive of
Democratic arguments, Il bet. He offers to pay
five thousand dollars if what lie says is not true
This is n sort of reasoning which even the
average alderman can follow; and we have no
doubt that upon most of the readers Of the
journal in which it appears it will have an i'm
mense effect. The test of vcracity is TO be very
simple. Three of tho "leadinG physicians Of
the metropolis" are to report OH the clse and
eight or ten of Mr.. Tiden's friends and asso-
ciates including Smith Weed Speaker Ran
DALI Lester B. Faulkner, Mayor Cooper and so
OH. are to unite in an afidayl which the corre-
spondent of The Star will drawup. What could
be more satisfactory There is no doubt, of
course, that these gentlemen will be glad to
sign any document prepared by the correspon-
dent of The Star, and no doubt that Mr.. 7 iden,
if he has any misgivings about his own DEATH
will welcome the opportunity to be examined,
with knife and fork in his hand by three of
the leading physicians of the metropolis. If he
declines to exhibit himself either in the act of
going to bed or in the exercise of the ordinary
motions of diner, it will be manifest indeed
that he is tempmizing with dissolution.
And yet we suspect that he will temporize.
He may reflect that lie cannot die just now
without the ruin of his reputation. He knows
that il he were laid away, and certain not to get
up again, the whole party would begin to defle
his grave. There is one dark decd, in partcu-
lar, which "vexes and damages the Democ-
Sracyp as an organ Of theirs tcrsely exprcsse2
it, more than any other incident in their recent
history, and if they do not succeed in putting