New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-05-01
THE DEuOCRATIC DILEMMA.

stances in which they find themselves with re-
ference to Mr.. Tildcn. If they could only make
out definitely what his plans are it would be a
great relief to them. But he gives them no
inkling of them. The other Sphinx has prac-
ticalIy gone out of the Sphinx business; I'M
riddlcd himself by the very fact Of his silence
which always gives consent" as The man said
when lie kissed the deaf aud dumb woman
and is no longer mystery. There is not the
shadow of a doubt about General Grants can
didacy. But Mr.. Tilden is visited daily by
wandering statesmen from the West, who walk
round him, feel his pulse, submit their large
ears to his melancholy whisper, and, after look
ing him all over and listening to all he has to
saw, como away without the remOtest idea
whether he means to be candidate or not. Ii
he would only give some sign! But he does
not The universal hope of the party Is that he
either already is or will presently become con-
scIous of his politically mOribund condition, and,
accepting his fate with becoming resignation,
will proceed to devise his estate. This is what
crowds his chamber with prospective heirs and
residuary lcgatecs. If he would just say that,
having sounded all the depths and shoals OF
honor, without naming the man for whom he
had found u way out of his wreck to rise III, he
was ready to fling away ambition and bid long
farewell TO his hopes of being President, the
whole party would rise up and call him martyr,
and raise an everlasting din Of glory in his ears.
Or il, ON the other hand, he should definitely
proclaim himself candidate, the eXpcctant
heirs would slip pillow over his mouth and
have the whole party sitting on it in manner
that would make short work with him. In
either case he would be out OF the way.
If he will say he won't take the nomination,
they are nil ready to shout that 1t belongs to
him and he ought to have it, They don't dare
do it without sOmO positive assurance from the
old gentleman that no will not take advantage
Of it, And If he says nc wants II, they are
ready to pOuncc on him with NIL sorts of male
dictions and smother him. They are very con-
sderatc If he is willing to die, politically, they
are rcadY TO administer consolation. II he in
sis,S on living, there IS nothing left for them
bat To nut him ont of the way. This being
their dilemma, it il interesting to observe the
shi and lodges to which they are driven, and
the indirect and cirCumlOcutOry methods to
which they resort to get lid Of him quietly.
The situ1tiOn which confronts them may he
briefly stated thus; With all their talk about
politicll reforms. they know that he is the only
prnmincnt Democrat who has ever actually
done ANYTHING in that direction that while the
marty i'm Congress aud everywhere else has only
shown fccbcncss, incompetence and greed, he
has actually made a record as political re-
former. With their professions in 1874 they
had to take him rs their candidate for Gov
crnor. In that office he did good work, 30 that,
pretending still to be mainly bent on reform,
they could do nothing but nominate him TO-
4; e,,I 10
of them. He gave them their cry and all their
capital. They claim to have elected him, and
assert that ne was dcfraudcd of the Office. His
clam upon them now is that he is still their
only representative Of reform, to which it Is
added that the Fraud cry-wHch is all the cap
ital left them-cannOt be justified unless lie is
the candidate.
But then they know he cannot be elected.
Why not2 He has made no public record upon
which he can be arragned, since 1876, when
they claim he was elected. Nothing has hap
pcncd except that his management has been ex-
posed and the hOlOwness of his reform pro
fcssions shown up by tho developments in the
Cipher Conspiracy. And they have estOppcd
themselves from using that argument against
HIM by having officially investigated the mat
ter and aolcmnly pronounced him innocent of
any completely therein. TIE TRIBUNE pointed
out TO them mt the time that they were making a
record for themselves III that investigation that
would be sure to trouble them later. So all the
orpnmcut they have left is that no cannot be
elected. The reason why, they tell You pri-
vatelv, is that notwithstanding the yindicatiOn,
people do believe him guilty i'll the Cipher
business. Then of course, they believe the DEM
ocratic Congress that indicated him and the
PARTY that sustans it is dishonest. Out of this
state of things comes the dilemma III which
they find themselves. The party cannot shake
of the Old Man of the Sea. The. logic of all
their acts and all their professions, and all that
has happened to them in the past four years,
points individually to his candidacy, and except
by his consent they cannot avoid his nOmina-
tiOn-unless indeed they abandon all pretence Of
consistency or honesty. Doubtless they would
do this and take the chances, rather than ell
counter the certainty of defeat
Taking all these things into account 1t is not
strange that the Democratic Conventions to APP
point delegates to Cincinnati are embarrassed
and pcrplcxcd. They know that they do not
want TIlden nominated, but they don't dare
say So and don't know how if they did. They
are afraid TO offend him, and still moro afraid to
encourage him. Hence their doubling and
twisting, and their endeavOrs to seem to be say
ing something, while saying nothing; and hence,
too, the conflicting reports about the position Of
delegates. The truth is, and no one who has
attended any Of the recent Conventions will
dispute it, the number Of delegates who are
unrcservedly for 1iden, or who would not re-.
ioice to have him Withdrawn, is so small as to
be hardly cOmputable. And still he hangs
upon the party's back, and the party, staggering
under the load, may well say with the poet
o. what tangled web weave,
NNhen frat VIC nrantinn To hrnelva.