New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-03-17


1t was pathetic, but on, how true. II Is not
recorded how the Ohio Democratic State Com
mittee were affected by it, but unless they are
more or less than human, it Is safe
to assume that there was not dV
eve among thom. They had met
the State Committee had-to exchange
views (recent political events having left them
little else to baTter), and before opening up
there was q question whether It would not be
wise to exclude reporters ana have the
proceedings secret. One member, evidently
laundering sort of fellow like the
investigating Glover. wanted TO have
an open session, as he believed they had no
eecrets they need be ashamed to see published
in the newspapers. Thereto spoke up patriot
from Cleveland with 4 burdeued soul "a
soul weighed down with tho knowledge
of party blunders and failures and mis-
carriages, and an ineprcssible desire to
give them kind OF family airing !;
and he-much after the manner with
which an earnest woman closes the door and
reaches for broom while the voluble 4" old
"man descants upon the peace of the house
hold-said, "That Will DO very well
"to talk about, but | have come
here to talk business We can talk
"and blow about reforms, and all sorts
"of good things. but the attempts at reform
"by the Democratic party for the past fifteen
cor sixteen years have been dam fiat fail
lures"
Talk about foresight What Is it to hind
sight like that Here is a man who scoops
up the whole record of his party for sixteen
Ill occooiafou no
TO make much Of it, that there's nothing In it.
He is the Lightning Calculator; he swings his
arm round a couple Of times aud, presto.
he has done the bookkeeping of his party
for sixteen years the profit and loss of each
enterprise are posted, the columns footed, net
result obtained, and the conclusion written
large over the whole, Dam Flat Fail
cure" 1t must have affected the rest
of the Committee to tears. Not that
they didn't know the fact before, but
the bluntness of this public announce
ment, and certain preseniment it would
naturally cause that the game was up, must
have moved them profoundly. 1t is true that
when this candid committeeman said he had
come to talk business, and wanted a private
session, he intimated plainly enough that he
and there might have been some comfort III
that But after all, there was something in the
mere suggestion that the old sign sign be taken
down that no Democrat could think of with
out emotion, and there was certain bri-
tally in this mans candor that was calcu-
lated. if not to excite opposition, at least to
produce sadness.
All, what tender memories were touched,
what a food of associations were revived,
how the tides of emotion must have swept
over the souls of this Committee as the hind
sighted Cleveland member waved his shi-
lelah like o wand over the confidence games
of the fateful past. and pronounced them
." dam fat failures" all What a process
sion of abortive schemes must have tumbled
in panoramic vision 10 their backward view
And still, as each one passed, the Cleveland echo
rang, "Flat failures. Dam fiat failures all +"
Here were their promises OF reform in giving the
South home rule, honest government and equal
rights set off by fraud, assassination. and re-