St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-12-21
1T WILL BE BLAINE.

Gen. HARRISON doubtless feels CON-
plimented by the visits TO his home of
the various pilgrim bands whogo down
there ostensibly to express their good
will for the president-elect, while the
real objeetof their pilgrimage is 10 boom
somebody or other for some subordinate
office. But, with all these handshakings
and congratulatory speeches, the presi-
dent-elect must be intensely worried,
because he needs every hour to himself.
Only two months remain until he Will
make his pilgrimage to Washington. and
before he goes he must unravei
the entanglements which have been
produced by an attempt to con-
struct a cabinet that viii suit
himself and at the same time
suit the discordant factions in his
party. The main trouble has been in
fixing the premiership of the new adj
ministration. The reason why this has
been such trouble is because the presl-
deHt-elect is all the time confronted
with the fact that it must be fixed in
way distastetul TO himself. ii Gen.
HARRISON were the real master Of the
situation, and free to exercise his own
choice and judgment, Senator JOHN
SHERMAN would be transferred from
the senate to the head Of the state de-
partment. Aside from his personal
fondness for the Ohio senator. he would
beStow this honor upon him because
he regards him as the foremost
statesman of the times, and one who
would lend the charm of dignity to the
administration. But there is another
Richmond in the field, whose ambition
is of that quality which admits of no
checking. Mr.. BLAINE has not asked
for the state portfolio, nor will he make
a formal demand for the place. Yet
Gen. HARRISON knows what Mr..
BLAINE expects just as well as if Mr..
BLAINE had made formal application
for the appointment. HARRISON might
initiate the example set by his grand
father and tender the appointment to
Mr.. BLAINE in the snubby way that the
elder HARRISON rendered the same post
to HENRY CLAY, but it so happens that
Mr.. BLAINE is not a HENRY CLAY
sort of a man. He would rather
take the appointment with snub an
nexed to it than not take il al all. The
only thing left for Gen. HARRISON to
do is either to tender the appointment
of secretary of state to Mr.. BLAINE in
respectable manner or TO ignore him
altogether. In such hours as the presi-
dent-elect has had to think over the
matter in the light of ignoring Mr..
BLAINE, it has probably occurred to
him as a dangerous thing 10 do. Ii
BLAINE is left out of the cabinet, that
will be the signal to the BLAINE fac
ton to Immediately inaugurate war on
the administration. HAREi son doesn't
like to be overshadowed by BLAINE in
the cabinet, but he is afraid OF BLAINE
outside of it. If BLAINE is left out,
the programme will be 10 put him
back i'm the senate, where he will gather
his partisan chiefs about him, and com
mence guerilla warfare on the HAIR
RIsoN administration before it is warm
in its seat. Gen. HARRISON will soon
find himself with a divided party Oh his
hands, with BLAINE the center of dis
eontented legion, the leader of the OPP
position within the Republican party.
Thus he would naturally prefer a
BLAINE shadow in the cabinet to a
BLAINE cyclone outside of it. For this
reason. and for this reason alone, it may
be accepted as settled fact that Mr..
BLAINE will be the next secretary of
state, and in the future cabinet guess
ers may as well hang their harps on the
willows.