New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-11-21
THE "REAL ELENCHUS."

Calmly stated. there are differences OF opinion
between ourselves and our lately iner@nt con-
temporary, "The Evening Post" upon the simple
question whether our Government as represented
by Secretary Blaine has behaved honorably or
dshonorably in it's negotiations with the Brazilian
Government. Upon very careful and, we be
ieye, thorough examination of all the facts IN
the case so far as they can be gathered from the
official records and published documents, we have
EXPRESSED the belief that the conduct OF our Gov
ernment from beginning to end of the negotia-
tons has been strictly honorable and straight
forward. This judgment has been based. as we
saw. on the official records, and not on hearsay,
newspaper surmises, or conjectures or private
information as to what somebody says he heard
some important person say. Whenever it shall
anpear that the records have been fasified or
that our sources of information are imperfect
or untr1lstworthy The TRIBUNE, not being or
claiming to be inerrant or infallible will frankly
acknowledge its error. In the discussion OF
questions of fact there need be no passion, and
there should be no pride Of opinion.
"The Evening Post" on the other hand, has
maintained that the course OF our Government
has been dishonorabe and shameful in the e1-
treme that the Secretary Of State has been
guilty of dupcity, and that, having led the
C,overnment into a shameful dilemma, he sneaked
ont of further responsibility under cover OF
convenient illness and left the Administration to
settle it as best it might. There being moth
ing in the official records or any authentic pup
liz documents to warrant this view OF the case, we
called our contemporaries attention to that cir
cumstance, Ind insisted, not too strenuousiy' we
hone. that in the absence OF anything ike testi-
mony to the contrary it was safe to say that the
Government had not been dishonoNd nor tho
Secretary of State dsgraced. To which The
Evening POST replied that it had "prvate in
formation" on the subject which justified 1t IN
its sweeping condemnation OF the government
and the Secretary of State. To this, OF course,
there is no answer until the sources OF the "pri-
vate information" are made known and its credl-
bility tested.
In closing the discussion, however, we desire
to acknowledge the gentlenesS of breeding and
the scholarly attainments which have character
lied the part taken in it by our contemporary.
We are especially grateful for the consideration
shown in yelling rugged epithet, which, ii APP
nlied in cold English, might have been deemed
offensive, under the harmless Latin word men
dax.~ Also for the genuine kindness OF heart
with which in its Fridays issue it refrained from
saving that The TRIBUNE was too stupidity dull
and ignorant to see the point OF "The Evening
Post's'' argument, substituting therefor the state
ment that we had been guilty OF "ignOratio
eenchi," which is partly Latin and partly Greek
To this studied courtesy it adds the favor OF
putting us on the track of the real elenchus"
The parties to whom we should apply for " the
real elenchus," it informs us, are MIR. Blaine,
Mr. Mendonca and the Brazilian Government
But it adds that what Mr.. Blaine might say
would not be conclusive, as he Is in the habit OF
"saying the thing that is not; denial from
Mr.. Mendonca would be conclusive only as to
the formal and written assurance he gave his
Government And denial from the Brazilian
Government would show that members of it
had been lying"
1.-THE real clenchus," then, if we rightly
understand it, is that pretty much everybody is
a liar. Here we take rgrctful leave of our
literally educated contemporary. We do not
see how it could have beer more civil and
courteous without drawing on the Syrac or Chal.
doic