New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1903-12-11
SOMEBODY'S SENSE OF SHANE.

We are afraid that yesterdays press dis
patches from Washington did some injustice 10
two eminent Democratic statesmen in the way
OF making one of them appear TO misrepresent
the other. Senator Morgan reported as
saying that the day before he had met "a great
Democrat" who had had place in our affairs
"only second in Importance 20 the Presidency,
"and had made name for himself in diplomacy
who had bowed his head as he said: For the
first time in my life / have 10 confess That
Z" am ashamed Of the attitude of my country
The cause of this shame now felt for the first
time was the action Of the United States in the
case Of Panama, and the dispatches stated that
Senator Morgan evidently referred TO Mr.. Oh
ney, formerly Secretary of State as the great
Democrat" who had developed and expressed
this remarkable passion.
We say ''remarka BILE" advisedly. The great
Democrat" was never ashamed of his country
before He has read Of the scandalOus doings
in the years closely following the Revolution
without a twinge Of shame. He has heard OF
the Mexican War and its wicked aggressions,
but has never been ashamed of it In his youth
he probably knew Of the Ostend Manifesto,
but it brought no blush to his adolescent cheek
he knew OF slavery and its horrors; he lived
through the greenback madness; he survived
the silver craze; he saw State after State re-
nudiate its debts: he remained loyal to his
own party when it plunged-and dragged the
national government with it-into what its fore
most member confessed TO be 'perfdy and dis
honor" Yet never was he ashamed of his coun-
try or of its attitude: never, until now.
And what IS the cause of his present unex-
amped and epoch marking humiliation? Sim
ply that his country has succeeded in doing pre-
cisely what he himself has long wanted it 10
AT1,1atl V n
suited his Iesurely convenience! His country,
with unimpeachabIe regularity with commend
able promptness and with the approval of man
kind. improved an opportunity, which it had
been awaiting for more than half a century,
TO accomplish a work 10 which both parties
are committed and which the whole nation
recognizes TO be necessary for its welfare and
for the general welfare of the world. That is
what his country did-and he is ashamed OF 1t
for so doing!
There must be a mistake somewhere. 1t does
not seem possible that Mr.. Olney could have
made that statement or that Mr.. Morgan
c6uId have meant TO attribute it TO him. Mr..
OIney is we'll known by the American people
to be not destitute Of moral sense, or of COM
mon sense, or of a sense Of humor; and we have
10 reason to suspect Mr.. Morgan of being Mr..
Olney's insidious and implacable foe. Either
the correspondent Oh Lie -AsSoCIoIeu ieS0 4''ii
entably misnterpreted the venerable Sen
ator's remarks and attributed to them a sug-
gestion entirely foreign to them, or else we
must conclude that somebody is going about
impersonating Mr.. Olney and Uttering balder-
dash in his name. We have heard recently OF
one or two other prominent gentlemen suffer
! ing from the doings of their doubles" Can it
| be that Mr. Olney too has double and that
| the latter is endowed with phenomenally ca
! PRECIOUS sense of shame!