The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1868-03-24
ADIsH OF COURT SCANDAL
The squabbIe About - irst Lady"
&c, Narrated by n Female Clerk
Mrs. swisshelm on Mrs. senator
Sprague and President Johnson-
How the Kitchen Talks About the
From the Pittsburg Gazette.I

/ eShANS"
How the Kitchen Talks About tl,
Pnrlor. .r.
From the Pittsburg Gazette.I
! A paragraph is going the rounds o
the papers to the effect that Mrs
Sprague is bringing her influence {,
bear on her husband and father in ia
vor of President johnson aud agains
impeachment. There may be more il
this than Q casual observer would sup
pose. The question of rank or prece
dence is not more closely contested
in any European Court than il
our Republican Capital. Colone
Benton aud Chief Justice Tame,
had little feud, which only endet
with their lives, about precedence
Should a United States Senator ranl
"a Judge Of the Supreme Courti Tha
was the question which the naughty
persistence of the eagl9-faced Colone
but partially settled in the affirmative
for, although the U. S. S. will not oftel
condescend to leave card for j. S. C..
the j. S. C.s are slow to call upon a U
S. S. OF course this is question ir
which ladies take an active interest
and no one distinguished herself more
in it than Mrs. Sprague.
In the early days of the war the
young Governor of Rhode Island, who
raised regiment at his own risk, and
went to suppress the rebellion, was
quite hero of romance. Loyal ladies
were not so abundant in Washington
as after Lees surrender; and, what with
hnr hn1ntu uraninnO ha,
fathers position, and the affianced OF
the Rhode Island millionaire, patriot
Governor Colonel, Miss Chase occupied
very prominent position, and believed
herself entitled to precedence as First
Lady" in the Government. She con-
tested her claim with Mrs. Lincoln, who,
as Lady of the White House," was, by
common consent, awarded that emf
nence. There had been several passages
ut arms between them, and Mrs. Lin.
coin felt deeply aggrieved when Miss
Chase was at the White House, either
by special invitation, or to Introduce
seme friends, l forget which, Mrs. Lin
coin, in an amiable desire to promote
harmony, reminded her that she had not
seen her for some time, and hoped that
she would call again soon.
Mrs. Sprague haughtily replied that
she had generally been at home, and that
if Mrs. Lincoln had wished to see her
she could most probably have done so
by returning her previous call. My in
formant, Il lady who was present at the
time, thought Miss Chase's manner as
offensive as the open claim to equal
rank was unjust and injudicicus, and
felt that Mrs. Lincoln was fully justified
in ever afterward refusing to treat her
with any pretense of kindness, or to at
tend her wedding. Those who knew
the history of Miss Chase's refusal to
accord to Mrs. Lincoln the precedence
to which she was nnquestiouably enti-
tied, felt that Mr.. Lincoln did wrong in
attending that wedding, and thus giving
the naughty bride triumph over his
wife.
Mrs. Sprague's desire to be First
Lady" amounts almost to Il mania, and
no doubt has much to do with her faith
er's Presidential! aspirations. While
Mr.. Johnson is President she will have
little active opposition in her claim to
that dignity in right Of her treble rank
ter of the Chief Justice; for Mrs. Pat
tersOn is . woman of little or no self
assertion. What with the intemper-
ance of her husband and brother, the
care of her invalid mother and her four
children, she has little time to attend to
the dignity of her position, and with
her earnest devotion to her father,
would defer to Mrs. Sprague, if by so
doing she could win any support to that
father. On the other hand, Mrs. Wade
will hold any position TO which
she may be assigned, and which
she accepts. If Mrs. Sprague has
ever undertaken to assert any
superiority over her, the sprightly and
aspiring lady no doubt retired from the
conflict feeling that she had won no
laurels. Mrs. Wade is very unpretend-
ing in dress and manners, and to see her
and her husband, in a street car, as |
have done, returning from hospital
visit, after Senate hours, one might
mistake them for well-tO do farmer
and his hale old wife, but there is re-
served force which would make itself
felt in the lowest hovel OF most brilliant
drawing-room. If she goes into the
White House there will be no room for
dispute as to who is "First Lady" in
this Democratic land. Hence there
is no doubt Mrs. Sprague would
not wish to see her in
that position, especially as Mrs. Wade,
in common with thousands OF
the people of Ohio, must remember,
with grave disapproval, the youthful
folly of the spoiled beauty who brought
public scandal on her fathers admins
tration while he was Governor of that
State. Even at that schoolgirl age she
had sufficient tact and influence with
him to battle his wisest counselOrs in
their efforts to remove her favorito, a
handsome, dissolute, married man,
| from his position under the Gov.
ernment. One morning the city
of Columbus was thrown into great
excitement by the announcement, in the
morning paper, that the Governor had
undertaken to horsewhip the handsome
gentleman, and had been shot in the
rencounter; bnt Miss Kate clutched the
helm so firmly as to carry her little
bark through the storm without throw
| ing her Jonah overheard. Her influence
with her father is almost unlimited, ant
| to that source was ascribed his active
opposition to an increase of salary to fe
male clerks at q time when they receiv
ed $500 year, and she paid just thi'
amount for a wedding veil.
Mrs. Wade is so thoroughly her oppo
site, being heart and soul interested il
all true efforts to aid tine lowly, while
maintaining her own dignity, rendering
honor to whom honor is due, that ther'
is no doubt in my mind but Mrs. Spragu'
will strain every nerve te prevent he
being placed in a position to dispose o
her own claim to the title of "Firs
Lady" JANE G. SwIssHELM.
An examination of the Rock IslanC