Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1868-03-25

other Clay. Judging from the part he
has already taken in the proceedings of
the Senate, he cannot be put much above
the average Of that body-not the equal
of Fessenden in debate, or OF Trumbull
as lawyer, or Of a great many others
as a party leader. He can make very
excellent speech Of half an hours dura-
tion, but at the expiration of that time
he is tolerably certain to give out or
lapse into common-places. The grand.
isonian key upon which he is fond of
starting out, fails him after less than
thirty minutes use, aud he must either
take his seat or fall back upon the roper
tory of the ordinary stump speaker. His
fine presence gives him q great advan-
tage in debate over bis less favorably en-
dowed colleagues. 1t is hard to believe
that anything whatever which so fine
looking man may say is not first-rate,
Just as it is hard to believe that a with.
cred up little person like Bingham can
say anything very eloquently or grandly.
Conkling, however, is young enough to
improve and take the lead in the Senate
yet. He is not quite forty, and is close
student and a diligent reader. Sprague
is two years younger than he. But
Conkling is hundred years sbler than
Sprague. They say Of Conkling, at
Utica, where he lives, that he sowed a
very large crop of wild oats in his
younger days, and was altogether most
unpromising sort of young man, but
that some ten or twelve years ago he
married and settled down" and has
been steadily rising in fortune and favor
since, commencing as Mayor Of Utica,
and going from thence to the House of
Representatives, and then to the Senate.
His wife is a sister of ex Governor Sey-
mour, of New York.
sPRAGUE, OF RHODE ISLAND.
They call him, rather irreverently, in
the reporter gallery, Little Spraguey,
but Forney, in the Chronicle, calls him
"the able Senator from Rhode Island, !"
and as Forney is most fearless and inde-
pendent man in his treatment and criti-
cisms OF those in authority, his word must
be taken in preference to that of the re-
porters' gallery, which, beside being ire
weren't, means nothing in particular. Mr..
Sprague figures very little in the proceed
ings of the Senate, except now and then
when he straddles his hobby, which, of
course, is the tariff, behind pile of fools
cap, and demonstrates, to his own salts
faction, at least, what self-sacrifcing
set of men the New England manu-
facturers are-how much they spend
annually, just to develop the resources
of the country, and without the slightest
hope of ever getting single dime of it
back again. He is always attentively lis
tened to when he discourses on this sub
ject, from belief that he is we'll in
formed upon it-a belief which he is GER
tain to PROFOUND absurdities enough to
dispel before he gets through. Still he
deserves credit for not talking oftener
than he does.
In personal appearance, Mr.. Sprsgue
is good looking-so the ladies say. His
face is quite boyish, his chin beardless,
his hair ark, his eyes small and express
sionless. A pair of glasses which he fire.
quently wears, makes him look like an in
tellectual sort of dry goods clerk; but in
his gravest and most ponderous moments,
he looks far from being ones beau'ideal
of Senator. He is at times inclined to
be pert and saucy in debate, but never
succeeds in drawing the fire of any
heavy artillery against him. He is obsti-
nate as q mule at times, too, as on a
recent occasion, when he was reported,
though incorrectly, | think, tipsy. He
had petition to present, and was deter
mined to present it. Mr.. Wade told him
he was not in order, but he insisted that
l IL .l rf Aaxr
between him and the Vice-President
that it is a wonder the little man was able
to stand up under it. 81 have petition
here" said he, from my constituents,
who are poor, and have nobody to repre-
sent them on this floor" Now, if l said
as much as is contained in that last
clause, I'd be denounced as vile SLAM
derer; but man has right, suppose,
to put what estimate he pleases on him
self and his own services.
Sprague is popular among the SEN
ators. He is genial, clever, sociable and
affable. He sits next to John Sherman,
and the two generally vote together ON
important questions. But whether Sher-
man instructs Sprague or Sprague in
structs Sherman, / don't know, but
Sherman always has to vote first because
his name is ahead of Sprague's on the
roll Sprague's time expires in 1869,
but he will probably be reelected. He
is a small man, but Rhode Island is
small State.
FoRNEY.
Speaking of Forney reminds me of a
question which it is worth while to ask
him in view of some of his recent para
graphic palaver about Alabama and re-
construction. He takes the ground that
inasmuch as the rebels have never pub
licly renounced the doctrine of secession,
or never expressed their sorrow for in
volving the country in the late war, they
cannot be trusted with political power.
Now, the distinguished Colonel " once
wrete letter which has since figured in
a famous divorce case. He advises
friend to get another man drunk in order
that he might get from him an admission
"as thing to be proud o" that he had
illicit connection with Mrs. Forrest, to
the end that this admission might be
used to secure the divorce for Forrest
Now the point is this: Has Forney ever
publicly renouucsd" the doctrine con-
tained in that letter2 II not, according
to his own standard of right and re-
pentauce, he ought not to be trusted, for
be is still in favor of falsely swearing
away womau's character. He. says the
Southern people are still rebels because
they haven't publicly renounced seces-
SION, andI am only giving him dose of
his own medicine. Let him, then, re-
nouuce that Forrest divorce letter, or let
his failure to do so DO taken as an ad-
mission that he still adheres to the style
of morality it teaches. What says the
loyal Colonelf' MACK.