Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1869-05-19
Sprague, Brown, Ives.
The CapuIets and Monta.ues of IslI,
Island.

furnishes an interesting sketch of
the history and character of the
houses of A. & w. Sprague and
Brown & Ives, made somewhat con-
spicuous through the speeches Of
Senator Sprague in the United States
Senate and elsewhere.
a. d w. SPRAGUE.
The house Of Sprague started with
Amasa Sprague, the grandfather of
Amasa and William, the present rep
resentatives of the house. He WAS
succeeded by his two sons, Amas:.
and William, and thus the firm of
of A. & w. Sprague came into exis-
tence. At the death of the "old
Governor, as Mr.. Sprague, the un-
Gle of the 1.-TWO boys" who now con-
troll the house of A. * w. Sprague,
is generally called, even now, the
business had not yet assumed any
thing like its present great proper
tions. That event occurred in 1856,
and there was at that time only six
calico printing machines in the print
works at Cranston. Since then,
however, not only has addition after
addition and extension after eXteE-
sion been put to the mills, until the
mills form an extensive village in
themselves, but every species of
machinery has also been procured
AMI set in motion. Instead of six
color machines the larger number
any machine was capable of print
ing at the death of the "old Govern
orr there are in the works at Gran
ston to-day machines which print
twelve. There are now thirty ma
chimes in the works, and 30, ,000pieces
of cloth can be printed and finished
IN Il week. This Immense establish
ment is drive by SIX engines, rang
ing from 40 to 800 horse power, aud
the consumption of coal per day is
not short of 100 tons. Twenty five
donkey engines are scattered over
the establishment, to do special duty
whenever needed. Also, trimming
machines, washing and drying ma
chimes, dyeing apparatus, engraving
machines, all the immense and COM
plicated machinery necessary to the
manufacture of the material for a
new dress. The villages where the
operatives reside are built after a
uniform model, and consist of story
and n half double houses. IN the
store at Cranston an immense busi-
ness is done. The Spragues do
| their own slaughtering, and kill
about % head of cattle per week and
sheep and hogs in proportion The
meat is furnished to their operatives
at four or five cents per pound cheap
er than it can be..bought in the Previ-
dence market, and the "stOre" sells
goods of every kind at a proportion-
ately low figure, the sales III a single
year amounting to Si00, 900.
Amasa Sprague resides at Gran
ston, about one mile from the city
of Providence, and William lives
with his mother in the city of Provi-
| dence. What this woman has had
to do with building up an immense
bus siness, the influence of which is
| felt everywhere in the country, has
never been told. 1.-The boys" habit
| ually resort to her for advice, and
the ''old Governor was accustomed
| To hold her Judgment i'm tho highoe t
esteem. Her counsels to the old firm
| of \. s; w. Sprague have been trans
| ferred to the new house, and have
proved as beneficial to her sons as TO
| their father and their uncle. She is
now an old lady of seventy years, but
| her faculties are as vigorous as ever.
| The house OF a. & w. Sprague, as
| at present constituted, resem bles
| the old house Of that name in a
striking degree. Amasa Sprague, at
| his home at CranstOn, is much like
| Amasa Sprague, his father. AS the
father hated politics, so, too, the
son dislikes the turmoil of party,
| and devOtes himself to his family,
| his business, and his trotters. He
| has now in his stables, near the Mar
ragansett Race Course, an asa0cia-
| ton of which he is President, much
| thoroughbred and hlooded stock
/ II r l L. I'll. 4
the Dutch Girl among others. Oh
| Rhode Island he is especially con-
| lident, and expects him to trot his
the Narragansett Park. But William
| Sprague, the Uncle, and William
| Sprague, the nephew, both naturally
took To politics. Both were Govern
ors OF the State, and both Senators
of the United States. In his recent
course in the Senate, William
Sprague, the younger, only did what
| would have been done by William
Sprague, the elder, under like cir
cumstances, aud it would have been
done by the latter with the same
intrepidity, the same disregard al
consequences, and the same defiance
of the opinions of Others that the
former exhibited in the past few
| weeks. In these bold acts, apparent
ly so incapable of explanation,
Sprague may have calculated to
some extent upon his "Rhode Is
| landers.l
In the work at Cranston, 1000
hand are employed, besides those
engaged at their other mills
In this there is power as great a
in 30 Goo spindles led by the ingenu
ity and foresight of Sen. Spragut
and his brother. He boasted IN
one of his speeches, or perhaps rath.
er complained, that small mauufac
turers were breaking down because
they could not 90 as he does. 1t Wa:
very vaguely put, and was no
generally understood. lie simply
meant that his purchases of storh
were so immense that those Wht
could not buy in like immense guam
| titles cannot compete with him
But he also meant To say that he car
make better goods ont of inferior
material than any one else. Hi.
great point, however. was that per
| sons who do not own an immensi
capital cannot borrow, owing to th'
course of legislation i'm the last FEY
years, and that men like himself, by
!. their great facilities aud large oapi
tai, crush their neighbors eitiel
| willingly or unwillingIy. Ten thoa
sand bales OF cotton, a,o01 casks o
madder, and proporttonate quantitie
Of drugs, is no unusual single pur
chase. They consumed l. 900 bale
OF cotton the last year, and within
the past five months. have bouch
1 = 1 abAA oil I II