Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1869-05-05
THE sPgAaNEs

the house CT Spfagac started with
Auaasa epv2sae The grandfather Of
Anasa aud William, the present repyes-
entdtives Of the house. He was succeed
ed oy his sons Amasa and William and
thas The firm Of 4. Il ". Sprague came
into existence. 3, the death 8f the
"0la Governor 6 VIM. Spragde, the
uncle Of The two boys, who nov control
he house Of A & ". Sprague, is geuer-
ally called even how, the business had
not assumed anything Ike It's present
giant proportions. Yha5 event occurred
in 1856, aa8 there we're at this time only
ak calico printing machines in the print
Horke At Cranston Since then, however
oot only has addition after addition, and
extension after extension been put to the
works, until the mills form an extensive
village n themselves, but every species of
imported mach merry mas also been pro-
cured and set in motion Instead of six
color.machines, the highest number any
machine was capable Of printing at the
death Of sold Governor" there are in
The works at Cranston, to-day, machines
which print twelve. There are now thir.
ty machines in the works, and Gf.y thou
sand pieces Of cloth can be printed and
inished in week. This immense estab-
lishment is driven by six engines vary.
ing from forty to three hundred horse
power, and tie consumption of coal per
day is not short Of one hundred tons.
Twenty Ave donkey engines are scattered
over the establishment to do special duty
whenever needed. Trimming machines.
washing and drying machines, dyeing ap,
paratus, engraving machines, all the in
mense and complicated machinery neces-
sary to the manufacture Of the material
for new dress. The villages where the
operatives live are built after uniform
mode, and consist of story and a half double
houses. In the store at Cranston an i'm
mense business is done. The Sprasues
do their own sIaughtering, and kill about
twenty FIVE head Of cattle per week, and
sheep and hops in proportion The
meat is furnished to their operatives four
and FIVE cents per pound cheaper than it
can be bought in the Providence market,
and the ''8tore" sells goods of every des-
seription at proportionately low figure,
the sales in a single year amounting to /
$500, 900.
Amasa Spragues resides at Craaston,
abont one mile from the city of Provi-
ldeuce, and William lives with his moth
er in the city Of Providence. What this
woman has had to do with the building
ap an immense business, the influence of
which is felt everywhere in the country,
has never been told "The boys" habit
ually resort to her for advice, and the
"Old Governor was accustomed to hold
her judgment in the highest esteem. Her
eounsels to the old firm Of A. &. ".
Sprague have been transmitted to the
new house, aud have proved as beneficial |
to her sons as to their father and their !
uncle. She IS now an old lady of Sc ven |
~ years, but her faculties are as vigor
GUS as ever.
The house Of A. s. w. Sprague, as at
present constituted, resembles the old |
house Of that name IN a striking degree
Amasa Sprague, at his home at Granston,
ID much like Amasa Sprague, his father.
Is his father hates politics, SO too, the
son dislikes the turmoil of party. and de-
votes himself to his family, his business
and his trotters. He has now in his sta.
bles, near the Narragansett Race Course,
an association OF which he IS President,
much thoroughbred and bI0oded stock
the famous horse Rhode Island aud the
Dutch Girl among the others. OF Rhode
Island he is especially confident, and ez-
paets him to trot his mile in 2;20 at TIE
June meeting at the Narragansett Park.
But William Sprague, the uncle, and
William Sprague, the nephew, both nat
urally took to politics. Both were Gov
errors 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, IN
der like circumstances, and it would have
been done by the latter with the same in
the same disregard of couse- .
quences, and the same defiance Of the
opinions Of others that the former exhibit
ed in the past few weeks. In those bold
acts, apparently SO Incapable Of ezplana-
ton, Sprague may have calculated to
some extent upon his Rhode Islanders"
In the works of Cr2nstoa, 1000 hands
are employed besides those engaged at
other mills. In this there IS a power as
great as in 200, geo spindies fed by the
Ingenuity and foresight Of Senator
Go - - L~-4bor To LOoetoJ j.,
one Of his speeches, or perhaps. rather
complained that smallmanufacturers we're
breaking down because they could not do
as he does. Il was very vaguely put, ana
was not generally understood. He sim
ply meant that his purchases Of stock
we're SO immense that those who could
not buy ia like immense quantities can
not compete with him. But lie also
meant to say that he can make better
goods out of inferior material than any
one else. His great point, however was
that persons who do not own an immense
capital cannot borrow, owing to the class
legislation Of the last few years, and that
men like himself, by their great facilities
and large capital, crush their neighbors,
either willingly or uuwiIlingly. Ten
thousand bales Of cotton, 1900 casks Of
muddcr, and pro pogtionate quantities Of
drugs. are no unusual single purchase.
They consumed 1900 bales Of cotton
the last year, aud within the past FIVE
meuths have brought at least ten million
yards Of cloth from other manufacturers
and printed it in their oWn works at