Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1879-08-21
CONKLING AND SPRAGUE.
Kate Chase as a Politician.
Marrying Spragne for His Money
The Electoral Commission.


There are now in Washington many
who will remember the first appearance
of Kate Chase in social circles here. She
was young, vivacious, and beautiful;
thoroughly educated and brilliant. She
had been the intimate companion of her
father ever since his entrance upon the
political arena, and more than once had
he relied on her tact and beauty to pull
him through sharp political contests. In
1864, when at the zenith of her social
power, she lent powerful hand toward
making her father, the then Chief JUS
tice, the candidate of the Republican
party for President. She had been for
several years the constant associate and
chief cOnfdante of her father, and had
become acquainted with his ambitions
his friends and his strength. She studied
politics with the zeal of a newly fedged
orator, and devoted her whole mind and
energies to the one object of placing her
father in the Presidential chair. 1t was
part of her ambition, also, to reign as
the first lady of the land. She often
talked with her friends on this subject,
and her marriage with Senator Sprague
was generally believed to be one that had
only this end in view. Sprague at that
time was immensely wealthy, and the
Chase party needed money. Sprague al
c mn oo,,trO11al 4l,o ,No1ifia, of
Rhode Island, and his money and influ-
ence were worth having in behalf of
Presidential candidate. The scheme
failed, however. Lincoln was renom-
mated, and Judge Chase became detach-
ed from his party. In 1868, however, he
was prominently mentioned as possi-
BILE Presidential candidate before the
Democratic Convention, and his daugh-
ter, who had at that time become
Mrs. Sprague, again took an active
part in his behalf. She was
t h n recognized in Washington
as one of the brightest, wittiest and
most fascinating women at the national
capital. Her passion, as well as her apt
ness for politics and political intrigues,
seemed to increase her with social pow
er. Sne cultivated public men until she
knew large number quite intimately
and even so late as 1915, though known
to but few, exercised an influence upon
the last Presidential election, which
kept one mans mouth shut and possibly
changed the result altogether. Her ac-
quaintance with Senator COnkling had
ripened into relations of the most conf
Dental nature. 1t is believed that she
exercised over him powerful influence.
1t is even declared by many who had
frequent opportunities to know Conk-
ling's opinions during the electoral
struggle that he was withheld by Mrs.
Sprague's influence from publicly de-
claring his conviction that Tilden was
the rightfully elected President, and that
his hitherto unaccounted for vascillation
was attributable to this cause. At one
time he boldly declared that the frauds
practiced in Louisiana and Florida fur
nished all the basis necessary for an
overthrow of the pretext that Hayes was
elected, and for the swearing in of Til
den. He made no secret of his disgust
at the efforts of John Sherman and 9TH
ers to count in Hayes, and, it is asserted.
agreed to make speech denouncing the
fraud, but nothing came of it. Mrs.
Sprague occupied front seat in the
members gallery of the Senate every
day during the exciting count, although
nobody thought of her as anything but a
spectator. The day that Senator Conk-
ling was to rise in his seat and demolish
the fraud, arrived, and those familiar
with the programme were in their seats.
Senators Alcorn, Spencer, ConOver, and
several other Republicans were to vote
with him against the approval Of the
partisan decision of the Electoral Com
mission. Enough Republican voters
had been secured to make his victory
certain. Col. Pelton, Mr. Hewitt, of
New York, and many other prominent
Tilden managers, had seats in the gall
lery for the purpose Of hearing Conk-
ling's speech. To their utter amazement,
however, he did not appear at all. and it
was also observed by some bright people
that Mrs. Sprague was absent for the
first time. Senator Alcorn, in fulfill
ment of his word, first voted to reject
the decision of the commission, but af-
terward he discovered that something
had gone wrong, changed his vote so as
to make it accord with his party. 1t was
subsequently discovered that the shrewd
Radical mananagers of the Zach. Chan
dler stripe had overcome Conkling by
winning Mrs. Sprague over to their side.
They had persuaded her to take an in
terest in Hayes success, and, it is said
she kept the New York Senator, on
whom so much depended, from appear
ing at the Senate chamber that day.
Now that the scandal is made public,
a thousand incidents of the relations of
Mrs. Sprague and Senator Conkling are
told. That they frequently rode out to-
gether until very late hours, is pretty
well known to many. A family driving
toward Edgewood, just after the extra
session, stopped runaway horse hitch
ed to coupe. Within short time SEN
ator Conkling appeared on the road and
claimed the horse and vehicle 1t had
already been recognized as the property
of Mrs. Sprague, and the family discov-
cred that the horse had broken away
from its tether while unattended.
Edison still has many friends in New
York. One of these writes to the Sun
that "the mysteries of the electric light