The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1884-07-10
The muIligan Letters.

/
The celebrated Mulligan letters will
become still more notorious because of
Blaine's candidacy, and will form
large part of the Democratic campaign
literature when the fight becomes
warmer. There were fifteen letters
obtained from Mulligan by Blaine,
upon Blaine's word of honor, as Null
ligan claimed. that they would be i'm
mediately returned. Four of them
will probably be all that will be used,
and they are those in which Blaine
urged Warren Fisher, Jr., to let him
into the Little Rock and Fort Smith |
railroad enterprises. They were writ
ten by Blaine while he was Speaker of
the House of Representatives. Fisher
was the representative of a strong syn
dictate of Boston capitalists. The first
reads:
AUGUSTA, June 90, 1869.
MY DEAR MR.. FISHER: Your offer
to admit me to a partnership in the
new railroad enterprise is in every re-
spect as generous as I could expect or
desire. 1 thank you very sincerely for
it, aud in this connection [ wish to
make suggestion of somewhat sell
fish character You spoke of Mr..
Caldwell dIsposing of share of his
interest to me. If he really designs to
do so, 1 wish he would make the prop
osition definite, so that could know
| Just what to depend on. Perhaps if
he waits till the full development of
the enterprise he might grow reluctant
to part with his share; and do not
by this mean any distrust of him. /
do not feel that should prove dead
head in the enterprise if once embark
| in it. 1 see various channels in which
| [ know / can be useful.
Very hastily and sincerely your friend,
J, u. BLAINE.
| Mr.. FISHER, India ST., Boston.
To appreciate the delicacy with
which Blaine drew the attention of
the suffering railroad magnates to his
services, in his second letter, it must
be understood that the land grant of
the Little Rock and Fort Smith rail.
roads was in imminent danger of for
feiture. The second letter reads:
AUGUSTA, July 2, 1869.
MY DEAR Mr.. FISHER: You ask
me il am satisfied with the offer you
made of a share in your new railroad
enterprise. or course, / am mere than
satisfied with the terms of the offer.
| think it q most liberal proposition.
If hesitated at all, it is from cOnsid.
eratiOns IN no way connected with the
character of the offer. Your liberal
mode of dealing with me in all our
l fro nt nf 10 niO Ol If
years had not passed without my full
appreciation. What I wrote you on
the 10Th was intended to bring Cald-
we'll to definite proposition, that was
all. go to Boston by the same train
that carries this letter, and will call at
your Office tomorrow at IL m II you
don't happen to be in, no matter.
Don't put yourselfto any trouble about
1t. Yours, J. &. B.
4 w. FISHER, JR.
By the third letter it will be seen
that Logan had al interest in Blaine's
schemes in 1869 as well as now. 1t
causeda sensation in political circles
ut the time of its publication.
| AUGUSTA, Me-, Oct. 4, 1869.
| MY DEAR SIR: 1 spoke to you q
short time ago about a point of inter
est to your railroad company that Oc-
Cured arthe last session of Congress.
It was OH the last night of the session,
when the bill renewing the land grant
to the State of Arkansas to the Little
Rock road was reached, and Julian, OF
Indiana, Chairman of the Public
Lands Committee, and, by right, ell
titled to the floor, attempted to put on
the bill, as all amendment, the Ere.
mont Ell Peso scheme-a scheme prob
ably well known by Mr.. Caldwell.
The House was thin, and the lobby in
the Fremont Interest had the thing all
set I'D, and Julian's amendment was
likely to prevail if brought to vote.
Roots and the other member from Ar
KANSAS, who were doing their best fol
to be DO objection), were in despair. .fOr
it was we'll known that the Senate was
hostile to the Fremont scheme, and il
the Arkansas bill had gone back to the
Senate with Julian n'siamendment, the
whole thing would have gone OH the
table and slept the sleep OF death. In
this dilemma Roots came to me to
know what on earth he could do
under the rules, for he said it WAS vital
to his constituents that the bill should
pass. l told him that Julian's amend
ment was entirely out of order, be-
cause not german but he had not
sufficient confidence in his knowledge
tof the rules to make the point, but he
said Gen. Logan was opposed to the
Hancock scheme, and would probably
make the point. 1 sent my page to
Gen. Legan with the suggestion, and
he at once made the point. l could
not do otherwise than sustain it, and
so the bill was freed from the miscbiev-
GUS amendment moved by Julian, and
ut once passed without objection. AT
that time 1 had never seen Caldwell
but you can tell him that, without
knowing it, did him y great favor.
Sincerely yours,
J.G. BLAINE.
w. FISHER, JR.. Esq, "a India st.,
| Boston.
The story is completed in letter No.
4, which is:
AUGUSTA, Oct. 4, 1869.
MY DEAR Mr.. FISHER: Find en-
closed contracts of parties named in
NY letter of yesterday. The remain
ing contracts will be- completed as rap
idly AS possible or circumstances will
permit. ! enclose yOu part of Con
gressiOnal Globe of April 9. containing
the point to which | referred at some
length In my previous letter or today.
You will find it of interest to read it
over and see what a narrow escape your
bill made on that last night of the ses-
sion. OF course it was my plain duty
to make the ruling when the point was
once raised. If the Arkansas men had
not. however, happened to come to me
when at their wits end in despair the
bill would undoubtedly have been lost,
or at least postponed for year. /
thought the point would interest both
you and Caldwell, though occurring
before either of you engaged in the
enterprise. beg you to understand
that 1 thoroughly appreciate the cour-