St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-09-26
PLAYING THE OYSTER ACT.
Blaine Will Not Enter Into Controversy
Over Conkllng's Grave.
MR.. CRANDALL BELITTLED.
The Plumed Knight Denies Having
Made Money Out of the Recruit
ing Fund.
Special to the Globe.

AUGUSTA, Me-, Sept. 25.-The Ken
nebec Journal tomorrow will publish
the following:
"a representative of this paper called
on Mr.. Blaine yesterday to ask if he de-
sired to say anything in answer to the
recently published letter attributed to
the late Senator COnkling. Mr.. Blaine
said:
Nothing could induce me to enter into a
controversy over Mr.. ConkllngS grave. Dur
ing our joint service in congreSs-SOme six
teen years in alive had some eXasperating
controversies, but l never spoke or wrote
word concerning him, except publicly; and
now that he is dead, my lips are sealed
against every form of criticism or unkind
expression, no matter what may be the i'm
prudence or the I'M Justice of any of his sur.
viying friends.
Mr.. Blaine was asked if he had no
ticed that doubt had been expressed in
several papers as to Mr.. COnkling be-
ing the author of the published letter.
Mr.. Blaine replied that of course he
knew nothing about that point, but it
was a great surprise to him that such
letter should have been written by Mr..
COnkling. The date shows that the
letter was written just six days after
the close of an
EXASPERATING PERSONAL DEBATE
with Mr.. COnkling. and if Mr.. Conk-
ling had intended to say anything of the
kind he would have been apt to say it
then, and not Immediately afterward, in
a private letter which was not given to
the public for twenty-twy years, and
not until Mr.. COnkling had been dead
several months. The whole affair was
not in accordance with Mr.. Conkling's
habitual courage in debate. When
asked if he knew anything of Crandall
or Haddock Mr.. Blaine replied that he
had never seen either of them, and
had never heard the name of either
except on the occasion of his per-
sOnal debate with Mr.. COnkling, in
April, 1866. Though he had not charged
his mind with the fact so as to remem-
Der accurately, his strong impression
was that they were both officers in New
York, under the enrolment act, during
the war, and that both had been dis
missed from the service for misconduct
in office. Mr.. Blaine was then asked if
he had anything to sag about the charge
that he made money out of the recruit
ing funds of the war. He replied that
it might with equal truth be charged
that he had made money by robbing the
mails, or by
PIRACY ON THE HIGH SEAS.
The reporter asked if the whole bust
ness of the recruiting scandal had not
been fully Investigated in Maine.
Never" said Mr.. Blame, was subject
more thoroughly or more persistently in
vestigated than the recruiting scandal which
grew up in this state the last year of the war,
in connection with the filling of town quotas
by what were known as paper credits. 1t
tees of the legislature, and, finally,
and more searchingly, by a public
commission, composed of three prominent
gentlemen, two OF whom were eminent law
vers, and the third distinguished officer in
the late war. One of the lawyers was Dem
ocrat of the most pronounced type. There is
nol q word of evidence, or even suggestion
or hint, in any one of the three reports, that
/ had any moie connection with the matter
than had Mr.. Conkling. or his unwise friend
who publishes this letter and attributes it to
the dead statesman"
Our representative then asked Mr..
Blaine if he had not assisted the public
commission in their investigation. Mr..
Blaine said that in a certain way he had
done so. The commission, needing
yolumiuous information from the war
and navy departments in respect to re-
cruiting frauds, found great difficulty
in obtaining what was essential to their
investigation. They then applied to him
forIaid. In their final report to the leg
islature the commissioners made the
following acknowledgment of his assist
ance:
..Our INQUIRIES had been so long baff1ed by
formal references to inconsequent facts and
ingenious overlooking of the material mat
ter about which there was uncertainty, that
il seemed probable that no evidence or any
yalue TO our purpose could be obtained from
Washington within the period TO which our
labors were confined. In this dilemma we
applied to Hon. James G. Blaine. member OF
congress from the Third district of Maine,
and TO his effective Intervention by personal
appeals at the departments where our re-
ouisitions for documents were waiting COM
pliapce. we consider ourselves largely IN
debted for whatever information from these
sources we have been able to obtain"
Mr.. Blaine was further asked if he
had not tried i'll congress to stop all
fraudulent recruiting. He replied that
he had. During the last year of the
war he said recruiting
WARS WE'RE RUNNING RIOT
throughout many of the loyal states. A
system of fraudulent credits had been
invented by which the quota was filled
without soldiers being added to the
army. 1t was in this field of operations
that the bounty spectators made their
money. When the last enrolment bill
was under discussion, during the session
of congress which began in December,
1864. he had offered an amendment In
these words:
That in any call for troops, no county,
town, township, ward, precinct or election
district. shall have credit except for men
actually furnished OIL said call or preceding
call by said county. town, township, ward,
precinct and election district, and mustered
into the military and naval service on the
quota thereof.