Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-09-29
CONKLING'S HAND.
From the Grave 1t Strikes at HI
Old Antagonist, Blaine.

From the Grave 1t strikes at HI
| Old Antagonist, Blaine.
| ITHACA, N. Y, September 21.-Th
Republicans here are greatly astonishe'
over the following letter from Rosco
| Conkling to Peter B. Crandall, of thi
city, ex-Provost Marshal of Oneida coun
ty, published in the Ithaca Democrat las
evening, together with long interview
with Mr.. Crandall. The letter is datet
May 8, 1886:
| MY DEAR SIR am glad to receive your let
ter. BY this you will have seen the later pas
sages sage In the FIye-Blaine matter Let me know nov
what you think. You will not, l think, fint
fault with the self-command of your represent
| ative. who is called upon, without q. momentt
warning, in the presence of the nation, to an
| swer such libel. What is the effect upon ou
people? Mr.. Blaine is said to be too near the
business OF recruiting at Augusta, Me-. whert
| he lives, and where there was another Had
dock affair in crime, but not in conviction anc
punishment. He has grown suddenly rich, il
| is said. out OF Government jobs, His br0thel
was convicted OF forgery and was sent to tht
STAT State prison. l am told, and, al around, you you
whole thing. If where you and l are known
any one can be found to believe the foul impu
tation put upon us, we have lived in vain
Peter B. Crandall, Babcock Hill, oneida
county, New York.
THE DUTY OF CoNKLING's FRIENDS.
Mr.. Crandall is eighty years old. He
has been prominent in State and
National politics for many years, and
was always one of Conkling's most de-
voted friends. In an interview with a
reporter Mr.. Crandall said:
II want simply to make statement
for the benefit of the friends of Mr..
Conkling. He was a statesman, a
patriot and an honest man. Through
Mr.. Blaine's intrigues and Vaccinations
he was forced from public life. 1t is now
the duty OF every one of Conkling's g
friends to repay that treachery by help
ing to silence forever that scheming and
dishonest politician.
81 knew Mr.. Conkling all his life and
corresponded with him for many years.
All of his later letters show his intense
suffering on account of the way in which
Blaine illuminated him.
DEVOTED TO COUNTRY.
ellis last letter was written q few days
before his death, and in that he still ex-
pressed an interest in public affairs.
Among other things he said:
AS you well know, my devotion to
my country is more than strong. |
would like to be aware of anything dan
gerous to the country or State OF New
York, hopeless as might be the prospect
of ever being able to attempt anything
which would not meet with reprobation
and misunderstanding.
"When was Provost Marshal of One
ida county, great frauds were unearthed
by Conkling, and traced to Washington.
Conkling attempted to introduce bill
the Provost Marshalship.
Frye and Blaine opposed it, as they
wanted the office to become part of the
War Department. Frye sent letter to
Congress, and Blaine caused it to be
read, charging Conkling with protecting
his own district from exposure in the
frauds.
A SCRAP OF HISTORY.
"Conkling arose, demanded an invest
igation, and turned on Frye and Blaine,
charging that out of 800, 900 men to whom
bounties were paid scarcely 100000 ever
went into the service and that somebody
stole the money. The committees ap-
pointed exonerated Conkling, but the
Frye investigation found too big job on
it's hands, and so many persons were i'm
plicated that the matter was finally
dropped. 1 have all the papers in the
matter, as Conkling told me to keep
them.
''Mr. Hotchkiss, attorney for the COM
mittee, said: If we should attempt to get
back this stolen money by spreading
their transactions over the country the
would not last six
"Conkling said he had letter from
Augusta, Me-, Blaine's home, charging
Blaine with making $40,0 1000 in single
day out of frauds. About month after
this 1 received the letter which l now
give to the public.
AN OBLIGATION REMOVED.
"When Mr.. Blaine has been pushed to
the very front of his party as arbitrator
and dictator, and has reached and holds
that position by treachery, it removes
the obligation of secrecy. The friends of
Mr.. Conkling, now that he is dead, have
the right to be heard on all matters relat-
ing to Blaine's integrity. The friends of
Conkling cannot vote for Harrison this
fall if they are true to Conkling's
memory.
"Blaine is the Republican party, and
if it had not been for him Garfield would
have been alive and Conkling still in
politics. I will not vote for Harrison
this fall. I have always been Repub-
lican, but when that party goes in for
plunder I leave it. The Republican
party seems to have but one purpose, and
that is to aid the capitalist and bond
holder to squander the public funds and
build up mammoth corporations.
''I'm too old to ask or expect anything
from political party, and all 1 wish is
to leave the world better than found it /;
but when think that if Harrison be
elected this fall Blaine will be at the
helm of the Government, I cannot die
contented, but feel like going to every
friend of Mr.. Conkling and telling him
what l know personally about the
shameful way he was treated by Blaine,
and thereby remove from my heart the
secrecy of subject which has been a
painful one to me-"
The leading Democrats here say this
letter and interview will increase the
Democratic vote in this section several
thousand.-[ San Francisco Examiner.
DOnahue's Grocery House,
C,rf vctr