The morning news., 1889-05-10
BUTLER'S BROOMSTICK.
THE WIDOW STILL RED-HoT AFTER
ADMIRAL PORTER.


the Log Book of the Harriet Lane
Reveals That 1t is Missing-A Letter
slurrlng Grant Cutting Figure.
WASHINGTON, May 9-Gen. Butler has
postponed his return to Lowell for day
or two in order TO get ammunition for his
fight with Admiral Portor at the navy de-
partment. He had another talk with the
Secretary of the Navy to-day, especially
| about the log book Of the Harriet Lane, the
steamer on which Admiral Porter went up
the NJ ssisspp. strangely enough" said
the general this evening, "the log book of
the Harriet Lane, which is of course a part
Of the records of the navy department, is
mi sing + ON its place, and the secre-
| tary has SO stated to me in writ
! ing. This is significant, because
that log book would show exactly
what Admiral Porter did svery day, and
would thet efore prove that hs ran away, as
| | said, from before the forts" Another
| thing which Gen. Butler asked Of the Secre-
| tary Of the Navy was an exemplified copy
| of a letter which Admiral Porter, so the
| general says, wrote 10 Secretary Of the
| Navy Welles about Gen. Grant, at the
close of the war, from North Carolina,
while the surrender of Johnston was going
| on.
TO BE SHOWN UP.
ut is about time" said the general "to
show just what Admiral Porter's opinion of
men is worth. He said just as disagreeabl
things abot Gen. Grant as he has about me
and he said them in letter to Secretary
Welles, a copy of which / have requested
Secretary Tracy TO furnish me. Publicly,
i'll his reports etc, he praised Cen Grant
and when the latter became President Adj
miral Potter was honeytug,i ing around him
all the time. President Grant made Borie,
a Philadelphia sugar MAJ, Secretary
of the Navy, and Admiral POI ter
moved into Secretary Borie's off % and
practically usurped hls functions. He was
to the navy what the general or the adju-
mt general is to the army. He ran things
to suit himself When Secretary BOrie
went out and Secretary Robson came in
| the latter told Admiral Porter very soon
that he had no use for his services In his
office and proposed that he move olt. tell
i & him at the same time that as the navy
building was so small he was uota able togive
i'm a room there and suggested that he 60
elsewhere. Fro u that time on Admiral
Porter endeavored to oust Secretary Robe
son. He became more and more assduous
in his attentions TO President Grant, AMI
came near effecting his purpose. He caused
Secretary Robson a good deal of uneasi-
ment went to Secretary Robson and said
to him: 'Mr. Secretary, | have been look
ing over some old files and have discovered
letter from Admiral Porter to Secretary
Welles about Gen. Grant which / think
will interest you
robson TOOK 1T TO GRANT.
"Thereupon he handed this letter to Sec
date of + % department. For some reason Sec
retary Robeso 1t was stamped with the
Ill nod - ~ II a
Secretary Robson Immediately walked
over to the white house and saw Preside t
Grant in the cabinet room. Mr.. Presi-
dent he said, i understand that Admiral
Porter has been saying some disagreeable
things about me. | suppose he is always
saving disagreeable things a out people
l want to show you that he has said disa-
greeable things about you, as he has about
me- and Secretary Robson gave Gen.
Grant the letter. Gen. Grant read it
through carefully, and then sent for Admiral
Porter while Secretary Robeson was waiting
in the room. When Admiral Porter came
Gen. Grant handed him the letter,
asking: Is that your signatlreP Admi-
raj Porter said of course that it was, but
undertook to stammer out denial. No,
no. said Gen. Grant, Il see that it is, and
henceforth all communication between us
must be official. Good afternoon Admiral
Porter walked out almost crushed, went
nome and went to bed sick, thinking that
all his chances of being appoi ted admiral
by Gen. Grant were destroyed. Admiral
Porter's pitiabe condition in his illness was
reported to Gen. Grant by friends and Gen.
Grant went to see him and forgave him,
and afterwards Sc his name to % Senate
for appointment s admiral, but that letter
was produced in the Sena o when his nomi-
nation was up for confirmation and he Just
squeezed through.
THE HANDWRITING.
"The letter was in the handwriting of
Admiral Porter's p ivate secre tary, but the
aut graph was undoubtedly Admiral Por-
ter's have seen the letter, had it my
hands ana know that it was photographed
some time ago So that If Secretary T acy
answers that the search which he promised
TO institute for it fails to bring it to light
and show hat it as been taken away as
tine logbook of the Harriet Lane has been,
the photograph will be used. 1t de-
scrIbed Gen. Grant as drunken, dissat-
tisfied and dsgraceful.n
The NEWS corr spondent asked Admiral
Porter about this letter to which Gen. But
Ter referred. The ad niral said that the
letter was not genuine a,d that
ne and bis private secretary denied,
having written IL at the time that it wa,
brought out. He also said that there was
some story about IL which unfortunately he
Eal never ROJJen. ooiue years ago an eX-
army officer had come to him and had told
him that a clerk in the navy department,
who knew the whole ST ry Of the letter
and was then ia great distress, would
gladly reveal his secret to the admiral for
$500. Tue admiral spurned the proposition
and told theo ox-arny officer never TO come
into his pre.ence again. That night the
department clerk committed suicide, and
so the story seems TO have been buried with
him Admiral Porter said that Secretary
Robeson's production Of the let or only
temporarily Interrupted his rela ions with
Gen Grant, which were always of the most
agreeable and cordial nature
nm