The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1890-11-01
SAD END OF 4 6REAI MANS GRANDSON,
Strange Letter Left Unfinished When
Willie 6prague Killed Himself

nu ACCOuuL Ol Tic EulClu6 IN tQat
city of Willie Sprague, son of ex-
Governor Sprague of Rhode Island
and grandson of the distinguished
statesman and jurist, Salmon P.
Chase, says:
On the stand, with a disordered
collection of books and papers, were
two letters, both written in pencil,
in steady running hand, on small
blue-ruled, unglazed notebook pa.
per. One of them was addressed
to his father. It bore no date-llne,
and ran as follows:
"DEAR FATHER: This time l will
not plead poverty as an excuse tor
inflicting this pencilwritten affair
upon you. / have merely neglected
to provide myself with ink. An
other reason is, notice my ideas
seem to flow more connectedly while
using a pencil. The time consumed
in dipping my pen seems to break
the connection, as it were. TO be
sure, there may be nothing in this,
but we all have our little fads and
foibles.
~ sent you postal on the eve Ct
my, departure as an item of news,
as I imagine that news is pretty
scarce down there-not that you
have not your little diversions and
slight sensations in the matrimo-
NAL line. for instance, but then one
always likes to hear from former
friends and acquaintance. Not tina
you have given me any encourage
ment to spring my bright scintila-
tions of wit and humor upon you.
Oh, no-quite the contrary. The
reason that have not written more
is that my life has been so common
place and uneventful that even my
brain (?) stagnated, and I could
not have evolved an idea for brain
and sentiment.
II suppose you arc little curl
Gus to know about my movements
for the three or four moons past.
Well, as ] said, l took the first thing
that offered in the way of a job
SO per week-and worked real hard
with my hands and feet, too, for
that matter. But it lit up after a
time, and l was able to make it
what, in the parlance of a slangist,
is Gale Snap That is, all but
the pay; that remained at SO a
week-meant just IS for board (and
pretty fair board it was), so cents
for washing, SO cents for a bath,
leaving balance of So that was
at liberty to invest or not, just as ]
saw fit; but though the figures say
50, for some reason | cannot ex-
plain, in practice the SO never
appeared.
Your letter was one Of those
cold and chilling communications
that pass between men when one
gets bill of goods charged for
more than is shown in the invoice.
Talk TO me about the bowling biz
zard of the frozen regions of the
North Pole, the awful absence of
heat when a friend won't lend you
Az! Lord, Massey these take seats
away back in the rear and hide
their faces in very shame in the
face of the letter. With my very
sensitive and highly considerate
nature l cannot conceive how a
man can so ruthlessly knock a man
down, gouge his eye and otherwise
tiguratively abuse him with so lit
tie, or, in fact, no cause. But it re-
ally matters little, except to my
feelings, and they are practically of
10 use except to myself. This is
great country, and I'm in it. No
one has apparently caught on to
the latter fact as yet, but I'm here.
Although what I'm going to say
will meet with no credence, still
works of fiction are always read
and demanded. l was very 10th
to leave Chicago. Holmes, Pitts
burg friend of mine, is about the
only fellow l ever met who pos
sessed the faculty of making me
see life in anything but a dark and
gloomy aspect. He absolutely
made me enjoy myself At times
it was very irritating and CALLING to
have to enjoy myself, especially
when | had made up my mind to
be miserable, but on the whole l
think it was best. He has been
what dear and beloved wife would
have been to another man. To be
cure, he neither sewed on my but
tons nor called me Sweet nor
'tootsy-wootsy,' but the moral effect
was there.
"Out here I'm thrown among
strangers again, cast upon a desert
isle as far as soul communication
is concerned. / cannot tell how |
long for love and affection, that l
have never experienced, and can
not describe, yet long for. All, me,
fear my dream will never be real
lied. But this sentimental biz
will never do. ! had lot of it
slowed up and had to work it off.
Well, | went through some queer
old experiences; but l detail too
much. Well, to curtail lengthy
narrative, lust before coming out