The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1890-03-20

The Secretary of the Treasury has
made lease for the privilege of catch.
ing seals in Behring Sea for period Of
twenty years from May next tor a sun
which will yield the Government S13,-
600 900. This is nearly twice the
amount of the purchase money paid t.
Russia for the cession of Alaska Terri.
tory. This transaction has recalled 3
remarkable conversation had with Gen.
Garfield in 1872. after the defeat OF Mr..
Greeley, in which Gen. Garfield narrated
as nearly as he could in the language OF
that veteran diplomat, a conversation
he had himself with the late Seer, tary
Seward az to the origin and purpose OF
the Alaska purchase. The conversation
was in November, 1872. end was held
about one of those genial banquet boards
of Washington given in consequence OF
a bet upon the defeat of Greeley for
president.
The assemblage was an odd one. The
presiding officer was the most original
genius-now long since dead. The
guests were Government folk. newspa-
per people and politicians. Gen. Gar
field was the brilliant centre of the
assembly, as he was always apt to be on
such occasions. The discussion had Ia
ken the wide range of current politics,
and. from remark which had been
made about the destiny of the republic,
the transition was easy to Seward. One
of the company suggested that Seward
had been dead years before he was put
in his grave. Gen. Garfield though
differently, and delivered an euloRium
upon the dead statesman.
Gen. Garfield had rare conversational
powers, and in social discourse was not
less eloquent and elegant than in the
forum. repeat here, from the short
hand notes made after the dinner, the
statement OF Gen. Garfield, as nearly as
it was possible to remember it, in hit
words at that time. 1t will be seen from
this talk what Mr.. Stewards theory OF
Alaska was. The "Reminiscences is not
untimely now in view of the fact thai
public attention is called to the great
value in other respects Of that distant
Territory. Gen. Garfield sad
when in Europe in 1867 my atteB
ton was particularly drawn to the sig
nlfiCant fact thaC the pictures of Lincoln
and Seward were the only portraits Of
American statesmen that were notably
piOlLlhtutS anu lndl JutSb W6T6 every
where seen together. asked French
man of distinction why Seward was
held in such high estimation, and hir
answer most seriously impressed M
with the thought that perhaps, after all
the ISLANDERS of his detractors, Mr.. Sc
ward had builded for the future more
wisely than he knew. This gentleman
said Mr.. Seward is the American
statesman who looms up the most promi
nently from over the water. His dIplo
macy in Mexico has placed the imprint
OF greatness upon bis name. Hating
for a moment in the midst Of the tur-
MOL of the civil war, with a single
stroke of his pen he dismembered the
coalition organized to place Macmillan
upon the Mexican throne, and thus
placed the first mine under the throne
of the Third Bonaparte. He has under
taken what the combined Powers OF
Europe have not ventured to essay-to
break the sceptre Of the Second Empire
The views entertained by this dlstin-
guished Frenchman seem also to have
been held in Mexico, for upon the occa-
siOn of the death of Mr.. Seward the press
of that country all made the most crate
ful mention of his services in that re-
gard.
THE enthusiasm Of this Frenchman,"
said Gen. Garfield, had not persisted
from my memory later, when public
duties called me to the State Depart.
ment. The Alaska treaty had just been
signed. found the Sage of Auburn
alone in the thoughtful mood so COM
mon to him when meditatiDg upon great
subjects. Our conversation fell upon
himself, and found that he had been
med Eating on his withdrawal from pub
lie life.
"he had been eight years in the sec
ond highest place IN this nation. He
had almost had the Presidency within
his grasp, but the displeasure Of his par
~ had fallen upon him, and he was
about to retire from the political arena.
he told me that power was sweet to him,
that he chung even then fondly to its
shadow, and that he relinquished his
sceptre with regret. His exact language
in speaking of his past career was, 1t lie
unpleasant to yield up power
THE conversation then turned upon
Alaska. The Secretary fell into the
dreamIike attitude. unknown except to
those who were familiar to him, and
commenced to explain his theory Of the |
Alaska purchase in fOrcfbte prophetic, |