Omaha daily bee., 1891-10-04

to go home, MIR. Clay. / want to do some
thing for you, but | am so hedged around
here that 1 can't do just what | will. Isn't
there some place you will takef We'll, said
/, you have made up your cabinet. How
about the missions to France and EnglandP
President Lincoln then said that these
had been promised to Adams and Dayton,
and that he didn't see how he could
let me have either of them. Well said /,
that settles It, There is no other place L
want. / will go back to Kentucky Presi-
dent Lincoln urged me not to go. He SAID,
stay n few days, Mr.. CLAW, aud / will see
what can be done This was in the morning.
That evening / diued with Sanford, who had
just been made minister TO Belgium. While
we were at dinner the waiter came and told
me that Senator Baker OF Oregon wanted me
TO step out into the hall for n moment. | had
known Baker very well in the Mexican war.
He was a noble fellow. / lett the table and
went out. He said, The president has sent
me to see you. He mas been considering your
case and he wants to do something TO please
you. He wants 10 know If something else
except London or Paris will not be accepta-
bic 20 you. Why don't You take the Russian
ministrys Russia is q great country. and 1t
may be an important element in the coming
struggle. 1t is one of the greatest courts of
Europe, and II ! were you | would take it"
"Well,n continued General Clay, 81 just
had a good dinner. and Baker was my friend,
and | finally told him that i would take the
Russian mission and that he might go and
tell inc preSlue0J JndJ 1 WOulu dCCepJ ~ u He
would appoint me, or If he would wait until
dinner was over / would go with him. Wait
for the dinner said he. Hang the dinner.
Let's go to the white house now. | have a
cab here and | tell you the president is wait
ing All right said /, and with that |
President Lincoln was sitting in his office.
His legs were stretched out. His head was
resting on his hand and he. was 10 deep
thought. AS we came In, Baker said "Mr.
D,a.;larN lINa,, ,,,,l taIra 8ha D,gginp IN
sion.'" Lincoln sprang TO his feet and shook
me by both hands and said CLAY, | thank
you. You relieve me of great embarrass-
ments." And so | went to Russia
The Experiences Of a Diplomat.
"How did you like your miss1our' l asked.
Very much indeed - replied General Clay,
''and l think | did a great deal for America
during my stay there. 1t was through me that
Alaska was secured to the United States, and
| carried on all the preliminary negotiations.
The question came up first through the pro-
ject for building a telegraph line through ST.
IBERIA across the Behring Straits. An Ameri-
can traveller named Perry Med. Collins had
gone across Siberia and he had interested
MIR. Sibly, the president of the Western
Union Telegraph, in the scheme for building
a telegraph line from America across Behring
straits to st. Petersburg. Sibley attempted
to get q charter for his line through me, and
/ got one which would have made the fortunes
of the company had they not spoiled the JOB
aJ WdSnllPIOu through our SeCTtudTy Vi Stuic,
Seward, pressing the Infamous Perkins claim.
In my charter we had a clause which pro-
vided that every telegram from Siberia to st.
Petersburg should pay to the American com
pany a rebate of one-half of the price of the
telegram, This l got out of friendships at
St. Petersburg, and l had interested two of
the grand dukes of Russia to take
stock IN the company. Then Sew
ard pressed the Perkins claim. 1t
was an outrageous steal and seward knew it..
L. ,n -,~Da Aal ,-a ~ prn ! - nrI I hnnInI
his letter to Prince Gortchacow. Gortcha-
COW read and spoke English as well as l do.
He looked over the letter and then slapped
it down on the table and emphatically said:
I'VE will go to war before we will pay a sin
gle red kopeck Of it.n From this time on he
was angry with Seward, and he refused to
give any concessions in favornf the telegraph
line. He was well enough satisfied to have
it built, but he did not intend to show any
favors. l then got them the right to build
the line under other conGiuons, ana through
this came about the negotiations which gave
US Alaska.'
What do you think of George Remnants
articles on RussiaI'' said l.
II don't think much of them" said Cen
eral Clay. 81 don't think the man is acting
like a gentleman. He accepted their hospi-
talities and he Is now misconstruing and
misrepesenting them. | don't believe there
are any greater cruelties committed in the
Russian prisons than there are in the Amer
lean prisons. We have lately had an investl-
cation here in Kentucky and the testimony
goes to show that our prisoners were fed on
bad meat. The warden complalned.o of it and he
was discharged, and we let out our prisoners
to the same people who have oppressed them.
Russia is a great country and the United
States owes ii great deal to Russia. They
were our friends during the late war, and L
can tell you we needed friends then. The
English were as strong for the south as were
the people of South Carolina. Germany and
France both wanted to see us fail. They all
supported the south in an under
hand way and had it not been for their fear
of Russia, they would have supported it
openly. enjoyed my stay at St. Peters
burg. | was on close terms with the car,
and | knew Prince Gortchacow Intimately.
He was one of the greatest men OF Europe
and he was practically the governor of
Russia. He was the equal of Bismarck or
Dlsraell, and he was a man OF equal culture
with either of Them"
Stories of Henry Clay.
Cassius M. Clay was a cousin of Henry
Clay. Lexington is not more than an hours
ride from Richmond, and General Clay knew
his great relative well. He says that Clay
would have made a great general, and ne
says that the similarity in all respects be-
tween Clay and jackson was striking. They
had hands very much alike, and they were
intellectually much the same in character.
II believe that Clay would have been presi-
dent of the United States had he had a
ShhiSe W Atoti . AhiAAoSti "a tho u hiN
and the only man in the past whom | can
compare with Clay and Jackson is julius
Caesar. All three possessed great moral
courage, all were statesmen, and Clay would
have made, / think, AN equally good general
with jackson or Caesar. Clay had remark
able physical courage. They tell a story of
him In Lexington during his early law prac-
tice there. He was a tail, gaunt young fell
low of 81 or % years of age when he imag-
ined himself insulted by a maj who was ten
or fifteen years older than he was and who
was very much stronger, Clay attempted
to fight the nan and the man
knocked him down. Now it was the Gus
tom in those days for the under man, when
he found he could not succeed against his
adversary, to cry enough" and the man
then got off him. Clay would not cry
enough" and the crowd, thinking he would
be killed, pulled the man off. No sooner had
Clay gotten to his feet then he went at the
man again and no was again knocked down
and pounded. The man was pulled off and
Clay again attacked him, and finally in order
to save Clay from being killed his friends
took his opponent into a store and kept Clay
on the outside for fear he should fight HIM
self 10 death. Clay had a number of duels
and he had a good military mind.
Clay and Webster.
How did he compare with Websterf" /
asked.
Henry Clay was an entirely different man
from Webster" replied Cassius M. Clay.
webster was a great man intellectually. but
he had none of tho natural quickness of Clay,
nnn L 1Anff fhinu I'M had n . ppnnt n onnl no