The Portland daily press., 1892-09-07


Southern brigadiers. How far the Colonel
Ras able to impress Mr.. Halstead do not
knox, but do know that he went to Mr..
Hayes at Columbus the unquestioned rep
resentative of the Southern gentlemen
who were ready to agree to COM
promise so as to secure the con-
troll of their own State Governments.
Mr.. Hayes received him with all frank
ness. The Colonel was never so grave, SO
reserved, SO diplomatic as when he posed
before the then coming President of the
United States as the one man of all others
who held the threads of his destiny in his
hands To what extent Mr.. Hayes gave
i'm his confidence con be judged only by
the fact that the Colonel went back to the
Southern Brigadiers the accredited repre-
sentative of Mr.. Hayes. Of course he had
no documentary credentials, but from the
converse ton had with him then he was
able to prove that he was in active COM
munication with the future President.
Everything now was easy. He would re-
turn to Mr.. Hayes as the representative
of the Southern people, and then ia the
shortest possible time would return to
them again as the agent of Mr.. Hayes. In
this way he played most important part.
Neither side discredited him, and when
the agreement was actually made in
Wornley's Hotel by Mr.. Foster with the
Southern leaders to deliver to them their
State Governments, undoubtedly the Col
onel is to be credited with the preliminary
work which led up to this meeting and
agreement.
Up to this time his receptions had
harmed no one. I do not think under
meath the Colonel was man of bad pro-
pensities. He was simply lacking in
oral fibre and thought that he could
reate position for himself in the world
based wholly upon Misrepresentation
When Mr.. Hayes became President of the
United States the Colonel had such rela-
lions at the White House that all doors
opened before him. A Cabinet officer
could not have had easier access to the
President. Within very short time after
Mr. Hayes inauguration the Colonel was
appointed te one of the best civilian ap-
pointments in the War Department. Here,
If he had been quiet and content with the
good fortune thus far secured, he might
have remained undisturbed until the end
of his life. But his actually being in the
service Of the War Department revived
all of his military fictions and he sought
at once the right to wear the uniform of
an officer of the United States Army. He
was told that no ex-Confederate could be
appointed to the army and thus he found
that his first fiction stood in the way Of
what he might have otherwise secured.
He now went to the Governor of Louisiana
and through his newspaper connections
sbtained a staff appointment. The Gov
nnor afterward denied that he
made any such appointment; but it
Is probable that the Colonel told the
truth concerning this. The Colonel then
went to work and had uniform devised,
copied after one of the most brilliant in
the Austrian army. He appeared in it
upon many public occasions, and in so do
ing excited the attention of an army Off
Ger, Col Bacon, then member of the staff
of Gen. Sherman. Col. Bacon was Ken
tuckian and lived In the same hotel with
the Colonel. He thought that the Colonel's
uniform made the War Department ridio-
ulous, and he set on foot series of inves-
LEGATIONS which brought out the real his.
tory of the Colonel. But before he was
successful the Colonel had captured fully
the regard and esteem of Townsend, the
then Adjutant-G General of the army. Gen.
Townsend was a man of the most formal
character. His mind was stepped in the
traditions of military etiquette. The
Colonel fattered him by paying him the
most marked attention and observing in
his relations with him the finest
punctilio of military etiquette. A
man SO observant of such important
forms Gen. Townsend held must
be a trained soldier. At any rate.
the Colonel had no difficulty in convincing
him of the accuracy of his military knowl-
edge, and actually got the General to issue
IN order that phe Colonel should be adj
dressed In military correspondence as Col
pnel, and that he should be entitled to the
salute of Colonel at all military posts.
It was about this time that the Colonel
had the happiest period !of his romantic
sareer. He had obtained leave of ab-
sence Of two months from the War De-
partment, and, armed with letter of in
NOQucUlOn 1EOUa tko AUjuedut-1oQeral Oh
The United States, went to Europe, taking
with him In his trunk this special uniform
which he had made, and which was COW
red with more gold lace and braid than
sny uniform ever made before or since.
BE found nothing in his pathway in Eu-
rope; he was accredited to Lord Wolseley, |
The actual Commander-in-Chief of the |
British Army, and was his guest at the an
lusl manoeuvres at Wimbledon. A per-
lonal friend Of mine saw him one day in
hill military rig, seated at the right hand
VI Lord Wolseiey, his most honored guest,
md heard afterwards compliment after |
compliment from English officers who adj
nired the correct knowledge, the modesty |
of this officer of the United States.
1t was great pity that he ever re- !
turned. Fortified as he was he might |
have remained in Europe for years, but he |
came back to his fate, which was, of |
course, discovery and exposure. Col. |
Bacon had nothing poetic in his nature. |
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