The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1893-01-28
RLAINN REAIINIsoENoEs.

end was very close at hand,
BLAINE "REMINISCENCES.
How he was Esteemed by His Contempt,
rnTies-The Beginning OF Ills War With
conklIng,
wAsuiNe4oN, D. o., jan, a7,-Ehe
death Of Mr.. Blaine occasioned great re-
greet among tho memhers Of tho diplo-
matte corps, and they will probably at'
tend the funeral in body,
There are but seven OF those who
served with Mr.. Blaine in tho senate re-
naming ID the body where he served 30
honorably and so well, They are SEN
ators Allison, CockTell, Dawes, Gordon,
Mitchell. Morrill, and Ransem, four Re-
publicans and three Democrats.
The acquaintance OF Mr.. Frye, the
senior Maine senator, with MIR, Blaine
was OF very long standing, Said he;
" think hswas tho most brilliant man
lever knew. He had most brilliant
capacity forgiying 1t out at q timely
moment, He was o very remarkable
Fconversationalist and was rather fond
Of it, Indeed his powers were not
: fully shown in his set speeches, and he
was q much moro dangerous foe in q
running debate. / do not think he
himself ever iancied making what is
known us speech, On the stump
nothing pleased him better than inter-
ruptions, and he was wonderfully ettec-
tive in his replies.
The raVages OF time or the vicisal-
tudes OF political lie are strongly accen-
tuated by tho fact that in q house COM
posed Of members, to-day there are
but IL members who served in the
house with Mr., Blaine in the 44th or
prior Congresses. These IRE Holman,
O'Neill, (Penna,,) Harmer Hooker,
BLount, Burrows, Springer, Forney,
Culberson, Bland, Henderson, (llllnols)
and KetGham.
The older members OF tho house have
fund Of "reminiscences Of the dead
statesman. They refer to the memor.
able fight against the first force bill
which was led by Mr.. Randall, OF Penn.
sylYania, and which endeared that
statesman TO his Democratic friends,
But in that fight, says the Republican
father Of tho house Mr.. O'Neill, OF
Pennsylvania, Mr.. Randaii's efforts
would not have been crowned with sue
cess had it not been for Mr.. Blaine.
1t was then when the Republican ma
jority was large, and filibustering by
the Democrats rampant. that Speaker
Blaine quoted the old provorb that
''you may lead a horse TO water, but
you can not make him drink"
Said one OF the old stenographors OF
the house: Mr.. Blaines career in the
house was marked by many exciting
episodes. He tirst came into promi-
hence through an angry alteration be-
tween himself and MIR. Roscoe Conk-
ling, thon q member OF the house from
Utica, N. Y. 1t was in the war period
and Mr.. Blaine made bitter attack
upon Mr. Copkling for having charged
the government with fees as judge
advocate while he was drawing pay as n
member OF Congress. Mr.. Conkling
repealed the attack and INDUCED III
some severe criticisms OF his antagonist,
who in reply spoke derisively OF Mr..
Conkling's magnificent turkey gobbler
strut The incident excited great
public attention at tho time and helped
to bring both actors in it into that
prominence (which they both enjoyed
during the remainder OF their lives.
"A gentleman who was intimately MS.
ISOLATED with Mr.. Blaine said: At -
o'clock OF the day Mr. Blaine's reaigna.
ton was given out he had no intention
ofresigning from the cabinet. At that
hour he went home and found that
some one had marked number OF in
terviews which had been autographed
from Minneapolis and printed in sever.
al papers. They accused Mr.. Blaine
with betraying the President and with
using his place in the cabinet as cover
for a conspiracy to defeat tho President
and secure the nomination. The inter-
views wound up by declaring that il
Mr.. Blaine was an honorable man he
would have resigned from the cabinet.
"Under the heat OF indignation over
these interviews, Mr. Blaine wrote his
resignation and he has since told his
friends that there were never but two
occasions Of difference between himself
and the President, and that they had
been fully explained and satisfactorily
settled"