The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1893-03-03
BLAINEANDC ONKIlINGs
THE NEW YORK Ex-sENAToR's sro-
RY OF THE LIFELONG FEUD.

American History.
Colonel Edward Gebhard, lawyer in
the Mutual Life Insurance building, said
that he thought the true reason for the
bitter feeling between Roscoe Conkling
md james q. Blaine had never been
printed. He said that during Mr.. Conlz
ling's life in New York city no frequently
met the great Republican statesman
from Utica, and on several occasions
they talked about his difference with Mr.
Blaine. Colonel Gebhard said:
"Conklng used to come up to see me-
We were intimate friends, and one after
noon told him that would like to get
at the bottom of the estrangcn1ent be-
tween Mr.. Blaine and himself. I~told
Mr. Conkling that it seemed to me alb
surd that man who had been lawyer
all his life, and IL public man, should
have taken offenso at Mr. Blaine's speech
calling him turkey gobbler etc. 1t
was something could not comprehend
Mr.. Conkling replied: 1T is just rs alb
surd to me TO take it that way as it is to
YOU You know have practiccd law
all my life. If lawyers permitted tho
aninosities of public trials to warp their
sensiblities, we would he in a fight with
all the world. The truo cause of the
quarrel between Mr. Bluine and myself
is that Mr.. Blaine took an unfair adyan-
tage of me in the house Of representa-
tivcs to reflect upon my personal intcg-
rity.
I'm the discussion growing out of tho
disseminating of the Office Of provost
marshal general Mr. Blaino rose to a
question of personal privilege. Mr..
Conkling told me that he did not nav
much attention to Mr.. Baincs speech
until he heard his name mentioned.
Then. after listening. he found Blaine
was making II personal assault, foreign
to the matter OF personal privilege and
alien to the subject under discussion
Conkling said no listened, and the more
he listened tho more he was amazed, and
then he became angry Conkling said
that he so lost control of himself under
the impulse of tho momont that he went
10 his friend. Thad Stevens. and said:
Mr.. Stevens. you havo heard what
Mr.. Blaine has just said. What shall
dol The question of personal privilege
Mr.. Blaine used was personal attack
upon my integrity. He has character
lied ME rs man who has accepted en-
ploymcnt from the government while
was member of congress, and while in
that employment had received fees paid
10 me by Secretary Stanton. and that tho
fees embraced pay for services which
had been illegally rendered by me to the
government Ct The United States in do
ing some work in the western part Of lilo
state This work included the investi-
CATION of certain bounty frauds which
had taken place in Elmira, and the sec
rotary came to me and employed me to
get mt the root Of the trouble. devoted
great deal of time to the business, and
the upshot was that the government re.
covered, through my efforts, many thou
sands of dollars Upon my return to
Washington Secretary Stanton sent for
ME and offered $4,000 in payment for
my services, which refused to accent.
said 10 him ut that time that if was
TO receive anything preferred to ar
range the price myself, and at all events
would not accept such Il sum.
Pending the discussion between Sec
rotary Stanton and myself | went 10
Utica and talked over the matter with
Governor Seymour and Judge DEMO,
chief judge OF the court of appeals, both
democrats. | told them that did not
want 10 take step which could ho used
against me in any way. did not want
to make show OF purity that would be
ridiculous, and did not care about ac-
cepting Il fec that might be questioned
On my return to Washington the check
of Secretary Stanton was reduced to
$1,000. Even then was timid abotitac-
ceptiug it, but Stanton said: by God.
know what services arc worth have
been Il lawyer all my life, and this money
you have got TO take" did take the
money. felt that hal earned 1t, and
when Mr. Blaine referred TO this in the
house felt that he had taken IL mean adj
vantage. and determined never to spea.:
TO him again,
Mr. Conkling told me-" continued Mr..
Gcbhard. that Alr. Stevens said to him,
Ill attend 10 this for you. Mr.. Conl,ling,
and will call for IL committee Of inquiry"
y committee was appointed for the
purpose OF investigating and reporting.
and when it became evident that the re-
port OF the committee would entirely
exonerate Mr.. Conkling from the alleged
irregularities, then it was that he recog-
nized the fine hand of Mr.. Blaine or his
friends in the successful attempt to frus-
tratc the purposes for which the com
mittee was appointed
Mr.. Conlling told me that he never
spoke to Mr.. Blaine from that time: that
all the charges that Blaine had brought
against him were groundless. That is
the cause for my feeling against Mr..