The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-11-09

WOfk Ql tHAb hluu. 1HtNC VIII bC nO letters quoted in it. should as soon think of throwing a log across the driveway up to my house as to ask my friends to travel over a corduroy road of letters in telling the story uf nv life. A M
 How far back does your memory go, Den. waliace@' l asked
 { "T'can remember things that happen- ed when was six years old. I was born in 1927. and this takes me back to -1s33. which Is quite long period. l have an excellent memory. and 1t seems as good now as it has ever been. Indeed. l am surprised to find how well I remember conversations and inci- dents. The most important ones seem to have been photographed on my brain. and can have them in their fullest detail'
 How Mexico Was Saved.
 T suppose your memoirs will con- tain much .unwritten history. general?'
 Yes, J had to do with some import- ant matters in the life of the nation, and with some things the real history of which is unknown. For Instance. ' was the agent of General Grant in giv- ing the Mexicans such assistance as enabled them to keep their country q republic. Louis Napoleon wanted to make it a monarchy. He was back ing Maximilian, and was in fair way to succeed. This was just at the close of the rebellion, when we were still in an unsettled condition, and did not dare risk a war with France. I was sent by General Grant without the knowledge of Secretary Seward, to consult with Gen. Juarez. the Mexican president, to see If we could mot in some way assist the republic. went to the Rio Grande and pushed my way through the country to Chihuahua, where I met Juarez. He waa in a bad way had but few troops and no arms and 1t looked as though Maximilian must stfcceed. We discussed the mat ter. and as a result he sent the govern or of Tamaulipas with me back to the United States and there in connection with Matias Romero. the Mexican Min lister to Washington. we bought about $5. 100000 worth of Winchester rifles, paid for them with Mexican govern ment bonds. We put these arms on a ship. and. in broaod daylight. started for New Orleans as our nominal port After a while we changed our course and made for the mouth of the Rio Grande. where we un.oaded the guns and passed them on to the Mexican troops. These guns changed the tide of victory. From that time on Prea- dent Juarez conouered. until finally he executed Maximilian at oueretaro.
 A story of the Telegraph. Before coming to Charlottesville attempted to call up General Wallace by telephone. but the pretty little was useless to try. She said that the general had no phone in his residence that he wouldn't have anything to dc with telephone messages and that he thought the system was a nuisance. | telephoned Charlottesville, nevertheless but succeeded only in finding that Gen. eral Wallace was in town. During my conversation with him the subjects of the telephone and telegraph came up and he told me low his father was in- strumental in making the first tele- graph line successful Said he:
 After Morse had invented the tele- graph he wanted Congress to appropri- ate $30. 900 to build a line from Wash experimental, no practical long dis tance test of the telegraph having been made. The matter created a great deal of discussion. Morse was sneer- ed at and jeered at, and many thought him insane. MS father was a member of Congress at that time, and he was one of the committee to which the question was referred. When the com mittee met my father was watching the experiment. oft telegraphing from the House to the Senate. Wires had been stretched and the inventors were operating the Instruments. My father saw them work; he sent messages and received replies. He saw that the in- ha aSxA hal ed that if words could De dispatched from the House to the Senate they could be sent from Washington to Bal- timore and if to Baltimore to any where. He was full of this thought when he went to his committee room and found the committee in session. They had just voted on the appropria- ton and their vote was tie. He cast his vote in it's favor and this caused the appropriation to go through. The result was the first telegraph line of the world.
 Strange to say that vote lost my father his seat in Congress" continued General Wallace. Thirty thousand vote became one of the issues of the next congressional campaign. Father was charged with wasting the peoples money, and his opponent ridiculed him on the stump by referring to his mag nctico, electrico, telegraphic appropria- ton which no one could explain He even asked father to explain 1t. but at that time he could not do so, although he said 1t would be of great beneflt to the country. The people thought diff ferently and the result was his defeat.
 Rob InEersOlI and "Ben HuF."
 The conversation here took a litera- " turn, and asked the General If there was any truth in the intimation that certain words of Robert G. Inger- soil had caused him to write Ben Hur"
 No" said he. Bob InEersoll had nothing to do with the beginning of Ben Hur.' but q talk had with him had considerable influence upon the story. may say 1t caused me to change the whole plan and nature of 1t. The talk occurred as we were go- ing home from the Cincinnati Con- vention. at which Bob lnSersoll had made his great speech nominating Blaine. one of the greatest speeches Of our history and of all time. Ingersoli and left Cincinnati on the same sleep ing car He had the drawing room. l was sitting talking with some men. when he came to the door in his night gown and said: Is that you General Wallace? Won't you come into my room; I want to talk
 q went to the door. and there stop ped. saying: I will come In, general. but only on one condition. and that Is that I am to fix the topic of conversa- tion."
 :" All right said InGersoli. What Is your text?"