The Cairo bulletin., 1912-09-18

military skll, but 'H0f'1o eon"Af
most amazing
capacity fer making trouble. The
soldier was Thomas Conway. British
| subject. who had lived since early
childhood In France. There he had
joined the army and risen to colo
nelcy. When he came here he was
ioyfully received The RevolstiSnists
lacked expert oaicers and they made
| him brigadier-generM.
The mans boasts and his dashing
ways impressed the simpler states
men. But George Washington read him
at a glance, for windy, vicious In
| cSapeteB.
/ So when congress decided a little
later TO make Sonway major gen
sral the chief stera1y opposed such a
1 promotion and gave his reasons for
! dsiag SO. f'roEl that moment Conway
was WashngtoAs sworn FOE. One
active mischief-makeg can sometimes
I work more laym than dozen wise
! Een can undo. Conway at once join
| ed Washhston's ospo1anss IN con-
g.ess and the army, and started a
| campaign for the chiefs ov1tbrow.
He and his associates formed what
was known as ths Conway Cabal,"
! and did all in their power to under
! mine Washington's iRdueace. In Sc
J ries of Anonymous letters Conway rid
iculed the chief as a coward and as
too feeble of mhsd as leader He
I suggested Gen. Horatio Gates as COM
| mander-iR-chief in Washingtca's place.
| Not only did Conway and his friends
| win Gates over to this scheme. but
| they induced several prominent con-
81 esgmen to lend their Influence to
| Il q laovem e41t t46.
II was the Eoyolaticn's dark hsur.
| Ne@ York and Philadelphia were in
the han1s Of the British. Washing
| ton and his army were starving and
| freezing at Valley Forge after sum
| Mems hearts grew faint and their al
| legiaaoe weakened Conway's crafty
words at such a moment fell on ready
I ears. ..s
The cabal waxed strong But for a
mere accident 1t might readily have
| ended by deTiving washington Of
power and of placing ths command of
the patriot armies in TIE hands of Gen.
Gates. And with fussy, Inefficient,
cowGrdly old Gates at the head of the
American troops American liberty
would have been doomed. Here In
brief, is the story of the accident that
saved our country: "..' -'
Gates aid; Wilkinson, drank too
much one night and babbled to a friend
Of the chief some OF the contents of
letter from Conway to Oates in
which Conway had spoken insultingly
| Of Washington. The story was told to
Washington, who called Conway to ae-
| count. Conway rushed to Gates for
aid, and Gates tried to get out of the
difficulty by branding Wilkinson as a
liar.
| Wilkinson promptly challenged
Gates to duel. Gates wept on VIII
kinscns shoulder and implored him
to withdraw the challenge, speaking Of
| himself as a feeble old man who loved
Wilkinson like a father In this way
the frightened old general wriggled
out Of fighting.
Meantime, thanks to the first hint,
Washington learned Of all Conway s
anonymous letters and other treaeher.
les. The facts we're made known to
the people. The cabal was crushed I'M
der storm OF pubhs disapprova1.
But Conway was not to escape so
easily. He was challenged TO duel
by Washington's friend, Gen. Cadwal-
lader, who proceeded to shoot him
! through the mouth.
Conway, believing himself dying,
wrote ons, more letter. rhis time to
Washington, asking forgiveness for
his villainies and declaring the chief
to be a great and good man" Then
he "condltionally'' resigned his COM
4 mission as an officer in the American
I service. Congress accepted the res.
ignatioH, uncondidonaHg. and Conway
| went back to France.
There he styled himself "Ceunt de
\ Conway" aad managed to win an as.
psintment as governor of one Of
]. Frances Oriental provinces. He made
such mess of his diplomatic work
In his province of the Orient that he
almost wrecked the French interests
there. He returned to France and be-
came general in the royal armies.
During the French Revolution he
was condemned to death. He was
saved only by an appeal to Great Brit
/ ain against Which he hadefought, in
! the American Revolution), .ssbut Ms
compelled to fee from France for his
/ life. as
After that Conway disappeared from
history. He is supposed to have died
! about 1900 In poverty and exile.
4