. Civil War echoes : character sketches and state secrets . l attainments. At the time of thiscall of Mr. Blaine, there was pending before that commit-tee, referred to it by the Senate, a bill to aid Gen. JohnC. Fremont and others in the construction of a railroad bya corporation bearing the high sounding title of TheMemphis, El Paso, Transcontinental, Pacific Railway Com-pany, of which that gentleman was leading , his secretary, named LEspignol, and the formersbrother-in-law, had almost flooded the small moneyedclasses in Paris, France, with circulars, pamphlets, andmaps,
. Civil War echoes : character sketches and state secrets . l attainments. At the time of thiscall of Mr. Blaine, there was pending before that commit-tee, referred to it by the Senate, a bill to aid Gen. JohnC. Fremont and others in the construction of a railroad bya corporation bearing the high sounding title of TheMemphis, El Paso, Transcontinental, Pacific Railway Com-pany, of which that gentleman was leading , his secretary, named LEspignol, and the formersbrother-in-law, had almost flooded the small moneyedclasses in Paris, France, with circulars, pamphlets, andmaps, outrageously distorting the physical geography ofthe United States to serve their purposes and setting forthgrossly untruthful statements, and had received thousandsof dollars for bonds utterly worthless, as they were basedupon a railroad not yet in existence, but wholly inexpectancy! Minister Elihu B. Washburne, at Paris, had sent myfather copies of all these documents, and had also writtenfull particulars of the swindling operations of these gentle- 224. U. S. SENATOR WILLIAM SPRAGUE, RHODE IStANJJEX-GOVERNOR OF RHODE ISLAND i6 Civil-war Echoes — Character men. General Fremonts brother-in-law was imprisonedfor his share in the cheat. Fremont and his secretary hadmade a hasty retreat to this country and were now beforeCongress with the bill mentioned. My father had openly stated his opposition to the bill,and it was well-known he would deliver a speech in theSenate against it. This was the cause of Speaker Blainesurgent call that night upon him. He plead and urged agreat many reasons why my father should withdraw hisopposition—in the interest of the Republican party—andall this in the face of the terrible exposure which was givenfrom Washbumes letters, etc. Mr. Blaine was possessedof great persuasive powers and poHtical astuteness, but hisattempts to seduce my father by argument or indirectpromises of political preferment were, of course, in finally took his leav
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