The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1854-03-13

which was set down as ss7 4os The prizes to be
distributed a hundred thousand tickets at q
dollar each disposed Of Each Of these tickets
titled the holder to four admissions besides chance in
Ia gronde otie There was indeed instance of une-
qraled devotion to the interests Of art and benevo-
lence worthy of the great phanhropst Of the Tbane
himself Only think Of it. The sale Of the tickets could
at best realize but hundred thousand dollars and vet
with lberality which knew bounds the unsel6sh
hibor agreed to present to hi patrons, might bet
ter say his pr9e gifts worth in the aggregate s97 800
At this rate he would have disseminated vigor into
the artistic tastes of the people, admitted each ticket
holder TO four representations paid rent for his exhibit
tai and would be content with tie modcum of 50 500
gross profit Could Horace Greeley, with his brain pro-
life OF philanthropc schemes devise or carry out such
noble and magnificent one thisY
The effect electrical There spring up into instant
fe by the magic of this SPELL unparalleled taste for
the arts dry goods clerks became connoisseurs Of
paintings and devoted twenty per cent of their
weeks salary to buy Perham ticket sewing girls and
bookfoders generously came forward with their dollar
saved with much pains and scrapng out OF their pance
Orders for and hundreds Of tickets flowed in from
the factory operatives in Connecticut and
who could not enjoy the pleasure of seeing the great
panorama themselves but nevertheless inspired to
foster and encourage art Even the policemen, who
might be thought to be impossible to such warm emo
tions they dedicated of the ten twelve dol
lars OF their hebdomadal hire to help along this great
project. Never was seen so marvellous q change. The
room in the Stuyvesant overcrowded nightly by ad
mring lovers of painted picturesque, and longer
had Mr. Perham any to complain of lack OF patron
age. A strange popularity, however, about this
confined to the work of art. In vain did the
Of the Thames panorama advertise for months
admission one half The pilgrims to Palestine and the
Holy Land we're unusually few and rare notwithsand
ing the that the Chapel of the Conception
added to that splendid picture And the result was
that all the opposition pictures departed pro-
essona tours through the rural districts Perham was
entirely successful lie had achieved splendid triumph
had received something like hundred thousands dol
lars in the space Of few months and now he was about
to fulfil his contract with the public
At ~
tested Mass meetings of the shareholders held in
Metropolitan Hall and in Castle Garden, to devise means
for the taking possession of the property and for the
citement took place at these reunions committee of
citizens from various States appointed the 10th
of November of which Mr. Ira Buchanan, Junr., was
chairman and finally after several rowdyish and dsorery
mass meetings the committee was authorized on the
Both December TO make such distribution of the gift
perty would in their opinion be satisfactory to the
joint owners Of the property 1t then apparently
for the first time discovered that the whole scheme
in open violation of the laws of the State Of New York
and nasmuch such ridiculous statute against ganb-
ling and lotteries not in force in the District of Co
lumba, the committee came on to Washington to estab-
sh their mammoth gambling concern and swamp OIL the
minor gambling houses that exist and flourish in the
pital They found, however, some difficulty in the mat
ter probably not knowing how manage the ropes pro-
pery and SO they had to migrate to the little town
city of Georgetown-now of the suburbs of Wash
ingtOn-and there they set up business in dingy
rooms of building known Forrest Hail. in honor,
believe of great tragedian. Once established here,
the next thing to arrange to mpart public con-
ndence IN the mOde oil distrlDutlon Inc pan tney
adopted was very fair one apparently 1t was ths-A
number Of cards were printed uniform IN sze on Which
was printed
The entitled to receive engraving pencil
hat Gas the may BEL by presenting this order at
IRA BUCHANAN, JR., Chairman.
ROBERT BEATTY, Jr., Secretary
These cards next placed in small brown self seal
ing envelopes also uniform in size and texture and the
whole having been mixed up Unfortunately, in pre-
of influential citizens of Georgetown and
Washington they were numbered from one to one hun
dred thousand. The envelope corresponding in number
to the ticket presented is the prize to which the owner
is entitled This plan appears very fair but noticed as
somewhat suspicious circumstance that out OF four en-
veopes which your correspondent drew for some friends
two of them were REMEMBERED the original numbers
being defaced with stroke Of pen The distribution
commenced Friday, the oath of Februarytwo of the
committee James s. Shirley and A. c. Meeker-beng
charged with the superintendent Of this portion OF their
duty There six persons employed in sorting
the numbers and finding those corresponding to the
tickets presented they have beds in the and stay
there night and day. The morning that caed-two or
three days ago-they had not probably distributed five
thousand it necessarily takes much time to find the
numbers. Only two persons are admitted at the same
time and those who may be in waiting kept standing
in open hall for hours at time, perhaps. Among
group whom found situated one had one hundred
and nine tickets another sixty and another forty
which he levied commission Of fifty per cent Cute
chap that He cut out for his profession and should
pei nanently locate himself here. Out Of the hundred
thousand prizes virtually ninety -four thou
send blanks there being that number Of engrayngs and
Handbooks Of the Panoram-the former not worth five
cents the latter much waste paper Of course fol-
lows that of the drafts are blanks
told Of who presented tickets
and drew seventy -four handbooks and one pencil case
worth twenty five cents.
The Perham gift lottery has been of the most mag
carried out in New York, not even excepting the
American Art Union suboin the various przes
with their estimated ami real value, from which you will
that Mr. Perham has amassed pretty nice fortune
hy