Thibodaux minerva. [volume] (Thibodaux, La.) 18??-1858, 1855-10-27
A CA r D.
HouMA, Oct. 23d, 1S5;


reply. Very respectfully,
A. BEATTY
To the Editors ofhe Minerva: When there an
peared in your columns, u few weeks since. a
communication over the signature of In
PmuYe Diable. making insnuatons as to the
proprety of my conduct in certain private
transactions. and making enquiries relative
thereto. feeling no reproaches ofmy own con-
science for my conduct in the matter referred
to. did not consider it necessary to trouble
the public with any account of the matter.
In your last number, false and calum-
NOUS answer is given to the enquiries of
your former correspondent by Tn 4utre
Pmure D5abie. However repugnant it is to
my feelings therefore to enter upon any pub
lie discussion of my private business, think
it due to myself to give a history Of my specu-
lations in the Vacherie lands
In the summer Of 1852, [ learned that the
lands included in the Florian Survey were
subject to entry in the Land Office at Baton
Rouge. My brother and partner, J. q.
Beatty, who was the administrator of the
estate of the late Dr. Thos. NJ. Williams,
feared that the lands composing the planta-
ton of Williams Il Edmondson. which were
all held under the Florian title. would be
entered. The estate not having any money,
and being indebted to such an extent as to
be already continually threatened with being
sold out, it was impossible for the 4dminis-
traitor to enter the land for the estate, even
if he had had any authority to do so. Under
these circumstances, consented to enter the
land. made a trip to Baton Rouge for the
express purpose, entered so much of the
land as | supposed to cover the valuable part
of the plantation, and, on my return. offered
the land to Mr.. Perkins and his wife widow
of DR.. Williams) for the price it cost me, with
travelling expenses, not adding cent for my
time or trouble in the matter. They were
either unable or unwilling to raise the
money to Ipay for the land in cash, and |
then sold it to them on credit, adding an
amount for interest which was something
more than eight per cent, but considerably
less than would have been required to cash
the paper which l received in payment. In
this sale the interests of the minor heirs and
creditors of Williams 4 Edmondson were
secured.
after my return from my first trip to
Baton Rouge, Mr.. Louis Bush came to my
office with Mr.. Jourdan Savoie, who was
greatly troubled and alarmed by the reports
he had heard concerning the difficulty in the
Florian title. under which he claimed his
land in the Vacherie. Mr.. Bush came as the
friend of Mr. Savoie to consult with me as to
the best course for him to pursue. l advised
Mr.. Savoie to enter his land at once and pay
the trit1ing sum of one dollar and twenty-five
cents to render his title secure. Unfortu.
nately. however, the land was divided in an
entirely different manner in the government
surveys and the survey under which Mr.. Sal
vote had bought, and, consequently, he could
not enter the land covered by his own title
without entering a great deal more, which
he had not the means to do. We then told
NJ. Savoie that he and his neighbors who were
in the same position ought to join together
and enter the whole CT their land; for had
ascertained in my examination of the FloriaI
title that, far from having been recognized
by the Spanish and French Governments
and indirectly by our own, as I'm Autre Pau
ere Diable says knew was the case. that the
title, at least in the dimensions it had been
made to assume in the survey of it, was a
most stupendous fraud, and that those per-
sons who had purchased under the same had
been shamefully deceived, and had not even
a color of title, nor do | yet believe they
have any. except so far as aided by subse-
quent act of Congress. Mr. Savoie replied
that his neighbors absolutely refused to unite
with him in entering the lands, either because
they were confident of the validity of theil
titles. or because they were sufficiently
secured by the warranty of their vendors
Mr. Bush represented to me in very strong
terms the ruin that it would bring upon Mr.
Savoie Ga poor man with very large family
to lose his land. 1 then proposed to Mr..
Bush that if he would join me we should en-
ter together the land which covered Mr.. Sd
votes title, together with considerable
amount of land adjoining the same. Mr..
Bush assented to the proposition, and the
land was entered in my name. not because
Mr. Bush was ashamed of the transaction, but
because in his name it would have been sub
jected to q tacit mortgage, which we desired
to avoid. Mr. Savoie paid us for his land one
hundred and twenty dollars, and our obliga-
ton to him was expressed in the following
words, which l copy from a countcr-letter
drawn up by ME Immediately after the land
was entered: 'Jourdan Savoie is entitled to
as much of the land as is covered by the pre-
sent title. paying for the same the price we
have paid, one dollar and twenty-five cents
per acre. and the expenses of the trip to
Baton Rouge, amounting to twenty-eight
dollars, and paying eight per cent. interest
on any balance due by him. He has already
paid on account of same one hundred und
twenty dollars"
Besides the lands entered by me jointly
with Mr.. Bush, l also entered others in
which he was not interested, in the rear of P.
Lefebre, and which We're, l believe, claimed
by him.
after these entries were made. number
of small proprietors in the Vacherie applied
either to Mr.. Bush OF to myself, and we in
formed them, without exception, that they
should have the land covered by their res
pective titles for what it cost us. Among
those to whom these promises We're made,
were Messrs I. Auguste Ledet, SEVERN
Forest and Marcelin SEWN. Victor Richard,
for his father, V. Richard, ST., actually paid
the money for tract which his father had
owned and sold. The arrangements with the
other parties were not completed because it
was not known how much of their lands were
included in the entrissmade by us.
When abandoned my entries made on
these lands, in consequence of subsequent
confirmation of the Floran title by an act of
Congress. refunded to Mcssrs. Savoie and
Richard the amounts paid by thenn3respect-
lively, after deducting the proportion of costs
of making and Withdrawing the entries, not
charging the expenses of the trip to Baton
Rouge to Mr.. Sayoie, as our bargain author
lied me to do.
Ihaye given, fear, very tedious &C
count Of a matter which does not, in any
manner, concern the public; but, at least, il
has the merit of being true-an assertion
which | am bold enough to believe, will be
credited by all my fellow-eitizens who know
me, even though it come in conflict with the
publications of anonymous Poor Devils and
the oral SANDERS Of the very nersans for