The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1874-04-10
THE STATE.HOUSE JOB.
Sale Of the st. Louis Hotel for a State
Capitol
Tho Ring, and Who Compose It

Tho Ring. and Who Compose It
The agony is over, the money is up,
and Louisiana may as Well he regarded
as having Il Copital Mt last.
There have been numerous schemes,
and ring after ring has been formed,
only to break and defeat the bright
dreams of the members, to ruthlessIy
shatter their air castles, and cause
| them to Gnash their teeth in thinking
of what "might have BEEN" There
! was the ring in which Il very wealthy
gentleman from Rhode Island figured
extensively as the purchaser of that
magnificent iron structure, the Marine
Hospital, and in which Warmoth,
Bloomer ct ais. were thought to be large
links. 1t was thought that there was
money enough in that combination to
carry through anything. But alas !
their hopes, like those OF their preCe-
cessors withered, and when they read
this, will die utterly i'm their breasts.
We venture to assert that no large
scheme was ever conducted with more
secrecy, and the astonishing part of the
programme is that no one should have
discovered the plan of action before it
was developed, especially when it re-
quired Il legislative enactment to sue
cessfully carry out the scheme.
But to explain. Not long since there
was formed in this city corporation
under the name and style of the New
Orleans Building Association, the pres
ident of which company is Senator
Benhanl, and the directors the follow
ing Kellogg Legislators: Devices, NIath-
ews and Wands. The capital of this
company was fixed at $500 200, and the
purposes for which it was formed us
comprehensive as possible.
In the "General Appropriation Bill"
passed at the last session of the Legisla-
ture, we find the following section:
"Appropriation to pay rent of all
public buildings, S3S 200, to be paid out
on the warrant of the Governor, Lieu
tenant Governor and Speaker of tho
House of Representatives. or a majority
of the same, who are hereby constituted
Il board on public buildings, with full
and extensive au uthority to lease, in the
name of the State, such public building
or buildings, for all the various execu-
tive departments and for the General
Assembly, for an annual rental not to
exceed $4,000, and for period not
exceeding twenty years; said building
or buildings to be exempt from State
and parish taxes while occupied as Il
State House,
Now this is very suggestive, and
when VIC learn that the New Orleans
Building Association has purchased the
st. Louis Hotel on the strength of that
section, then the cat which had hither-
to eIuded our optics, springs clear out
Of the bag, and the scheme stands re-
vealed with burst of sunlight upon
it, that brings into unpleasant promi-
nence its worst features.
The price paid for the hotel to John
G. Gaines, President of the Citizens
Bank, which institution hold mort
gage on the property, was one hundred
and twenty-five thousand dollars
twenty-five Thousand of which has
already been paid down, and the bal
ance to be paid in annual installmcnts
of 500, 1000 ut per cent. interest.
The Board appointed by the act
quoted above, have acted in unison
with the parties composing the build
ing association and have entered into
an agreement to rent the building for Il
State House at $4,000 per annum for
five years, at the end of which time it
will either be bought outright by the
State or be otherwise disposed of. Five
years, at $4,000 per annum, aggrc-
gates the handsome sum of $3.50 900, or
profit of $125,0o0 cash, besides the
ownership of the building.
Quite a neat little transaction, and
soo's doubt it puts money into the
pockets of not only several impccuni-
Gus members of the Legislature, but,
as rumor asserts, into the pockets of
some of the highest State officials, and
into the Golfers of a prominent banker,
who is one Of the ring.
The board appointed by the act is
composed of Kellogg, Antoine and
Lowell, and these worthless have, past
all doubt, been parties to the transac-
ton, and, while we do not assert that
they share in the plunder, we do assert,
most cmphatically, that ii looks very
much like it.-.N. o. Bn/etiU.
THE HINGE OF TIE UNIVERSE.