New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-12-13
Lafayette,s Watch.


Lafayette's Watch.
Many men have the foible of running
fixed ideas to earth. Some arb insane on
postage stamps. Some 60 for old china.
George Selwyn was not happy unless he
witnessed every execution that took place.
Your correspondents failing is to play anna
teur detective. In consequence I have to
relate the singular adventures which fol-
low, all OF which lbarriDg some few changes
Of name and locality are strictly true.
On Friday, nineteenth June last, my ven
cradle friend, Sam Hooper, OF Massachu.
sets, introduced into the House of Repre-
sentatives q Joint resolution Unanimously
passed) appropriating $500 for the purchase
and restoration to the family of the Marquis
de Lafayette OF the watch presented to him
by General Washington. and lost by Cen
eral Lafayette during his last visit to this
was statement that the watch was in pos
session Of John K. Ward, ESQ. of Texas,
who had purchased it four years ago at q
pawnbroker's sale in Louisville for the sum
of SIS. 1t bears the inscription, &c. Wash
ton to Gilbert Mothers de Lafayette, Lord
Corvallis capitalization, Yorktown, October
II. HSl." The watch is Of the shape known
as "bull's eye" which was the fashion at
that period, and is heavily double -cased with
gold Of high purity. The exterior case
is orpamen ed with classic devices in high
relief; an armed and helmeted warrior pre-
sents q crown to q thrOned female. The
watch bears the name Of the maker, re.
Halifax, London, 1862" According to the
statement OF General Rogers. of Tennessee,
who was commander of the body guard of
General Lafayette during his visit to Nash
vile, in 1926, this watch was stolen from
its owner 1T that time and its fate unknown,
although large reward was offered for its
return, until it turned up in the way above
described" This statement 10 v0uched for
BY Congressman Horace Maynard IS being
historically true; the genuineness of the
relic was vouched for by the treasury ex-
perts. the only doubt being created by the
incorrect spelling of Lsfsyette's patronym-
ic, "Motier"-doubt quickly dispelled by
Messre. G. F. Hoar and Garfield. who said
that WashingtOn's OrthOgraphy was none
of the best, and that even Ben Franklin
used to spell soap Scope
I had no sooner read the account of this
in the Congressional Record than ! was
seized with an irresistible desire to discover
the history Of the watch from the time it
was stolen, fully persuaded that quite rO-
nance awaited me. After the adjournment
Of Congress proceeded to accomplish my
purpose. The first thing to do was to get
temporary possession of the watch, which
was in the custody of the State Department.
I found that it would require me to get
through more red tape than could un.
tangle in a year to reach it by regular APP
proacbes; and, a. ! only wanted it for a
week, determined to cut the GOrdian knot.
But it is a secret too dead to reveal even to
the World how, by an ingenious combiDa.
ton Of hugger-mugger, influence" and
trick, at last found the venerable jewel in
my hands. Venerable, indeed! 1t had rested
- 81; f>I> h ors-
gastriuln, in those sulphur cOlOred breeches,
with all his beloved seals dangling below it.
1t had been preserved by Lafayette through
all the trials and perils of the French revO-
luton. Even the jailers of Olmutz had
spared ito be cabbaged at last by
vulgar Nashville thief! But was it taken
by any vulgar theft was determined to
settle that question at once.
But how! Tenne ssee had risen in 1925 in
pursuit Of the sacr;legious thief and failed
to catch him. Rewards had been lavishly
offered-all in vain. What could an anna.
teur detective do fifty years later7 1t was
easy to find John K. Ward. Esq, of Texas,
and through him the Louisville pawnbroker;
but how much nearer would that bring me
to the thief of two generations backi Not
a step. knew an old German wizard in
Baltimore with remarkable happy knack
of revealing the hiding places of stolen
QOOO5 IOE b COUSIO0E6SAOu. Ou6 NuC
goods were IN hand, and it was the thief l
wanted; and it was part of the business of
finders of stolen goods to give immunity to
thieves-and share the swag with them.
In short. the business was very cOmpli-
Gated, yet, as I proposed to deal with it, as
simple az could bee In short, was per-
suaded that by resorting to the processes of
modern thaumaturgy, could easily make
a dark way plain, Onne ig''ot"m pro mir
g. Ind Ano1 in vxyith
clairvOya ants, the spiritists, the mediums,
but had read much of their wonders, and
was prepared to believe that all had to
do was to consult q genuine clairvOyant
medium in q state OF ecstasis to get clear
and graphic retrOvisiOn over all the events
which was seeking to bring to light. 1t
was for this end that obtained temporary
possession of the watch.
Now began bootless perquisitlon among
the "test" mediums as they call themselves,
probably ON the principle of lncus a non
lucendO, because they will not bear testing.
DIR. Gregory, in his credulOus book on IAN.
imal Magnetism" relates that ring was
given to one Alexis, medium of this sort,
when he at once identified it a. having be-
longed to Mary Queen of Scots Whose his
tory that medium was wholly ignorant of),
and as having been given to Rizzio, whose
murder was graphically described. This
was UEcCl6cly VUO bOIV "a uOO1uW was IA
search of, but have not yet found. This
was not my fault either, for have consult
ed all the best Spiritualist and clairvoyant
authorities in this city, New York, Boston
and Chicago. What got was mere empti
nese, coupled indeed with some appearance
of plausibility, such 40 might deceive
q credulous or an ine1pert person.
All the mediums gave me voluble
descriptions of the thief, which took
-;t nn of noatn
and satisfaction. The trouble was, NO two
descriptions Tailed in any essential particu.
lar, and it was hardly possible that this
number of various individuals, old and
young, male aud female, rich and poor,
handsome and ugly. toll and short. fair and
dark, had cOnspired for the larceny of one
poor watch. Some of the clairvoyants who
had read the legend on the watch gave me
fluent descriptions of scenes in Lafayettes
life, such as they had read about. Two or
three indicated, but very family, q slender
faculty of thought reading. by seeming to
anticipate in outline some of my own hazy
conjectures in regard to the theft. But
beyond these things, and an Oracular
sOlemnity and infinity Of assurance common
to all the trade, none of them went, and,
after full trial, gave up the medium busi-
ness in disgust, returned the watch to the
department, and sought another way Of en-
trance into the secret.
wrote to Mr.. John X. Ward, of Texas.
for information in regard to the pawnbroker
at whose sale he had bought the relic, and.
pending the receipt of this, paid q brief
visit to Nashville, and examined the records.
newspaper files, ETC., contemporary with
the event. found . good many of the cir.
cumstances set forth in the proclaim alton of
the mayer Of Nashville, Offering q reward
for the recovery of the watch. General
RnnePa Ehn 1~1 a.