The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1874-08-02
"What money is it, OF. was it?" asked

What money is it, or. was it?'' aske
"Tm going to tell you, answered t
and it is a remarkable instance of the har'
fortune of war that seemed to pursue the Con
federacy thr ughout. You recollect the ster
ling cotton loan We made during the last yea
OF the war the loan by which GU Enghsl
brethren were made so sick? That money wa
raised to pay for ironclads, you know. Tn
gunboats were built-the Stonewall was on
Of them nGtdeliyersdd DlrioEacs KEEP
us from &c ting to sea with the Engllsh-bul
ones, and was thought the same reason KEEP
the French built steamers from going to sea
but that is not exactly the fact We would
have succeeded in getting them out If they
bad been fully paid tor. We made what We
thought were ample arrang ments for com
pleting the payments but they failed through
our persistent bad luck. For instance, tax
the case Of these very certificates. 1t was
necessary tor us to use all sorts OF precautions
IN buying this sort of goods to protect the
parties We dealt with, Tor we knew the Var
KEGS would throw every mothers son OF them
into court. Hence the money was deposited
in various banks in the names Of private per
sons, but so that it could not be drawn unless
| the certificates We're Endorsed i'll a particular
way. Thi, is deposit you see, OF Gunter's
money payable to Brown on certain terms :
IN other words, it is Confederate drafts sent
ont by express messenger and payable when
indor,ed by the agent to whom sent The
, agent must indorse it in particular way, and
would not do so unless the messenger brought
certain credentials. This system Of checks
and balances was necessary for our financial
security, but in this case and several Others
like I, was fatal to our plans.
1.-The messenger to whom this particular
br Was intrusted young Ricaud, | remember
the very morning sent him-was instructed
to 60 to Wilmington. cross to Bermuda in the
block ide runner Fannie, sail thence tor Lon
don, report to an age there, and from him
get further orders. Ricaud, instead OF goin,
ON the Fam e, took another steamer, 'tre Gan
net, for Nassau. The Garnet WAS captured,
Ric uds dispatch box went to feed the sharks,
and kicaud himself to rushcate ut johnson
ISLAM Meantime we, who knew OF the Fam
MES safe vayage, were conSratulatlnS our
selves that our agent was on the road tc Bor
deaux, and we did not discover the truth until
it was too late to provide remedy. This sor,
of thing happened several times, and oul
French gunboats never got to sea.
.'Then these Bourdalese still have our
money!" said Col E..
s'Tnat remains to be seen. | was just com
ing to that point. This par icullr deposit has
never DGeu Cu6cktu oul-OI tuut ALI sure. IL
vas quite forgotten. Ricaud never got South
again till June. 1856 and then his story was
only partly credited But whether Animas
Freres will pay the money or not is quite
another matter, and depends upon variety
Of circumstances which it is useless to specu-
late about. As l said want our young friend
here to try, and hope he will succeed"
So saying, MIR. T. took pen and paper
and wrote hurriedly. Here said he, rs
check for $500. You must look upon it a.
your reward for restoring to me those danger
Gus papers. 1t will pay your expenses to Bor-
deaux and back; so, If you gain nothing, you
will lose nothing. | have Endorsed these CIR
tifcates with my own name. Take them and
this note to London, to Mr.. b. He will
tell you what further can be done, if anything.
Do not expe t much, but at least try-fortune
may favor you, and am sure you deserve It,
1t seem indeed as if s. H good for
tune had begun. Taking leave Of his friends,
he came over to London, found Mr.. and
made such friend OF that gentleman that he
undertook personally to look after the matter
which Mr. r had recommended to him.
The ex-agent, whose Endorsement was needed,
at the time to be i'll Nice, and Mr..
b went thither with H and secured
the requisite signatures Then he accompa-
med him to Bourdeaux. Alas fer the best laid
schemes OF mice and men! The firm OF X.
Animas Freres was bankrupt, and all their as
sets and affairs in the hands Of the syndic.
The elder brother OF the firm was dead, and
there was but little hope Of getting anything
out of the surviving brother, who indeed did
not bear the best OF names
Mr. B looked pensive, but told
H not to despair. ''If he's an homes,
man, we won't get a cent, OF course; but, rs
he seems to be a slippery fellow there's d
chance for it yet" He called on the sy di-
cate, consulted a notary or two in town. and
then sc NJ. Animas a message to call upon
him that night at his hotel. M. Animas
came-a sallow, little Gascon, with purple
gllls and an uneasy eye. He denied every-
thing OF cours, and said that anyhow he
was tot lily insolvent-couldn pay 10 .:entimes
in the hundred.
Exactly" said Mr.. B. "Your
debts amo mt to 5000, 600 ancs. You have
given in assets to the amount of $4,000
francs You still have in your possession the
sum of 100000 francs, property OF tn late
Confederacy, Brown, Gunter, and all that
firm. This money you have not returned to
the syndic as part of your assets, but are try
ing to hide away. Now, NJ. Animas, it is a
question Of arithmetic between us. My |
Young friend here has legitimate checks for
s96, 900 francs, which he is entitled to, and
wants. You will pay him, or else you will
prepare to-mor ow to pay the syndic the
hree millions you are concealing. and stand
trial for fraud best es.
Mr.. Animns turned green. but he paid the
money, and that is how S. O.
Il got rich.
The New York Tribune remarks that one
orm Of oyertrading" which helped to pro-