Smyrna times., 1874-10-14
MiSc eILUU e OWS .
A Millionaire Pauper.

| New ORLEANS, Sept. 3O.-Outside Of poll |
| ties the sensation In New O Oleans just now is |
the case Of the old octoroon Francois Lacroix, |
last week millionaire, to day frendless beg
gar, sold out for taxes which he could but
would not pay. H. was the owner of proper
ties in the city and adjoining parishes, stores,
dwellings, and plantations, paying two months
| ago an aggregate monthly rental OF more than
$4,000 Yesterday saw him sitting on the
steps OF the auctiOneer rOStrum, smoking vile
cigar and wagging his vacant old head while
the last remains of his fortune was being
waited away on the echo of the crier's voice.
Lacroix's history is singularly interesting.
able tailor of New Orleans The popular shop
Of Cord:eville 4 Lacroix" was on st. Charles
ST., one or two doors below the present site oil
the St. Charles Hotel Both were coored
men. Cordieville, was hashy, snowy fellow
quite an exquisite, prone to brawls and duels
but polished artist in his line. He affected
France very greatly; had a chateau near Paris
where, during the greater part Of the year, he
| used to maintain an establishment OF great
luxury and splendor Finally he withdrew
from New Orleans to spend the remainder of
! his lite in his tavorlte country. Lacroix was
man OF different tastes and habits. An octO-
room like COrdlevile, he waS, unlike him, pen
urOus, frugal, plodding. Olc, year he went
to la belle France for five or six weeks, and
wild stories are told Of his extravagance ami
debauchery on those occaSlon'; but here at
home he lived in positive meanHesS His house
is on Dumaine st., in the Ften;h quarter,
where by the way he still lives, is an Old colo
nial structure, built of wood, with high roof
and long dormer windows, rick ;ty, nirm AMI
uninvltIng. 1t is scarcely better than the aY
erage plantation cabin, certainly not half 81
cheerful and attractive. L went down and
took look at it tn, other day, though the
| survey was attended with difficulties The in
terror is a picture of disorder and discomfort
with four rooms in the main building, divided
off by partitions OF what seemed pISteboIr1-
one great room, so far as sound or smell might
be concerned. The outer apartment, the only
one | gained access to, was crowded with pre-
posterous old furniture, mangy- looking bundles,
boxes, odds and ends, the whole forming u
collection which negroes call "pluuder." En-
throned in the midst Of all this confusion,
propped in a huge and intirm rocking chair
was an appalling old lwoman-LIcroix' mother.
| had not expected this. Licroix is trihe
over ~ himself, an L never anticipated b1lng
called on to comfort his mother. Much to my
surprise she spoke a little broken English
much to my disappointment she informed ME
that her DOy Was sick ald invisible. glanced
around the room pertsGt ch to3 OF curIO sites
useless but ancient. What anybody wanted
with such lot OF absurd old traps | cannot
imagine In only one instance did | see an
article that pertaine1 to civilization or the
nineteenth century. That article was a safe
an iron safe of ancient pattern. 1t looked As
though it might have been purchased when La
crOix was Growing infant, bought in some
cxtravagant outburst by his father. | suppose
it contained tltle-d deeds and so on. As bowed
myself out observed Hlmalayan headdress
OF yellow anl red cotton surmountlng LlcrOiX
mere.
Here the mser lives and has lived since the
time when the now fashionable district of New
| Orleans was u snpe ground. | suppose the
annual expenses OF that establishment mus
figure up as high as $409. This, with what
ever he spent in those Partisan revelrles, made
up the total ofhis expenditures; and all th'
est, Tor nearly half a century, has been going
into new lands, more lots and addltOna
houses He made money at u tremendIou
rate 80 years ago. HIS shop was the center Ol
fashion Ills cJats were the she quo non 0
society. No dandy OF that day could hope t
shine In the foyer Of the Orleans Opera unit
Lacroix S touch prepared him for the effort
The bloOds OF Dauphine anG Royal-sts. neve
dreamed OF struttlng near the shadow OF "a
bIdo or the pOntalba palace until LlcrOlX haC
dressed his legs. Money was no object then
1t came easily to these young registers, anC
l.acroix had no great nOdesty as to his charges
Making immense sums and spending nothing
putting his accumulatiOns into property tina
rose every day iu value, he grew rich by almos
magical advances. A taIIoIs shop wOul'
scarcely seem the cradle OF a CrHsus yet i
1861 LacrOix was more than wealthy man. IL
had properties IN every growing quarter OF tn
city, mortgages Oh score OF plantations, an
rentals Of prlncely magnitude. He was LA
croix the millionaire.
How his tax troubles commenced no on
seems exactly to understand: | fancy he ha
always been a g tax resster" The city book
show some very old dehnquencies. The chrOn
cles of the city litigations record a thousan
hard fought battles wherein its victories, llk
those of POraeuna, were barely short OF run
Apparently he never paid until the last m'
meut, nor without bitter conflict. Three yeaI
ago, however, his case assumed prominence
At that time the LacrOlx city tax bills ha
,t mounted up to some 100000 tie tried 6
usual TO evade it, but WarmOth' ) free lance
were rough and hungry and they drove hi
hard. At last he gathered together the r
qured amount, and, 80 runor says, gaYelt
+. his sou to make the settlement with Hel
comes in the secret of the drama. They sa
the young man lost the money or was cheate
out of il 10 some way, and weeks aiterward Il
old tnan was made suddenly aware that II
$30000 was still unpaid and his prOper
trembling in the balance. Then he brol
down. Il was hard enough for him to pa
with money at the best OF times and this dl
aster filled his cup. Report hath It that
castthe prodigal forth with curses, and fro
that moment fell into stolid, obstinate ina
80 | ton which nothing could arouse. Numero'
attempts were made TO induce him to sou
81 measures of self-protection. Bankers, broker
who liked him as relic Of the good old tim
or wished, perhaps, to make reasonable pro
on the job, offered the funds necessary to Z
lease his property. 1t was Of no avail.
the beginning of the present year the bill
State and city, reached over $75 900, aud
last, after more than three years Of fOrbearan
. the authorities moved, the hammer was upli
ed, aud Francois Lacroix's colossal fortune
gan to crumble. .e+ ~
L have dropped in once or twice at Il
IL Auctinneera, ErchnnQa TO which the nrnpre