The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1877-08-26
CHARITABLE LEGACIES.
THE IMPRACTICABLE BENyEOLENCE
OF MILLIONAIREs.


6ir0d, Fink, McDDnOgh and Milne.
Ex-Mayor Flanders, according to the Times,
has written report of his administration OF
the legacy of Stephen Henderson, one OF
those eccentric and well meaning old gentle1
men who made large bequests to the city for
charitable uses out of their large aecumula-
tions by successful speculation, thrift and in
dustry.
1t does not appear from the ex-Mayors s
statements that the management OF this par
tieular legacy has been characterized by even
the usual lack of prudence and providence OF
our municipal administrations in the disposal
Of such funds. The arrangement made OF
this fund, by which the income from it was
committed to the disposition at certain
charitable 1adies fpr the relief af nertest1aiies
ft,gsf5l rnfs,fss slf t ssein. ~ wise
and iudicious one, and the distribution has
been satisfactorily accounted for. We doubt
| If the canny old Scotehman would, under like
| circumstances, have done better or as we'll
| The truth is that these close-fsted, thrifty
and managing old gentlemen committed
great mistakes when they devoted their
whole lives to heaping up piles OF money with
the benevolent and laudable motives of de-
|
anthropic objects and institutions, which
were committed to political and corporate
agents to apply, distribute and carry out ae-
cording to their peculiar ideas and eccentric
plans.
RICH MEN SHOULD ADMINISTER THEIR OWN
| CHARITIES.
They should have subtracted few years of
their long lives from the pursuit of this single
aim of accumulation to the establishment
and organization of the various charities and
other beneficent objects to which, in their
wills, they devote large portion of their ac-
cumulations. They would have proved bet
ter administrators than the municipal and
political agents upon whom has fallen all the
responsibility and trouble of carrying out
their very peculiar, difficult, and often COM
plicated dispositions 1t has been proved q
far easier way to achieve distinction as
phlanthropists by making legacies, couched
in high sounding phrases and in large
figures, than by assuming the care, vexation
and annoyance of reducing the same to prac-
tical operation and administering success
fully the said legacies. There's the rub
These rich old men shrunk from this respon-
sibilty. Instead OF working on incessantly
to increase their funds, entirely absorbed
therein, with the avowed object and end of
accommodating large amounts, to be devoted
to some benevolent scheme or object it would
! have been far wiser and more practical for
them, after accumulating an adequate amount,
, to devote the remainder of their days to the
organization Of the charity in which they were
so warmly enlisted, 50 that it might be fully
established and put into operation before
their departing this life, instead of wasting
their latter days in the mere labor of adding
little more to their already abundant stores
of wealth.
: No one can more judiciously use and apply
them. No one is 50 fit to carry out plan as
the man who has conceived and designed it
Hence our poignant regret that men like
. Stephen Henderson, Alexander Milne, JOIN
McDonogh, Nicholas Girod, John d. Finl
and Judah Touro, did not administer and ap
ply their several liberal donations to tn
various charities, tow which they directed larg
portions of their estates, during their lives
:, and not commit to officials the labor, respon
i sibilities and vexationS of the same, especiall.
under the conditions, restrictions and lmita
tions which they imposed on all their be
I quests. Nor are we prepared to admit with
) full knowledge of all the circumstances, MOI
< tifyng and sorrowful as have been the results
! that the responsibility and task thus imposes
upon the State and municipal officials have no
I been discharged with reasonable wisdom ant
; administrative fidelity.
ECCENTRICTTY OF MILLIoNAIREs.
0 The truth is that these benevolent oil
|
They were a law unto themselves. They wer
: always troubled with fancies, quirks and pc
. culiar ideas and notions, to which they in
. agined laws, constitutions, popular preju
: dices and the rest of the world must yield be
: fore enjoying any advantages from thei
' money. Thus
OLD NICHOLAS GIROD,
= who was the first Mayor of this city, and wa
). highly complimented by Gen. jackson for hi
: valuable services in aid of the defense Of Ne1
3, Orleans in 1914, was stout old Gaul and an il
tense hater of the Anglo-Saxon, and especial
:. :. of the Briton. He it was who built the house
: the corner of st. Louis and Chartres, and sui
s scribed large sum to equip clipper to g
to st. Helena and release the great Napoleo
from his durance vile in that rocky priso
n and conduct him to New Orleans and insta
l. him in the mansion referred to, where tn
1 + great conqueror might pass the remainder {
= - his days in peace and in the enjoyment Of
quiet glass Of pig and whistle" and of tn
favorite game of that vicinage-dominoes-
with the surviving veterans Of the armies {
Italy and Egypt who had strayed hither.
q Now, Mr.. Girod, when making his will, wa
doubtless somewhat embarrassed by his tw
strongest affections, which were for the cit
of New Orleans and for his native La Bel
France. He finally made a compromise {
. these conflicting sentiments by making b'
quest of one hundred thousand for house
refuge for the education of the children {
l French citizens, and constituted the Mayo
. the trustee and administrator of this fun
This sum was greatly depleted by litigatio
q q before it got into the hands of the Mayor, bu
> through the thrifty management of Mayo