The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1881-10-20
A BIG SPECK.
INVOLVING MILLIONS, AND SOME OF THE
GREAT MEN INTERESTED IN IT.
Sew J ork speeIal to the clnelnnatl commercla

New FORK Special to the Cincinnati Commercial
A great scheme, which swells so
with figures as to be almost ridiculous
has been made public in this city. II
is called the Peruvian company :
scheme. In 1888 the Government of
Peru, by published decree, promised
to every discoverer of valuable de-
pOsits upon public domain a premium
of One-third of the discovery. Alex
ander COchett discovered guano, and
the uses to which it could be applied,
therefore COchett was entitled to one
third in value of all the guano that
since has been taken from the beds in
Peru. In other words, there ase now
due to COchett and his legal represen-
tatives the sum of $900,OO0OO0 Iiqui-
dated damages, with interest at 6 per
cent. from January ], 1881, until paid
in addition to One-third of the value
of all guano hereafter taken from
these beds. 1t is true the prospectors
cOncede that the Government of
Peru never allowed anything to
Coehett while living, and he died in
pOOr-hOuse in France; hut the Peru
vain company has bought up the
claim of his son and only heir, and
proposes to get what it can out of the
Peruvian Government. It expects
that the Government, to satisfy this
claim, will turn ''all original deposits
Of guano and nitrate" over to it alb
sOlutely, that it will be able to realize
the entire Indebtedness, put Peru once
more in a fOurishing condition and
''restOre more than the glory of the
Incas." One of the memoranda sent
proposed stockholders is worthy of
quotation as indicating the generous
manner in which figures are used.
The company will prefer its share
holders to the extent of three per cent
upon a fixed capitalization $1,000000,
and will pay annually, on the 1st day
of April, beginning witn 1883, one
half its net income above such three
per cent. to the credit of the Com
missioner of the Sinking Fund. Stett
Lord, who was counsel against w. FL.
Vanderbilt in the will contests, is one
of the counsel for the cOm'py. Mr.. Stett
said to-day that he was not stock
holder, but had only been called in as
counsel fer his opinion upon some
constitutional questions. In the study
of these questions, however, some
facts had come within his knowledge
The elder Cochett, he said, died very
poor, but since his death the Peruvian
Government had recognized officially
his claims upon it. He left a will,
lately discovered and admitted to pro-
bate in France, giving all his proper
ty to his only son. The younger
COchett disposed of his claim in Peru
to a number Of capitalists, with the
understanding that he should have a
large interest in the company to be
formed to prosecute these claims.
These capitalists had sold to the Peru
Wan company just organized. What
| they paid him made him rich man
| in addition to the interest he had in
the company. Mr.. Lord said he knew
nothing of the actual working of the
| company beyond this, except that
| some of the most prominent United
! States Senators and railroad men OF
| the country were interested in H.
! Another, who did not wish to have his
name mentioned in connection with
the statement, but who Is one of the
organizers of the company, said that
! General Grant was 'fhcart and soul
in the thing. Another one said Gen
eral Grant had been approached Oh
| the subject, but had done nothing
! Both informants, however, said thai
Ex-SenatOrs Boutwell,, Eaton> and
| Senator Blair, as we'll as George Pull.
man, Robert Harris and other railroad
men were not stockholders, but active
| promoters of the scheme.