New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-01-02

King and ohm De Whit Hook. In order to avoid
all questions as to the legality OF the election IL
was determined to hold the meeting OF she share
holders on the original ground TO this end the MOOR
OF the sub-cellar was removed and the surface
turned mp till the marshy ground was reached.
William i. Horn, who owns q one-seyenth inter-
est in the property, relates that Rderback before
alluded to as the last representative OF the conee
house keepers who made the TOntine famous, orna-
mented the front of his place with wooden bust OF
Franklin or some other celebrity of the early DAYS
OF the Republic. The bust he says, had been saved
when the great fire devastated the lower part OF the
town. Ithad stood in front of the office of newspaper
owned by man named Lang, aud when Rlderback
placed in front of bis saloon he had painted nnder IT
the punning inscription, odd Langs Sign" ]: r
Coffee House, and was taken from there to the
burial ground back of ST. Pauis Church, where
Charles Kean raised monument TO his memory.
The condition in the original agreement which re-
stTicted the building to coffee hOuse until
there should be no more than seven nominees
living became embarrassing to the stockholders
secured from tho Court Of Chancery authorizing
the shareholders to rent it for other purposes In
AP f1 a01c rue rue nt;Ss Hons TO- THE
1Ontine Building In 1855, William ii. Aspinwall.
having secured lease of the property to run until
ali the conditions of the original agreement should
be fulfilled tore down the old building and put up
the spacious and sod-OokIng sruc ture that Is now
known as the TOntine He paid the shareholders
So 600 rent, and agreed pay all taxes and assess
ments tie property and turn over to the share
holders, with the building, as soon as
the event should which would
leave only seven living nominees. 1t can
be supposed that such a risk was not
undertaken except after careful Investigation. is
said that he had nearly all the life companies III Eu-
rope and the United States figuring Oh the problem
when all except of the then surviving fty-fye
nominees would be dead. He took great interest in
their health, and watched over them with as great
an anxiety, though from different motives, of
course II we were related by blood TO each and H.
nally when (he number became considerably smaller
he insured the hf0 of every one of them. At the
thai ln mazda fine investment he did not own
interest therontne but subsequently he purchased
STARE at auction (the risk was so great al this time
that the shares sold for no more than 900 or
SO, 000) and thereafter until his death he adopted
every conceivable means that aided him to realize
on his investment. 1t is SAID that he made great
deal of money out II the property, getting III some
years as much 100000 from rents OF the Offices
about times as much as the property paid durng
the first thirty years of the Association.
COMING DOW TO SEWN AT LAST.
On January l, 1870. ouly eight of the
nominees were living. and as the youngest
survivor was an octogenaran, it became evident
that the end approaching. There
upon three or four of the shareholders
whose interests were continued by the surviving
nominees entered into Arrangement, aud, by
sales amongst themselves of fractional parts of
their shares eSSened thor liability of total loss,
and Insured plrtil, 1t not whole share, in the
fl al distribution. it can be imagined how closely
the lives of the old people, in whom the variOus
shareholders had Of vested interest, were
watched at this time. The death of John p. De
Wmt, on the 18Th OF November, 1870, 1ually
solved the problem by leaving tine seven sole sur
vIv0rs OF toe original 203 nominees The record
then STOOD as follows: