The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1882-04-27
An American Sinbaa,


| Mr.. Peter Hevener, who represents
the Cochet and Landreau guano claims,
and who is accused Of passing off his own
| son as the son of Cochet in order to en-
force that claim, is a typical specimen of
| the adventurous American, who, like Sim
| bad, the sailor, goes. all over the world
| to make money. and comes home to
| tell about it. Thirty years ago he was in
San Francisco, not lucky, disgusted, dis
appointed. So he drifted to Australia
| and started mill and stage coach
company, which, as it looks to him now,
was 'only a few thousands for six
months work ana that was too slow. = &
In 1852 he stepped over to Peru. There
was at that time but one railroad in
Peru, and, although he didn't know a
|. thing about railroads, he was confident
he could fill a contract for one; in fact
he 'snever saw a piece of work he did
not feel equal to- The Peruvians had
| no taste for business and admired man
with his big ideas. So he got contract
for nine-mile railroad and $500, 900
reservoir. About this time he became
acquainted with Cochet and Landreau,
two French chemists, who had claims for
several hundred millions against the
Peruvian Government, for the discovery
OF guano. Cochet gave up the attempt
to collect his claims, and went back to
France; while Landreau remained and
worried the lives out of the Peruvian
officials. in demanding his 5000, 900, 900.
He lived in a room which had not been
cleaned for sixteen years. The den was
in an alley which, for fear of his papers
being stolen, he allowed no one to enter.
Cobwebs hung from the walls like
punches of Spanish moss, and stuffed
specimens of birds, animals and reptiles,
covered with dust, filing the interven-
ing space. Hevener advanced him mon
ey and pushed his claims. Itwas hard
work. The officials were sick Of the
sight of him, and probably became siok
OF the sight of Hevener also; but they
have never yet paid those claims.
Hevener, however, does not seem to
have been the. kind of a man to wait
until Providence and the Peruvians found
it convenient to pay guano claims. IF
he could not collect two or three hum
dred millions in few days, he was not
above turning an honest penny at what
lay nearest to him. Discovering that in
1919 some hard pressed bandits preferred
driving pack of mules laden with half
million of silver headlong over cliff
into the sea, rather than suffer it to be
captured by the troops, Hevener char
tered a boat and rugged machinery for
the purpose of recovering the treasure
But instead of taking the silver out, he
himself was taken in. He found only
$4,000 worth of bars, and concluding
that the winds and waves had carried
mules and silver to an unknown distance
from the cliff, he gave up further search
after spending $40, 900. However, the
next two, years he did something really
worthy of himself in building railroads,
tunnels and bridges. He went and got
his notebook for the year 1859 to show
to the reporter of the Philadelphia Times,
butwas alittle disappointed that the total
paid him by the Peruvian Government
for that year did not foot up as much as
he thought it would. 1t only reached
S1.530. 900.
After this business Stacked up some
what, and having nothing on hand, butal
mill. the guano claims and little $780,
900 in nitrate, he set sail for New York,
bought $4,000 worth of machinery in
order to build the biggest saw-miil in
South America. While In New York he
heard that Governor Sanford, of Cali
fornia, was just beginning to ship kero-
sene oil to Peru, where they used moth
ing but candles, He could have kicked
himself for not thinking of oil. years be-.
fore. However, he said: g If he takes
oil win take lamps. - So, as freight
was charged on the cubic foot, he, filed
in all the spaces around and between
his machinery with lamps and wicking.
He bought two chandeliers for $50 as a
tribute to the character of the Peruvian
officials, Intending to present them to the
President and Vice-President, as bribe
for the monopoly of supplying them with
oil and lamps for twenty years. But
Sanford was at Lima nine days ahead of
him, and got from the Peruvian Legis-
lature what Hevener hoped to bribe from
the Executive. g, / did not give, those
chandeliers to the President and Vice
President, - he says, - but sold them for
$500. I" His lamp speculation was very
profitable. A lamp, bought in New York
for sixty or seventy-five cents, retailed
at Lima at SIS or 500. In two months
he persuaded the Legislature to annul
Sanford's privilege, bought him out for
$500, 900 and had control of the. entire
coal oil business of the country. He lit
five cities, had seven retail lamp stores,
ran his mill and was filing contracts and
oil cans day and night, right and left.
In 1864 ssthe Spaniards came sweeping
down to Peru, whaling everything right
and left" An American engineer and
himself took contract to build ram.
They covered an old warvessel withrail-
road iron, and although Hevener never
saw a cannon except as they lay around
the forts, he made up his mind he could
rifle a cannon as well as the next man.
He took the smooth bores, rified them,
ssand that old ram just walked out
among them Spaniards and waIloped the
life out of them right in the harbor ~
There are still due him 1000 on this
contract, but this sis only a trifle. -
After this he bought Cochet's claim
from Cochet's son outright and Landreau
got 80, ,00o. 900 assigned him on his claims,
but he was never paid a penny. In1870
fha Government hirod an accoSc;p r., Iii