The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1883-02-10
NEW ORLEANS, jan. 80, 1883.

1 EDITOR CHIEF:
| Every one is getting his house in ORDER
and a great many arrangements are III
progress for the reception of our visitors
/ to the Carnival festival. Col. Hodgson
has opened the Kings Visitors Bureau
at 173 Common street, and applications
| for accommodations are coming in at an
extraordinary rate. Several excursion
parties are already organized and extra
trains through from the most distant
cities of the North, and even the British
possessions, have been ordered.
The Light and Heat Producing Com
pany, after years of litigation with that
arrogant monopoly the New Orleans Gas
Light Company. has at last gone to work
and is preparing for the building OF
works. 1t will lay over twelve miles Of
mains to begin with, and perhaps by the
time half of these are laid down the
works will be ready to supply the mate
rial Notwithstanding the great oppo-
siton made to, and the many obstacles
thrown in the way Of this enterprise, the
| energetic Van Benthuysen has at last
cleared away the straws in tx path Of
its successful completion. 1t is said that
gas can DO furnished by the new compa-
ny ut the rate Of 81 per thousand feet.
This is IL very sore point with the old
monopoly. which has no doubt spent
over $780, 900 already to keep competi-
ton ont of the field but this time it has
met its match, and it is very seldom that
Yam Benthuysen fails i'll any thing he
undertakes.
The old ST. james Hotel, after years Of
sickly life, isolbout to be brought into
requston in manner not contcm-
plated BY its builders The produce
merchants of this city have concluded to
enlarge their Exchange by purchasing
the old hotel aud fitting it up to suit the
purposes of trade. 1t is said that the
original cost of the building was $3.50, 900,
but the figure at which the Exchange
| takes it is S75, 900, of which $50 900 must
be paid in cash. This is good criterion
Of the depreciation in values i'll real es-
tate since the Republican party admin
istered the government. AT that time
the ST. James was held at $500, 900, and
that justly. The Exchange intend to
cxpend about $4,000 on changes and in
fitting up the building to their liking.
Tho court yard at the back of the hotel,
opening upon two Of the principal bust
ness streets, and the central location of
the spot, make it admirably qualified to
fill the requisites for which it is destined
AS to inyress, egress and being within a
"stoEe's throw" Of the river, it would
hardly have been possible for tho NOR
chants to have selected better location.
The missing poll=hoeks of the third
ward still hangs around the llead Of John
Fitzpatrick rs a night mare. AS the
cares Of Office or-something else-;,re
fast turning his hair gray and making
him an old man, it is not probable that
he can stand the present pressure much
longer; and as the Federal grand jury
have ordered the obsequious Cavenac to
produce the missing books, or properly
account for their loss, -he sleep of the
Democratic leaders, is not the rest of the
innocent. Whenever the time arrives
that juries wilS.lct mp to their sincere
convictions, and judges intelligently and
honestly administer the law, II fearful
account of crime and venality will be
reckoned up against the leaders of the
Irish Democracy of Louisiana.
On Sunday morning q half-breed, in
l,eritiny evidently the vices of both races,
without amy molarating virtue, after
Draining his wife with an axe, resisted
arrest with such determination that two
police officers are under medical treat
mcnt for the wounds which he inflicted,
luckily, one of them was able to draw
his pistol and only escaped a probable
| death-blow from the murderous axe by
shooting him. The ball entered the
stomach of the infatuated Negro, and is
thought to have ranged upward, lie il9-
mediately fell, and all were then taken
to The Charity Hospital, the police for
medical treatment and the negroes to die.
The woman, the wife of Lee Mers, died
in Il few hours and it is stated that Mcrs
cannot last over Il day or SO.
Considerable varioloil aud !, mild type
of smallpox is at present prevailing in
the Negro sections Of the city, but the
Board OF Health states that it is now
pretty we'll under control and guarantees
to have it stamped ont in Il week OF So
If the Board had not been crauped in
finance, it claims that this disease would
not havo appeared in our city this sea-
son at all. Beyond this our people are
enjoying very good health, and have no
cause to complain upon that score.
reports from st. Johns parish inform
us that the Bonnet Care levee is fast
approaching completion, and that it is
the finest piece of work in that line ever
completed in this State; the best en-
sineers of the land have been employed
by the Valley Railroad upon this very