Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-07-04
"rhese are private grounds, sir" said


( nearly n years Old. He wore MacklnaW
/ hat and frock coat. He carried Jap
anese fan in his right hand, and an open
umbrella in his left. The sun mad gone
under a cloud but the day was quite not.
! The old man held his tan 80 a. TO hide na!f
OF his face. | could not be mistaken IN
/ the voice, although | had not heard 1t IN
! seventeen years. He was Nelson Chase,
+ the nephe w-in-law OF Madame Jumel and
/ the owner OF the property. | had last
! seen MIN in the United states Court room
! in Burton old Chambers street Theatre,
! wuen an old man OF 30. who claimed
! TO be the illegitimate son OF Betsy Bowen
! afterwards Madame Jumel and George
/ W asblngtOn, brought sun as the legltl-
mate heir to the estate. Charles O'Conor
( was George Washington Bow~n's lawyer,
/ The case dragged along for months, ana
! hundl eds Of thousands OF dollars were
. spent before 1t was settled. The Nener-
/ able contestant was beaten and he went
back TO Rhode Island and died there with
/ in a wear. In face and feature he was a
perfect counterpart OF Gen. George ASH
ingtOn, and nine out OF ten visitors TO the
court room were apparently convinced
that he was what he represented himself
to be. The result OF the trial, however,
confirmed Nelson Chase's title to the
property. He had begun operations by
buying the rights OF ali known heirs soon
after the Madame's death. From that
day down to the day Of the Bowen trial he
mad fought other claimants In court until
he was left in undisturbed possession.
The lawsuits are said 10 nave cost MIN
$500, 900, and be spent 100000 more In
feeling natural heirs. 1t was long and
a hard fight, but Chase had political
friends and he c!ung to the property with
the grip OF bull dog. ! had no trouble
in recalling myself TO his memory. ProVl-
dence has dealt harshly by him, despite
his plucky fight. For long time ne
kept his face behind the japanese fan.
In moment of reminiscent enthusiasm,
however, he used the fan i'll emphasis,
thus unmasking his features. The secret
OF his strange demcan0r was out. rose
cancer was slowly deVOuring bis face.
lhe broad forehead, the bright beady
eyes and the strong chin were there, but
the face was badly distigured and almost
repulsVe. Death had set its most terri
BILE seal upon him, aud the great wealth
won in years of litigation was pOwerless
to remove it. The estate. aside from the
mansion, brought over $l,900,000 under
the hammer of an auctioneer. The sale
of plots began on May 81, four years ago,
and lasted several days.
STORY OF THE TWEED DAYS.
In conversation Mr.. Chase confirmed q
story prevalent when Tweed was in the
heyday of his power. just after the down
tall OF Macmillan in Mexico and after
the murder Of Victor NOir by Pierre Bona
parte, Louis Napoleon expressed a desire
to invest large sum OF money in AmeTi-
can real estate. Richard Schell, then in
Paris, urged him to buy the Jumel estate.
The Emperor was greatly impressed with
Schel's representations, and finally de-
Il
was to be made out in the name of a trusty
American agent. NapOleon's idea was to
establish sale retreat FOR the Bonaparte
family In stormy weather. lie intended
TO make a French city on Washington
Heights. An immense chateau and a
magnificent hotel were to be erected, and
French flats, villas, churches and markets
were to spring up like magic. Adjacent
land was to be bought, Improvements
were to be made, and the American world
was To he astOnished, Napoleon listened
repeatedly to Dick SchelPs glowing de-
scriptIons, and was aroused to the utmost
enthusiasm. Meantime Mr.. Schell was
quietly double-banking the Emperor. He
turned in with Tweed and got up a syndi-
cate TO purchase The land from Nelson
Chase and others with view OF reselliDg
il to LOUIS Napoleon. The scheme was
on the point OF success when the Franco
PrussIan war broke out, and Napoleon
was kept so busy in looking out for his
personal safety that he bad no time to de-
vote to pecuniary investments. If the
outbreak of the war had been postponed
month the BOnaparGes would to-day
own Washington Heights, and the Schell-
! Tweed syndicate would have cleared over
$1,000, 900.
ApropOS OF this, 1t is not generally
known that Louis Philippe made heavy
investments III New York real estate just
before the revolution of 1913. His agent
was John Laiarge, who bought for tue
King the property on Broadway, known
at one time AS the old Winter Garden
Theatre. For years this theatre was in
the Lafarge House. 1t was built by VIM.
Il. Burton, who thus ruined himself in
trying to enlarge his sphere of usefulness.
| The Laiarge House was afterwards turn
ed into the Southern Hotel, and from that
into the Grand Central, when it became
famous as the scene of the ASSASSINATION
OF Col. James Fisk, Jr.
Loms Philippe was n OF the only distir-
guished foreigner ambitious OF owning
real estate in This city. AT one time the
old Duke OF Wellington Invested El00, 00O
In corner lots here. One of these lots was
in the southeast corner OF Broadway and
Canal street, and the building which
stands there to-day was erected with the
money Of the hero OF Waterloo.
AMOS j. CUMMINGS AND BLAKELY HALL.