The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1886-04-08
MATT 0'BRIEN IN NEW ORLEANS
The Well Known Irish Philosopher
and Poet Describes Monthly
Drawing.

From Inc Atlduth va. ConbututiOu hhl.lS
New ORLEAss. La, March IT. specia
correspondence. III have visited New Or
leans for 10, these many years and at every
visit resolved that ] would witness the
drawing of tie far-famed Louisiana State
Lottery and invariably missed it for other
and greater attractions. Yesterday, how
ever, was dreary and drizzly, and having
nowhere else to go, 1 strolled into the
Academy of Music and at last saw the mo-
dus operEpdi.
Knowing there are thousands of your res
ders who would like to see it, l, in he alb
ssncs of their ability to be present, conclnd
ed that an account of it, as seen by me, would
be interesting reading. Let the reader en-
ter with me the Academy of Music, 8 large
theatre on st. Charles street. Either it or
the St. Charles Thsatre is used at the draw
ing. The admission is of course Stree" on
this occasion. The parquette is already
crowded so we'll go up in the dress circle.
Here we find it pretty crowded by the fairer
sex and their escorts.
On the stage we see, to the right of the
audience, q large wheel about five feet in
diameter; The sides are plate glass and as
clean and clear 'as only plate glass can BE
gotten. They sTe Just emptying in great
bags, out of which roll little tin boxes OF
balls; n these are the numbers; they near
ly half fill the Immense wheel. All this is
watched by commission. General Jubal A.
Early, with STOPPING shoulders and long
white beard, has this wheel in charge and
watches everything and everybody on the
stage closely.
On the left of the audience near the foot
lights is a. smaller wheel with glars sides.
IL: H. L.
with tin tubes about the thickness of 3 large
lead pencil and half as long. / saw these
palmer as 1 was on that side of the house.
General Beauregard superintends this wheel
and watches it ss closely ea cold Juhe' does
wheel No. !. for in each. Of these tin tubes Is
q card bearing the amount OF the prize.
Everything being now in readiness the door
of each W heel is shut, two negroes take hold
of the cranks on wheel No. and turn it
around two or three times add then revarse
the Toli; mean While General ReHureGard
himself turns the anal Her wheel back and
forth. The tickets and prizes being now
" ell mixed, two boys are bhndfolded by
Generals Early and BeaureRard. Generals
Early aud BeauregaId then unlock the doors
the boy takes position naaE it-GenerAi
Esrly next to one and' Gepersl Beauregard
next to the other, but at opposite sides of the
stage, and the different gentlemen of the
committee, eler ks, etc., take their places and
all is ready.
Now they are about to begin. So lead
pencils and memorandum cards are gotten
out by the interested who cannot wait for
publication Of evening papers Some~of
them have their tickets in their hands, and
aA each number is called refer to them to
''see if it 3 mine" Now for the procedure.
Boy puts his hands in wheel No. and
pulls out-a small tin case; hands it to Cen
eral EARLY. No. 2, who opens it, drops the
casing into boz at his feet and calls ont in
q weak voice the numbeT-We'll say $751;
554." He then hands it to No. 8. He calls
it out in q very loud voice. While this is
being done boy at wheel No. hands small
tin tube to General ReAqSegard. The gem
eFal opens it, drops tube in q box at his feet,
calls out the priEe-ssy lone hundred dol
lsFs"-then hands it to No. who again calls
1t loudly. By this time No. right and No.
8 left Of chair in centre of stage in which
No. is seated hand the ticket and the
prize to No. 4 who rolls the two together in
q tin tube and throws them into q bo at his
feet. This continues TO the close, the only
variation being in numbers and amount of
prizes, 800, $500, $500, $500, and $1,000, are
eoolly called ont with an indifference worthy
of hotel clerk when be tells you ,.Your bill
then mixed in with these amounts are e5,-
600, slo, 900, $4,000, SIS, 200, $4,000, and
We wonder when the capital prize will come |
the pile in the prize wheel is diminishing |
-eW or three fortunes nave been given |
away / watch General iBeauregard's face |
as hementally scans the number to see Ilf / |
can tell when he first sees the prize; but his |
face is as passive as when he gave the order |
W hieh routed the feds, at Bull Run, and |
forget all about the prize until my ears are |
startled by hearing him call "one hundred |
and fifty thousand;" then No. 8 takes and
,slls out zone hundred and fifty thousand
dollars.
The only variation made is that they wait
Is being recorded and again calls out "tick-
Il IS, O4O wins &l5O,OOOn and LOCK rs it they
ire waiting for some one to 90 up aud get it
mt of their way. Ths rest of the cali is
nonotonous and the bulk OF the crowd leave.
waited until the last number was called.
I drew o. 900. And so ended the drawing
# March l6, '56.
Twas funny to hear the comments. "I'm
II ., K. Got q hundred" al Johnnyl l
ot de proclamation" "WiL, Pm ahead, ~
&C.. Then everybody rushed off to lunch,
Dr. twas near O'CLOCK and we'd been sitting
here since IL. Some eat turkey and some
at crackersj some drank champagne and
pine drank water; some won and some loss
but all resolve to s.try it agsin." and
mong the latter was '"Yoors trooly,n
~ MATT OBJ.