Los Angeles daily herald., 1889-04-22
A FAMOus INsTITnTI0N.
what Ht Is, Where Ne Is, and How
Conducted.

~.
waiting and watching to-day to learn IL the
wheel of fortune may not bring to them that
grand capital prize of $500, 900, which is a
little less than one.fourth of the immense sum
this day distributed by the Louisisna State Lot.
terry Company.
circumstances so order that make the
communication from this city, believing that 1t
will prove interesting to your readers, as
picturing one ot the institutions of the State
of Loui sians, which is the main support of
that celebrated Charity hospital, that welcomes
the poor and friendiess stranger IS readily as
the needy one at home, and cares for all alike.
When your correspondent received instruc-
tions to proceed southward, New Orleans
being the objective point he remembered that
this being his first visit to the Crescent City, 1t
would be well to arm himself with letters of
Introduction to some of the most prominent
aud distinguished other citizens. He was par
ticularly favored by being brought into contact
with the Hon. G. W. Mott, Postmaster; Col
Page Baker, managing editor of the Times
Democrat; Mr.. p. o. FsZende, of the we'll
known banking house of Fszende & Ssixas, as
well as other leading citizens, and during a
short formal conversation, the principal
points of interest-to a stranger-were sug
gested by Mr.. Fszende, saying he would at
once order his carriage and drive me through
the city. AS we neared the corner of ST..
Charles and Union streets, my escort said,
pointing to a handsome, substantial looking
structure. three stories high: There is he
home of the Louisiana State Lottery Company,
and by the way tomorrow is the appointed day
for the mammoth drawing in which over 50 =
600 900 is to be distributed. and the frs. capi-
tai prize is $500 600. You should attend the
drawing by all means and on no account fail
to visit the company's Offices" Then 1t was
learned W hat an intense Interest was taken by
people Of all grades of society, not only in the
city of New Ofleans, but throughout the State
an surrounding States, in this wonderful in
stitution, which,a may not be generally known
to the readers of the Bee, is not only
the only legslizsd one in this county, deriving
its original charter from the State Legislature
in 1868 but in 1879, by act of the State Consttu.
tional Convention, was incorporated as part of
the new Constitution formed by that body, and
this act Endorsed by an almost unanimous vote
of the people of the State, and the people of New
Orleans aud Louisiana have never had reason
From 1868 to the time of the adoption OF the
New Constitution, the company contributed
over $500. 900 in support OF the public schools,
and since that time. (1879) have set aside a
yearly fund of $40, 600 for the use of the char.
ity hospital heretofore mentioned, beside its
more than princely support of all other institu.
state In fact Mr.. Fazende tola me tha. good
and charitable deeds were not confined to the
company as a whole, but individual members
arc foremost in contributing literally from
their private means, for the encouragement
and success of schemes that conduce to the in
terest and welfare of the city and State. The
among the most popular, respected and lead
ing citizens, aud the Commissioners,
who alone superintend and manage
the ID drawings are those hose old Generals
by the South, Generals Jubal A. Early and G. T.
Beauregard. These two gentlemen have no
interest whatever in the company, as General
Early told your correspondent in conversation
after the drawing to-day; and the company
have neither voice nor vote in the meter or
management of the drawing proper. Thus is
provided perfect safeguard-1f such were, for
the time being, necessary-fnr the patrons OF
the lottery, thoroughly divorcing the manage.
ment of the company from the management OF
the drawing,
And now a few words as to the details of the
company's management
Armed with letter of introduction, your
correspondent visited the offices On ST. Charles
street and was courteousy received by DR.. NJ
A. Dauphin, the President, who requested his
general manager to escort me through the sew
eral departments and explain the methods oi
conducting their vast business.
The building is handsome three story gran.
ite front structure, built and owned by the com
pany, and devoted exclusively to their own
uses. The general Office on the drst floor, pre-
sents at first sight the appearance OF a large
banking house. 1t was crowded with people
esgerly waiting their turn to -purchase-whal
| each individually hoped would prove the lucky
number that would draw the capital prize OF
| 10000 In the several departments there are
perhaps over one hunfired clerks employed
and one peculiar, yet necessary feature of the
assignment of them is, that they are in pairs
| at desks, SO arranged that they face each other
This is for the purpose of acting as check on
i the mutual errors of each other.
| Here in one apartment to large force oi
clerks is assigned the duty of opening and
| stripping the letters received by every mail
| One set opens them, another set verifies the
contents with the letter. another set assorts them
according to the nature and value of the enclos
| ure; to another set is confided the care OF such
| letters as call for some special numbers, or en-
close money for some future as we'll as present
drawing, which must be laid aside for the pres
| ent, to be taken up and attended to after the
regular mail that involve no "outside methods
has had attention. Another set fill orders for
the tiekets w hich are verified and 20. KID" by
another set. Another set records alphabet.
| cally the name and address of every sender OF
| a letter, (and IL an ordinary currency enclos-
| ure registered letter, money order, postal note,
express package or draft), in a book especially
for each corresponding remittance, with date,
month, etc. Another set addresses the envelopes
| to each patron or correspondent, and another
verifes these directed envelopes with the re-
| corded list referred to abb We. Yet another set
sees that the order Is properly filled, as re-
quired by the letter of request, snd that the
| ticket or tickets paid for are with the return
| letter of acknowledgment before being placed
in the envelope for mailing. In fact. to state 1t
at once. in brief. tse letter received, unopened,
passes through some fifteen or sixteen different
sets of clerks-each paired, to verify each
others work--before the letter of acKnowledg-
ment containing the ticket is finally placed In
| the envelope and mailed
| 1t appears to be a complex system at first
sight; in reality, it is simple, but thorough and
perfect in its working. There is no possible
| chance, apparently for error of any kind.
| Another department that presents a busy ap-
pearance is the mailing and folding department
l
gagged addressing envelopeF, from the recorded
i list of correspondents, for before the sun sets
on the day after the drawing, to every patron is
| mailed list of the prize numbers. system,
thorough system, in every detail is the shibbo-
| leth of the management, and were it not go 1t
/ would be utterly impossible to- manage the
| enormous business that must be transacted day
| by dayi the building. To facilitate the work,
and prevent any loss of time, as well as to main
tain discipline. and secure the employees from
possible outside temptation, the company, at
their own expense furnish a firsEelass lunch TO
all their clerks, at stated intervals during the
day-one half only at time repairing to the
restaurant or dining-room fitted up in the rear
of the main office on the first floor. They are
allowed from twenty minutes to half an hour.
when they return to their several stations, and
the other half repair to the lunch-room. Thus
the work ever goes on during the day, and a
timed ythe chiefs of the several d. apartments
While going through the receiving depart
ment or office where the mail is first opened
the manager called my attention to the fact
| that, even in writing for lottery tickets, where
Que would naturally suppose every correspon-
dent would be very careful to give all needful
inform alton, very often letters reach them
with no signature or no address, or may be the
name scrawled very ilegibly and nothing to in
dfcste town OF State, ana in many cases neither
can be deciphered from the blur or bloch thai
Uncle Sans postmasters use in some country
offices as postmark
These letters containing money what dis
position do you make of them?" asked
For answer / was conducted to what he
termed the ''old horse" vault, and sending for
clerk, who brought bunch of keys with
him, opened long cGffln-like case, and there
in Disclosed to me thousands of such letters.
with the original remittance pinned to each.
In this vault are two such boxes. which Ut
the present time contain perhaps from SIS, 600
tc $40 000-the accumulation from careless cor
respondents who fail to give name and address
a n u0 Il Oh q