davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Northwestern recorder., 1893-02-01
The Prince of Scoundrels.

The prince of the scoundrels is not
an uncommon parsonage. He is at
home in all communities in more or
less number and plies his disreputa-
bic practice with perfect ease and
impunity. Disgrace cuts no figure
in his economy. The law is no ter
ror to him, for he keeps beyond it's
reach. He lacks the courage of
highway robber or horse thief. He
never breaks into house or busi-
ness place at night to take the risk
of being shot down down in his in
iquity. He never forges a check or
draft with the chances of term of
states prison staring him i'll The face.
He operates with more care, better
results and makes an easier living
than any other class Of criminals. In
looking for him one is not obliged to
wait for the shades of night to hear
his stealthy tread. He moves about
in the sunshine. You will see him,
perhaps well dressed, i'll public places,
on the street, at public gatherings,
in the company of respectable people,
in church, in fact, everywhere, for he
never shuns the light of day, which is
as grateful to him as to the balance
of mankind. The prince of scoun-
drels is never molested or watched
by officers Of the law. He gives
them but little trouble and never
cause their coming into collision with
him. He is a civilized thief and
would cheerfully lend hand in lynch
ing the uncouth rascal who would
dare to steal a loaf to satisfy the
cravings of bis appetite or to feed his
hungry children. He is gentleman
by pretense, and delights in the
effort of making those he operates
upon believe such to be the fact.
The prince of scoundrels is the
man who always cultivates the smile
of honesty. The fellow who hates
labor, and who for convenience III his
business never owns more of this
worlds treasure than is exempt by
law from execution. He is the man
who goes to the grocer for his family
supplies and steals the mans goods
on a promise to pay at the end of the
month. The fellow who calls upon
the baker, butcher, shoemaker, tailor
and dry goods merchant with pitt
full story about hard times and the
scarcity of money. The fellow who
can never raise money enough to pay
his rent, and always changes his
place of residence with snug little
balance in favor of his last landlord
The fellow who smokes fine cigars
and enjoys good drinks on a lrcmise
to straighten out these little items
later on. He is the man that requests
newspapers to be sent him for which
he pays in an oily promise to see you
shortly, but never calls; the maj
loud in denunciation Of his neighbor'
who understand and see through his
manipulation and refuse to be robbed
by him. In short, the prince ol
scoundrels is the sneak thief whC
r preys upon all business men, by frs
stealing their goods and property
and then their confidence in human
nature. These specimens of humani
} ty are beyond the reach of law ant
: constitute the smiling Williams wh'
The Northwestern recorder., 1893-02-01

~. raoi,Ia familiar with the hab-
y tbe fro Americans living III
T,sh;ngtor " prior to 1888 can realize
.ta chance that has taken place IN
u, I,;r habit. At that time most of
,Is us'- peorlc .urloyed in the depart
NY msnts not oily spent all that they
n,l .Jo Init were habitual borrowers
I@r, .3Irokqrs who became widely known
VI go ror centers,' because for
avery ~ SO they advanced they got 81
rsot.l for the thirty days, or interest
4 the rate Of 120 per cent. per an
% The 80 per centers' grew IL
rrmEers and waxed exceedingly fat,
Willie the department employe ap-
nsarqd to grow leaner and hungrier
every year until the time came, as it
invariably did, when he found Wash
mcton a good place to leave son the
dead quiet The brother i'll black
here seemed to live for pleasure and
the lOper centers alone.
When Mr.. Cleveland was elected
in 1888, there was a very rude
awakening in the FOOLS Paradise.
Men who had heretofore spent every
penny of the salary they received
from the government suddenly be-
came thrifty in the penurious sense
The craze for sasuE money and buy
ing property spread rapidly. All sorts
Of business enterprises sprang up as
if by magic: banking, insurance,
real estate and mercantile ventures
we're projected on all sides.
Among the ventures projected IL
1888, which attracted general atten.
ION and has been watched with in
tereSt is the Capital Savings Bank
which numbers among its managers
some of the most competent Afro
Americans in the city. Its officers
are ex-Congressman John R. Lyncl
THE present fourth auditor of the
treasury, President; J. R. Wilder
Vice President; H. Z. Baker, Secre
tary; L. c. Bailey, Treasurer; D. B
NcCary, Cashier; Directors, John R
Lynch, J. A. Pierre, H. E. Baker
Nhtefeld McKinlay, Jerome A
Johnson. W. E. Mathews, DR.. w
). Lotion, NJ. Cole, J. Archie Lewis
J, /. Bradford, DIR. A. w. Tancil
Dr. J. R. Wilder, Prof. James Sto
np, L. c. Bailey, Prof. W. S. Mont
SOmery.
The company first purchased ;
building at the corner of New Yorl
avenue and Ninth street, northwest
for the sum Of S21, 900, and INTENDED
TO occupy 1t some day in carrying OF
'lelr business. The location was no
exactly suited to the present needs o
tleH business, and so when they wer
notified last May that they would b
The Northwestern recorder., 1893-02-01

of the number present happened to
know of suitable place that could
be secured at once for our business.
We agreed to rent the place, and we
assessed ourselves for money enough
on the spot to pay a months rent in
advance. We had place then, but
no business. We hadn't a single dol
lar of stock sold or subscribed for,
no deposits, no books, no tender of
cash from any source, no officers, no
clerks-in short, no anything but one
months rent and one years pluck.
A few meetings. followed in quick
succession. and on Wednesday morn
ing, October II, 1888, the door of
the Capital Savings Bank was swung
open at 804 F Street, and the public
at large were asked to give us a share
Of their confidence and their bust
ness.
''In some business circles our cour-
age took the form of audacity, and
our bank was the quick sensation of
the hour.
"a bank with a colored president,
colored cashier, colored clerks and
colored board of directors! 'Impos-
sible' said some. Foolish, said
some others. But we meant to sue
ceed if success were possible. and we
CgorEsd right along just as if we had
a silent partner named Rothschild.
And how well have we succeeded? /?
Let's consult our books at this
period.
1.-The day we opened our doors for
business our authorized capital stock
was $4,000, though less than one
sixth of that amount had been paid
in in actual cash. And after having
paid some expenses incident to get
ting into shape for business we started
out with less than $500 in cash in the
drawer with which to do a general
banking business" Within two and
half months after we started the
deposits had run up to $13, 1888. Dur
ing the next year, 1889, our deposits
aggregated S117,136; in 1890 they
amounted to $210, ,499; 1891, $247,
244; and for the first six months of
the present year the deposits reached
the aggregate sum of $158, ,2lS-more
than S26,0 a month, and total OF
deposits, up to the close of the pres
ent year, of more than 5000, 900.
This magnificent sum rel resents III
some degree the measure Of conf
dence which the business public has
given us. The net results of our bus.
mess transitions have been equally
satisfactory and gratifying. With
no experience to guide us in the be-
ginning, and having often to combat
the antagonism and meet the preju
dices of unfriendly rivals in the same
line of business, it is not to be won
dered at that we made some mistakes
and sustained some losses, but these
have been comparatively few.
"What we have accomplished IL
these brief years has been accom-
plished in the face of greater oppo
sition than we have any reason to ex
rect will confront us again. Moth
ing succeeds like success, and having
shown what is possible of accom-
plishment in this direction, we con
fdentially look forward to create
success in the future. "
When a showing such as this cal
be made from such unpromising be
ginnings in four years, it is safe t
conclude that these people have ca
The Northwestern recorder., 1893-02-01

ing in more suitable locality. Their
efforts resulted in the purchase of |
their present elegant building on one
of the most prominent business
streets in the city of Washington, sit
uated just in the heart of Washington s |
commercial and financial activity,
convenient to the departments and
midway between the capitol and the
White House-F street, between
Sixth and Seventh streets, north
west.
Secretary Henry E. Baker, a gradu-
ate of the law department of Howard
University and for many years a
special examiner in the patent office,
was seen by me and furnished the
following interesting and instructive
statement of the beginning and pro-
gress of one of the most successful
business enterprises conducted by
Afro Americans.
THE history of the organization
and development of this business
enterprise is not entirely free from
some of the essential features of a
romance. Born into an almost alb
ject poverty, and growing into
vigorous mandood amid the most un-
favorable surroundings, is feat that
neither individuals nor enterprises
perform with frequency. Banks are
a commercial necessity in all busi-
ness centers. They are the medium
through which the money property
of individuals changes ownership.
They touch the money pulse of a
con qnunity. AS a rs.le, therefore,
the men who organic banks are men
of wide business experience, with
ample resources at their command
and enjoying a large share of public
confidence. Under ordinary circum-
stances, when these conditions are
lacking, men either haven't the cour-
age to organize bank or they haven t
the luck to succeed at it. 1t would
appear from this, therefore, that
when set of men who have had abb
solutely no experience of the sort re-
quired in successfully conducting a
bank, and who are lacking in the
essential resources of means and
credit, undertake to put in operation
a business enterprise under the pre-
tentious name of a bank, surely the
difficulties in the way Of their success
would az pear well-nigh insurmOunt-
l. D,,+ n
vorable condition under which this
present enterprise had its birth. One
point alone stood out prominently as
hopeful indication i'll organizing
this enterprise, and that was the
growing necessity for its existence.
"Here we are, a people strong III
numbers, advancing rapidly in every
educational requirement, entering
here and there into the smaller busl-
ness avenues and eager to widen the
field of our business operations, but
unalterably handicapped by prejudice
which we could neither modify no1
control. We had an army of salarled
men and women drawing from the
government every month, through
the public schools and the depart
mental service, hundreds of thous
ands of dollars, and still larger army
of honest, earnest wage-eamers, who
week by week received large money
return for their labor. There was
absolutely no central rallying pom
at which the monetary interest of the
colored people concentrated anC
through which we could prove to the
world that we are capable of tha
/ sort of business development tha
{ makes a reol le respectable and re
The Northwestern recorder., 1893-02-01

ese that six colored
9ber evening in 1888,
,H. P. Montgomery's S
city and discussed
ening a bank. They
q the arguments for
I'D, being filled with
something, they de-
there to do if. One
The Northwestern recorder., 1893-02-01
,FP: lMERICAN BANK.
uar-- Dollars Handled in Four
Years.

-. ,blem Of the Afro American S
soN"e Man and Citizen in the
R,oade- sense-A Washington
q Experiment.
The Northwestern recorder., 1893-02-01
MILWAUKEE, WIS, FET

nlents
men II
in the
residet
the pr
Garrett
and a.
a pur
cided
The herald., 1893-06-29

A triangular piece OF land, so
feet on east side of Orange
Grove avenue, by 202.35 feet
on north side of Grevellia
In Buena Vista tract, lot 13,
block E..
In Raabs subdivision, triangu-
lar piece of land % feet on
west side OF Fair Oaks avenue,
by 65 feet on north side Gre
Velilh urlNe. ..................
In. Raymond improvement COM
pany tract, southeast 80 feet of
block /, division 49,.
In Raymond improvement COM
pany tract a triangular piece
OF land described as follows:
beginning at point in the
east line of Fair Oaks avenue
40.51 feet north of the south
west corner OF block thence
north on q line of avenue 10
feet; thence east 44.4 feet to
the right-Of-war OF the Los An
Terminal Railroad company;
thence on said right-of-wAg
59.4 feet 70 point of begin
A strip of land 80 feet wide
through the property of the
Raymond provement COM
pany, being I5 feet on each
side of the center line of the
Los Angeles Terminal railroad,
located and described as fol-
lows: Beginning at q point
in the north line of Foothill
lE fnnf oA
angle from the center line of
the Southern California rail-
way; thence north on a curve,
concave to the west with
7S1.S4 feet radius, 375 feet;
thence north on line parallel
with and 35 feet west OF the
center line of the Southern
California railway, 179.7S
feet; thence ON o curve, con-
cave to the west with 1896
feet radius, 225.5 feet; thence
compounding into curve
with 1894 feet radius, ,260. IS
feet; thence north 1884 feet
to a point in the line between
the property of Walter Ray
mond and the Raymond I'm
provement company 130 feet
east from station a Of the Ma
rengo Ranch survey. $50.
A strip OF land through the
property of Walter Raymond,
bounded as follows: North
by south line OF Columbia
street, east by west line Of the
right of way Of the Southern
California Railway company,
south by the line between the
property Of said Raymond and
the Raymond Improvement
company, and west by line
described as follows: Begin
ming at a point in the said
property line 114.3 feet east
from station 4 of the Marengo
ranch; thence north, on a
curve, concave to the east
with 58S.7 feet radius, 1885
feet to a point in said Marengo
ranch line 1873 feet north from
station A; thence north on a
curve concave to the east with
7ls.S feet radius, 272.57 feet
to the southeast corner of Ray
mond brick block; thence
along east line of said block
COS feet to the south line of
Columbia street. ................
Pasadena City.
In southeast corner Of division
f, San Gabriel Orange Grove,
strip of land 80 feet wide,
bounded north by Fair Oaks
avenue, east by the right of
The herald., 1893-06-29
n Highland Park tract, all living

northwest OF line parallel
with and 3215 feet southeast
of the center line of the Los
Angeles Terminal railway, as
located through lot l, block
Lot ,, block 40. -. ............
Lot ], block 81.
Inc w Morgan's subdivision of
lot lS, Highland Park tract,
all lying southeast of line
parallel with and 25 feet
northwest Of the center line
of the J. A I r. as now located
through lot 15..............
A strip OF land so feet wide
through the property of John
Brenner, being % feet on each
side OF the center line of the l.
AFR as now located, ....
In Ralph Rogers subdivision of
Garvanza lands, strip of
land 80 feet wide, being Is
feet on each side OF center
line of the Los Angeles Termi-
nal railroad, as now located
through lot 30, block 5J......
The herald., 1893-06-29
calvin Fletcher'a subdivision

III OdlNl0 II lClC0cI SuDdlVlblOn
strip of lond 30 feet wide,
being 15 feet on each side OF
the center line of the Los An
geles Terminal railway, To-
Gated and described as fol-
lows: Beginning at a point
in the north line of lot 8,
204.5 from the northwest cor
ner thereof; thence southwest
on curve concave to the
south with $50 feet radius;
144.35 to a point 90 degrees
0.4 feet east of the east line of
Arroyo drive.
In Calvin Fletcher's subdivision
strip OF land 45 feet wide,
being Is feet on north and 80
feet on south side of the CEN
ter line of the Los Angeles
Terminal railway, located and
described as follows: Begin
ming at q point in the south
line of lot 9, 1898 feet from
the west line OF Palm avenue;
thence east on q curve con-
cave to the south with $50
radius, 447 feet to a point in
the west line of Palm avenue,
114.53 feet north OF the south
line of said lot 9..............
In Calvin Fletcher subdivision
north 10 feet OF lot 3..............
In A A Burrows subdivision,
The herald., 1893-06-29

In southeast corner OF division
F, San Gabriel Orange Grove,
a strip of land 80 feet wide,
bounded north by Fair Oaks
avenue, east by the right OF
The herald., 1893-06-29
Name and DescriptIon.

Name and Description. A
Garvanza lands, portion of
lots /, 2, 3, A and B, block SO,
described as follows: Begin
ming at the southeast corner
of lot L, thence west on south
line of said lots to southwest
corner of lot 5, thence north
on west line of said lot 8, 5
feet, thence east on line par
allel with and IS feet north of
the centerline of the Los An
geles Terminal railroad to q
point in the west line of the
Los Angeles Terminal railroad
to q point in the west line of
Gilbert street, thence south on
said line of street 20 feet to the
point of beginning
In Ralph Rogers subdivision of
Garvanza lands, q triangular
piece of land described as fol-
lows: Beginning at the north
west corner of lot 8, block 81,
thence south on west line of
said lot 20 feet, thence east to
the northeast corner of said
lot, thence west on south line
of Hartford street so feet, to
point of beginning, being a
portion of lot 5, block 81 -.
In Ralph Rogers subdivision OF
Garvanza lands. triangular
piece of land 200 feet on north
side of Hartford street by 100
feet on west side of Perry
street, being portion OF block
51........ .............
In Ralph Rogers subdivision of
Garvanza lands, strip Of
land 80 feet wide, being is
feet on each side Of center line
of Los Angeles Terminal rail-
road as now located through
q ~ 4.
The herald., 1893-06-29
Name and Description.

containing 3.3 acres. ......... So 81
In Stoneman tract, lot "a, block
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. 4 Is
In New Electric Road tract, strip
40 feet wide through lot Is,
The herald., 1893-06-29
Nnme nnd nescrintion.

Name and Description. Amt
way of the southern California
Railway company, south by
the north line OF Columbia
street, west by lands OF Will
lard Thompson 80. ....-.. 8
In WAshburn's subdivision of
lot IL, block N, San Pasqual
tract, strip of land lying be
tween lots 2 and and
the right of way of the
Southern California Railway
Company. y..-.....-....... -...
In Washburn's subdivision of
lot ~, block N, san Pasqual
trnct, q triangular piece of
land, described as follows:
Beginning at the northeast
corner of lot 8; thence east on
south line of Wallis street
1908 feet to west line of
right of way of Southern Cali
fornia Railway company;
thence southwest on said line
4O9.36 feet, north 27S.35 feet
to point of beginning .......
In G e Smiths subdivision OF
east 20 feet of lot 8. .............
In r Banbury's subdivision in
block N, San Pasqual tract,
west 20 feet Of east so feet OF
lot .................. .............
Lou y. ..-a........
In G Wooster's subdivisions Of
lot A, block II, San Pasqual
tract, east 8 feet Of lot 30......
West 20 feet of lot 81. .........
The herald., 1893-06-29
bouth Paendena Oity,

In Ralph Rogers replat, a strip
of land 90 feet wide, being IS
feet ON each side OF the center
line OF the L A 7 K, as now lo-
Gated through lpt 2, block g..
Lot 8, block 8 ..4...............
Lot 8, block 3 ....................
Lot 10, block 3 ........ ..........
Lot | !, block 3,..................
Lot II, block 81. .............
Lot 13, block g., 3.,r.............. -.
A strip of land so feet wide, be-
ing rs feet on each side of the
center line of the L A 7 r as
now located, from the east
line of Ralph Rogers replat TO
the north line oflot rs OF the
Arroy Seco Wood Lots ..,.....
In J A Gates subdivision, a'strip
of land lying west OF a line
parallel with and Is feet east
OF the center liue of the L A T
r as now located through lot
The herald., 1893-06-29
Long Beach CITY.

In American Colony tract, tri-
angular piece of land 20 feet
on south side of Hill street by
400 feet on east side Of Cali
fornia avenue, being west por-
tion of lot 113. ..
A strip of land 60 feet wide
through block 120, being 80
feet on each side Of the center
line of the Los Angeles Termi-
nal railroad, located and des-
cribed as follows: Beginning at
a point in the south line of
Alamitos street 1875 feet
west of northeast corner of
said block 100; thence south
west on curve concave to the
northwest with 573.7 feet
radius 1884 feet, to a point
in east line OF Lime avenue,
1862 feet north of southwest
4
The herald., 1893-06-29

A strip Of land 80 feet wide
through that portion of the un-
subdivided portion OF the ran
cho San Rafael, belonging to
Ralph Rogers, being IS feet
on each side of the center line
of the Los Angeles Terminal
railroad, as now located -.
In the town OF Garvanza, a strip
OF land so feet wide, being rs
feet on each side of the center
line OF the Los Angeles Ter
minal railroad, as now located
through block /.
In Arroyo Wood lots, O strip of
land 80 feet wide, being 25
feet on each side of the center
line OF the L A T r, as now To-
Gated through lot 90 ..........
IOt ......s.........
log 6o..s s,.......s.........
llOb %
The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1893-08-14

In all branches of sport beating the
previous record is a performance of al
most everyday occurrence, and no mat
ter how excellent the achievement it ia
not likely to remain long unchallenged
and unconquered. The establishment of
a new kind of record, although not strict
ly within the realms of actual sport,
cannot therefore fail to interest that large
class of spectators who are ever ready
to discover something new on which to
stake their spare cash. A wealthy young
Cuban recently made a bet with the carv-
er of n of the leading night restau-
rants Oh the Boulevard-the wager be-
ing for 1000 francs-that the latter
would not cut and make 1000 complete
sandwiches in "a hours.
The carver won the bet easily, accom-
plishing the feat in 10 hours and 40 min
utes, demolishing % hams in the opera
ton. This huge mass of sandwiches was
divided among the principal hospitals Of
Paris and the e%nvirons, among whose in
mates the unexpected advent of such
tasty morsels created unfeigned delight.
Paris Cor. London Telegraph.
The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1893-08-14
rhn Ace OF Publicity.

Old time privacy got q great blow
when a Paris mob pulled down the Bas-
tile. This is the age of publicity, and
we have reason to rejoice at lit. Think"
wrote President Eliot the other day,
chow all sorts of abuses and cruelties are
checked and prevented by the publicity
of modern life-a publicity which de-
pends on the universal capacity TO read"
1t is true enough that SO great an advan-
tage has no been won without q good
deal of accompanying detriment. Private
life is pried into far too much for the
~edifcation OF a servants hall eociety.
NJ. Taine's desire for seclusion was prob
ably an outcome of personal tempera-
ment, but justification could be found
for it, if that were necessary, in the
abuses of the condolences of other men.
Newspapers every day NEEDLE with
matters that it is a needless cruelty to
touch. The greatest journals in New
York invited their readers the other
morning to discuss with the federal
authorities whether and how often a
brides wedding dress had been worn.
Coroners subject the sanctity of dead
clay to brutal violation and publish re-
sulting ~sur1nises which it was v~illainy
ever to have made. So the sunshine
sometin.e ucorches and withers plants
that are not fit to bear it. Nevertheless
without sunlight there can be no whole.
some life.-Harper's Weekly.