The Farmington times and herald. (Farmington, St. Francois Co., Mo.) 1902-1905, 1904-10-07


Louis the Grand, who was later to rep
resent the young king In the provinces
OF Louisiana.
Near by the latter, and indeed the
central figure of this gathering. was
one less distinguished than either OF
the above. evidently neither of church.
~ ancestry nor civic distinction
Henri Varenne, sometime clerk for
the noted Paris Freres, farmers OF the
national revenues. Varenne. now serv-
ing but as clerk In the new bank oil
Las ct Conipagnie. could have been
called u man Of not great standing:
yet It was he whose presence had called
hither these others to this unusual
meeting. In point OF fact. Varenne
was n spy chosen by the Jealous Paris
Freres. to learn what he might Of the
internal mechanism OF this new and
startling institution which had sprung
into such sudden prominence.
AS to the bank Of these broth ers
Las" said the Prince de Cont. rap
ping out emphasis with his sword hilt
on the table, 1T surely has much to
commend 1t. Here is one OF It's notes,
and witness what It says. The bank
promises to pay to the bearer at sight
the sum OF fifty llvres in coin OF the
weight and standard OF this day That
| Is to say. OF this date which II bears.
! Following these, are the words value
| received Now. my notary tells me
a.. 10 l,t hplt ,ttn l
safe, SO that know what II means in
| coin to me at this day, or year from
now. is II not so. Monsieur Fraslin?'
The jew reached ont his hand. took
the note, and peered over II In close
scrutiny.
"'Tis no wonder, Monsieur lie Prince"
! said he, presently, that orders have
been given by the government to re-
ceive this note without discount for
! the payment of the general taxes,
Upon my reputation. must say to you
| that these notes will pass current bet
ter than your uncertain coin. The
specie of the king has been changed
twice in value by the kings orders.
Yet this bases itself upon a specie
! value which Is not subject to any
change. Therein lies It's own value"
at Is indeed true" broke in Var
enne. Not a day goes by at this new
| bank but persons come TO US and de-
mand our notes rather than coin of
the realm OF France"
"Yes yes" broke In the prince, I'VE
are agreed as to all this, but there Is
much talk about further plans OF this
| Monsieur Las. He has the ear Of his
grace the regent. surely. Now, sir,
tell us what you know of these future
affairs"
Tho rumor is, as understand II"
! answered Varcnne. that he IL to take
! over control of the Company OF the
Wcst-to succeed. In short to the shoes
Of Anthony Crozat There come Gu
riOus stories OF this province Of Louisi-
ana"
"Of course" resumed the prince,
with easy wisdom. I'VE all of us know
| Of the voyage OF LHuilier, who, with
! his four ships. went up this great river
| Mcssasebe. and who. as Is well known
| found that river Of Blue Earth, de-
scribcd by early writers as Astounding
in gold and gems"
AYE, and there comes the strange
| part OF It, and this Is what ! would lay
before your lordships. as bearing up
| on the value OF the shares of this new
| bank, since II is taking over the char
| ter OF the Company Of the West. II Is
news not yet known upon the street
The story goes that the half has not
been told of the wealth OF these prov
| lnCes.
Now. as you say. LHuillier had
with him four ships. and II is well
known that his gentlemen had with
| them certain ladies of distinction.
among these mysterious dame re.
| ported to have earlier travelled In pOr-
| lions of New France. The name Of
| this mysterious female Is not known,
| save that she Is reported to have been
n good friend OF sous-lieutenant OF
the regiment Carignan, sometime
dweller at Quebec and Montreal, and
who later became a lieutenant under
L'Huillier. 1t is said that this same
mysterious fair, having returned from
America and having cast aside her
lieutenant, has come under protection
of no less n person than his grace
Philippe OF Orleans. the regent. Now.
as you know, the bank Ia the best
friend of the regent, and this mys-
terious dame, as we are advised by
servants of his grace's household, hath
told his grace such stories Of the wealth
OF the Messasebe that he has secretly
and quickly made over the control Of
the trade OF those provinces TO this
new bank. There Is story also that his
grace himself will not lack profit In
this movement"
The hand Of Cont smote hard upon
the table by heaven It were strange
thing" said he, ~ this foreign tray-
eler should prove the same mysterious
beauty Philippe is reported TO have
kept in hiding My faith, Is 1t indeed
true that we are come upon time
Of miracles?"
"LiSten!" broke in Varenne, his ar
dor overcoming his obsequiousness
These are some of the tales brought
back-and reported privately, can as
sure you. gentlemen. now for the first
time and to yourselves. The people
Of this country are said to be clad In
beauteous raiment, made of skins, of
grasses, and of the barks OF trees
Their ornaments are made of pure, yell
low gold and Of precious gems which
they pick up from the banks OF the
streams. az common as pebbles here In
France. The climate is such that all
things grow In the most unrivaled
fruitfulness. There Is neither too
much sun nor too much rain. The
lakes and rivers are vast and beautiful,
and the forests are filled with myriads
of strange and sweet-voiced birds. IT'S
said that the dream of Ponce de Leon
hath been realized. and that not only
one, but a score of fountains Of youth
have been discovered In this great val
ley. The people are said never to grow
old. Their personal beauty Is Of sur