The Opelousas courier. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1852-1910, 1904-06-11
A Luminous Idea.
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An article in last Saturday
Clarion signed "Jacobs News De
pot Co.," evidently intended tt
gull the greenies, undertakes tt
demonstrate that a forty thou
sand dollar scheme of building
"three apartment stores and al
opera house to rent, and also the
business now known as Jacobs
News Depot Co.," "all consid
cred in one big enterprise" wik
bring a revenue of $3785, as fol.
lows:
Three stores at $40 per month. ,44
Net profits of the past business. ........... 1s4
According to past dividends-total -..-. 80, ,7s
That looks nice-on paper-but
how about the facts. There are
at present at least half a dozen
eligible, centrally located store
buildings in OpeIousas, some OF
which may be rented for a great
deal less than $40 per month
some of them for half that amount
or less, several in the centre of
town, on Main street, and Others
in the best business centers out
side of Main street. Store build
ings are not in demand. How
will the opera house be able to
bring yearly revenue of $1,000.
We now have an opera house that
did not cost one-slxth of $4,000,
with a capacity to accommodate
any audience ever assembled in
Opelo.Sas, and it may be many
years before an Opelousas audi
ence will be larger than the cap
acity of the present building, and
although it has been under an ex-
perienced and competent mana
ger for years, the profits have
never reached four per cent on
the capital invested, after deduct
ing insurance, taxes, licenses, re-
pairs, etc. If one opera house at
$4,000 Or $4,000 does not pay 4 per
cent profit, how will $4,000
building, with the business divid-
ed between two opera houses,
bring $1,000 a year profit. The
gullible may bite at "Jacobs News
Stand Co. So project, but the man
who has capital to invest will not
put it in any such visionary
scheme.
If the third enumerated item,
entitled sNet profits of the past
business, 81, ,345," is calculated on
the same basis as the other two,
then the stockholders who may
put their money in this grand
speculation may find themselves
in the same fix as the stockholders
in that other grand scheme which
was worked up here several years
ago under the title of the "St:
Landry Clarion Co., Limited. -
Ask the stockholders Of that Co.
how much they have realized ON
their investment. A large num-
Der of our citizens put money in
the concern, but we have never
heard that any of them ever re-
ceived a cent in return, nor have
we ever heard any reason ad-
vanced why the stockholders have
received no dividends.
In justice to some of the gen.
tlemen whose names are being
paraded as endorsers of the
scheme by "Jacobs News Stand
Co.. we will say that they dis
claim any connection with or en-
dorsement of the plan proposed,
as outlined in the communication
signed "Jacobs News Depot Co.,
and do not wish to be considered
as parties to the scheme, or as
endorsing the same, or advising
any one else to do so, and espe.
cially do they disclaim any respon,
sibility for the brilliant ideas OF
the party signed "Jacobs News
Depot Co."
There is ample room in Opel
ousas for the profitable invest.
| ment of capital. We need a good
hotel building. A furniture fac
tory would pay. A brick factory
would yield liberal profits. A
broom factory would prove sure
| success. A wagon factory woule
do we'll. All these enterprises
would give employment to man,
Of our people and put money il
circulation the year round. We
might enumerate several other in
dustries that would require NJ
great amount of capital, which
would build up the town and par
ish, where idle capital could b.
profitably invested if managed b,
/ responsible and competent men
| But let's have no more wild-ca
| enterprises engineered by ire
sponsible visionary schemers.
| The developments in the Calca
sieu shrievalty must certainly as