Los Angeles herald., 1905-04-09

gagged IN the grocery business but he
soon engaged in real estate operations
on grand scale. He bought city lot
where the state normal school now
stands for which he paid $2S That was
in 1867 BY the spring of 1S73-slX years
he had sold $1S7,00O worth of this
tract, which he had laid out as the
Bellevue terrace, and had $4,000 worth
left IN conjunction with J. w. Potts
he graded Temple street, thus creating
a thoroughfare leading up to extensive
tracts which he owned in the hills back
Of the river. He supplied this section
of the city with water which he pumped
from swamp which he owned on
Also street and distributed from two
enormous reservoirs, which are still
standing on the hills near the Sisters
! hospital He was naturally great
promoter, and IL he had lived in Los
Angeles in these piping times he would
undoubtedly have handled colossal deals
and with success, for he always sue
ceeded in anything he undertook. on
! New High street, about the middle of
the block, off Temple street, stands an
enormous restraining wall, with ia
scription placed thereon by himself,
which attests how he loved to do big
and solid things.
While Beaudry was mayor that Of
ficials duty was. amongst other things,
to hold daily courts and dispose of the
| =, he 10.
details. This stunt was recognized
about that time to be too exacting and
that department was turned over to the
justices.
Beaudry was an old bachelor and al.
together distinctive character. When
the Baroness Rogniat was a social
| feature here she took the aged bachelor
| in hand and as he was known to he
about to die she undertook to lead him
up to leaving some of his large wealth
to charity. She told me once with
great gaiety that she had succeeded in
getting him to agree to devote $50,000
by his will to that object. 1 laughed
while congratulating her, as 1 had no
bequests. His riches went to the other
rich Beaudrys. He was not the man for
spiritual projects.
other Well Known Mayors
Captain Cameron e. Thorn made a
capital mayor of Los Angeles in his
time He is still in the ring amongst
well known Angelenos of the retired
capitalist class. and he and his accom-
most distinguished social circles of
| Los Angeles and of the state of
California. Captain Thom has retired
from active practice at the bar. The
| firm of Thom 6; Ross-the latter his
nephew. Federal Judge Cameron e.
Ross-was one of the most noted in
Los Angeles and in the state at large.
Captain Thorn was a Virginian and
had been an officer in the Confederate
army. Southern California was one of
the favorite resorts at the close of the
war for those who had been identified
with the lost cause, such as the Glas-
sells, Chapmans and other we'll known
| Il
supremely gracious manner, Captain
Thorn is extremely impetuous in tenn
perament. l recall an exceedingly
amusing incident of Democratic
county convention in those days-days
| in which a nomination for a Democrat
was equivalent to an election. The
captain and some other distinguished
gentlemen were waging fierce fight
for the nomination for district attor-
ney. In the course of a speech Thom
grew very excited in proclaiming his
Democracy
why" said he, II fought for the
Democratic party" undoubtedly allud-
, ing to his term of service in the Con-
federate army. A good natured laugh
went around the hall, but the argu-
ment failed of its intended effect, un-
less my memory is at fault.
When Captain Thorn was mayor of
Los Angeles this city had a courtly
and intellectual representa- tive, who
was calculated to impress favorably
the most discriminating and eXacting
visitor, and such thing as a job in
municipal affairs was not to be
thought of.
OF all our mayors perhaps the most
winning and peculiar was E. F. Spence.
He was born in Ireland and came over
to Philadelphia as a boy and was edu-
Gated in the drug business. Coming
to California he located i'm Nevada
City, where he opened a pharmacy and
bought gold from the miners on the
side. He was obliged to leave Nevada
on account of pulmonary troubles. He
went to San Jose and entered into the
banking business, under the auspices
of Mr.. Mabury of the Garden city. He
found that he had to go farther south
for his lungs, and pulled up at San
Diego i'm 1873, where he established the
Commercial bank, San Diego having
undergone one Of her customary back
sets, Spence in 1875, with the backing
of Mabury of San Jose and Francis of
Chicago, came up to Los Angeles and
established here the First National
| hank He told mo that whaO he start