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The Louisiana Law Association, now the Louisiana Bar Association, was in- corporated in 1847 by John R. Grimes as president, and Alfred Hennen as vicc- president, Thomas Allen Clark as secretary and treasurer, and Pierre Soule, Charles Watts, Christian Roselius, Richard H. Wilde, Edward Rawle, John Win- throp and William W. King, as the committee on membership.
In 1899 the association was reorganized and its name changed to the Louisiana Bar Association, at the same time the extensive addition to the association's library was begun, which has raised the number of volumes to some twelve thou- sand volumes. The State library in the Tulane Hall is also a law library of con- siderable value.
LAW WRITERS.
On account of the peculiar system of Civil Law in Louisiana, differing from that of the sister States, and the consequent limitations put upon the themes to which a law writer in Louisiana can appeal, the number of authors upon legal subjects has been less than it otherwise would have been. The Digest of Benjamin and Slidell, referred to under the notice of Judah P. Benjamin, may be mentioned, and the Criminal Code that was drawn by Edward Livingston, although it was
416
STANDARD HISTORY OF NEW ORLEANS.
never adopted, is considered by lawyers to be of the highest rank. David Hennen, the son of Alfred Hennen, compiled the first of the Digests which are now in use, which was the model for the subsequent Digests, which were compiled by Charles Louque, of the New Orleans Bar, and Jas. F. Taylor, of the Minden Bar. The edition of the Civil Code now commonly used was edited by Judge Albert Voor- hies. Mr. E. D. Saunders has published a book on Taxation, and Mr. Henry Denis one on Pledges. Mr. Solomon Wolff has edited an edition of the Revised Statutes, and Mr. Henry L. Garland is the editor of the last edition of the Code of Practice. Mr. Robert H. Marr compiled an admirable index of the statutes. Mr. Edwin T. Merrick has gotten out the first volume of a new edition of the Code, which will undoubtedly supersede all other editions.
Since the year 1847 there has been a law department attached to the Univer- sity of Louisiana, in which the most distinguished members of the Bar and Judges. have been professors. The present faculty is: Henry Denis, Professor of Civil Law and Lecturer on the Land Laws of the United States; Thomas C. W. Ellis, Professor of Admiralty and International Law; Frank Adair Monroe, Professor of Commercial Law and the Law of Corporations; Harry Hinckley Hall, Dean and Professor of Criminal Law, the Law of Evidence and of Practice under the Code of Practice of Louisiana; and Eugene D. Saunders, Professor of Constitutional Law, Common Law and Equity.
SUPREME COURT GALLERY.
In the room of the Supreme Court there are hung on the walls, from floor to ceiling, portraits, in oil, of the distinguished judges and members of the Bar of New Orleans who have passed away. There are busts of Judge Martin, Pierre Soule, Judge Marshall and Edward Livingston, and the portraits of all the celebri- ties-Roselius, Hennen, Judge Rost, Grymes, Slidell-all the famous judges and advocates of former times.
CHAPTER XVIII.
PUBLIC BUILDINGS AND CHARITIES.
BY A. G. DURNO.
P ERHAPS the most interesting of the public buildings of New Orleans is the old Cabildo building, on Chartres street, adjoining the Saint Louis Cathedral. Like its neighbor, the sacred edifice, the Cabildo was built by Don Almonaster y Roxas, the contract for this and the sister building on the other side of the church having been secured at the same time with that for the cathedral itself. It was called the Cabildo from the fact that it was here that the Governing Council, called by the Spanish the cabildo, held its sessions. This body was instituted by O'Reilly to re- place the Superior Council of the French administration, though with greatly diminished powers. It consisted of ten members, besides the governor, who pre- sided at its meetings, and an escribano, or clerk. Four of the members were elected on the first of each year by the whole cabildo, including the members who were about to retire. Two of these filled the office of alcaldes ordinarios, or common judges, each holding his daily court in the town hall, and, for causes involving not over $20, an evening court for one hour at his own house, where he rendered un- written decisions. A third elective officer was the sindico-procurado-general, or attorney-general-syndic, the official advocate of the people in the deliberations of the cabildo; and the fourth, the mayor-domode proprios or municipal treasurer. The other six members were styled regidors, or administrators-literally rulers, and acquired their seats in the cabildo by purchase. They were the alfarez real an hon -. orary office, without official functions except in case of the death or absence of one of the alcaldes ; the alcalde mayor provincial, a magistrate whose jurisdiction ex- tended beyond the city limits ; the alguazil mayor, a civil and criminal sheriff ; the depositario-general, keeper and dispenser of the government stores; the recibidor de penas de camara, receiver of fines and penalties; and a sixth, to whom no official functions were assigned. The cabildo held its sessions every Friday, though the
418
STANDARD HISTORY OF NEW ORLEANS.
governor had power to convene it at any time. When he did not attend one of the ordinary Alcaldes presided and immediately after adjournment two of the Regidors went to his house to inform him of what had been done. The ordinary Alcaldes had the first seats in the Cabildo, immediately after the governor, and below them sat the other members in the following order: the alfarez real, alcalde mayor provincial, alguazil mayor, depositario-general, recibidor de penas de camara, sindico-procurado- general, and clerk.
The old Cabildo has passed through many vicissitudes, and witnessed many changes. It was within its hall that the transfer of Louisiana from Spain to France took place, and here a few weeks later, Laussat, the French Colonial Prefect, delivered up the keys of the city, so recently surrendered to him by Governor Sal- cedo, to Commissioners Wilkinson and Claiborne, and turned over the Territory of Louisiana to the United States. When Lafayette visited New Orleans in 1825, as the city's guest, the Cabildo was fitted up as his residence during his stay, and the Democrats, in their contest for the mayoralty in 1858, turned it into a fortress. With the removal of the city offices to the new City Hall on St. Charles street, the glory of the old Spanish Cabildo departed. Its historic hall is now used by the Supreme Court of the State, while the lower floor serves as a magistrate's court and temporary jail. But it is found illy adapted to even these purposes, and there is a question as to what disposition shall finally be made of it. Some iconoclastic in- dividuals have suggested tearing it down, but the proposal brought out a storm of protest from citizens who are interested in the preservation of the few remaining monuments of the past, and it is not probable that it will ever be carried out. The Historical Society have taken the matter up, and it is proposed by them to thor- oughly renovate and restore the picturesque old building, and convert it into a museum for the reception of "pictures, statuary, old furniture, old books, minia- tures, silver and gold works, parchments, velvets and brocades, arms and musical instruments," everything, in short, that recalls the past of the city. This project meets with the warm approval and support of Charles Dudley Warner, who takes a deep interest in the history of New Orleans, and who, during a recent visit, made an eloquent appeal in its behalf through the columns of one of the daily papers. It is proposed to obtain possession of the building in time to have it in readiness for opening on the centennial of the cession of Louisiana to the United States, and to celebrate its inauguration as a museum with religious and military ceremonies simi- lar to those that accompanied the great event of December 20th, 1803.
Lowenstein, in his History of the Saint Louis Cathedral, says that at the time of
419
STANDARD HISTORY OF NEW ORLEANS.
the acceptance of his proposal to rebuild the parish church, Don Almonaster also secured the contract for, and built the buildings on each side of the Cathedral, at about $5,000 apiece; the one on the left intended for a presbytery, * * the one on the right built for a town hall and jail, in which the cabildo held its sessions." From a passage in the petition addressed by the Wardens of the Cathedral in 1842, to Judge Maurian, of the Parish Court, praying for relief and protection from the usurping pretensions of Bishop Blanc, who claimed the right of appointing a curate to succeed the deceased Father Moni, it would appear that the presbytery, whenever begun, was not completed until after 1805. The passage reads as follows :
When, in 1805, the first Church Wardens elected by the Catholics took possession of the property and commenced the administration of the affairs of the Church of St. Louis, the real estate belonging to it consisted in a space of ground situated on the left side of the church, and comprised between Chartres, St. Anne, Royal and the continuation of Orleans street. Said space of ground was at that time covered with small buildings of brick and wood, of little or no value, and yielding but a small revenue. The large building, which is in part opposite the Place d'Armes, had only been commenced, and in the imperfect condition in which it then was, being only raised to the first arches, was used by being temporarily covered with boards by the person to whom it had been rented, and produced only a small annual rent. The large building fronting on Place d'Armes has been finished and completed by your petitioners according to its original plan, and distributed in such a manner as to be conveniently occupied at first by private individ- uals, and afterwards by some courts of justice in this city. When the public desired that all the courts sitting in New Orleans should be held in the same building, your petitioners, both with a view to conform to the public exigency, and to derive a certain annual revenue from the property, caused important additions and alterations to be made to and in said building, so as to afford convenient halls for the session of different courts, and for the clerks and sheriffs thereof.
This passage renders it certain that the Cabildo's twin building was erected, not by Don Almonaster, nor, as has been asserted, by the United States Government in 1813, but by the Wardens of the Cathedral, at some period subsequent to 1805. Though of similar appearance to the Cabildo, its columns, wrought iron balconies, entrance, etc., will not bear rigid comparison with those of the older building. Its pediment is a flat plaster space relieved only by a medallion, while that of the Cabildo is ornamented with the American eagle and piles of cannon balls, which no doubt replaced some similar emblem of Spanish dominion. In 1850, probably about the time of the repairing of the Cathedral, the low flat roofs of the two buildings were ill-advisedly surmounted by French mansards, which it is to be hoped will dis- appear under the restoring hands of the architects employed by the Historical Society.
THE NEW ORLEANS MINT.
An act of Congress passed in 1835 to become effective in July, 1838, authorized the establishment of three branch mints, one to be located at Charleston, S. C.,
.
420
STANDARD HISTORY OF NEW ORLEANS.
one at Dahlonega, Ga., and one at New Orleans. Work was begun on the New Orleans building in 1836, and it was completed in 1838, the work of coining be- ginning in the following year. The building is the largest mint building in the United States, the cost of erection having been $182,000, and the capacity of the plant being about $5,000,000 per month. The structure is of fire brick, granite, and iron, very strong and fire-proof. The supports, ceiling and beams are all of cast iron, the flooring throughout of stone, on which plank is fixed. Outside.it is of brick, covered with cement, and painted a reddish brown. It occupies the site of the old fort St. Charles, at the foot of Esplanade avenue and Barracks street.
Up to 1853 there had been expended on this establishment, including the cost of construction, the putting in of machinery, and pay of employes, $778,- 630.78. The imports of specie for the four years, 1846-47 to 1850-51, inclusive, were as follows: 1846-47, $6,630,050; 1847-48, $1,845,808 ; 1848-49, $2,501,250; 1849-50, $3,792,662 ; 1850-51, $7,937,119. During the year ending July 31, 1851, the gold deposits amounted to $8,285,637.14, and the silver deposits to $822,085.25. The gold coinage for the same year was $8,994,000, and the silver coinage, $1,- 050,500.
In 1861 the mint was abandoned by those in charge, and did not resume opera- tions under the auspices of the United States Government until 1878. Immediately after the abandonment of the mint, citizens went through the building as they chose, taking away such tools as they found. Between January 26 and May 31, 1861, the State of Louisiana had possession of the mint, and during that period coined in double eagles, $195,000, the Confederate Government coining during the same period, $59,820 in double eagles. In February and March of the same year the State of Louisiana coined 1,240,000 silver half dollars, and the Confederacy coined in April and May, 962,633 half dollars, making a total by the two governments of $1,101,316.50. All of this coinage was done with the regular dies of the United States supplied late in 1860 for governmental use during the following year.
Thirty-two pairs of dies of 1861, more or less complete and of all denomina- tions, of United States coins, were found at the mint by the agent of the United States Mint Bureau in January, 1865, and destroyed by him on the 15th of that month. The following items of information are from Dr. W. F. Bonzano, melter and refiner of the mint, during the period above referred to :
"The branch mint at New Orleans, with all its contents, was 'taken in trust' by secession convention in December, 1860, through a committee of the convention, at the head of which was the president of the convention, ex-Governor A. Mouton.
42I
STANDARD HISTORY OF NEW ORLEANS.
The committee called at the mint, ascertained the amount of bullion in the hands of the treasurer, melter and refiner, and coincr, and required an especial bond for same from each of these officers. A rough settlement was made, and all dies of 1860 were defaced in the presence of all the officers, except Mr. Guirot. By order of the superintendent, coinage was immediately resumed with the new dies of 1861, and continued until the 31st of May, 1861, when a final settlement was made and all bullion transferred to Mr. A. J. Guirot, who had in the meantime been appointed Assistant Treasurer of the Confederate States; at the same time all the United States dies, of whatever description, after careful examination and recognized agreement with the coiner's die account, were, with the consent of the coiner, defaced by the foreman, Mr. John F. Brown, with the assistance of a workman, Mr. Richard Stevenson.
"Under the auspices of the superintendent, treasurer and coiner, designs for a Confederate coin were made, and that for half dollars offered by the coiner, ac- cepted, and was executed by an engraver of New Orleans, who produced a die of such high relief as rendered it impracticable for use in a coinage press. From this die four pieces were struck by successive blows of a screw press. The four pieces differed from the United States standard only in the legend. With the exception of these four pieces, no coins of any kind, different from the United States stand- ard, were ever made at the New Orleans branch mint during the interval from May 31, 1861, to the early part of 1879.
"Another mark in the mint's life was the alleged burning, in June, 1893, of $25,000 in United States paper currency, in bills of various denominations and character, which were deposited in a large tin box in the steel vault connected with the cashier's office, then in charge of Mr. James M. Dowling, who was cashier, appointed by Dr. A. W. Smythe, recent director of the mint, under Harrison's ad- ministration. There was some mystery and doubt as to the manner in which this money caught fire, and suspicion falling on Mr. Dowling, he was arrested on a charge of embezzlement, and bound over to await the action of the Federal grand jury; was indicted, tried and prosecuted vigorously and ably by the United States District Attorney, Frank B. Earhart, and was acquitted.
"The theory of the defense being, that the wires connected with the electric globe or bulb lighting the vault became overcharged with electricity, causing the bursting of the bulb, which was made of very thin glass, and scattering about the heated glass and carbon, and that the currency was ignited by these fragments, electrical experts testified that such ignition was possible. Mr. Dowling was
422
STANDARD HISTORY OF NEW ORLEANS.
indicted for embezzlement, a government witness, expert in such matters, testify- ing that a minute microscopic examination of the ashes of the burnt money, dis- closed a sum of original bills amounting to only $1,185, Dowling alleging $25,000 as being in the box."
The method of working the metal is as follows: Bullion is received by the superintendent's weigh clerk in many different forms and conditions, such as bricks, bars, dust, washings, old jewelry, plate, spoons, etc., which are called, and treated as deposits. No smaller value than $100 in either gold or silver is received, and since November 2d, 1893, the purchase of silver has been discontinued. The depositor, on delivering his metal to the weigh clerk, receives a certificate of de- posit, showing the gross weight of the metal deposited, but he is not paid therefor until the metal has been carried through many processes of refining, assaying, etc., to ascertain its exact value, which he is paid, less the mint charges. This system prevents fraud upon the government in the shape of deposits of gilded bricks, plated iron dust, and other simulations of gold, since an attempted fraud is certain of discovery, and the would-be cheat never calls for payment.
In this connection it may be of interest to note that gold has the following degrees of fineness :
Carat.
Fineness.
Value per Ounce.
Troy.
10
416.66
$ 8.61
11
458.33
9.47
12
500
10.33
13
541.66
11.19
14
593.33
12.26
American Jewelry.
15
625
12.91
16
666.66
13.78
Better American Jewelry.
17
708.33
14.64
18
750
15.50
French Jewelry.
19
791.66
16.36
20
833.33
17.22
21
875
18.08
22
916.66
18.94
English Sovereign.
23
958.33
19.81
24
1000
20.67
21.6
900
18.60
United States Coins.
One carat is cqual to one pennyweight, or the one-twentieth part of an ounce Troy-the only weight used in any department of the mint. All the scales are of very delicate construction and are examined, weights adjusted, etc., several times a weck by an expert, which insures exact weighing and the best possible conditions of the instruments. Gold is weighed to the one-hundredth part of an ounce, and silver to the onc-twentieth part.
423
STANDARD HISTORY OF NEW ORLEANS.
The following tables show the amount of coinage at the New Orleans mint from the time of its establishment in 1838 down to June 30, 1898, it being under- stood that operations here were suspended from 1861 to 1879, since which time it has been in continuous operation :
Silver.
Double eagles.
Eagles.
Gold. Half eagles.
Quarter eagles.
Dollars.
Dollars.
1838
1839.
$44,452
1840.
$152,000
65,500
1841.
$25,000
41,750
18,450
1842.
274,000
82,000
49,500
1843.
1,751,620
505,375
920,005
1844. .
1,187,000
1,823,000
....
1845.
475,000
205,000
165,000
$59,000
1847.
5,715,000
60,000
310,000
1848 ..
358,500
. .
1850.
$2,820,000
575,000
205,000
370,000
290,000
1852 ..
. .
3,800,000
180,000
350,000
140,000
1853
1,420,000
510,000
230,000
382,500
1855 ....
160,000
180,000
55,500
55,000
..
1856 ....
45,000
145,000
50,000
52,750
1857. . ..
600,000
55,000
65,000
85,000
1858. . . .
705,000
200,000
1859 ....
182,000
23,000
360,000
1860 ....
132,000
111,000
515,000
1861}. . .
100,000
1879. . .
46,500
15,000
2,887,000
1880.
92,000
5,305,000
1881.
83,500
5,708,000
1882.
108,200
6,090,000
1883.
8,000
8,725,000
1884.
9,730,000
1885
9,185,000
1886
10,710,000
1887.
11,550,000
1888.
213,350
12,150,000
1889.
11,875,000
1890. .
10,701,000
1891. .
7,954,529
1892.
286,880
50.000
2,744,000
1893.
170,000
550,000
300,000
1894.
1,075,000
83,000
1,723,000
1895.
980,000
450,000
1896.
4,900,000
1897.
425,000
4,004,000
1898 *.
......
.......
1,100,000
Total. 16,375,500
19,433,850
4,447,625
3,023,157
1,004,000
128,765,529
¿No coinage from 1862 to 1878, inclusive.
*Six months only.
.....
290,000
1854. ...
65,000
525,000
210,000
14,000
40,000
1851. . ..
6,300,000
2,630,000
1849.
239,000
$215,000
1846.
817,800
290,000
...
424
STANDARD HISTORY OF NEW ORLEANS.
Total Coinage.
Half dollars.
Silver. Quarter dollars.
Dimes.
Half dimes.
Gold.
Silver.
Total Value.
1838. .
$40,243
1839. .
$81,488
124,327
$54,827
$44,452
260,642
305,095
1840. . ..
427,550
$106,300
117,500
46,750
217,500
698,100
915,600
1841. . ..
200,500
113,000
200,750
40,750
85,200
555,000
640,200
1842 ....
478,500
192,250
202,000
17,500
405,500
890,250
1,295,750
1843. .
1,134,000
242,000
15,000
3,177,000
1,391,000
4,568,000
1844.
1,002,500
185,000
11,000
3,010,000
1,198,500
4,208,500
1845. .
. .
. .
....
1,272,800
1,211,000
2,483,800
1847. . ..
1,292,000
92,000
30,000
358,500
1,620,000
1,978,500
184
1,155,000
30,000
7,000
454,000
1,192,000
1,646,000
1850.
1,228,000
103,000
51,000
34,500
3,619,000
1,456,500
5,075,500
1851.
. .
201,000
22,000
40,000
43,000
9,795,000
327,600
10,122,600
1852.
72,000
24,000
43,000
13,000
4,470,000
152,000
4,622,000
1853.
664,000
333,000
110,000
118,000
2,220,000
1,225,000
3,445,000
1854.
2,620,000
371,000
177,000
78,000
1,274,500
3,246,000
4,520,500
1855
1,844,000
44,000
30,000
450,500
1,918,000
2,368,500
1856 ..
1,329,000
242,000
118,000
55,000
292,750
1,744,000
2,036,750
1857.
409,000
295,000
154,000
69,000
805,000
927,000
1,732,000
1858.
3,647,000
130,000
29,000
83,000
905,000
3,889,000
4,794,000
1859
1,417,000
65,000
48,000
28,000
205,000
1,918,000
2,123,000
1860.
645,000
97,000
4,000
$53,000
243,000
1,314,000
1,557,000
1861 ;. . .
165,000
165,000
265,000
1879.
61,500
2,887,000
2,948,500
1880.
92,000
5,305,000
5,397,000
1881.
83,500
5,708,000
5,791,500
1882
108,200
6,090,000
6,198,200
1883
8,000
8,725,000
8,733,000
1884.
9,730,000
9,730,000
1885.
9,185,000
9,185,000
1886.
10,710,000
10,710,000
1887.
11,550,000
11,550,000
1888.
213,350
12,150,000
12,363,350
1889.
11,875,000
11,875,000
1890.
10,701,000
10,701,000
1891.
17,000
454,000
8,425,529
8,425,529
1892.
195,000
660,000
384,170
336,880
3,983,170
4,320,050
1893.
694,500
849,000
176,000
720,000
2,019,500
2,739,500
1894 ..
1,069,000
713,000
72,000
1,158,000
3,577,000
4,735,000
1895. .
883,000
704,000
44,000
980,000
2,081,000
3,061,000
189
. .
462,000
371,000
61,000
5,794,000
5,794,000
1897
316,000
353,000
:66,600
425,000
4,740,300
5,165,300
1898 *.
.....
. .
...
Total. 27,421,038
6,324,250
2,784,590
812,327 44,356,132
166,129,335
210,485,467
tNo coinage from 1862 to 1878, inclusive. *Six months only.
The above totals include three-cent pieces to the amount of $21,600 minted in 1851, and three dollar pieces to the amount of $72,000 minted in 1854.
.
. .
. .
. .
. .
1,100,000
1,100,000
1846.
1,152,000
6,085,000
1,384,000
7,469,000
1848 .. ..
1,590,000
23,000
680,000
1,070,000
1,750,000
1,047,000
$40,243
$40,243
1
100,000
425
STANDARD HISTORY OF NEW ORLEANS.
For purposes of comparison it may be stated that at the Philadelphia mint there were coined from the time of its organization in 1793 to June 30, 1898, a total of $1,303,635,491.42 in all kinds of coin; at the Charlotte, N. C., mint, from its establishment in 1838 to its suspension in 1861, a total of $5,059,188; at the Dahlonega, Ga., mint, from its organization in 1838 to its suspension in 1861, a total of $6,106,569; at the San Francisco mint from the time of its establish- ment in 1854 down to June 30, 1898, a total of $1,143,994,428.80; at the Carson City, Nev., mint from its organization in 1870 down to June 30, 1898, a total of $49,274,434.30; and, as given above, at the New Orleans mint, $210,485,467.60, making a grand total at all the mints in the United States down to June 30, 1898, of $2,718,555,579.12.
During the fiscal year ending June 30, 1899, there were coined at the New Orleans mint the following amounts : In standard silver dollars, $10,540,000; in halves, $627,000; in quarters, $707,000. In checking up the several accounts or amounts of bullion, subsidiary coin and other forms of money, the year's balance sheets closed without the variation of a cent.
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