Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1872-02-22
An EXtOrtiOnate Cabman.

WHAT has become of an odd specimen
of an eXtortonatc cabman whom it was
our lot to encounter three years since
If he be still in the trade, some OF our
readers may have CHANGED upon him, and
may recognize him by our brief descnp
ton.
The man was character, and his meth
cd of procedure, at least in the instance
which we are about to quote, was novel
and original. He was short. hull.neck
man, Of some 80 years or age, with red
and hubby countenance, and two small,
twinkling gray eyes, set far back in his
head he was lame and wore a black
glazed hat, like French coachman's
his language was fluent, personal, and
marked with the strongest adicctives
and there was rum in his whole system
at the time we CHANGED upon him. jogging
along in distant suburb, Noting hill
way at five in the morning. We had been
at a friends party, and had not provided
for the retdrn Journey; we were discon-
soiate, and six in number and the man
saw our position, and volunteered, with a
considerable amount Of politeness then, to
drive us homeward. The cab was a roomy
cab. and would hold the six OF us quite
comfortably only try it. We did try 1t,
for there was a drilling rain descending,
and no further help in sight. We gave
our address and were driven off, mass
OF distorted humanity, until we finally
reached our destination in the broad day
light with the reproachful eyes OF po-
liCeman upon us as we struggled from The
vehicle and strovc to assume our natural
conformatlOns.
a; f,,aCtinp and
are of opipion that very handsome do
nation. that made amends for extra dis
lance, extra weight, and left decided
margin for the driver, was rendered on
that occasion to the eccentric being whom
we are never likely to forget. bul even
with n policcman before him. he Tell INTO
position, and launched his language al US
He wouldn't touch it; he wouldn't lay
a hand upon it, He wanted double tne
money, Just double the blessed-he ana
not saw blessed-and measly-he qua say
measly-amount which had been ohered
him Settle the case at the next Diessed
station house.-which, however, was not
blessed on that occasion by the disputaht
not he: though there wasn't an ihspec-
tor in all the land who wouldn't give the
decision in his favor. ASK the ponce
man present what he considered was
lcpal claim,-of course he would. But
when the policeman went into calcula-
tan and thought that-re- Ia gAt-haAe
g;ven him something like three shlllihgs
loo much, no pen is powerful enough 10
doscrihe orr claimants rage and mortimer
tion and general state OF wounded leei-
incs, He tossed his shiny hat mo inc
roadway. he executed manlacal dance:
he cursed us for hiring him, and himself
for being hired; he startled his observes
considerably by drawing from his pockei,
. hinge clasp-knife, which he opened anu
t,onrished round his head, as an indiah
savage might have brandished H. "heh
scalp collecting. Lo .oia
"i,m not going to hurt YOU, he said
IN tho noIiceman. ''or them. Not /.
Knows nv place too well for that I'm
not a going TO take their blcssed'-piease
consider ''blessed" was not the adJecliFe
emnloved apain-.'and measiy money !
make 'em a present of it, there! But
a;n,t a-going TO have this poor animal
bimposed upon. He shan't have tne ms
fortune of drawing such measIy io ,,
ever again; I'm a-going to cut ms liroa,.
He went with solemn strides 10 the
EFT of his horse, as Virginius might
have done toward his daughter, seized the
hr;dle held the knife to the animal 8 ugu-
lar region, and paused :, ;, a.Led
90 "ATe YOU going to pay ups' he asked
~ No we were not going to pay up any
more.