New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-09-20
From the New York Times.
GID JOHN RADDLE.
.y COLONEL }. W. EE FOREST.

Not an cid man; not more than fOrfy.fiv'
at the date OF this story; simply sold JOIN
Raddle." because there had been young
JOhn Rsddle, his son: Heated in figure
crimson in face, eyes bloodshOt, hair Ion:
aud unkempt, breath alwaFs fragrant will
whisky; no attire, summer or winter. wee
day or Sunday, but gray or butternu
hOmespun: such was my hero in the period
of HE grandeur.
His grandeur consisted IN this: that hav
ing been born slow down white of South
Carolina, he had ehewn {. certain degree OF
intelligence, industry and enterprise. had
gained money both in decent and evil
fashions. had developed character which
if not nice, was at least vigorous, and had
become, if rot a gentleman, at least some
thing far better than warrant or pau
PEI.
He had made his fortune of $4,000 or
$4,000 by nocturnal and illegal dickering
with pilferiDg negroes; then by more open
but scarcely more praiseworthy dealings
across the whisky stained counter OF a
cross roads grocery; Suti.e had made it, he
had kept it, he had it.
Now, even ia the patrioian South Caro-
lima of the o,den time money was reputa.
bic; if it was not "'gsod blaOd' it was tao.
lily regarded as the very next nOblest
species OF circulation; and thus John Rad.
die was considered not 40 low as he had
been. In fact, he had lifted his family as
far toward social responsibility as the most
gifted aud fortunate Cracker stock usually
could climb in one generation.
One step IL bis gradual rise had been the
conversion of his grocery into tavern,
with accommodations for nan and beast.
Fer man there were two bedrooms, small,
carPetless, rudely furnished. and as breezy
us hencoOps; a dining room with narrow
pine table, which profered fried bacon and
eggs, fried chicken, fried corn bread, and
sweet potatoes, a barrel flowing with white.
crude, fiery whisky, suitable for bOOzing
farmers and Crackers; private closet con.
tanning a barrel of old, mild amber whisky
for gentry. For beasts there was a ram.
Ghackle barn, showing through countless
rents great store of corrhusk fodder. and
;mperf, city shelterlng from the rain some
scant piles of maize nubbins.
The tavern consisted 0f low. vnpainted
and even unmarked log shanty. the original
grocery; and of q brOadirOnted, shallow,
Two story. yellow clapboard wing, the
modern addition. Puddles in wet weather.
and heaps of uncleauness always, nade the
approach unpleasant. There was no sign:
no such ostentatiOn was necessary: the
place was widely notorious as Riddles.
Twice a week the up mail, aZd twice week
the down mail, between Columbia and
Greenville, stopped here to change horses.
ulluktHS pSAoCVuS NAc AoA "-uhSAp
and at long. long intervals, one for the
night.
Besides the tavern. Old John had several
hundred acres of more or less evil lard.
dozen or so of ragged negroes, and scme
loans with neighboring farmers. The I:eh.
est man in the settlement" and one of the
richest for five miles around. he was Eot
only beginning to be held respectable. but
also to acquire certain measure Of self.
respect, notwithstanding his low origin. his
regular weekly sprees, his stumbling knowi.
edge of reading, and his total ignorance Of
writing. A rough. unschOOled, incorporate.
back woCdihh place was SOmerville, such a
place as you might expect to lind in thinly
settled region which fifty years before had
not been settled at all: o place which had
not yet ae CURED exiravagantly fine notions
as to what constitutes morality and gen.
tility: just the place for a prosperous
Cracker to try to grow into"a gentleman
of the old school,
Hes on bender, aiG't he!" whispered a
sallow. yellow haired urchin to
q solemn, wilted, griLzied negro, who WIS |
leaning ont of one of the bar-r0om win. |
iows. "Alays gifts his money bag out when
he's on bender, don't he" continued |
and received an Owllsh, as
senting wink of a bleared eye in response. |
Although lite ia short and many great nys' !
;eries remain uncOnsidered and unrevealeG. |
we must consume one moment in stating |
that Old Sol was famous in HOmerville toc
his dexterty in winking.
Perceiving cigar stump on the ground,
which had been swept out of the barrOOm.
Ssrawhead picked it up with his naked toes
and attempted to transfer it slyly to his
pockets, with the intention of smoking it at
some convenient opportunity. But seeing
that the gaze of Old Sol was upon him, he
asked, with an humble grin. "Keen't hev
,his.' and, obtaining favorable nod, de.
parted on joyful canter.
On day pregnant with future adventure
for Old John Raddle, he was Keeling up and
down before his tavern, his bloods6ot blue
eyes moist with whisky, his great cushions
of cheeks glowing like pair of sunsets,
tive or six drops of perspiration rolling
down his broad, red forehead, his iron-gray
hair towzled toward all points Of the uni.
verse. his thresdbare wooden broad brim in
one hand. and q stout canvas bag in the
other. Shaking his bag and violently jung
ing its metallic contents, was delivering
like . stump speech to three
Zaunt, seedy, cross roads politicians, who,
Iitting in row on Q wooden bench under
he caves, listened to him with ..meech-
ng,' wheedling grin, knowing that his
,eroration would be, "Come in, boye, an
o&orv /