New Ulm weekly review., 1878-06-19
YakOb.

: 4.
1t was saying in the family that s'Sue
was the poet, Joe the fancier, and Char
ley--had discovered the Yakob.''
It needs very little wit to give say
ing long life in a lonely farm house, and
Yakob was as remarkable novelty
among us as a poem or a good deal of
money would have been.
he was very short, very stumpy.
very white headed Ouch boy of seven
teen, whom Charley found on the Bat
terry one winters day Charley went to
New York every winter to buy groceries
for the plantation, and clothes for the
slaves, and he had found Yakob on his
last visit, in 1859, just before the war
began.
Yakob had landed from an Antwerp
schooner, and fallen among thieves, who
left him in rags and penniless, when
Charley came, like the good Samaritan,
to his rescue.
"But what ban you do with him? my
father demanded, when the queer look
ing creature stood before him, his big
eyes staring straight at him.
ooh, there will be some place open
for him on the plantation, sir" said
Charley Hell be OF use somewhere.
"You could make more use of a sea-
horse,' said Sue, pertly; and my mother
nodded Mother said she had an inst;nc-
tive eislike to Yakob. But whatever
Charley did was right in our good moth
er's eyes, and besides, she would have
been gentle and polite to Yakob even if
he had been sea-horse.
So charley, taking me by the hand
led Yakob round to the tobacco house
and set him to work there. He stared in
dismay for minute at the black faces
(for he had seen but two negroes. .and had
never been brought in contact with a
black man) and then went to work in
telligently enough, and never raised his
eyes to them again.
Charley and went back to the house,
was boy Of nine then, and the tor
ment and pet of my big brothers. We
found my father on the portico reading
the Richmond Erun,S,,er.
~ have brought you a first rate ma
chine, SIR" Charley sald; 6 as steady, and
sure, and dumb, as if it were made of
wood and STEEL"
cts your property" said father, with
a shrug.
Now nobody but Charley understood
German, and Yakob could not speak a
word of English 1t followed, therefore,
that father had to take entire charge of
his j" property" He gave him little
wooden shanty, which had been. tool
house on the edge of the woods, in which
to sleep.
The German whitewashed and repaired
his dwelling, and in the spring planted
vines and flowers about it. Instead of
being longer an eyesore, it became the
most picturesque spot on the plantation.
But "the creature himself" Sue declared,
twas an animal" Such mountains of
pork and rivers of beer disappeared down
his throat!
He showed no sign of interest in any
living thing except Charley, whom he
followed about like dog whenever he
could, never speaking, however, unless
forced to do so.
The war came, of which wish to say
little Our family, like many others on
the border, was divided. Joe went into
one army, Charley, into the other. My
father held to the old flag. My mother
and Sue presented banners and arms to-
Southern companies.
The negroes caught the excitement,
some of the house servants following their
young masters. Yakob alone was un-
moved as stone. Either Joe or Charley
would have been glad to have him as a
recruit into their companies.
"Never. never!" he grunted. 'No
fight"
"But don't you want to uphold the re-
public?' said one.
"Do you care for liberty?" inquired
another.
L care for mein kopf," clapping his
hands to head. "I keeps mein kopf on
mein shoulders"
'.BeastW muttcred Joe.
Even Charley looked disgusted, which
YakoD quickly perceived.
II come to this country for peace he
said, rapidly in German, land the men
take each other by the throat l know
nothing of your North-your South
'sYou know nothing but Yakob p with
laugh.
The light eyes flashed little.
"Ya; und-Yakob's work." he said.
doggedly, and turned to the tobacco
house.
Even we who were children remember
the times that then followed on the bor-
der; the marching and countermarching
OF armies; the turning of our fields into
battle. grounds, and our houses into hos
pitals; the ravages Of the bushwhackers
and guerrillas, first on one side then on
the other; and, worse than all, the bit