The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1879-07-11
Toledo Blade.
Nasty.
The Sad History of Mr.. Samuel Popman.
Druggist-Why He is a Greenbacker.

| CONFEDRIT X ROADS 4
(Wich is in the State Nv Kentucky
July l, 1879.
The most intense Greenbacker we hev at the
Corners is Sam Popman, the drugger at Seces-
sionville. Popman does nothin from mornin
till mite but devise finanshal skeems for the
payment NV the nashnel det, wich, ez he hez
never bin able to pay any NV his own, lie is
entirely competent to do The history NV Sam
Popman is one NV the saddest that hez grown
out NV Shermans crooel polisy.
In 1861 Sam Popman was drugger at Seees-
shunville, hevily in det. He owd for his stock
NV drugs, and he ovid for the cloze his wife
wore, and also for them wich adorned his per-
SON. So desprit wuz Samyooel's forchoons, in
conscience NV his predileckshun for hoss races
and draw poker and sich thet he serusy cor
templated slippin to Texas, and embarkin in
| the genraly poplar and alluz profitable bizness
NV steelin hosses on the Mexikin border.
| The infashun NV the currency consekent OH
| expenses Nv the war changed Samyooel's ca
reer. He found his stock NV drugs going up
| twenty-five per cent day. JollOp, wich he
ovid for at the rate Nv six cents pound, shot
up to twenty to thirty, to fifty, to anything he
chose to ask for it, and it kept shootin up till
the little stock he he'd NV 81, 900 wuz wuth
S500O0 and no matter what he bot it went up
on his hands, and Samyooel found hisself with
100000 in no time.
Wv course Samyoel tO-wunst commenst to
live in style commensurate with his in
creased meens. He went and bilt an addshn
to his house, putting on two wings and an ex-
tenshun back, bildin, in fact, completely
around the old house, and putin another story
on the top. Then his wife immeiitly got two
hired girls, and his two dawters wuz sent to
seminary in Louisville. Samyooel for his own
plezure investid in a fast trottin hoss and
iined the Kentucky Club in Louisville, and
played poker ez much ez he pleesed, and he
pleesed to do good deel NV it. 1t didn't make
partikle NV difference, for every dollar NV
goods he bot dubbed on his hands every day
or two. Mrs. Popman utterly refoosed to do
any work NV any kind, and spent the heft NV
her time tryin on dresses, wich she bot in Loois-
vile, and takin excursions to that city to wear
em. 1t wuz rather gorius time for the Pop
mans.
In 1873 Samyooel diskivered there wuz
change. The war he'd bin over sum time, and
the debt wich it he'd cost he'd to be pade
Samyooel didn't see any necessity for pay in it
he he'd made by the raise in the valyoo NV his
goods, and he'd gone hevy into reel estate
lie he'd bot large amount NV lands, which he'd
bin goin up jiSt the same ez drugs, and he'd bot
EN- all ON credit. He hednt made any down
payments, but in place NV actual money down
on his moo purchases he'd given mortgages on
his house and store, and sich other reel and
personal property ez he he'd. 1t worried him.
EZ the kentry, under Sherman's rooinus
pollsy, begun to git down to a gold basis drugs
begun to drop 10 per cent. a day. instid NV
ralsln 70 and reel estate commenst to foller
drugs and SIGH, with friteful accurasy The
land Wich he he'd agreed to pay $1,000 a aker
for he couldent sell for S15, owing to the fact
that nobody wantid it, and the quinine he he'd
pade ~ ounce for dropped to S2.25. Conse-
kently Samyooel wuz forst to succum and he
wuZ scooped.
The other drugger in Secesshunville waz
another kind NV man. He accepted the raise
on his stock doorin the war period in Christ
yum sperlt NV thankfulness, and hived very
keerfully, all the mummy it made him He
llved IN the same old house through it ALL his
Wlte contlnnered in Christyun way to bake
her own buckwheat cakes and do her own
washin, and he sot his face like a flint agin fast
hosses and expensive likkers. And this wuz
wat worried Samyooel. When the turn cum,
his opposishun he'd plenty NV mummy in the
bank, and he marked down his goods with the
same childlike and Christyun sperit that in
1862 he marked EN- up. He sed to hisself, 81
he'd the benefit NV the rise-I will take the
NV the Lord" and he went right along and
continnered to do bizness and prosper, while
the Sheriff wuz closin out Samyooel. This
other drugger never howled about hard times.
Samyooel Popman firmly believes thet he
wuz destroyed by Sherman and / agree with
him. He'd Sherman gone on ishooin twenty
mllyuns Nv greenbax day, and payin EN- out
for hosses and mules and army supplies, the
greenbax wood hev continnered to go up, and
so wood Samyooel's drugs and his out-lots And
ez all Samyooel he'd to do in them halcyon days
wuz to mark up the prices his goods every
mornin, he could hev continnered to keen his
fast hoss, and Mrs. Samyooel Good hev contin-
nered to liv in Louisville and bot satin dresses
Mr.. Samyooel feels it keenly. In the time be-
fore the prosperous days he wuz contentid with
sod-corn whiskey and stogy segars but his ap-
petite got attooned to shampane and Havannas
ana ne nnds 1t exceedingly difficult to go back
to the simple, arkadian habits NV former times.
Mrs. Samyooel hez got her hand out in cookin
and slch, and she utterly refooses to go back to
the habits NV the old times, and consekently
thar is trubbe in the Popman household. The
dawters hev bin brot home from the seminary
at louisville, and they cast eontoomely on ther
father, wich hezn't meens to keep them in the
luXery they hey bin for ten yeers accustomed
to-:
This is only one case in q thousand heren
Whene'er take my walks abroad l see men
bustld and leenin agin lamp-pos moanin and
wringin their hands in despair. They hev pas
ter lots wlch they cut up into city lots, wich
arc SlduOoly growing up INTO nuckleDerry pas
ters and won't sell for nothin. They look to
their old places NV biZnis, wher they used to
chirp cheerfully ez they marked up the price
NV their goods, and wher they thot nothin NV
takin ten dollar bill every day fer likker and
cigars, becoz they Good afford it, and they see
other men in possession working mite and day
to support their families in comfort, and these
men lay their room to Sherman, ez do.
1t is erooel outrage. 1t costs the Govern
ment nothin to print money, and ther is no
reason why it shood not hev KEEP ON printin
currency. Wat is q Government for? Is it for
the people? Is not Samyooe Popman one NV
the people? Then why shood the Government
cultivate taste i'll Samyooel Popman for fast
horses and shampane and then Just for the
sake NV rayin off debt, contract the currency
and room him?
The other drugger at Secessionyille remarkt
that eli Samyooel he'd saved the money he wood
hev bin safe agin the effeck NV contrackshun.
But that he'd no sense into it. Inflashun
shood hev ben perpetooal. When a temper
ance man sez to me that he wood like to cit
drunk NV a mite, only for the reackshun that
follows when he gifts sober, alluz remark that
the troo safeguard agin that is never to hev no
reackshun-to keep drunk all the time The
prinsiple foller as to likker is the one wood
hev adoptid in finance. To avoid the reack-
shun that follers infashun, L shood never stop
understand finance at all.
PETROLEUM V. NAsBY.
Troo Finanseer.
How the Oil Crossed the Hills.