The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1880-10-28
FIGHTING JOE.

"Who and what was ,he?''
Iyas standing in the churchyard oi
small town on the borders o1
Scuta Staffordshire one bright Sunday
stegaoon in April. / was stranger in
that part Of the country and was pass
inc through the place in the course OF
q ing walk from the larger adjacent
TOM, to which my business haa, taken
methe day before. The extensive min
inc operations of the last twelve or fif-
teeh years had altered the little unpre-
ending village materially and though
the quaint old church and some long
and low buildings. suggestive Of
farms and homesteads, still retained
an air of rustic simplicity, they were
being gradually obscured and the place
itself sophisticated by the formal rows
Of plain and ugly tenements, built ex-
pressly for the mining population,
which each year was becoming more
and more numerous.
Ihad amused myself by deciphering
some of the inscriptions on the grave
stones nigh obliterated by the
westher:stains and the moss that time
had suffered to find the root-hold in the
holows Of the lettering when man,
presumably miner. in the Sunday
clothes peculiar to that class, carrying
alttle child of two or three years and
followed by another somewhat older,
sested himself on a fat stone. and
Opeled a conversation
A. civiIy-spoken fellow u enough,
though with. the uncouth accent of
the country. | readily accepted the
invitation he offered, and we chatted
pleasantly. He had known the place
many years, he told me, aye, long be-
lore it had grown, into the town it now
vas when twas nothing but an humble
Village and when the long grass or
npening corn bowed its head to Ethe
WIND on the spot where the unsightly
engine-h house and tall red chimney now
stood, and where the heaps of Stag and
epder marked the busy life. of the toll
tfs n the earth below. "a 81 4, s8sF .
That handsome marble monument,
be told me, denoted the last resting
place OF the late rector, and this broad,
massive piece of granite was the tomb
p certain local Squire. popularity
Known as esquire Jack" who, it
emed, was much given to horSerac-
"; cooking and such kindred sports,
nd,who, being sad 81 ne'er-do-well, p
: thoughtless, reckless fellow, but
wllnal good-natured and easygoing,
was as such gentry not unfrequent1y
family.
as my new acquaintance pointed out
slese objects and others which he
thought, l suppose. would interest me,
ne nad risen from his seat, and we had
s'loiled leisurely through the church
JAY, " was in a corner and rather in
saoiow, that, before a humble mound
~ green turf, and decked with the
Ps,ty spring flowers, carefully planted
y 'ae form OF a cross, we both, as of
une accord, paused. 1t had not any
s.asestone, but only a piece of wood
sSppOfted ~ by two short uprights.s On
@s were roughly-carved, as If done
WHO q pocket-knife, these two words:
Fighting Joe.''
o,. mat IS strange inscription to put
sasr sas = mans grave" 1 said; and then
'Ied ~ Who and what was he?''
Inc man seated himself on a stone
suse oss oy and was silent for a few sec
SS,s he had set down the little child
a.; G aad been carrying and the two little
s.a sgs' attracted by the bright flowers,
ad found their way to the mound and
Wy !, about to gather them.
:. mere, you mustn't touch them flow
a ne said and, taking hand of each,
= ,nem away. =
a. wen, mate,"' he then went on to
dcn,. N - me- in reply to my question, II
r. rightly know who or what he was.
a. - was q stranger down here, and neith-
vhs M nor my. mates ever heard tell |
Te pae.e ne came from or who he was.
IN y tnls here pit, Fenton's Pit we |
I,aa,ss' y was first worked we had but few
sa.a u1 hereabouts and men as could |
M M mad no call to wait long for a job |
iba ot good wage as well. Most of |
@e hands were Staffordshire but we |
md der kaowed where Joe came from,
~ aon't know as we asked and |
S,S ne wouldn't have told us if we |
MD ne was quiet and lonely-like and |
1ss. out ilttle-that is, when he was all |
dsrs' dus' out when he'd had a drop of
ssaa, as maybe of a Saturday night |
hDda. ha ne mad gotten his wage, of all the
non., l ever see to swear, spend his
- ~, ~ wrestle or fight, there wasn't
slsS aug hence his name, supposew
soss And of course it is the old
III agaln-drink, a quarrel, a fight
ndosv violent death; though I cannot
otStand, in that case the evident |