Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1882-05-27
capfafn james MiAer.
Thecook and the captain bold,
And the mate of the Nancy brig,
And the bossin tight,

And the mitiship mite,
And the crew of the captains gig
Akin to this elderly naval person
was the busy skipper of the Monedo,
disreputable X 10 canoedlement that
used to be familiar craft to the cane
biters of the wild Suwaunee; and
of which, the same boat, he would also
have been the very first clerk if he had
been able to read or write, but he
didn't know b from bulls foot. This
hind-wheeler gave that ancient mari
ner start in this money-making
world, and in 1861, when he died, he
was rich man; owning the steamers
Sallie West, Gen. Anderson, B. III. Run
gan and c. E. Halnaaa, and having his
life insured for $4,000 "Gibnaitar
was mighty plain man, very abrupt
in his talk, and entirely uncultivated
in his manners; yet this rough, untu-
tored was always politely attentive to
his passengers, 4My people" as he
used to call them.
Once, while at st. Louis with the
ALeO'lid, he was interviewed by COM
mittee of preachers who wanted to
make, with him, the trip to Nashville,
paying therefor only half fare. He
CURLY asked, @What are you gwine
there for?" They informed him that
fhav xvara uninn 70 ottobJ n ,YooatiD,,
to be held there for the purpose of re-
vising the Bible The hifalutin word
revision, kind O got the unlearned
boatman, and he referred the preacher
men to his clerk, Capt. Egan. He
himself took a nigh cut to the Office,
called the clerk from his desk, and
asked him: "What in the devil that
word revision meant any hOw?" When
informed, he mighty quickly settled
the half-fare matter by saying: @You
charge EN- full fare, for plague take
my skin if the Bible amt good enough
for me the way it is now"
'Fo de wah, the boats plying the
Cumberland river did kind of Janu-
airy business, closed up their affairs at
the end of the season. After the years
work was done and the boat laid up,
the clerk rendered a Balance Sheet,
which he read and explained to the
CAPTAIN. Squire Weller was doing
this once when the old man heard the
name of an account called Misscella
NOUS, which caused him to sing out:
Look ere, pard, there never was en-
ployed on my boat a woman by that
name, and you know it dern we'll"
He observed the boats business so
closely that, in his head, he always
knew, within few dollars, the receipts
of each trip.
p. L. Barnum chartered his boat,
West Nemtoa, to convey Jenny Lind
from st. Louis to Nashville, paying
five hundred dollars for the exclusive
use OF the cabin, and claiming none of
the freight receipts The Swedish
Nightingale presented the Captain
with fine gold watch, in compliment
airy remembrance OF her pleasant
trip. Old Jube was IA plain, blunt,
honest man, and those who only saw
his rough exterior and judged him by
his uncultiyated manners, would
never have expected from him any
polite attention; yet this unlettered
tar-he could neither read nor write
took his steamer down an island chute,
where steamboat never went before
nor since, in order that Jenny Lind
might have a good view OF Cornice
Rock, one of the most beautiful sights
ON the Mississippi river; and on one
occasion he lay, for several hours,
down at the Mouth of Smithland, in
order that his passengers might visit
the Graveyard-hill and see the monu-
ments over the graves OF his lifelong
friends, Ii. F. Given and G. w. Hagey.
In 1855 he took to Cincinnati large
number OF delegates, from tennessee,
to the Democratic Presidential Con-
vention. Among his crew there were
several slaves, about whose escape he
was very uneasy. He had often heard
of the Underground Railroad, and ig-
norantly believed that the Paris of
America had sure-enough branch of
that institution. In talking the mat
ter over with his confidential clerk, he
emphatically remarked: well, if
them d-n Abolitioners steal my mig
gers, JOS dead if I don't find their un-
derground railroad. See if / don't.