Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1889-09-19
OLD JOE COOL.
Though He Was Not Very Old He
Was Undoubtedly Cool


Was Undoubtedly Cool
He wasn't old at all, not day over
twenty when he joined the regiment; a
great. tall. hulking fellow with a big.
honest face like a boys, weighed one
hundred and seventy-five pounds if he
did an ounce, and answered to the
name Of Joseph Cooley. We all called
him Joe, to begin with, and this yarn
is to tell how he got his other name.
We shipped aboard a river steamer
at New York for Ship Island. fifteen
hundred of US; may be you boys don't
know what that means-aboard of a
river steamer? It means that every
berth had two men in it. lynn heads
and p'ints. and glad to get one at that;
the unlucky ones lynn side by side on
the floor, like herring in a box, thick
as they could lie.
Lots of 'em were dreadful sick to be-
gin with. some for one day. some for
two, some all the way. You can guess
if twas pleasant.
We were al in for it. goin' to fight
for our country. We'd hollered and
waved flags and had speeches made to
us. and felt considerable good about it;
that was the top dressin'. Now we be-
gan to strike hard-pan, and tell you.
we didn't think about our country ev-
cry minute, not much.
Well, Joe he wasn't sick minute;
he'd go steppin' around amongst the
fellers as softly as a girl. GRIMM at
at one. givin' water to another, fixin'
this ones head up onto a knapsack.
and proppin' that one up ag'inst a
mast, as eff he'd been hospital nurse
all his days.
When some of the men would groan
unpleasant, amt it? Scold away; it'll
do We good to spit it all OUT" and
they'd have to grin.
When we'd got abreast of Hatteras,
there come up about five o'clock one OF
the high old regulation kind of storms,
a buster; it come solid, as if you was
struck with something steady that
pressed you down; we couldn't stan
up against it. They talk about waves
rollin' mountain-high, that's poetry
but I'd be willin' to make my affidavit
in court that they did run all of sixty
feet high each side Of us.
The steamer couldn't make a mite o.
Roadway, nor wouldn't answer to hel
hellum, and there we lay. side on. il
the trough of the sea, like fly in 6
hammock. swingin' to and fro side
ways. Every now and then a big
sea'd come slap down. like close-tt
thunder. onto the deck and sweep
every thing off her. There was Z
hundred barrels of beef went to feet
the fishes that night
/ lay in my berth, a-looking out O
the winder-five of us had that stat.
room, four in the berths, one on tn,
floor. Joe Cooley had the floor; RICH
outside there was a life-boat lyin
geared onto the deck. and all arount
it was thick row of men holdin' ontt
her gunnel with both hands, SOS to ge
the first chance.
.Well!" says I. kind of disguised.
whats upa" says Joe, lookin' VI
at me- So told him
Him." says he. II guess I'd ies
as lives be drowned in bed as out
doors" So If he didn't draw up hi
blanket and go to snorin' ag'in!
You see. just q minute before, the
Cap'en of the boat had come through
the deck cabin where We was, and on,
of the fellers sung out to him: Gal
this q considerable of q storm, dom
We. Cap'ena"
He ripped out some big words. 1 tel
ye. the sense of 'em being that we wa
going to the bottom inside of an hour
and Joe had heered him.
Sure enough, there was no chanc,
for the men hangin' on to that boat
their faces white as death, and thei
fingers gripped onto that gunnel til
they bled; for If the ship had gone Z.
the bottom, that boat would hav,
cracked like an egg-shell the frs
wave that gin it blow. It was
scary time for all of u.s.
Some OF the fellers took it one wa,
and some took it another; people ain
all Jest alike. Some cussed and som,
prayed. and some grit their teeth ant
kept still Joe was the only one tina
went to sleep and slep' through.
However. We didn't GO down. TO
shout two o'clock in the morning Their
come the biggest kind of thunder
Storm against the big blow. and tn
Wind and rain out of that killed tLos
great waves fat In twenty minute
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