Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1890-05-12
JOE AND CAPTAIN jim.


Pr pay ment ! have wheedled. inn
plored. flattered and abused have
wakened the heavens above and tho
earth beneath and the waters under the
earth. hat / never collected claim as
Zoe Smith once did--and / don't believe
I ever care To-
So said Georgia merchant as he
stretched himself out in big easy chair
IN Broadway hotel, filed as 20 body
by the comfort of an excellent dinner,
and as to mind by the consciousness of a
good days work well done. His trip to
New York for goods promised well, his
stay in the city was nearly ended, and
ne had one or two encouraging letters
from the South. Naturally he was
cheerful, and just as naturally his talk
drifted back to old days, when he
was deal younger than he is now, and
when things in Georgia were very diff
ferent from what they are now.
Joe came TO us from Connecticut five
rears before the war broke out, said
the old gentleman, getting fresh light
for his cigar and a fresh grip on his
Nutherns ourselves, and we were glad 10
get him. He was big, sinewy fellow,
not pretty by any means, but about as
sough physically as anything ever
turned out by diet of pie and land
scape Of rocks. He wasn't boy even
IN those days; he must have been we'll
On towards 80, with face so scanned
bsaA lss.1 ..I,I n
and if a stranger ever doubted his pow
srs Joe's voice settled it. It was one Of
those big deep voices that make you
think of big bass drum and calculate
that the owner must be mighty hefty
chap. Well, we liked Joe, but it was
Eery hard to get work to suit him. He
could sell goods sometimes, but he was
apt to frighten the women with that
voice Of his. Then, too, he was zoo
quiet to get along with S, me of the
young bloods among our customers, who
always liked to talk cockfghts or shoot.
ing or horses when they came in to buy
bill of goods. Joe was willing to
please 'em but he couldn't. He'd roll
out something in that thunder voice of
propriate. Then we sent him north on
a trip, but even there he didn't shine as
q buyer. So finally we put him on max.
ing collections in the hope that he would
prove q good hand at it, but while he
was worker through and through he
never got the knack Of wedding people
put of their dollars.
1t was about year before the war
when Joe came in from one Of his coli
lecting trips about as empty handed as
usual While it was, Of course, a good
while before beginning of hostilitses, we
had found that among some of our GUS
toners there was growing up a feeling
against us, not so much because we
were creditors, as because we were
known 70 be from the NORTH We were,
Of course, getting littls anxious over
the look of things, aud few days be-
fore had got piece of news that in-
creased our foYebodings. II was that
certain Captain Jim, who owed US con-
siderable amount, vas preaching among
the neighbors the doctrine that there was
40 need of settling up the accounts we
held and that he didn't mean to do so.
Now, as he was the cock of the walk in
his district, big, burly fellow, with
lots of assurance, aud had the reputa-
ton of a fighting man, his stand did us
great deal of harm. Many Of his
friends owed us money, and they de-
iayed in settling up. preferring to see
how we were going to deal with Captain
Jim. just how we were going to handle
him was the question we were di ,cussing
the day Joe came in. We had written
TO the captain, and that morning had
received an answer from him that il we
wanted the money we'd have TO send
somebody to take it out OF his hide
We'll, said Joe coolly enough, i
guess I'd better call on the captain.
Now, as he had never seen the
captain, and didn't realize what tough
customer he was, we tried to persuade
Joe not to go. But 60 he would, for he
seemed to feel that he ought to prove
his usefulness in some way. He equipped
himself with the biggest knife he could
find, a brace Of huge horse pistols, q
long double-barreled gun, and an axe.
/ noticed that in choosing his tools all he
appeared to care for was size. Neither
of the pistols was loaded, and doubt IL
he knew how to charge the gun. Long
before starting he took care to send BY
one Of the captains neighbors, who
chanced to come to town news, that he
was going TO 20 up to the Greek where
the captain lived, and that about Friday
morning there'd be the prettiest fight
Georgia had ever seen il the captain
wasn't ready 70 settle. The Greek was
3 good twO-days' ride distant and
couldn't understand why Joe should take
such precious care TO let his enemy know
he was coming.
@.Well. Joe explained. look here. Il
he hears I'm coming he'll never wait for
me. He's too fond Of fight for that.
He'll simply start out to meet me and
I'll get him or his own ground, where
I'd have no chance II the world. He
win have Just about time to get to the
tavern at the Forks Thursday night aE5
/ guess ven kinder compose our little
difficulty there where be won't have
much show to use his guns