Evening journal., 1897-02-10
REUBEN'S PLUNGE"

word of comment and went about his
attentions to the other guests of the
evening with that manner which beto-
1ened an intense absorption in some mat
ter outside the dinner courses When
he put down the coffee, he leaned over
and asked in a deferential way if l |
would mind staying awhile-he wanted
TO talk 70 me on "mattah which is
much worriment tuh me, sub. - OF /
course / said I'd stay, and 1 waited with |
not little curiosity to hear what Uncle |
Reuben had to say. That it was por
tentous affair which weighed upon him
was too evident.
Finally the place was empty, save for
my presence, and Uncle Reuben came
over to me and sat him wearily down.
His eyes were shining with the resolve
of some great purpose, but he approach
cd it cautiously.
Il reckon yuh member, sub, bout
Majah Baxtah comm to New Yawk tuh
live?''
nodded assent 1 remembered well
the night when he and Uncle Reuben
met for the first time since Reuben had
gone into the war as n body servant
and 1 remembered how Uncle Reuben
had fed his impoverished old master
/ through the courses of the best dinner
his place could lay without ever giving
the master an idea that he was receiv-
ing charity had never forgotten the
tenderness Of Reubens attentions to the
man who had once owned him, body
and soul
''Yuh member him, an l wan tub
ax yuh advice bout nh mattah consarnin
i'm It's this way, sub. Yuh see, Majah
Baxtah, he's uh gemman. He ain nevah
use tuh wuk NV no kin, an he fin it
mighty hahd tub git long hyah in New
Yawk whah cvabody wuk faw what he
git. Co'se down home he don bothah
bout nothin He DIES set on he front
po'ch wiv lie frien's an drink julip8
He look ont ovah thu big fiel, an he say:
"Thah S ma niggah, an thah' ma hossesy
an thahs S ma lans. Gemman, thu craps
is gwino tuh be pow'ful fine. Take uh
drink An they take nh drink, and this
majah is happy. That's all be know
bout maxim nh livin. He des go tuh
town an sign thu papers an git thu
money fun thu crap. Co'se he don't
know nothin bout how thu crap come
tuh be made. He ain raised that way.
"Yuh member 1 tole yuh bout how
he get broke up at home an come tub
New Yawk tuh staht all ovah ag' in.
reclSin he thought he'd fin nh cotton
crap on evah street in New Yawk, kase
he ain wor'yin much bout nothin tell
he ain got no money tall. Then's w en-
! 600 ft,,, f,,of r~s.I, f,,,ag,, t,or
HE knows some gemmen hyah, an
NV co'se they do whut they kin tuh give
i'm uh staht, but thu majah he don
know bout how tuh take chances in
business, an so 1 reckon he ain doin des
o. well eS he ought, least hearn tell
he ain, an / des want AK yuh bout it.
, / want yuh tuh look at this faw me. "
Uncle Reuben went down into some
J mysterious recess behind his apron and
drew cut small book carefully wrap
ped about with long string Taking a
7 precautionary look about the room, he
I laid it down in front Of me. It was a
banklcoll, and it showed a balance in
, fayCr e Reuben Baxter Of Tennessee OF
fraction over So, 600.
"That whut / save outcn thu bust
ness hyah, yuh know. Thu gemmen
whut docs ne thu honah NV comm hyah
;; faw IN canyasback pays me putty well,
an I'Gc been layin way some nv it all
, thu time, thinllin some day 1 might be
I needin sumpin ef / wan tub go home
4 Putty nigh 'nough thah tub buy ul
I plantation, ain they?"
] You might get a fairly good place
with that, Uncle Reuben.
An ef 1 had twic't ez much coult
git twic't ez good uh place, couldn't ~
, Yes, perhaps more than twice a
j good.
Z "Yuh knows anythin bout thes'
5 stocks they sell down Wall street way
. Gemmen talk lot bout 'em one day, al
5 noA day sell 'em faw twic't ez much?'
"TEey are dangerous things TO med
Gle with, Uncle Reuben. Sometime
you pay price for them one day an,
the ncxt they are worth nothing at all
. ''Yessuh, / reckon so, but ef bOugh
r tina much wo'th one day and the.
+ want wuth nothin thu next, nobod,
e would know nothin bout it 'cept yol
an me, would they?"
"No"
"Then mus tell yuh Yuh know
kahn nevah go back home tuh thu Bax
q tabs tell I've fixed it bout tina time
i tux Mistah Tom Baxtah's hoss in TIN
; wah an got him killed. Itole you 'bou
a that Well, wuz thinlzin tha' eff / Ira,
; twict tina much money might z
o back home wiv my head mp"
/ tried persuasion with Uncle Reu
ben telling him of all the certain dan
s gers of stock gambling, but NOTHING
n would move him from his parpose. H
: was steadfast in his determination Z
II put that So, 600 in some sort Of specula