The daily morning journal and courier., 1900-01-04
EASY TIMES IN MEXICO
(Continued from Sixth Page, ,

Continued from Sixth Page.)
 best the market could afford, the finest
 wines of Spain and France were as
 water on the table and nothing that
 money could buy was wanted. The
 clerks and members of the firm drew
 what money they needed and as much
 as they cared for, keeping only account
 of the larger sums. hTe settlement
 with the two principal clerks, when old
 Don Jose retired from the house, is
 characteristic of the firm and the man
 and his way of doing business. They
 were both called in and the final ar
 engagements made, then Don Jose said:
 II have made an estimate of what the
 house ewes you two and have set the
 sum aside here, one hundred thousand
 dollars. You, Enrique, have drawn
 more than has Simon and your share
 should be less" So, on the old mans suggestion, Enrique took some forty thousand dollars of the money laid out
 neatly sewed one thousand dollars each in it's clean ixtle sack, and Don Simon 1 took the rest, and everybody was per- fectly satisfied.
 The big steamboat owners, King and Kennedy, who came to the frontier during the war of 146-47 and laid the foundation of their wealth carrying supplies for General Taylors troops, both died millionaires; though King was considerably the richer, be- 1 ing a more shrewd and enterprising trader than Kennedy. Though gene rally not so thought, the first steam boat piled in the waters of the great river of the north, years before they either of them ever had heard of 1t, o as early as 136 and at that time gen. eral destruction of the country was given by writer who mentions the steamboat, and also speaks of the coal deposits about Mier, Guerro, Laredo and Piedras Negras, now Porfirio Diaz, said to have been so lately discovered for the first time by gentleman who had as recently discovered that there was such place as the lower Rio Grande Valley, and thought that no one else but himself had ever lived there before.
 But to come back to King and Ken nedy. They held control of the river trade until the time of the Confederate war, when they made the bigger part of the ready money they had. This they put into Cameron county lands at ridiculously low prices and became the largest stock raisers in the world in their day As has been said, King was known as the Cattle King of exTas," and he undoubtedly was, and Kennedy was not far behind him, and was the main factor in building that great Tex as railroad system known as the Aran- cnS or five millions and Kennedy, though at one time somewhat hampered by his great holdings in Aransas Pass when only he had faith in it, died worts as much, If not more.
 Major Hewlett, a neat, dapper little man was the head bookkeeper of the old firm, and though always leniently dealt with lost his place in a curious manner, and though Kennedy, who was much stricter than King, though not SO passionate. Hewlett was playing a | game of billiards at Miller's saloon when Kennedy, who had some pressing business for him to do, sent for him stveral times, and the last time the messenger said. Captain Kennedy says for me to tell you that he is in l hurry"
 ''Tell Captain Kennedy said How lett who had drink of two aboard, [ that q gentleman is never in a hurry" [
 In momtnt the messenger returned | with q note from Kennedy saying that i the firm would no longer need Major Howletts services, if they could not { have them when they wanted them and E not when he was ready to work, and do what he might, Hewlett never got back into the good graces of the firm, and died in comparative poverty.--Mexican Herald.