River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1905-09-21


| ing he came to my section, brushed
my overcoat carefully, and gave the
clothes wan wearing slight brush
! ing. When he had finished, / handed
him the only 50-cent piece had.
The instant did SO observed that
he half turned his back to me as he
stepped nearer the window and began
carefully scrutinizing the silver piece,
and that very instant it flashed
through my mind that the colored
gentleman was planning to graft me.
After taking careful look at the
money, and having had just about
time enough to shift the coin I gave
him for any old thing he might have
about him, he said:
"Say, mistah! guess you done gone
and made mistake and gin me sill
yer piece with a plug in it, besides, its
very badly won and batte'ed, too"
rs that so?" I answered knowing
very well that / had given him an al
most new silver piece. Lets see,' =
said l, and, as he handed it to me,
Cant you use it,"
mo, sah;" he quickly answered, II
don't want that kind of money"
"Do you want me to keep it?" I
asked.
Eyes; I'd rather you would keep it,
sah."
VERY WE'LL" said I, 81 can use it,
and dropped it into my pocket.
He stood there anxiously watching
and waiting for me to give him an
other 50-cent piece, and at last dis
covering that / apparently had no in
tention of replacing it, he said:
rs you all gwine to give me nothah
half dollar mistah?"
Certainly not" I answered. sis
there any reason why I should give
you new half dollar, just because
you were foolish enough to give me an
old one? Why, of ocurse not. You
said that you could Aot use it, and
think 1 can"
''Well, then-well, then"-he STAN
mered-'I reckon I'll take it back
WELL" | replied. II reckon you
won't take it back. There is no Indian
about me; when l give thing away
or receive thing from anyone, never
| give back, nor take back"
But" said he, you took back the
| so cents you gave me-
"Tndeed, | did mott" I answered
"Ihe one I gave you you have in your
pocket, and the one you gave me is a
different one entirely. At any rate"
rent on, 81 think / shall turn in this
plugged so cent piece to the sleeping
car company when l report this little
episode to them"
The poor darkey became excited and
turned almost white, and was so beside
himself with his apologies and excuses
| that he forgot every other passenger
on the car.
AS | was leaving the car, on our ar
| rival in Chicago, he brushed up against
me, and stammered: "Sa-sa-say mis-
tab. please don't say nofin' bout dis
yer 'greement tween you and me, feI
got a wife and fou' little chilluns to
sport, and l CANT ford to lose ma
| job"
On returning home I told this little
experience to my employees in the of
flee. Our colored porter rolled his
chalky eyes about and, with broad
grin, said:
"Mistah Johnston, you got that fell
lab all right, suah huff; nevah heard
bout de plugged silver piece racket
befoh. but fellah what used to room
with toll me bout a mighty good hold
I'D scheme he used to wo'k, almOs' like
dat, when he was Pullman po'tah."
sWell. Gene" said, 'go ahead and
explain it to u.s.
He did so, and the graft was this.
The porter had die struck, exactly
the size of 50-cent piece, upon which
he had stamped John Miller, Denver
Col"
He always had one of these in the
palm of his hand, while brushing a
passengers clothes. The tip, at the
end of nights journey, is seldom less
| than a 5O-cent piece, and whenever one
was given him he would instantly
palm it in his right and, quickly
stepping near the window, as if to get
a better light to examine it, he would
say:
''Mistah, reckon you done gone and
gin me youah pocket piece, 'spectin' il
was half dollah. See?" passing il
back.
OF course the unsuspecting passen-
ger, presuming that some one had
passed a pocket piece on him, would
instantly take it up and hand the
darby another piece.
But, as is usual with such grafters
the end finally came.
One morning the porter played his
little game on man who proved to be
one of the stockholders and officials OF
the sleeping car company. Seeming
graft he called the porter to account
and forced him to empty his pockets
wherein were half dozen pocket
pieces. This was how he happened to
be out of job.
! SPORT IN NEWFOUNDlA AND.