The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1905-05-16

along South Winston street in Fay
etteville, when, casually glancing down
Franklin street, | saw coming toward
me a familiar figure-so familiar that
sure of its identity, | waited until the
pedestrian came UP to the foot bridge.
at the intersection of the two streets.
| am so ond of Old Abe and have
such genuine respect for him, that L
ing the time of day with this estiIna-
bic colored man. He has been 'calse1
"Old Abe" for many years; was known
thus when he was a stalwart, active,
man OF middle age-probably from a
staid, digniied bearing and a serious
taciturnity which would not have MS.
fit Mathuselah. He is truly "Old A.e"i
now bent and gray and hollow eyed,
having lived to just a little more than
three score and ten years.
But he is by no means superannu-'
ated; and, like old Martial in Scouts
Monastery" only gle him a thought.
Of time to it, and he can do as good
a days d'arg as ever he did in mis-
life" He had an old tomato can II
one hand and a fishing pole in the
other When he came up to me the.
other afternoon; but anyone who sup
posed that odd Abe is a loafer, and
| spends his time nodding on the banks
Of a creek or around the sides of a
mill pond, will nave his mind disaods-
ed of that idea by visiting the neg.os
| homo in the extreme outskirts of the
town. He is as the Scotch say, well
to pass in the world" owns his
house, which is a comfortable cottage.
with a plot OF good, rich ground
around it.
Here he raises vegetables and has
a few trellises of fine grapes, tor
which he finds ready sale. He also
does gardening jobs around town, and.
is a pretty fair cobbler, mending a
boot or shoe neatly and at a reascna-i
bic rate. "Old Abe" has lost his wife.
and several children, n now has
with him only a daughter, % years
old, a ~strapping wench, Mandy" who.
cooks the meals and keeps the
house in order. A grocer told me not
long since that "Old Abe" has been
trading with him for years, buying
what he needs during the week, and,
paying up on Saturday night, which
he has failed to do in person but
once in all that time when he was
! in bed with rheumatism, and sent
Mandy with the money. If he keeps
any memorandum the merchant has
never seen it, but lie always knows
lust what he owes, and carries the eX-
act amount, tied in a linen rag.
Two immense sage brushes adorn me
sides of the little. porch OF "'ld
Abe's' cabin and two rows of bachelor
buttons along the walk to the little
front gate contest supremacy with the
useful vegetables en- the premises. Fne
interior of the house is neat and clean,
and there is even a company room,
with a cheap curtain at the WINDOW,
a fireplace screen covered with news
naper cuts, and on the wall red II
blue pictures of George washington
and Frederick the Great OF Prussia.
This abode contains something else
during the winter months which at
fords no little qualification to"Old Aoe's
friends-a barrel of persimmon Deer,
for the making of which he is fan'ef,
and it is hard to beat, with some or
"Mandy's' fresh made molasses cakes.
"Old Abe is more than ordinarily
intelligent and has the gift of correct
sneeen in a marked degree. h gilt
he m by rlghtfully, for he vas
reared a slave in a highly educated,
cultured family, and during his child
hood and youth was house servant,
with the very best surroundings,
teaching and example. Unless excited,
he rarely drops into what IS caileo
onegro dialect except that he hnds
eth" difficult to a%rticulate, saying dis
and dat" and "suh" for sir. by
the way. | nave been thrown as much
with negroes as any other southern
man over sixty years OF age, AND, ac-
eording to my observation, not n III
fifty SAYS ''sah" for sir" it is always
"suh.'
DC Abe's' political faith is aoso-
rntely simple, and abstractly CONSIDER
cd il is absolutely faultless. 1t IS a
system of pure eclectic optimism. ne
votes for men, not measures, n cniyI
asks which candidate is more pan
and honest. He has generally voteo|
the Democratic ticket, as there are
more decent men of that party tnan OF
the other in this section, put l nave
known him to choose a Repuolican
over a Democrat. The only time nc
ever allowed a political principle to en-
ter into his calculations he exhibited
a strange confusion of ideas. He re-
fused to vote for ". J.. Bryan because
he was a "silver man" In vain ild
the friends of the candidate explain
that the term signifed only that Bryan
wanted justice done to silver In me
finances of the country. "Old ADes
idea was fixed that Bryan would %
the country with silver dollars, LOT
which he has a sovereign contempt,
as a bulky, troublesome money wear
ing on the pockets and frugal stock
ings. He stands by the government
greenback.
.Old Abe has one negative fault, a
;ner,lar one. considering his race, for