The Washington bee., 1911-05-13

for those rainy days that the Demo-
Gratis are trying to bring on. Col
ored women have been going for the
past three weeks until they now have
nervous prosperation, as my friend
Middleton use to say, and colored
men have been riding in carriages so
much, attending these social func-
tons, that some of them are too proud
10 walk and too much broke TO pay
the carriage man. A little society
may be all right, but it's a mighty
little that colored people are able to
pay for, and still continue to buy
butter. Hereafter I'm going to let
them call me a seCond-rater.
x
A few days ago | met Judge Gibbs,
and walked couple of blocks with
him, The old Judge is one of the
most remarkable birds in captivity.
he told me that he was SO years old.
Outside OF pair Of feet that are very
disorderly, the Judge is a peach. He
mas remarkable memory, can even
remember the first dollar that he
earned, and there are some people
who say the old patriarch has that
hrst dollar yet. One thing certain, if
he has not, he has certainly added to
1t, until now he does not have to
worry about Mr.. Wolf being at the
door. The Judge can remember most
all OF the Revolutionary heroes. He
used to sell shoes when old Diogenes
was hunting around for an honest
man with jack-O'- lantern, and he was
up IN Alaska when Balboa was cruis-
ing up the Mississippi. I forgot to
ask him how he got his title of Judge.
but l suspect he acquired it from his
habit of being able to Judge a good
seat on a platform at a\meeting. It's
fine to get the Judge in a reminis-
cent mood, and go back to "befo de
wah.' When the Judge got tired of
representing this country as Consul
to Madagascar, he told the President
that his son-in-law was just prime for
it, and the President, knowing Judge
to be a good judge of human frailties,
etc, appointed his sOn-in-law to sue
ceed him. If the Judge could only
land an office now, it IS quite likely
that he would resign in a week or two
and ask that his other son-in-law, Nap
Marshall, be appointed in his place
will be able to land; for, being too
heavy for light work, and too light
for heavy work, Nap has a hard time
himself to labor conditions.
That Brownsville episode was a chin
chilly overcoat for him, but it is not
likely that they will develop another
Brownsville affair soon, and in the
meantime Nap must live. But re-
ferring to Judge Gibbs, he's one of
our grand old men" There are but
three of them, the Judge, Col Jim
Lewis, of kill a snake" fame, and
Gov. Pinchback. Judge has the edge
on them for years, and for money,
too. He's a splendid old fellow. Clear
of brain as the shrek of a whistle
on a Northern Pacific engine Has
power of endurance that will put most
men fifty years his Junior on the shelf
just his feet are bad, and they are
aWfully bad. But you never saw a
cOlored man with perfect feet in your
life. You can always tell a colored
man, even the lily-white kind we have
around here, by their feet. But the
fullness of Judge Gibbs. brain, his
splendid past, his possessions, all
point as being evidences of the real
stuff that's in him. | hope that the
old Judge will be with us many more
years. He's an example, a solace and
an inspiration to the rest of us A
meeting in Washington without Judge
Gibbs on the platform would be just
like a colored waiter WITHOUT the
Palmer House walk.