The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1914-07-19
A Story
of Mexico
IL Years Ago

|
| pIcion III my mind, but, being unduly
| anxious to believe good of the char
acter in question, say in order to put
! through some desirable thing-I would
| override my doubt or suspicion in a
| hurry, and repent at leisure.
| On my first acquaintance with Don
! Felipe | had no such feeling of doubt
! or suspicion. He is good all the way
through, and I know it. If he was
| a Chinaman, t would be the same
way.
| / called at his bank to have my small
| credentials looked over SO that one
| detail would be out Of the way if
can get the claims against the schoOn-
| er down to where | can settle them.
| Don Felipe looked over my papers
and then consulted a little book about
| the size of a Pensacola telephone di-
! reCtory, and finally returned my Pen
sacola letters Of credit, saying, gent
! ly that he could advance no cash upon
them, in fact could only handle them
| for COLLECTION
To collect would take month, may
| be two months
I was dumbfounded, for my letters,
as per representations should be good
! in any part of the world
! After some hesitation Don Felipe
/ showed me his book. 1t was a COM
mercial reference book of reliable
| banks and concerns in the United
States, and published forty years ago.
There were only about six rated con-
| Germs for the whole state of Florida,
| and but two PenSa cola concerns. one
| Of these, an individual, has been dead
| for many, many years, and the other
| is a timber shipping concern that I
| have heard men talk about as having
| existed once upon a time.
! No wonder my beautiful letters of
credit were considered n. G.
| I had to have time for reflection.
| 1t would never do to tell Don Felipe
| that one of his old reliables was dead
and the other defunct. 1t would de-
stroy what small confidence he might
| have in Pensacola, or me. l had to take
into consideration that Frontera is
! probably NJ larger than It was forty
years ago. and that it would likely be
! incorceivable to Don Felipe that Pen
! sacola is twenty times as large as she
was then. with three big solid banks
! and a hundred concerns that are
good a s sold.
50 l twecdled my thumbs and gazed
| at the ceiling.
| Close to the ceiling, my eyes lit upon
! an cid DUSTY lith1grnph. l recognized
| it at on2e Is picture Of the Custer
| Massa ere and an advertisement of the
| Anheuser-B Busch Brewing Company.
| Who, of my age or older has not seen
| that thrilling picture, reproduced from
a valuable oil painting, and sent
| broadcast over the world many years
| ago as a Ia GERBER advertisement?
j And here, in this out of the way nook,
covered with cobwebs. stood the de-
! fiant Custer, with the same belching
revolver and the same tum ding red
skins, that 1 had gazed on, in awe, as
| a boy. The picture Of this fighting
man gave ME heart.
Don Felipe had followed my SAFE and
| looked at me questioningly:
Custer" ] explained, was my faith
! er's brigade commander in the Civil
| War"
| will have to explain further that
my hoyhood's Civil War heroes were
| Phil sheridan, my fathers corps
! commander, and George A. Custer. my
| fathers brigade commander. My he
| roeS must of necessity ride snoring
| chargers, swing sabres and shoot re-
| VOlvers. ] had no use for the sOrt Of
| things, or that posed on horses that
We're too fat and lazy to switch their
| tails.
| Apo;osizirg 2, Don Felipe had the old
| litnograph taken down and busted and
| set before us | remembered much
that my father had told me of that gal
! liant. reckless, freakish, red headed
| army dandy. General Custer. and l
repeated it to Don Felipe, who listen
: ed with eager interest. He asked QueS-
armies and fighting over the Civil
| War. He had STU DIED our Civil War
| and was a great admirer of General
Lee. l considered it my duty to eX
/ plain what an advantage Lee had in
! the Virginia campaigns and it took me
a long time. but l pretty we'll proved
my contentious by citing the result Of
| Lees invasion of Penns yIvania, which
| ended quickly and disastrously a Get
| tysburg.
| Letters of credit were not mention
| ed. Now and then a customer or a
! clerk would attempt to break into our
! discussion to ask Don Felipe a ques
ton, but each time he waved them
| away. saying Mamma"
| Next morning when 1 called at The
! bank Don Felipe said he would be hon
| ored to cash my letters of credit
| Whenever l pleased.
| The excursion and the ball in honor
of Governor Bandala We're great sue
| cesses.
! The excursion was given by the ship
| building company Ga Chicago Concernl
for the purpose of getting a state or
! is none of my business, but l am
afraid it is more or less of a swim
die. The plant" itself could easily
be loaded on the Richards" deck.
ernor delivered an imprisoned ad-
dress, which / judged sounded all right
TO our American shipbuilders from
| Chicago, fer the flow of champa gne
| doubled.
The consul is In the other faction
| ana was hot lIlutIi III eNAueiiSe oil INC
| excursion. He was among the others
present. and that was all.
| But he was IT at the ball.
| [ VIII always believe it was because
| he was wearing my patent leather
| shoes. From purely patriotic motives
| l had loaned him my shoes. His own
| We're a disgrace TO the u. s. A. and I
| have always believed that you should
| back-up your duly elected Cor accred-
/ ited) representatives, especially be-
| fore. strangers, even if in your own
| heart you believe your aforesaid rep
| reseGtatiVes should be hung.
| Therefore 1 did not dance
| ! was introduced to several Of the
| ladies but did not dare to use my
| Spanish. l know just enough Span
| ish--a beautiful language-to know
| that a beginner can easily make
| frIghtful breaks with it in female
company. and I have been too de-
! Gently raised to risk it.