by Louis S. Davidson

My Recollections of Moses Joy

by Louis S. Davidson

I FIRST MET Moses Joy around the year 1921 or 22, he was aged about 70. We were both members of the Camera Club of New York — I a new one and he a lifetime member of long standing. Our first point of contact was the time I mentioned that I was going to Nantucket for the summer. He showed great interest in my trip and told me at that time that he was a native of the island. He then said that the following month there was to be a meeting of the Historical Society and if he were not present, it would be useless for them to hold their meeting because he was to make the address of the year. Then, confiding that he was somewhat financially embarrassed at that time, he was wondering whether I could get him to Nantucket.

I said, "How much would it cost?" and he thought a moment and said, "If you could let me have $25.001 could spend the summer in Nantucket." Being a bit skeptical, I told him that I could help him providing I knew how he could do such a piece of magic. Out of his pocket came the inevitable piece of paper, and he explained it would cost him $12.00 round trip on the New Bedford line which would leave him $13.00. While stopping over in New Bedford, he would buy some scrimshaw from a friend of his which he would sell to the trippers when he got to Nantucket. Mrs. Codd of Orange Street would permit him to live in the garret as long as he wished and Mr. Ring the vegetable man on Main Street would give him his day-old vegetables. In that case, he would only have to buy a bottle of milk a day which would not be a very great expense.

When I finally got to Nantucket, Moses greeted me warmly and said that he was going to do me a great favor. He was going to show me the island. On our first trip out, we got into one of the surreys, Moses in the front seat. Because of his great bulk, it threatened to tip over. He would then direct the driver to some specific house. He would not permit us to get out until he himself had gone to the front door and announced himself. He never used a door bell or knocker but took his fist and banged on the door until the house shook. When some frightened female would finally come to the door, he would announce sternly, "I am Moses Joy. I brought water into Nantucket. I played in this house as a child and I want to show it to my friends." With no further ado, he would sweep into the house and start showing us around. It could be easily seen that he knew the house well. When tenants were in the house, they would follow us about very suspiciously wondering what was about. However, when the owners were there and heard the recollection of the place, they would be so interested in the stories, they would generally ask us to tea. In this way we saw the better part of the old Nantucket houses.

Moses Joy

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HISTORIC NANTUCKET

When it came to showing us the moors, Moses directed us and our car directly over the moors, scorning all roads and ruts, but getting us in safety to wherever he was going to take us. He knew those moors perfectly!

Moses was invariably interested in recouping his fallen fortune. He had more schemes than anybody I ever knew, none of which unfortunately worked out; never because he did not try. One day he came up to me at the Club and said, "Louis, we are rich." I said, "What now?" Moses said, "Every night of the year ten million American men have to get up out of their beds and go to the toilet or the thundermug at great inconvenience to themselves and threats of pneumonia. This can now be prevented by my invention of a non-spillable urinal." All he needed was $75.00 to make a working model of it. In this scheme I did not aid.

His next scheme was that he could get the rights to a patent on a plastic made in Europe which was superior to anything we had in this country. All he needed for this was $600.00 and he asked if we could raise it. We got a syndicate and raised the $600.00. He hoped to sail on the Leviathan as second class. Several people who I did not know well went into the venture, and on the day of sailing one came up to us with great indignation and said, "Moses did not sail. I think he pocketed the money." Knowing Moses, I had no fear of such a thing happening, but I was wondering why his name was not on the passenger list. We later found out that instead of going second class, he had gone steerage and had taken the money so saved to buy himself a new suit of clothes, a very smart thing to do but which we had not required.

On his return he showed us samples of the plastic which at that time was something unknown in this country. It was as clear and colorless as window glass. However, I noticed certain stress checks and realized that work would have to be done on the substance. However, when he stated that our rights to the patent could be had for $350,000.00 plus a half interest in a million-dollar factory giving half our capital interest to the patentees in Europe, we dropped the matter. Later on, Duponte took it over and perfected the material. He also brought some rough diamonds back in a Dukes mixture tobacco bag on which we realized a decent profit.

One other business venture he tried to get us into was the purchase of a tin mine in Kentucky. To prove to us that this was no fly-by-night venture, he brought a mining engineer along to lunch. I met the mining engineer the next day who told us everything Moses said was true, but had we any mining experience. He also asked if we had 5 million dollars to fight law suits, because purchase of a good mine always entailed the purchase of a good law suit. Parenthetically, the engineer stated that it would take at least two million dollars extra for a processing plant. Needless to say, we let this opportunity pass.

Moses always regretted that he had not gone to sea as his forefathers had. He was hoping that on this Leviathan trip the ship's rudder might break down so that he could show them how to steer it by

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means of hawsers. Fortunately, this chance of demonstrating his seamanship was denied him.

As long as I knew him, Moses was always a very stubborn individualist. Our club was situated on Broadway and 68th Street, and in those days the trolley cars went up the middle of the avenue. On a rainy night around 5 o'clock, we would hear a horrible screeching of auto-" mobile brakes, and each of us would turn to the other and we would say, "Here comes Moses." For he would get out of the streetcar and head for the curb, looking neither to the left nor the right, neither slowing nor hurrying his pace. As a result, cars coming along would have to hurriedly put on their brakes giving us a warning of his five o'clock approach. We were given to understand that his death was caused by an accident something like that. While getting off a 3rd Avenue trolley car, he was caught between a car and an elevated railroad post.

On occasions we would take him out to dinner and he always liked to go to a place known as "The Lobster" where he would order lobster with blueberry muffins. The lobster he always enjoyed, but the blueberry muffins inevitably aroused him to fury. "They call these blueberry muffins!" he would say, "I would like to show the cook how." After a good meal, he would go home feeling better.

He would never permit us to see his lodgings, but inferred that his rent was $6.00 a week and about the only thing he bought was a bottle of milk a day and possibly some bread. Nevertheless, he was always ponderous and ruddy of complexion.

In Nantucket he always liked to be taken for an old whaling captain, and although he was not a member of the Pacific Club, he would sit there telling stories to a select few and beaming with delight when he heard someone outside saying, "There's one of the old whaling captains."

One other characteristic that always stood out was his making small gifts such as a whale's tooth, a piece of scrimshaw, etc., but never without a lengthy explanation of what a wonderful thing this was and how lucky I was to get it. One other matter I should bring forth and that is when he was spinning a yarn, should somebody show inattention, he would stop his story until this person either left or apologized and would not go on with the tale. As a rule his stories were so interesting there was no good reason for interruption.

He was a unique character, a crusty but delightful man and one I was very happy to know.