Thanks, Glenn. It might be something along those lines, it seems like a blind guessing game as to how to place the ferrule at the junction of the lever and cable. There is one little bend as the cable goes into the lever, perhaps the culprit.

I took the brake off and removed rust, etc. as advised, but it is still a "slow motion" brake.

Checking the lever, too. There was "dirt" (probably spider egg junk) inside the levers that I cleaned out, but maybe the lever needs a little lube. Well, maybe an upgrade to dual-pivots would be the best place to spend money! I might want modern stopping power in my hilly region with my 200 lb butt flying downhill!