1998 Americans, as a rule, don't like trains. Planes and automobiles they approve of, but trains seem to be regarded as useful only for freight and the occasional gullible tourist. Unless, that is, you are a hobo.
Hoboes are people who hitch rides on freight trains.
They trace their roots back to the 1860s, when the advent of the railroads and the end of the civil war led to thousands of homeless and dispossessed men scouring the country in search of casual farmwork. As America spread westwards, a growing population of migrant workers crisscrossed the country, from the orchards of California to the Texas panhandle, many of them finding work as cowboys. Few people these days ride trains out of economic necessity. To the modern-day hobo, hopping is a source of adventure and romance. As far as the railway companies are concerned, it is dangerous and irritating.