The independent press. (Abbeville C.H., S.C.) 1853-1860, 1857-05-01
From the n. Y. Courier & Enquirer
eGallantry" in tho Railroad Cars.


In city railroad car not long ago, the
! following occurrence "might have been seen
much more easily than the two horse,nen
who have become indiS>olubly connected
with the memories O! Mr.. &. i. X. James,
The seats, platforms and passenger way OF
the car are tull-too full for the health and
comfort OF any Of the occupants. The con-
ductor rings the bell, raising Il pleasant en-
pectalion III the breasts of the living freight
that the load is TO be li-htcncd but no it
Is to be increased. Where can another man
find footroom The new passenger appears
"A woman-we beg pardon, a lady, who
| S'IuecZes and is squeezed into the mixture
OF carbonic acid gas and humanity which
ILLS the apartment, and thcreupon looks
around sullly for seat. She of course
knows that there is none unoccupicd but
she expects one to be vacated instantly for
her: and her face says as much. At last the
conductor does what conductors now rarely
lo, aud says, Young man, can't YOU give
this lady Il seat?' The "vounc man. thus
appealed to is not robust, and is tagged with
hard days work more reason this, bv
the way. that he should not be in that un-
wholesome atmosphere. lie looks ut the
lady, who, in return, looks all expectation
She has evidently been more familiar with
cabins than cars, and with bogs than rail
roads: and her dress shows that she is out
for holiday. She is in rude health, and
figure expanding as it dcsccnls she can
stand as easily as pyramid. But the
Young man replies, "Ycs, will walk with
pleasure to obligc this lady, though am
two miles from home: but of course YOU
will return my fare" The conductor opens
his eyes, and rcfnscs to do any such thing.
VERY we'll is the reply, ",hcn, Of course,
YOU vii! ask none from the lady; am per
fectly content" With this suggestion the
conductor also refuses to comply. "Ah,
then, YOU ask NJ. to stand where | cannot
stand. or get ont and walk, not for the sake
Of doing this ladv service, but that YOU. or
Your company may make one more half
dime. | am willing to do anything in rea-
son to serve a lady, "r to give nv half dimes
to those who need them but this | decline
to do"
Scenes like this arc acted and thought,
though they may not be spoken. hundreds of
times in this city every day. What shadow
of proprictv or right is there in the custom
OF the railroad companies which causes them!
The attention Of Americans TO the comfort
OF women has become provcrbial the world
over; and here are companies which have
Sccurc'! monopoly of the easiest and most
rapid means Of conveyance through the
principal thoroughiarcS, using this manly and
delicate trait Of national character to com
pei men TO put themselves to discomfort, and
give up that which they have paid for, in
order that those companies may increase
their gains few half.dimcs daily. The
practice is not onl y mean and wrongful in
itself, but ii is doing all that can he done to
dch'se if not utterly to destroy the. gallant
rv and courtesy upon which it is founded.
The very lie and ESSENCE Of gaIantrv is the
spontaneous grace Of the sacrifice which it
makes =: the pnssessor gives up gladly that
to which he alone has II right the strong
finds happiness in yielding that which the
weak must otherwise be without. But
when tins sacrifice is thrust upon a man,
whether he will or no and when NOM
ents reflection shows him that lie makes it,
not to his own sense of what is due to the
weaker scX, but to cunniEgly contrived
plan 10 cxtorL five cents from him, not to
woman, bullo mammon the gloss Of his cour-
tesy is apt to become somewhat tarnished,
and the milk of his human kindness to be
cnrd!cd. 1t is all very well to ask what Sir
Philip Sydney and the Chevalicr Bayar,l
would do under such circumstances; and TO
call to mind that Sir Walter Raleigh threw
his new velvet cloak into the mud that
Queen Elizabeth might walk dry shod. But
times have changed, and manners (in their
form though not in their spirt have chang
ed with them. Sidney and Bayard did not
ride in a jolting "bus or fetid railroad car ;
and had Raleigh been told, by some mean
spirited fellow who thought the knight was
| in his power, that he must make his cloak a
| foot cloth for Elizabeth Tudor, in order that
he' the meanspiriled fellow aiorcaid, might
be penny the richer, the Maiden Queen
would doubtless have had a less brilliant
master of the horse, and Sir Walter would
have died with his head on his shoulders.
RFv. Mn. KALLocH.-This clergyman.
whose trial has created so much interest,
preached in Boston. on Sunday, from Gen
esis 80 and 27-"I have learned by expe-
rienced that the Lord bath blessed me-
The most striking passage in the discourse
is the following:
sit needs repeated strokes Of the ham
mer to break the rock in pieces and so II