Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1869-08-26

Railroad Travel In France.
BY MARK TWAIN.

book mentioned in yesterdays paper. l
gives faithful description Of railroa'
travel in France, and the Same is true o
railroads in Great Britain and Italy:
"The cars are built in three compsrt
ments that hold from eight to ten person
each. Each compartment in the first-clas
coaches is partially subdivided, and 3
there are two tolerably distinct parties o
four in it !: four face the other four. II
the frst-class cars the seats and backs ar
thickly padded and cushioned, and ar
very comfortable you can smoke if yo,
wish there arc no bothersome peddlers
you are saved the infection Of multitud
Of disagreeable fellow passengers. So ia
30 well.
But then the conductor locks you il
when the train starts there is no waite
TO drink, in the car there is no heatin,
apparatus for night travel; il drunken
rowdy should get in, you could not re
move the matter of twenty seats from
him, or enter another car but above all
IL you are worn out and must sleep, yol
must sit up and do it in maps, witt
cramped legs and in torturing miser,
that leaves you withered and lifeless tn
next day-for while they have not tina
elimination of all charity and human
kindness, sleeping car, in all France.
prefer the American system. 1t has no
30 many grievous discrepancies"
In France all is clockwork, all is order
They make no mistakes. Every thirt
man wears a uniform, and whether he b,
a Marshal of the Empire or brakeman
he is ready and perfectly willing to answer
all your questions with tireless politeness
ready to tell you which car to take, yea
and ready to go and put you into it to
make sure that you shall not go astray
You cannot pass into the waiting room Of
the depot till you have secured your tick
ct, and you cannot pass from its only exit
till the train is at its threshold to receive
you.
Once on board, the train will not start
till your ticket has been examined-til
every passengers ticket has been inspect.
cd. This is chiefly for your own good. II
by any possibility, you have managed to
take the wrong train, you will be handed
over to polite official who will take YOU
whittier you belong. and bestow you with
many an afable bow. You arc in the
hands Of officials who zealou-ly study
your welfare and your interest, instead OF
turning their talents to tho invention OF
new methods Of discommoding and
snubbing you, as is very often the main
employment of that exceedingly self-satis.
fed monarch, tho railroad conductor OF
America
But the happiest regulation in French
railway government is-thirty minutes to
dinner. No five minute botlings Of fabby
rolls, muddy coffee, questionable eggs,
0vtta percha beef, and pies whose concep-
ton and execution are a dark and bloody
mystery to all save the cook that created
them. No; we sat calmly down-it was
in old Dion, which is so easy to spell and
30 impossible to pronounce, except when
you oivilze it and call it Demijohn-and
poured out rich Burgundian wines, and
munched calmly through long table
d'hote bill of fare, snail-patties, delicious
fruits and all then paid the trife it cost
and stepped happily aboard the train
again, without once cursing the railroad
company. A rare experience, and one to
be treasured forever.
They say they do not have accidents
on the French roads, and think it must
be true. If remember rightly, we pass
ed high above wagon roads, or through
tunnels under them, but never crossed
them on their own level About every
quarter of mile, it seemed to me, man
came out and held up club till the train
went by, to signify that everything was
safe ahead. Switches were changed a
mile in advance, by pulling wire rope
that passed along the ground by the rail,
from station to station. Signals for the
day, and signals for the night, gave con-
staut and timely notice of the position of
switches
No, they have no railroad accidents, to
speak of in France. But why Be
cause when one occurs, somebody has to
hang for it. They go on the principle that
it is better that one innocent man should
suffer than five hundred. Not hang, may
be, but be punished at least with such
vigor of emphasis as to make negligence
thing to be shuddered at by railroad
officials for many day thereafter.
No blame attached to the officers
that lying and disaster breeding verdict
so common to our soft-hearted juries, is
seldom rendered in France. Ii the trouble
occurred in the conductors department,
that officer must suffer if his subordinate
cannot be proven guilty; if in the engi-
neers' department, and the case be sim
lar, the engineer must answer. y
What excellent order they keep about
those vast depots in Paris. There was no
frantic crowding and jostling, no shout
ing and swearing, and no staggering in
trusion of services by rowdy hackmen
These latter gentry stood outside :
stood quietly by their long line of We
hicles and said never word. A kind of
hackman-general seemed to have the
whole matter of transportation in his
hands. He politely received the passen-
engers and ushed them to the kind of
conveyance they wanted, and told the
driver where to deliver them. There was
no talking back" no dissatisfaction
about overcharging, no grumbling about
anything.
THE TEN DOLLAR LEGAL TENDER
BILLs.-About $3O, 900 in $40 legal tender
notes have been received at the United
States Treasury, in response to the circu-
lar issued by Gen. Spinner calling in all