American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1874-12-26
Two Plucky B0ys---Their Remarkable
Journey.

The journey of Frederick Livingstone,
aged sixteen, and his brother Henry,
aged fourteen, from Denver, Col, TO
New York city was more remarkable for
its Responsiveness than for its rapidity.
Their parents sold their little homestead
in Whitehall, n. Y, and went West to
seek their fortune when the boys were
very young. They settled near Ellsworth,
Kan, but were unsuccessful. Their lit
tie store of money gave out, and the
father was glad to get work on the Kan
sas Pacific Railroad. One day, while
coupling cars, he was killed and his wife
died few weeks later. The boys, now
eleven and thirteen years old respective
ly, left without dollar or a friend, I'M
able to get work in Ellsworth, made their
way to Denver and went to work for a
stock-raiser for $25 year and board and
clothing. They had hard task-master,
who worked them like beasts of burden
and half starved them. After three years
of wretched bondage they resolved to
run away They had once attempted to
do so, but had been caught and severely
punished. This time they were deter
mined not to be caught. One dark night,
without cent of money, and with no
clothing but the rags on their backs, they
set out for New York
The boys reached the Denver Railroad
a
about to start, and, cOncealing them
selves in a freight car, were carried to
Ellsworth, Kan, where they jumped out
to pick up such a breakfast as they could
find Then they walked to BroOkville,
over twenty miles distant, and arrived
there by nightfall. Worn out by hunger
and fatigue, they threw themselves upon
heap of hay and dry manure and slept
until morning, when they were awakened
by a passing wagon. They begged ride in
il and were taken as far as Salina, where
they earned their breakfast by saving
wood. They got on a train for Kansas
City and were carried nearly as far as
Wamego. Then Henry was discovered
by the brakeman, who scared him so that
he fell from the platform and sprained
his ankle severely. His brother carried
him to "A neigboring haystack and that
was his hospital for two days, Fred
going out and foraging for food. On the
third day it rained and the patient was
taken into a tumble-down barn that in
pioneer DAYS had done service as a hotel
On the next day his foot was nearly well
again, and the boys jumped on North
ern Missouri Railroad train and reached
Kansas City. There "A cattle-driver gave
them good breakfast and induced the
conductor of train for Mobile to let
them ride to the terminus. In Mobile
a.
took them to ST. Louis, and from there
they rode to NIncennes, Ind, and thence
to Cincinnati.
In Cincinnati a member of the City
Council gave them a temporary job. lie
sent them with "A note to Mayor johnson,
who got a pass for them to Columbus
where they were told that they would
probably get work. But not finding any
they resumed their journey eastward by
t,r h.r ha4 al
Dresden Junction got off the train To
chat with the conductor and discovered
them So they were left behind. 1t was
sunday morning-just "A week after their
departure from Denver They stayed
in Dresden until Thursday night, doing
chance Jobs for broken victuals or a few
pennies, and then, seeing an outgoing
freight train loading, hid in the caboose
behind a pile of barrels and bales. They
were taken to Dennison. Fred. got "A
lob here for two or three days carrying
mortar
. Then the bows % stole a ride" to Pitts
burgh, where they stayed for three days
and suffered great hardships, but adhered
TO the resolution that they had kept to
from the first, that they would not sleep
in any police station if they could help it.
From Pittsburgh they rode to Altoona,
and thence to Harrisburg, where they
STAYED a few days. They watched a
freight train loading for Columbia, and
hid in one of the cars behind pile of
kerosene kegs. The smell was very
offensive, but the door was open and they
could bear it. Presently the train
stoned at way station, and a long box
containing a coffin was thrust into the
+, car, and it was followedby two mail bags.
The door was then shut with a-bane and
double-locked.