West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1879-04-05
Train Passengers.


has seen them. We sat in car together
up in Wisconsin one day aud he said.
Don't YOU always notice, i'm every car
in which you ride, the fool that always
sits directly before you, and always opens
the window every time the engine
whistles, and sticks his head and should
era out To see what they are doing at the
station, and never closes the window till
the station is out of sight"
Yes, | had; and he never saw any
body he knew at any stationT
" Never" said the adjuster, "and he
never secs anything anybody is doing at
the station, and can't tell the name of
the station while he is in it2'
And always scrapes the back OF his
head against the sharp edge of the win
dow sash when he pulls II in," | said,
and then dismally rubs his head while
he turns around and looks suspiciously
at you, IA though he believes you did
IT, and did il on purpoaeY"
And the man who is waiting at the
station To see the train come in2' con.
tinued the adjuster, "the man with but
ternut overalls tucked into his boots,
tawny beard, arms crammed into his
pockets up To the elbows, mouth wide
open-you never miss him; when you
go down, he is standing there at sunset !;
when you como back at sunrise, he il
waiting for you; never sees anybody he
knows get off the train, never secs any
body he knows get on; never expects To !;
would be astonished TO death il he
should happen to see an acquaintance
come or go isn't paid for it, but it's his
business. Has nothing else in the world
To do. Ia always there. If the train
comes in fifteen minutes ahead of time,
he has made allowance for IL and has
been there twenty minutes il the train
IL four hours late, he waits for il. You
see him at nearly every station"
" Never speaks TO anybody" ! said.
Never" said the adjuster, "and il
anybody speaks TO him he says Dunno
If the baggagemau runs over him with
a truck, he says, Huh Z and shrinks up
little closer against the station, but he
never gets out of the way"
And do you remember the man who
sits behind you and whistles ?" | asked.
And when he gets tired of whistliug
in your ear sings bass" suggested the
adjuster.
" And never whistles OF sings anything
that you know2"
cor that he knows2"
/
nearly IA bad as his morals, who wants
TO tell you all about the daughter of
wealthy merchant who was lust dead
gone on him the last time he went over
this road 2"
And the man behind you who bites
of half an apple at one bite and then
puts his chin on your shoulder and tries
TO talk TO you about the weather and
crops?"
"And the man who comes into the car
at the front door, walks clear back and
cut on the rear platform, looking mt each
one OF dozen empty seats, hunting for
good one, and then turns back to find
every last seat taken by the people who
came in after himW
And have you never seen tho girl
get on at some country station" said tho
adjuster, fixed up mighty nice for that
town, the belle of the village dressed in
more cOlors than you can crowd into
chrome, half the town down at the sta.
ton to see her Off she walks across the
platform feeling just little too rich to
look at, comes into the car with her
head up and plumes flying, expecting TO
set every woman in that car wild with
envy as she walks down the aisle she
opens the door and sees car full Of
Chicago girls, dressed in the rich, quiet
elegance OF city girls in their travelling
costume Hand see how she drops like a
shot into the first seat, the one nearest
the stove, and looks straight out Of the
window and never looks anywhere else,
and never shakes her plumes again
while she stays in the car"
And the man who wants 10 talk" /
said, the man who would probably die
if he couldn't talk FIVE minutes 10 every
one he rides with who glares hungrily
around the car until his glance rests on
the man whom he thinks is too feeble to
resist him, and then pounees down on
him and opens the intellectual feast by
asking him how the weather is down his
way The man who is always most de-
termined TO talk when you are the
sleepiest or when you want 10 read or
TO think, or just sit and look out of the
car window and enjoy your own idle
pleasant, vaorant day dreamsP
And the man." said Rogers. who
gets on the train and stares Mt every man
in the car before he sits down, and stands
and holds the door open while he stares.
Who always carries an old fashioned oil
cloth carpet bag with him, as wide and
deep as fire screen, and before he sits
down he takes that carpet bag by the
bottom, rolls IL up into a close roll, and
puts 10 i'm the rack. 1t is always dead
empty. When he leaves home, he never
puts q rag or n thread or button in il.
When he comes back IL is emptier than
II was when he went away. II never
had anything in it that be knows Of since
IL was owned in his family, but he will
never travel without IT,"
And the other man." ] said "who
carries nothing in his carpet bag but
lunch, and eats all the way from Chicago
TO CairOW
And the man." he said "who rides
on pass, and stands on familiar terms
with the company, and calls the brake
man JohnnyP
And the mar" said, who is riding
on pass for the first time and stands up
and holds his hat in his hand when he
sees tho conductor approaching, and says
q SIR % him a. he answers the officials
questions, and is generally moro respect
ful ~ him than he is eyer going to be
again ?'
Y" And the man." he said, ".who walks
through the entire length Of an empty
coach looking for seat, and then goes
back and sits down in the first one, near
est the dOorY
And the man" / said, "who always