Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1880-04-08

In Far West Smoking.Car.
MIR. Sala. the English Journalist,
writes as follows about his experience
in a smoking-car during a trip from
Chicago TO San Francisco: AS misery h
said TO make man acquainted with
strange bed fellows, so the habit of
smoking brings all sorts and conditions
OF people together. and have made the
oddest Of acquaintances and listened to
the drollest of conversation among the
omnium gatherum of humanity horded
together in an American smoking-car.
AS for the possible "rough," there Is not
much need for you to trouble yourself
any about him. II you refrain from
adopting the asinine practice of carrying
revolver under peaceable conditions
OF travelling, IL Is with the EXTREMIST
rarity that you will find revolver
drawn upon you. II Is, as q rule, those
who needlessly talk about shooting who
run the greatest risk of getting shot. 1t
is not by any means certain that you
Will get into quarrel by refusing TO
drink with the first possible rough who
accosts you, whereas j have been told
over and over again that to accept n
drink from o total stranger is n sine qua
non in the West. It is a case of "inside
or out" l was assured. Either you
must swallow the dram or un the risk
OF ulterior consequences in the way of
steel or lead. Frequent expel ience,
however, leads me to the conclusion
that If you civilly tell your unknown
friend that you ave "sworn off, or that
you are not equal to anything else be-
fore supper" he will take your refusal
in thoroughly good part. OF course
there are exceT tions TO the rule, but Of
one thing be certain, that If by ill-luck
you do fall across a rough American
who Is wholly or partially tight, and
proRortionately fractious or prone TO
exhibit tendencies of an ugly or violent
nature, the vast majority of your fellow
travellers will be peaceable and law
abiding persons, whose interest lie in
the direction of the rough being run
ont" or "chucked off" Mt the earliest
possible opportunity. BE not afraid,
then, to mingle with the many seated in
the smoker. Keep yourself to yourself
as reasonable discrimination shall die
tate, but speak when you are spoken to
shortly and courteousiy, and you will
get along very comfortably. You
may or may not be somewhat of "A
physiognomist, thus you must use your
O"h NtuNANbiOh III lAtt vi
JuvenaPs warning against trusting TO
facial appearance, but would entreat
you not TO judge travelling Americans
in the West from the clothes they wear
aboard the cars. For example, in the
smoker" between Chicago and the
important manufacturing city Of Cedar
Rapids | was addressed as partner
and offered plug of terbacker by a
gaunt youth, seemingly OF some nine
teen summers, with lank, hay-colored
hair, whose coarse. homespun coat and
vest, red flannel undershirt-overshirt
he had none-misshapen felt hat, and
pantaloons tucked into boots reaching
knee-high and quite innocent OF black
ing ostensibly bespoke him to be
rough of the roughs. He was nothing
whatever of the kind. He was n grad
uate of the university of his State, had
taken high honors In the department of
miner alogy and was now on his way
far West, with view 10 prospecting
around" in the mining regions. He
thought that he could get n job, he
told me, and from his subsequent con-
vers ltion l wns led to infer that he was
ready 10 inspect and report upon any
new metalliferous deposits which he
might encounter, to form = new mining
company, 10 speculate in mining stocks
or TO become the conductor of freight
train. In fact he was ready for any
thing in the conduct OF which pluck,
energy and practical knowledge coull
be made available. He had an elder
brother. he casually mentioned, who
was doing very well as a portrait
painter somewhere in Nebraska. His
parents had in the outset strongly OBJ
iected to this young mans following
the arts and had placed him in the
Office of lawyer-wishing. as his
brother tcrsely put ito bring him
up to something respectable" but the
apprentice of the law could not abide
the profession chalked out for him |;
so the old folks at home, making the
best of bad bargain, mortgaged some
land and with the proceeds sent the
artistic young hopeful IN study COR two
or three years in France and Italy.
Then he had gone West, and was at
present getting as much as SIS for n
half-length in oil. lit WASH a very
good trade" my informant added apollo
getically, "but some day, perhaps, his
brother would be able to get up to
Frisco and start in the photograph line,
and so make his pile" / hope he may
make 1t with all my heart.