Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1881-12-27
AMERICAN "PJSH."
s'Ef DON'T Get EkicEr. WY sos, yri5ss''


s'Ef Don't get Ekici,. WY Sos, WHIP
Said siac s.:stse 7Gass.
From the New York rribune.l
The gates had just been thrown open
at the railroad station on Manhattan
Beach, aud a large crowd was struggling
to make It's way past the gatekeepers,
who refused to let single ticket go by
unpunched. 4 dozen men and women
had already squeezed through the gates
and were bustling rapidly toward the
cars, though there was no apparent OBJ
ject to be attained by haste, when fat
little man with yellow valise shufliad
through the gateway, and. seeing few
passengers in front OF him, hoited at full
speed toward the cars, not even pausing
when he had put every one else behind
him. He hurried along with an anxious
expression Of c0untenance, his port
manteau humping against his legs, and
at last dropped breathlessly into q seat
in one of the numerous empty cars. A
reporter was standing by, and he thought:
'sThis man must surely have known that
there were at least ten cars standing
upon the track, every one Of them va
cant. What can have Geen the object
of his haste ?" the mystery was mol
calculated by the almost equal precipi,
tation of q half dozen others, both mer
and women, who followed hard upon the
heels of the winner of the race. Anxious
to know the cause Of these peoples agi.
tation, the reporter seated himself beside
the little man who had first attracted lis
attention, ana inquired:
"Why, may I ask, were you and those
other people rnning?"
The man thrust his chin forward. anC
rubbed his temple with his knrckles
wrinkEng his brow at the same time with
puzzled expression.
Because" the reporter continued.
! "you know there was long train with
/ out a soul III it, and you could not have
anticipated lack OF ROOM
"Why," said the man, Frightening
up, 90 it WASH for the room, bat al
ways make it point to get at the head
of crowd. Most people in the city do.
you knew, but it isn't often I get left.
Some of the people at the gate kept me
/ back or | should have been out sooner,
! but I managed to get ahead Of them
after all. No, sir, it takes good press
| ing man to beat yours truly"
'sYou gain a good deal Of satisfaction
from being at the front, l suppose z"
"Of course; everybody does. If you
have TO do thing do it up brown; that's
my principle. l have a boy at home,
/ and / tell him almost every night, John
n.y. I say, mind you don't let the peo-
pie get ahead of you And that boy
hasn't missed being of the ferry boat
first but once i'll three months, and tina,
WAS because he fell down. He's a chin
of the old block, that boy, and I'm proud
OF him.
"What if everybody tried to be first 2''
"Why, then, we'd give them a sharp
tussle, tell you. 1t isn't everybody
that can succeed III this world, but those
of us that are fortunate have reason TO
! be proud, / think.
do you set rich faster for your
push?'
"Well," said the man, ruefnlly, "f /
don't. my boy will.
/ At this point the engine whistled and
| the little man snatched up his portman-
teau and gathered himself together for
the rush. No sooner did the speed of
the train slacken than he Owed from his
seat and leaped upon the platform. In
a moment he had disappeared through
the gate, struggling manfully to distance
garlnt competitor, who was, no doubt,
compelled ultimately to yield to the su-
perior enterprise OF the energetic little
! man.