, 1881-01-23
ON THE RAIL.

Snnnter1n.s Between Lake Street and
! Hyde Park-A Leaf from the Diary
OF u Passenger.
! The other eynniug,-it was at tho time when
the thermometer indicated 20 degrees below
zero,--jn the capncions and elegantly furnished
| waiting rooms Of the Illinois Central Railroad
! Depot, under the myriad flashing chandeliers.
| where refuIgenco at times .bathed tho scene
| in sheen Of purest sivery hue, was a lnrge,
motley, and restless nssemblago which repre-
| scntcd almost every walk In life. Among
| those who constituted this gathering were not
| a few individuals who had taken tho thirty
third degree in its poetical and fascinating
swearing, from whose lips ever and anon
ripplcd most delightful profanity 1t was OBJ
served that these kindred spirits gathered
together, as If drawn by community OF inter-
est,-just as the steel is attracted BY tho mug
net,-aud induiged In language calculated
to abash that prince Of profantty,-tha
Texan bulrusher. But what was the occasion
tor these remarkable scenes,-tho mutterlugs
OF the people, their gestsculadons, and ever
once in d while an imprccat1on7 Being Of IN
fnuusttiye turn Of mind, an individual sought
to euliChteu himself, and inquired:
WHAT'S TIL; MATTER?"
1.-THE matters just this,-that blank train
hasn't backed In; that's what's tho NATTER
Tho bloody shirt waved IN that mans eyes, and
the tntcrlocutor. being OF Quaker descent, pro-
It was Or had been declared. the 6:10 Pun. Hyde
Park train not in sight-that is, not in sight
1t t the 5oo Or 600 waiting passengers: Meanwhile
who expected to take tho 6N train, and the ele-
CANT depot was becoming crowded. The thor
four more degrees below tho lowest notch here
to1ore attatned this wictcr, and every one was
correspo'idiugly happy, as there seemed to be
every prospect of the lake freezing over and q
good crop Of ice harvested for tho coming sum-
mer. While the cyen-tetnpcred aud belatcd
Snournanates 1hc " wcre feGutng .noaselyes on
and sodu'yater during the anticipated sllltry
season, and wondering gte thcr Mother Shfptons
prophecy. If fulfilled. would cause an aPprecia-
ton In the value of tho ice~crop, should 1t be
determined that there IS II roasting plnce in the
hereafter, some one, the Vedelte on the outpost,
sung out In StentOrfan tones.
"uEKE SIZE CoMEsi''
This was the signal for grand stampede from
the generous warmth und from under. the daz-
Zllng globes in the handsome watang-r room to
everybody rushed pell-meIi in The direction Of
the approaching train. and when they sadly re-
r5fd 4 nat II was ol TED ana dono not
dtcdon upon tho heads OF the officials Of the
roud.
But everything must have an end, aud there +
was an end to waiting, as soon the long slnuous
form Of the train rounded the curve back. Of j
me base-ball park. and trundtgd on glrtering
was no rush; order characterized the proceed
fngs- The gentlemen rnn9ed themselves in line 1
the ter and q
They duil't do this on any other train. After uu
the lnlfes and female children we're seated COM
fortably tho gentlemen disputed With each other
velvet cushions, euch demanding tbet hts neigh t
bor should be seated first To such an extent
Was this Thtppe<l-crcam OF pofltcness carried
during the trip. The car presented the extraor-
binary spectacle OF the aisle being crowded with
men standing up, with empty seats on either [
side. The conductor was 50 overcome by the |
sight that he had recourse TO bis handkerchief, I
using the one with blue polka dots on IL
The df5t car OF this most remarkable train was !
occupied By smokers, and the remaining coach-
eS with ladies' and gentlemen. boys, gdrls,'
AND ONE DOG. i
The latter, Of the poodle species, MAS attired In