Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1881-02-07
NO. 30
pailu krnnebrr Journal.
How They Do Ir Now,
WASHINGTON, d. c., Feb. .. lsS

WAsHINGroS. ID. c., Feb. .. 1881.
"When you and were young, John" they
didn't often do il at all, but if they did,
it was no pleasure journey or bridal tour;
now things are different. Instead of lum-
berng stage coach, snail-liks canal boat. or
long trip around the treacherous lake. a
journey of thousand miles is a pleasure
trip even in mid-winter. The frugal son of
Maine in Chicago having made up his mind
to visit the capital of the nation. takes q
stroll on Court House Square, the eastern
| and northern boundaries of which are lined
with railroad ticket offices, legitimate
and illegitimate, from a railway official stand
point. The former are the regular ticket
agencies of the numerous great railway lines
centering in Chicago, and the latter are the
scalper's offices, which, in spite of the rail
road power, have successfully prolonged their
existence and are now a recognized and
much patronized institution. The rivalry
between competing lines is SO intense. that
these lines themselves resort to all sorts of
artifces to secure travel, such as selling
| their tickets say to New York, for SIS to run
ners, the regular fare being $40, who besicge
passers-by to buy their tickets and often
offer them at $40 or even less if they can't
get $50. In this short space of about two
blocks, are concentrated the offices of all the
Great Trunk lines which occupy commodi-
Gus and almost elegant apartments on the
ground floor, while nearly every basement is
a .calper's office Passing along Clark street
from Washington ST., facing the magnificent
now Court Hsuse, YOU will at any time see a
man standing on the watch for ticket hunters,
| they are railroad runners, and will try their
level best TO sell you ticket. The great
| railroad companies seem as eager TO secure a
| customer as n Chatham street jew. Near
the centre of the block is the Baltimore and
Ohio ticket office, which has now become a
powerful rival to the New York roads, by
getting an independent route from Phladel-
phia (the Bound Brook Route to New York.
| Its trains all go via Washington and
Baltimore, and though the time
is somewhat longer between Chicago and
| New York, yet il attracts very manv eastern
| bound people who can thus cheaply get a
assembled hereunder. A fast train is now
run. starting from Chicago in the middle of
| the afternoon, and reaching Washington in
| % hours. via both the Pennsylvania and the
| Il. & o. Roads. These roads. as also in fact
all the other big trunk lines. have their
| agents and runners on the alert for passen-
gers and freight. But the wary traveller is
| untempted by their wiles. He enters one Of
the scalpcrs offices, asks the price of ticket
| r.xI -
him. He decides to buy, when the scalper or
his clerk goes out and purchases a ticket at
the ticket Office at the regular price, which
| the traveller paws, and receives a printed form
| filled out as follows:
l.. SALoMON
! GENERAL RAILROAD TICKET OFFICE
No. 90, South Clark Street,
| CHICAGO, Jan. 2J, 1881
| Paw bearer six 25-lO0 dollars for ticket No.
| 729, reading Washington to New York IL
| presented on or before Jan. 27, payment
guaranteed.
L. SALoMoN
| To ABRAmAMs & Co.
467 Penn. Avenue,
| Washington.
| On arriving in Washington the 81. .25 is
| received for the balance OF the ticket Wash
| ington to New York; when it is presented to
| Mr.. Solomon. who then sells it below the
| regular rate to New York at a good profit
This method Of getting ahead of the rail-
roads is generally adopted in all the large
cities and there does not seem to be any way
| of putting a stop to it while those roads dis
| criminate in their rates between the large
| competing points. There are in Chicago,
all eentered around the east front
| Of the Court House, about 20 Of
these scalping Offices, and they all
appear TO be making money. The saving in
| thus purchasing a ticket, and getting rebate
| is $500 between Chicago and Washington.
| Being equipped with ticket at last, after
passing the gauntlet Of scalpers and runners,
| your traveller now seeks to get out Of town
| on the fast Washington train, which he finds
quits the depot Uf the Pittsburg & Fort
Wayne r. X. (the western adjunct
| Of the great Pennsylvania Line at halfpast
3P. NJ. or the Baltimore & Ohio depot at
| 4.3O =. NJ, and is due in Washington the
next evening-a rapid run but, very few stops
being made. These are model trains, COM
| posed Of an engine and tender. express car,
two baggage cars, L. s. postal, a smoking,
two passengers and three Pullman cars. One
of the baggage. passenger and Pullman cars
| goes directly through to Washington, and
the balance to Philadelphia and New York.
| One Of the Pulman's is a hotel car. on which
| first-cass meals are cooked and served at
| seventy five cents each. These dining cars
are being put on nearly all Of the through
fast trains out Of Chicago, and are but of
the many indications of the great railroad en-
| terprise of this age. Looking at this
train Of great and magnificent cars, any one
Of them fit for king, the recollection of by
| gone DAYS comes up, when railroadng was
not altogether thing of beauty and joy, when
the coaches used were low and uncomforta-
BILE, the road beds rough, the time slow and
the annoyances many. There was no system
OF checking baggage, which consequently was
frequently lost. Now person gets into
palatial coach, and need not leave it until he
reaches bis journeys end, thousand miles
away. He has no annoyances worth men,
tioning. and no anxiety on account of his
baggage, which is checked through from
Portland to San Francisco or New Orleans,
and as long as he has the duplicate check in
his pocket he worries not, and feels morally
certain that he will find his baggage when he
arrives at his destination, no matter how far
distant or how many railroads are traversed
70 reach it.
Monopolies are said and popularly
believed to be odious and oppressive,
-CContinusd on fourth page.1