Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-11-08
RAILROAD CONDUCTORS OUTFITS.


From the New York Sun.
Railway conductors, as whole, put on a
good deal Of personal STYLE" the shopkeeper
said, abstractedly punching in pamphlet cover
holes that looked like black comets; mot so
much as they used to before the days OF draw
back checks and spoilers and other unpleasant
inventions, but enough yet to render them
among the most ornamental members of the
community. They don't run much to diamonds
and pound-weight gold chains and fast horses.
as was said to be the thing twenty or thirty
years ago among them, but they keep up
their end pretty we'll on the things they've got
to have, such as responsible watches fancy
lanterns, and natty punches. When conduc-
tor is appointed on road he is given a punch
and lantern by the company. The punch is a
plain one, merely differing in the sort of hole it
makes in a ticket from those the other conduc-
tors on the line are supplied with. and the Ian
tern is plain tin thing, worth so or Is cents
II he has any taste or within, or reason without
taste or within, for wanting different sort of
punch from that given him, he comes to us and
We make the change to suit him. One wants
his initial letter or letters; another, a woman g
shapely foot; another, heart; another, some
peculiar device that he has 9 notion is lucky for
him; and another, something he has always
carried and ia known by among conductors If
he gets new punch he will record it at the
less variety to the punch devices. We make
more than $50 sorts of dies and get I'D new
ones to order nearly every day. The Pennsyl-
vania road alone has at least 200 styles, no two
alike. A good punch is worth $3.50.
but the most expensive thing about con-
ductors outfit, next to his uniform, Is his Ian
tern. OF course he cannot preserve his SELF
respect and maintain his dignity among first
class passengers carrying such a lantern as the
company gives him, so he comes to us and we
get one up for him. There is the sort OF Ian
tern carried by a conductor who has any style
about him. Brass. nickel-plated, heavy flint
glass globe, beautifully engraved, can't leak,
won't blow out, lasts for years, and only costs
Sc. or, with the engraving of plain name or
initials with surrounding wreath, g. Con-
ductors rarely pay more than 50 or 81 extra for
engraving, but we do sometimes have to get up
very fancy lanterns for presentation to conduc-
tors by gentlemen travelling good deal on par
ticular trains, and on those the engraving fire.
quently mounts up to $40. The conductors
name with the regulation wreath will be on one
side, and designs of various sorts on the other
sides. Men have come in here wanting to
spend as much as .$25 for a lantern to present
to conductor. but that is just little beyond
the limit You see when you get name, and
wreath, and an emblem, and a train of cars
running into tunnel, and the locomotive with
smoke from his funnel, coming out of the other
end of the tunnel, and perhaps presentation
date, or an eagle, or an owl, all on one lantern
globe you've got just about all the space will
hold. The owl is a favorite emblem for conduc-
tors of night trains.
prominent stationer said: Conductors buy
about the same sort of pocketbooks, diaries,
and wallets that gentlemen generally do. rather
better, | should say, that men in receipt of
equal incomes are in the habit of carrying The
youngest conductors generally have the most
fancy things. The old FELLOWS go in for the SOL
idly practical, and lumber themselves up with
as little pocket stufiing as possible I've no.
ticed. too, that the older conductor is the
more likely he is to carry big, solid. reliable
silver watch. instead Of a gold one know Of
one who customarily carries cotton string to
his silver watch instead of chan but would
bet that twenty years ago both watch and chain
were gold. We get sense as we grow older"