The Arkansaw traveler., 1883-11-24
ENGLISH RAILWAY ARRANGE
 MENTS.
Elevated Railway Journal. l

'
 We hear a great deal at home about ne annoyance of the compartment sys:em of railway carriages, but it has its ,dyan,ages. Each compartment opens
 .dependently of the others, and so a train
 loaded and unloaded very rapidly. There is nothing whatever of the annoy
 ns delay that we have in getting in and on; al stations. It is all done at once and a,,hou, confusion. As for tickets, you do TO, give them up until you arrive. There
 :. therefore, no bother of continually .aowing check to the conductor. The names of stations are not called out. but :aey are very plainly marked Tn a dozen ierent spots at each place. and the ,sards can always be called to from the s.ndow for information. The guards are informed and look very well, but the ,or,ers and station men are more elegant vel. At Hereford, for instance, which IS eut small, quiet town, our baggage was .aken possession of at the station by an elegant and stately gentleman, wearing a s.oye pipe hat and suit of dark blue made up in the long coat fashion. It seemed like favor for him to consent to accept a sixpence. But they all do consent. some excellent American, Hawthorne l .hink, remarked that his only regret in .aInking over his experience in England .ay in the fact that he hadn't offered the .gh chancellor shilling. At every .allway station, suppose you wish 10 stop eyer, there Is Jeff baggage room shere, for four cents ttuppence) J, they take
 are of your baggage. Livery station, too, aas a capital book. stall. IL IS not merely
 se ours, newsstand, bu, Il has good lit- .-ature, and plenty of t. Then. too, .aeh important station has its restaurant. Esery restaurant Is a rum-shop There every faeility for good meal. but be- .des that, certainly on some roads, the opportunities for getting drunk surpass .aything we know in Amelica. Pocket so,tles, thin but cop!ous. are spread out a the counters for sale, oon,a ming rum. brandy, whisky, gin. sherry
 rFot l. etc, and toys go from Car to sG offering tkese for sale. There IS ao.hlrg done on the sly; and at the lunch oas;er there is often regular bar. al- aAys presided over by neat and tidy girl. who sells ihe strongest liquors with the -.isdes, expression oi countenance. Alp sarenily nobody Is ashamed to drink. They all do 1t openly and make no secret q Il. In London, indeed, so much of II
 done that they sell champagne by the slass-a liquor which is supposed to spoil Y syopening. Champagne, one sixpence
 ; common sign there. Great attention < gwen 10 the English railway stations. !; Shrewsbury, for example. a city oi hail ne size of our Hartfsrd, or say 5, 900 .ahabitan,s, the station cost S5oo, 900. .Along the route A grade crossing IS searcely ever seen when ii is, the gate is sep, shut. except when some one wants 10 ross the track. Its normal condition Is 70 be closed. Tunnels and bridges are frequent. Over these in many places ivies are grown. and other climbing vines ; and a, many stations the cultivation of flow CTS stimulated by prizes offered by the
 ompanies. has been carried to an ait. lrossing the tracks at stations is no, fea- sble, and walking on the tracks through ne country Is forbidden Look from the car window half day and you see no one oa the track excep, an occasional railway tmploye. The whistle scarcely ever blows except at stations. The guard notifies the .agineer that all is ready by blowing ;srill little whistle which he carries in his -arke,