Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser., 1884-03-21
Select Reabing.

ASoh anu ol lIlSu hd1lWdHS
A STRIKING CONTRAST PRESENTED BY
THE EXPERIENCE OF A SCoTCH
TRAVELLER.
SIR-Clrcumstances of friendship
called me suddenly in October last te
the Northwest of America. The sum
mons came by telegram on Thursday
On Friday | secured, by the same
meane, a berth inthe celebrated steamer
lasks, which left Liverpool next fore,
noon and in seven days one hour from
Queenstown | landed al New FORK
1t was IA fine Sunday morning. and
having. like all the rest of the pas
seng' RS, 'ch' cked' my baggage to the
hotel ! intended to go to, ii friend and
myself walked up town. After book.
ing our names and reading some l. t.
ters aud having look ut the papers,
We proceeded 10 our departments, where
we found the baggage awaiting us.
The cost Of checking which in my
case amounted to fifty cents Cor IS. }
for three pieces-was afterwards in
cluded in the hotel bill.
Two DAYS later left for the West
by the limited express of the Pennsvl-
vania Central Railroad NV ticket,
which had secured the day before at
one of the railway Offices on Broadway,
not far from tie hotel, cost $40 to
Chicago, with $40 extra for the use of
sleeping and dining cars: and my
baggage, it need scarcely be said, was
checked from the hotel in New York to
Chicago, and charged for in the bill as
usual The distance by this road is =
little under 1000 miles, which was
done in twenty-five hours and thirty
minutes, and the cost was les. than for
corresponding distance at home. But
in the manner of travelling the differ
ence is overwhelmingly in favor Of
America. The car by which | jour
nsyed was built Of mahogany. inlaid
with graceful floral decorations, and
furnished in the most sumptuous man
ner. Heated by concealed steam pipes
a comfortable temperature was main
talned night and day, and, although
snow streaked the Alieghanies, and
smaller steamers were covered with
ice, nobody among the passengers
seemed to think rugs, &c, a necessary
portion of their travelling impediments.
Our tideous lead foot warmers were
conspicuous by their absence. At
either end Of the car were capacious
lavaiories and relative convenience
one for ladies, the other for gentlemen,
equipped with soap, clean towels,
brushes. combs, &c, and filter with
fresh drinking water. From the time
Of Gslng New 1urkkiii ARRIVAL at
CtlIsgo. no passenger need leave the
cars. Attached TO the sleeping car is
a diuing car, equally sumptuously fit
ted. and also a smoking car. both Of
which are especially reserved for those
who pay the extra $40, and which,
therefore, In reality constitute first
class accommodation. In the dinner
car, at 81 each. one can have three
meals daily, from bill of fare that
erred only i'll its profu-e abundance
and variety Of well.cooked food. The
ue of stImulants seems 10 be falling
into discredit among the better class
of Americans, for neither on this oc-
cssion nor afterwards did any wine,
beer. or spirits appear on the tables,
nor did | ever hear them asked for
Afterwards. those who felt disposed
that way retired to the smoking car !;
but the sleeping Car contained small
neatly fitted mp cabinet, where such
as sought private conversation over a
cigar might resort.
In short, the new first class Ameri,
can cars exceed by far in elegance,
convenience, and comfort the rare
Pullmans seen on this line, aud ven-
ture to say no European monarch
travels BY rails so sumptuously y as our
republican cousins.
At dawn | saw from nv comfortable
bed, in which everything was scrupul-
ously fresh and clean, that we were
gliding, with scarce any vibration,
over the prairies of Illinois aud on
nearing Chicago checked my bag
gage to the Grand Pacific, whittier |
was carried by one Of the hotel omni-
buses, and where ! found it shortly
afterwards. Subsequently,, in travel
ing through the States of Illinois,
Iowa, and Minnesota, for considerable
distance by team, had Frequently oc-
casions to check my heavy baggage
by rail to various points in advance on
my route, and never in single in
stance did experience any difficulty
in procuring delivery of it on the pro-
duction OF my Checks
On my return at the end of Novem-
Der, and having no use for rugs, &C.,
and in the comfortable cars, | checked
all my baggage, save a dressing bag,
from "a station not far from the Mani
toba frontier, straight through to New
York. On my arrival there three days
afterwards, instead Of checking my
baggage to the hotel where intended
to put up, checked it to the dock of
steamer by which was to sail the fol-
lowing morning; and there, on driving
from the hotel, found it waiting me
at the shore end of the gangway as |
was al out to embark-never having
once seen or troubled myself about it
since | left Litchfield, 1000 miles away
and having changed cars and lines OF
road twice-at St. Paul and Chicago.
Now, mark the contrast. arrive
at Liverpool, give up my baggage to
the Northwest Railroad Company,
without any voucher or check being
interchanged, and proceed to Lime