The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1884-02-23
In Hoe SignO, Tramp.

"One morning, just after a tramp left
my house" said suburban resident to
q reporter, 81 noticed that he took a
piece of chalk out of his pocket and made
q horizontal mark on the fence and con-
tinued his tramp. Somewhat mystified,
| did not erase the mark and kept it on
the fence for future observation, and
sure enough in few days another men,
Der OF the genus tramp came marching
along the roadway, stopped at the gate,
but before entering he seemed to hest
tate, looked about the fence and MOTTO
ing the horizontal mark entered with
out further hesitation.
''lntent upon watching the meaning
of the marks, | treated the fellow lust
as | did my predecessor, and gave him
cup of coffee. Before he left he added
his horizontal line to that of his friends
and went on his way rejoicing. More
curious than ever, | must confess that
| awaited the arrival of the next tramp
with great anxiety. When he came, as
ragged and dilapidated as the others
before him, he also looked for the marks
on the fence and entered. l gave him
a cold piece of meat. He, like the
others, took chalk out of his pocket,
but in place of making a horizontal
line he drew q perpendicular
line across the fence and departed.
"After that" continued the speaker,
81 made up my mind to make this mat
ter study, and through a period ex-
tending for over two years learned all
the marks and signs of the tramping
fraternity. One fellow gave square
meal, and he drew a square on the
fence, but Immediately after that l was
besieged with tramps until l erased the
square, and then they were not quite as
numerous. Then, determined to get at
the bottom of the thing, | drove the
next applicant for a square meal out
of the yard and treated him in the worst
manner Imaginable; that fellow placed
cross on the fence, and for month
or so every tramp who happened to pass
my house took look at the fence and
made no attempt to enter the gate.
| Just for a matter of experiment and to
convince myself that | was right con-
corning these marks, [ erased the
cross, replaced it with a square, but
you can depend on it that l didn't keep
it there long, for discovered to my
cost that every tramp in the neighbor-
hood was knocking at my door for adj
mission. | could go on and give you a
long string of these mysterious marks,
| think have told you enough to con-
vince you that there is such thing in
existance as tramps' protective asso-
citation; but let me tell you something
else and then I'll quit. / own a very
vicious looking dog; generally keep
him chained up. One day lured on a
| tramp with square on the fence. [
watched him from the window, noticed
the pleased expression of his counte-
nance when, he beheld the mark, and l
Immediately unclaimed the dog. He
opened the gate, the dog barked saw
agely, made jump at him, and all my
friend could do was to get on the other
side of the fence before the dog abre-
waited his clothing"
"What sign did he leave on the
fence?"
HE was so scared and surprised that
| didn't think he would leave any sign,
but after he was short distance up the
roadway went out and noticed that he
left a circular mark behind him. So
| my friend" concluded the man from
the country, ''just tell your country
friends if they don twant to be pestered
to death with the tramps, have them get
a piece of chalk and mark up their
fence with crosses and circles. -
Cleveland Herald.