Smyrna times., 1884-09-03

wait. The Changing of an engine hell
follows two red lanterns around The
curve of the switch, and then the trains
of from twenty to thirty cars rumble
along past the shadOwy looking teams
ana trucks. The drivers eagerly scan
Ihe car numbers as they pass, and then
leap INTO their seats and seize the reins.
Ehe trains are filled with fruit and
produce One car may contain peach
es consigned to a half dozen firms.
and each man is anxious to get his
load first.
The waving of the white lights of
the brakemen on the top Of the cars is
the signal which stops the trains. but
starts the truckmen. From gruff words
to the team the driver passes to shouts
to the man ahead to "Pull uD n little
there" and then beseechingly asks at
the top OF his voice, Why in then
OF the lovely and everlasting blank.
blank, the wall-eyed, dyspeptic, blank.
blank, blank" don't get out ofthe way.
Three hundred other drivers ioin in
the cry, while an equal number of
equally agitated drivers. on the trucks
supposed to be in the way, revile their
opponents and their opponents ances-
tors, to the remOtest degree.
At the sound of the drivers voices
the horses begin to stamp on the rough
paving stones, Il million sparks fly from
under their hOOls, and the trucks be-
GIN to move up and down the gang
ways where moment before a
stranger would have found difficulty in
walking. With the stopping of the
trains the trucks back up to the cars
the Slated doors are showed Open and
with marvellous rapidity baskets. bar
relS ana crates are thrown out and
loaded on the trucks. Each truckman
knows the number Of the car his goods
are IN, and the initials marked on the
baskets he Is after, and mistakes are
seldom made. His tru.k ouce loaded
the driver mounts his seat a9ain. and
AGAIN helps 10 make night nideous.
Half an hour after train Stons the
trucks begin to file out inio the street
1heh the real trouble OF the driver be-
GINS. The streets are filled with chill
dren that swarm around the trucks
begging and stealing. If one succeeds
IN attracting the drivers attention
mali dozen others climb over the rear
OF the truck and rob such packages rs
can be quickly forced open. Ifcaurbt
at 1t by II quick moving driver. tIev
are lashed with the whip, but the driv-
er is rewarded with shower of stones
through Henderson street, and down
Montgomery, NJ distance of almost 4
mile to the ferry, the driver must RIM
the gauntlet If he tries to protect his
load, and then, while he is in line.wait-
ing for the boat, the crowd around is
so great that but few trucks escane
with full baskets Many drivers have
oeGn painfully hurt for trying to bring
lull baskets OF fruit over the ferry.
Rotting peaches, blackened pits. and
broken crates s!reWn about show that
the central tracks Of the yard are usu-
ally reserved for the trains loaded en-
urely with peaches. The peach trains
come through from the Delaware Pen
msula. All last week there were four
trains every night that brought am nv-
eraSe OF nineteen cars each. The cars
contain from 800 to $50 baskets each
Yesterday only thirty cars came. be-
cause no peaches are picked on Sun
day. One Of the largest West street
commission dealers said Yesterday:
!" We sell peaches to 20 pretty much
all over New York and Connecticut.
The railroad charges from II to n
cents freight per basket, according TO
the distance of the orchard from Jer-
sey City, and the truckman gets 4
cents for bringing them across the
ferry. That, Of course, falls on the
producer, but thestealings fall on us as
we must account for all the manifest
calls for. On the cars from fifty to one
hundred baskets are stolen a dav. We
cannot stop it, nor can the railroad be
held responsible. If a train stops on q
siding in village, for haitian hour, the
news spreads by magic. Fruit trains
are looted without compunction."