The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1885-05-14
ON A SLEEPING-CAR.
The Peculiar Experiences of PuIlma
Porter on the Handle

Porter on the Panhandle
''Yes, we do have some peculiar ex-
periences," said an intelligent Pull
man car porter on the Panhandle
road to Pittsburg Dispatch reporter
I'VE run up against all sorts of people
can tell you. remember one case
which left an impression on my mind
which will not soon leave it. 1t was on
this same train, Panhandle No. 4, and
we had just run into the station at
Mingo Junction. A well-dressed young
man, who looked as if he was sick or
in trouble, came up to me and wanted
to know if he could get berth. Well,
l had nothing to do with letting him
have a berth, for there was but one
parlor car on the train and that was
full. So | told him that every berth
was taken, and that it would be impos-
sihle for him to get place. He turned
around and walked away about fifteen
feet. stopped suddenly and pulled a re-
volver from his hip-pocket, and before
any one could stop him shot himself
through the head. He lived a few
minutes. He was out of his mind,
evidently, for he kept moaning: L
didn't murder him! | didn't murder
himr We found ont afterward that his
name was Frank Leighton, and that he
lived in St Louis. where he had rela-
tives of high social standing. He had
become dissipated, and in some club
quarrel a man was killed. He was never
charged with the crime, but he got the
idea that suspicion rested on him, and
he disappeared from his home, and his
friends did not know where he had
gone until they heard of his suicide.
Another case | shall remember as
long as | live. A young New York
Hebrew, named Nathan, died in nv
car. He was broken down in health
and went south to get well. He spent
the winter down in New Orleans and
Galveston. He didn't get any better,
and in the spring started home. He
knew he was going to die, and was ter
ribly down-hearted. | had to be with
him most of the time on the way up. |
made up his berth early in the evening,
and he went to bed. | helped to un-
dress him and tucked him in Two
hours later, when we got in Pittsburg
here, | looked into his berth, and he
was dead. Well, he was taken out
here, but we didn't know any of his
friends and could not telegraph them.
They were waiting for him, though,
when we got to Jersey City They
didn't know he was dead His father,
a white-haired old man, and his sister,
a beautiful girl not more than Is years
old, were at the depot, and were al
most the first people | saw when l
Stannad down from, tba 7 hoI
idea that they We're his friends as soon
as | saw them, and it made me feel
shaky, | can tell you. is Mr.. Nathan
with you, porterP asked the young
lady, looking kind and anxious. Well,
l just looked at her and then at the old
gentleman, and | couldn't say a word
| couldn't bear to tell them that he
was dead, and so | just said: No,
ma'am, he got off at pittsburg.' She
turned as white as sheet, and said:
why, was he worse?' The old man
was SO nervous that he just clung to
the lady as if he was afraid of falling.
i don't know, ma'am,' managed to
say. just then young man came up,
who L took to be her brother. l called
him to one side. | thought it would be
better for him to let them know than
for me. Well, sir, he was so badly
broke up that he just blurted out: My
God, brother is dead 1t was the hard
est thing | ever saw. | thought the
girl would just 90 wild. They could
hardly get her away to the carriage.
The brother came back to PittsDnrg
and took the body on home. l never
heard from them again.
''One of the funniest cases / ever ran
across" he continued. occurred this
winter with newly married couple on
their wedding trip. He was Young
army or navy officer, | don't know
which. His wife was a bashful. blue
eyed little girl, not day over II years
old. About II o'clock at night | saw
her stick her head out of the curtains
and look up and down the aisle to see
if the coast was clear. She then slid
out and pottered up to the Water-cooler
after drink. When she started back
she forgot her berth, and her bashful-
ness only made it worse. She got back
to what she supposed was her berth and
piled in. Well, heard a swear and a
scream, and then the little woman,
frightened half to death, shot out of
the curtains and up the aisle to the
state-room, when ! met her. You see
she had climbed in with an old gentle
man and lady from down in Texas,
whose berth was next to hers. The old
man was a cattle-dealer and rough
old fellow, and his wife was a nervous,
tidgety old lady. She just screamed
and yelled thieves, MURDER till every
passenger in the car had his head out
of the curtains. The young husband
had been woke up and missed his wife
and he was almost wild, and came
running up the car to where his wife
was crying in the state-room. She Just
fell in his arms and pretty near tainted.
He couldn't understand what had
happened and wanted to 90 back after
his revolver and shoot some one. |
just locked them in the state-room,
and then went back and explained mat
ters to the Texas pair and got them
quieted down. Then | told the other
passengers that there was nothing the
matter, and they pulled in their heads.
The young fellow and his wife wouldn't
go back to their berth for about an
hour-until they were again sure every
one had gone 10 sleep. | managed
everything so that no one but the old
couple ever knew anything about it or
who it was that raised the disturbance,
When they left the car the next day he
slipped SO in my hand Their names?
Oh, no! | couldn't give you that.
81 had another experience, though,
that fioored me once. There Is pretty
little black eyed boy who lives over in
Allegheny, who first saw the light of
this world in the 2 lllman car of which
l was porter. The boy is about years
old now, and he and his mother and
father went down over the road with
me this winter on their way to New