Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1885-05-28
ON A sLEEPlNG-CAR.
The Peculiar Experiences of a Pullman
Porter on the Pan-H Handle.

ON A SLEEPING-CAR.
The Peculiar Experiences of a Pullman
Porter on the Pam Handle.
Yes, we do have some peculiar ex-
periences, said an intelligent Pull
man car porter on the Panhandle
road to Pittsburg Dispatch reporter.
1--WE 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 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-
sible for him to get place. He turned
around and walked away about fifteen
feet. stopped suddenly and pulled re-
volyer from his hip-pocket, and before
any one could stop him shot himself
through the head. He lived few
minutes. He was out of his mind,
evidently, for he kept moaning: i
didn't murder him! l didn't murder
hint We found out 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 man was killed. He was never
\, x.vsfb hut ha ka
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 l live. A young New York
Hebrew, named Nathan, died in my
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. l 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,
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 l saw when l
stepped down from the car. / had an
idea that they were his friends as soon
as | saw them, and it made me feel
shaky, can tell you. is Mr. Nathan
with you, porter?' asked the young
lady, looking kind and anxious. Well,
just looked at her and then at the old
gentleman, and l couldn't say 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 10
say. just then young man came up,
l.
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 go wild. They could
hardly get her away to the carriage.
| The brother came back to Pittsbnrg
and took the body on home. | never
heard from them again.
'Onc OF the funniest cases | ever ran
across" he continued, occurred this
| winter with newly married couple on
tteir wedding trip. He was a young
army or navy officer, / don't know
which. His wife was bashful, blue
| eyed little girl, not Il day over IL years
old. About l o'clock at night l 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 a drink. When she started back
she forgot her berth. and har-- hashsal-
ness only made it worse. She got back
to what she supposed was her berth and
piled in. Well, heard swear and
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 cattle-dealer and rouSh
old fellow, and his wife was nervous,
fidgety 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 go back after
| his revolver and shoot some one. /
| just locked them in the state-room,
and then went back and explained mat
| tiers 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
60 back to their berth for about an
hour-until they were again sure every
one had gone to 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 $40 in my hand. Their names?
Oh, no! couldn't give you that.
81 had another experience, though,
that floored me once. There is pretty
little black-eyed boy who lives over in
Allegheny, who first saw the light of
this world in the Pullman car of which
! 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
Orleans