Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-08-15
A STREET CAR BLOCK.
ONE OF THE EXPERIENCES or
LIFE IN NEW YORK CITY.

What . Waiting Passenger saw from the
Car Window-Thc ImPcrturhabIe Mag
with the Turkey-A Harsi Working.
Cherries Worid-ozoving On
The car has stuck in Greenwich street.
We ara aground The indications are not
!avorable for soon getting of. The driver
sets OF the platform 10 look ahead. So
does the conductor. When these worthless
leave their posts be sure you are TO re-
main in st2tu quo for some tine. We
take an observation. The track is blocked
for quarter OF mile ahead The drivers
Immediately ahead are oil their pcrchss
also Another bad sign We commend
our souls to patience Tho more uneasy
passengers gaze through he front car
door window. There Grs ten OF us. A
woman and child. a countrymaa. "A stout
man with a turkey tied ia a psper ha-. a
girl and a stout lrishmsn. The rest are
simply of the human species. with nothing
particular TO recommend them.
The driver mounts the platform Tho
car moves. We are of The block IL
over. Hope rises. The car moves six
inches And stops disrlaliy. Hope fails
We move no more. Carts. wagons and
carriages rattle. roar and rucSle over the
stones on either side OF us, one line up,
the other line down. BY us are passing
the manufactures of New York. the pro-
duce of the country and the product OF
other lands Down load of sewial,
machines incased IN wooden frames. Up
3 load of coal Down losd Of new fur
niture cased in hagging. Up load Of
apples. Down a load OF -four. Ahead 81
US In the block a wagon piled high with
dry goods boxes. Up q load OK long ears.
Down, potatoes. Up. turaips. Then .
load OF beef quarters. Up a piano.
HOPE REEVES
The woman with the child looks al he.
watch She fears losing boat or train
The man with the turkey is OF all me
most resigned His face is vacancy.
Time TO him seems of no object. lie is
framed 10 wait. A policeman bobs hither
and yon, growing. cursing. ordering.
But the block is Immovablc.
Ali We move. We are off Hone re-
wives. We fear it Is too good 10 D. true
1t is. We have moved half block The
block resumes Drivers going up and
down handy words with our driver. Pee-
pie stop on the euro aud gaze stupidity at
us. We get even and gaze stupidity ~
them. Then we read all the advertise
ments in the ear. A load of iron bangs
and clangs past. Then load of hay.
Then one of cotton. The woman and the
child get ont. The man with the turkey
is immoyable. Is he. like the rest OF US.
consumed with anxiety and impatieace.
or has he the power of projecting his
mind into some region of thought that he
can forget this irksome delay We count
four dry goods boxes on the wagon ahead.
ON them red seat and On that a blanket.
The conductors oyercoat has but three
buttons upon it, 1t should have four. IL
is very ragged coat. The pockets are
sagged down
There is an endless shouting outside
and cries of Get upl Get upt' The stout
lrishman can wait no longer. He leaves
us. FAREWELL We shall never meet
again The man with the turkey gazes on
and on into futurity
MOVING on
Again we move, We get ahead a whole
block. The scene changes. Il Is refresh
ing even to see a me- set OF diugy store
fronts and signs. And no end Of carts.
Going and coming, rafting and rumbiing,
bringing things from the north and send
ing them south. bringing things from tho
south and sending them north. all driven
by these hard. griIny men. who seem TO
have no other thought In the world save
to get somewhere with load and set
back again. A hard working. grimy,
cheerloss world II Is II about here
Again wo move. We arc not encour-
aged We have now too often been dis
appointed. But We keep on moving.
Boast not thyself. it 10 but momeutary.
But we keep on moving. No matter.
We shall stop-theTe. We move slower
We feel the car stopping. But it does
not stop. But We shall stop. Bat We do
not stop. An atom of hope kindles In our
detected souls. We try 10 keep Il down.
TO smother it 1t will rot stay sus0;hsred
We are still moving. We have 70 long
been in stationary. helpless state that
we have ceased TO regard the car as cap
able Of motion Yet we DO move. The
drivers back looks an IL he intended 10
drive farther yet Even tho drivers
back assumes sort of 20 IL expression
when he sees no obstacle ahead and his
hand is of that discouraging brake We
have actually moved fonr blocks without
q stop. The man with tho turkey is Is
vacant as ever IL matters little to Liza.
We keep On moving. Tie block Is over.
Only hall an hours de!ay.--Freatice hgi-