Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-11-09
BYWAYS OF EUROPE.
The Novel and DiSagreeable Features
of Continental Travel.
GREAT ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT
In the Railway Accommodations Afforded
the General Public.
BEAUTIES OF TIE BAVARIAN BEER

CCoRREsPoNDENCE OF THE DIsPATcH.J
NANTES, FRANCE, October 24.-I have 8
habit, at home or abroad, of trying to look
at life through its back doors and windows
from the under and rougher side, as it were
and so here on the continent, in the little
time have had this autumn, and in the
more leisurely wanderings have had here
in other years, have passed the most time
with the Clover classes, - as they are called;
at public fountains, wnere the backbreaking
loads of water are drawn. among the men
and maid servants in the little courts OF
great and small hotels, with the porterS
about railway stations, with those who labor
in most menial duties upon the street, at the
sunny side of market places where you will
see the real peasantry of countries and can
find what it can accomplish and what is its
utmost ambition, and l think the honest
thing to be said is that on the whole there is
general contentment. 1t is hard for us to
understand this, because it is inconceivable
to us how we could be thus contented.
When you get close to the European
peasant you Will find that it is equally as
difficult for him TO conceive of any other
condition than that in which he exists. This
is why, also, that republics obtain so slowly
here. To be sure the people are church and
throne-ridden. that is, from our standpoint
they are; but they were born into
it fashioned out of it. and have
so assimilated of it that they know
no other life, desire nc other life, and,
perhaps, as some social scientists assert,
compelling them 20 acquire the intellectu-
~ ality requisite, would be something like an
act of cruelty. They are simple. childish
people, content in their severe labor; salts
fed with their, to US, niggardly recompense;
happy in the few holidays the year brings
about; patient under the tithing of either
King or church; proud that the one protects
and the other shrives, and quite radiant, at
the end, to iay aside the working clothes of
the sodden days behind, for the promised
fnery of the eternal holiday beyond.
SOME INTERESTING FEATURES.
Continental railway travel has some truly
interesting features. They have the same
idiotie little carriages as in England, COM
prising from four TO six compartments, each
holding eight people in the first and second,
and ten persons in the third-class compart-
ments. In Bavaria there are fourth-class
cars or carriages. These are principally used
in time OF war for the transportation of
troops, and are plainly marked: ''To contain
ten horses or sc men, Save in France the
service, such as it is, is everywhere equal, if
not superior, to that in England. One has
to personally see his baggage in the luggage
van, and not only give trinkgelt or a pour
boire, to have it labeled, but also to have it
put aboard. The guard is the monarch of
the train. While he cannot take money for
fare, whether or no, with unblushing cool
ness he would take a bribe from anybody for
anything; and even officers of the road think
1t quite the proper thing to pay tribute to the
guard should they wish to occupy an entire
compartment.
So far does this guard-bribing 90 that a
train of Ii first and second class carriages
moved out of Berlin last week containing 67
people when there were accommodations for
450 people, and over 100 people were left at
the station who desired to take this partieu-
lar train. The guards had sold the exclu-
sive use of nearly every compartment on
this train to individual passengers. In con-
nectiOn with this universal nuisance l have
heard it seriously stated that the real reason
why the introduction of the American
sleeping cars upon continental railway lines
is so slowly effected is the opposition of
these very guards, who thus lose great
portion of their revenue.
IfyOu have to travel all night, by slipping
five mark piece (about 81 25) or very much
less, into the hand of the guard, you will
secure an entire compartment, or, at least
one side of one, where you can stretch at
full length, whatever may be the discOmforts
of other passengers, too poor or too ignorant
to employ the same system. A berth in the
dirty little continental sleeping cars that
have cTept into the service, and which con-
tain about four compartments of four berths
each, cost three times as much. ard is not
half as comfortable, as these sleepers have no
accommodations whatever-the conductor.
Ir~ Ia 41l1
sists upon your purchasing his bad wines,
refusing to blacken your boots, brush you, or,
do up your berth in the morning, although
he is conductor and porter in one.
A TRIFLE UNCERTAIN.
The first grand scramble at stations over,
one inquiries hastily of one of the myriad of
uniformed officials how long wait will be
had. If he says 10 minutes, for he is quite
likely to, as no one knows anything about
1t, the tram pulls out in 3. If be tells you
3, it is more likely to be half an hour. Ii
you are assured by the great horned spoon
that you are TO have halt an hour at such
and such a station for a meal, and YOU get
seated at the table, your money taken-for
that is the first thing-you have possibly
got gulp stored away when a uniformed
lunatic rusheS in with the hysterical an
nouncement that your train is Just pulling
wrong compartment is found, you are
locked in, and directly you will witness
nearly every one of this train load quietly
retracing his steps to the dining room.
Again, you will see a tempting lunch
spread in a little stall not ten feet from your
nose and the carriage window. You essay
to get out of your compartment, but are in
formed the train is just moving. You sink
back in your seat in despair, and sit for an
agonized half hour looking at that tempting
lunch. II you show the slightest rebellion
and signal to the lunch maiden or lad to
draw nigh and administer unto you, that
uniformed Nemesis charges upon both of
you with absolute ferocity, and your COM
panions frown you down. Again, you must
not stretch your legs. The station agent in
uniform and gold enough for field marshal
positively protests. The train is going in
stantlv-'im augenbllck."
You revolt and, after a great row, or a
small bribe, you get upon your feet. Down
along the concrete comes something like a
prismatic cyclone. Fourteen uniformed
porters have got an old dame and her bag
gage, which could be taken in one hand, but
which is rattling along on three trucks, and
are rushing her like Dakota hurricane to-
ward the train; four porters clear the way
with awful words of warning; two more
open the carriage; she is hurled bag and
baggage into a compartment; several bells
are rung; one or two people (also uniformed)
blow small, shrill horns; and then the guard
and the Is porters, the bell ringers and the
horn blowers, all taking snuff and all giving
vent to innumer able "sosl'' retire and drink
beer before your maddened eyes for a full
ten minutes. Then, maybe, the train moves
quietly away.
The particularly demoniac thing about all
this is that everybody besides Yourself seems
to be perfectly satisfied. The fact is that a
half, surely a whole, DAYS travel fags out
the average American, who is annoyed be-