New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1890-12-24
LETTER FROM REV. BERGHOLD.
he Relates the Story Of a Bungllng
Trip on the Cars.

EDITOR REVIEW: I am writing these
lines on a train that is just leaving He
lena, Montana, Dec. 14th., and in them
[ will endeavor to give you short re-
cital of my adventures since leaving
New Ulm. After spending few days
with friends in St. Paul, 1 went to Du.
buque, Iowa, on business. The latter I
wound up successfully and IN due sea-
son, but in trying to get back to St.
Paul in hurry, failed. left Dubuque
over the Milwaukee & St. Paul at half
past seven o'clock in the evening. The
smoking car in which I sat, was neat
and cosy, and so much SO that gave
up the idea of taking a sleeper, and sat
there in almost perfect contentment.
But alas for such contentment! While
resting thus easily and mnsing perhaps
on things that had occurred but recent
ly, I fell asleep and did not awake until
Toused at two o'clock the next morning
OY being asked by the conductor if I
DIN not wish to 60 to St. Paul. I
aDSwered in the affirmative. and then
he told me that we had just past Calmar
| where | should have changed cars for
St. Paul, and that we were then going
towards Mason City. My feelings at
this announcement require no descrip-
ton, for they can easily be imagined. [
told the conductor to get me onto some
train that would bring me- to ST.. Paul
before noon, but. he said this was i'm.
possible and advised me to go back on
the next train to McGregor. From
there, he said, could take the nine
O'Clock train for the Twin Cities. This
further increased the righteousness of
the situation that was in, and my good
humor, l can assure you, stood far be-
low zero. Dissertations Of anger ran
through my mind and the excess of my
disgust found vent in the half-uttered
word "Sea-Dog," common expression
with me in hours of unexpected surprise
or disappointment. However, l was
compelled to submit unreserYedly to
the unfortunate circumstances, and
went into the depot at the station to
wait for the train. Here my anger was
only increased by the words of encour-
agement that fell from the agent, when
he; told me that l ought to have gone on
little further and caught the Kansas
City train for St. Paul But bv no
means was this the end of my troubles.
When I reached McGregor, I was told
that nc train left for St. Paul for several
hours, and as [ had no desire to wait
that long, soon secured information
to the effect that train left Prairie du
Chen at about seven o'clock that morn
ing, a fact corroborated by the kind de-
pot dispatcher at McGregor. Deter
mined to catch that train, / crossed the
long trestle work between McGregor
and Prairie du Chen with the permiss-
ion and needed assistance of the bridge
watchman, and after an half hours per-
ilous walk over thousands of frost-cov-
cred railroad ties, I found myself safely
landed on the Wisconsin side and in a
fair way to reach St. Paul that day. A
Burlington train |soon came along and
landed me in the Sanity City at two
o'clock in the afternoon. The ticket
from Dubuque to st. Paul is still in my
pocket and I live in the sweet hope that
some day Conscientious Milwaukee
& St. Paul official will redeem it from
me for cash at its value. If not will
have to console myself with the recol-
lection of pleasant incidents that hap
pened to my great advantage IN St.
Paul the next day, and which could not
have occurred had left ST. Paul for
the west at the appointed hour, and
which also enable me to appreciate the
full meaning of Shakespeare's "AlIs
we'll, that ends we'll. left st. Paul
December 18th, and arrived in Helena
to-day, in good health and attended by
fair weather. At this writing, there is
just snow enough on the ground in
Montana to whiten the hills and dales,
while in Dakota we saw hardly any.
ALEXANDER BERGHoLD.
An engraving framed in tasty style
makes an acceptable holiday gift. Or
der one at Ghas. Wagner's.