The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1890-12-26
TWO HOBOS OF SEDRO.
Frank Wilkinson IN New YORK Times,

| Ply to my inquiry relative TO the ways and
means employed by him to live.
Al short intervals during the past sum-
mer was called from Fairhaven, on Bel
nngham bay, to Hamilton. ON the Skagit
river Both places are i'm Washington.
mad frequently 10 stay i'm Scdro, at which
| point the railroad then terminated, for
rom four to twelve hours. and several
times | remained there over night. To
XII time added two hobos to the list of
my acquaintances. Hobo Jack and Hobo
PADDY The former was handsome. WELL
oaiit, fairiy-educated rascal from Balti-
more the latter was a short. stocky, large
headed, merry-eyed and smiling frishman.
both men were thorough HOBBS. They were
| professional thieves. They were never
known to be sober, save on rare occasions,
when sobricty was necessary to execute
successfully some rascaiity. But drunk or
| sober they were shrcwd, constituencies
scoundrcls. Hobo Jack affected clcanli-
ness. He was dandy among hohos.
strong affinity existed between Paddy and
dirt--so strong that it might properly be
characterized as an absorbing passion. A
sincere affection existed between the two
hobos. Jack possessed the master mind,
and Paddy not only loved him in a hobo
ish why, but he in addition highly re-
spected him and was dreadfully afraid of
him.
A few words about Sedro. so that the
Times readers can understand the straits
travellers were put to to kill time in that
town. 1t was new town without any
apparent future. Its only industry was to
dig up stumps, TO pile logs preparatory TO
burning them, to sell mean whisky and
almost undrinkablc beer TO thirsty or
merry men from Scandinavia. and to sell
town lots to speculative people. As have
written, the town was new there
was no municipal government, no
police officers, no justice of the
peace, no court of any kind. No man
had lawful authority to arrest another.
sedro was pleasant haven for hohos.
There they could safely drink TO excess and
howl and fight and steal, aud no man could
say them nay. Hobos and Scandinavi..es
and scarlet women mcrrily danced in dirty
rooms that had thraShing- fioor-like floors,
and that were alleged to he music halls,
Just as though music could be extracted
from combination OF cracked
fiddle and II hurdy -gurdy. The latter
is particularly cruel instrument
of torture out of which music is ground by
turning crank, and which has range of
four tunes. At Sedro the artist who turned
the crank was usually a scandinavian just
arrived from some nearby logging camp,
and who was moro or less under the intlu-
encc of liquor, but generally arrived at the
superlaiive degree Of alcoholism.
have written that the hurdy-gurdy was
built to play four tunes; SO it was; but |
have heard a score OF tunes-~at any rate
they sounded unlike ground out of one of
these dreadful machines by one Scandi-
navian, MS he gradually and joyously trav-
eled the alcoholic path that leads from 6
a. NJ sobriety to 6p. IN. intoxication which
was sleep-creating in his case. Gamblers,
called tin-horn i'll scorn, swarmed around
the open doors of the saloons as bees
around hive, and coaxed drunken and
easily-plundercd men to play mt their UNI
fair games. There were no hotels. Travel
ers slept wherever they couli-undcr
tables, ON floors, in lofts above barrooms,
in sheds and in saloons. Such was Scdro
when it was young.
Early one bright summer morning ar
rived mt Sedro from Mount Vernon and
missed the up-riyer steamboat and the tri-
weekly stage. was i'm or day aud prob
ably for night ut the loatlisome town. l
the Sapp, in which was u famous hurdy-
gurdy that had driven many powerful and
abstemious men to strong drink, aud un-
der the floor of which hobos slept the deep
sleep OF profound intoxication. Waving
good-morning TO the aloon-kecper, |
passed through the gambling tables to the
rear of the saloon and placed my light
grip under lock and key beyond
dab ola af hob
hands. Then / walked to the front
of the saloon and seated myself on
long bench that stood on the sidewalk,
and which was vacant at so early an hour.
Sedro was asleep. 1t habitually kept late
hours. The saloon-keepcr joined me, and,
as was enjoying the glories of a summer
morning in the Skagit valley, he told me
descriptive tales relative to fights and rob-
bcries-the sole news of the town. Pres
entity there was a noise under the floor of
the saloon that sounded as though some
impatient man was kicking upward against
the floor. The sound wa- followed by low
but exceedingly earnest imprecations di-
rected against the architect who had
placed the interior fioor-siils so low that 1t
was difficult to crawl under them. The
muffied voice sounded familiar. l raised
my eyebrows inquirngly at my comrade
of the bench and said, Paddy"
YES" he replied, Paddy is getting up
He rolled a Swede last night, and got
| drunk on portion of the money. He was
| so drunk that he was afraid to go home for
| fear that Hobo Jack, his partner, would
heavily fine him or beat him" The saloon
| keeper was quiet for moment; then he
| added, as he listened to the denunciation
| of the architect, which became more yig-
orous and especially directed against the
well-being of the important organs that
are necessary to healthful life. Yes" he
said, Paddy Is getting up. and he seems
| to be getting up wrong les fore
most" which was indeed the case.
Paddy crawled ont from under
the floor. He was very dirty. His shirt
was in rags and his back was scratched.
| He was hatless. He staggered to his feet,
| caught sight of the saioon-keeper, and IN
stantly began to abuse, in terse and vigor-
Gus English, the sleeping apartment he
furnished his customers. He felt OF his
head and discovered that he had no hat
| The only logical conclusion was that the
saloon-keeper had stolen it, and at that
conclusion Paddy arrived instantly, and
! he denounced the whisky seller ragciuliy
and offered TO fight him for the hat and
drinks, which offer the saloon-keeper
promptly declined. Then Paddy recog-
nized me. He thrust his hand into his
pocket, and drew it forth filed with silver,
which he exhibited to me. His manner
was as that of an intoxicated conqueror.
In repIy to my question rs to where he
had gotten the money, he, with perfect
seIf-possession. and as though ne had per-
| formed a praiseworthy act, replied: Il
swiped il from Swede last night. Have
| drink. Colonel?" he added Hospitality, as
| he swayed to and fro before me- Paddy
~ the ,iaa that had e0pi-