The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1890-07-23
KING OF TIE TRAMPS.
GOING TO BEAT HIS WAY
AROUND THE WORLD IN 1902
DAYS.
Lying Is His Specialty-.Relates the
Story Of His Travels.

Lying Is His Specialty-.Re Relates the
Story of His Travels.
A little young mtn with orl,-
nary BROW hair and a smooth
face strollei into the Sun Office
yesterday and announced that he
was a king. lie was not one OF
those over PARTICULAR potentates
who required elaborate saluta>
tions from lesser personages, but
inst plain king, who had acquired
his title by the sulfrages of his sub
jects, and who thought not much
more of himself on aocou 1T of it..
He was Wilson Becker, "King of
Tramps," elected to that dIstinc>
ion about year a 20 at the con.
vention held in Nanticoke, whose
proceeding We're reported in the
Sun at the time. King Wilson is
only twenty years old and by has
own admission should rest more
upon his capabilities for lying than
on his reco snized rank among
tremps. He says he has just "bea
ten his way from Boston to San
Francisco and back in twentv>0ne
days on a wager, and during a part
of his journey rode on the train
that carried GeoIg Francis Train
on the last lap of his journey
against time around the world.
Becker says that he started from
Boston by freight, aud was arrests
ed before be got twenty miles
away.
"a farmer iud e, said he tex
apjned me, and | told him beau.
tiful yarn about being a sailor in
the English navy. | wanted to
yet to Albany, and thence to New
York. in order to catch q ship. 1t
delayed nee five hours to convince
the farmer OF the tPuthful1ess of
my story, and then / went on"
IN Syracuse, Becker says he was
again arrested. he told the same
story at a loss of three hours, and
whes be had done he passed his
hat in the court room AMI collect
ed 81 Is, to which the Judge con
tributed 25c. In Buff 10 he was
chased by the police. but he es-
capped them and got 0u the trucks
Of a freight car 10 a train that ran
on passenger time,
Tine great thing in heating
your way" he explained, ''is to get
on blind mail. That is a mail
or express ear that is attached to
the engine aud that has no door in
troet. Aflei the train gets q move
Cd, il you can climb Oh to the plat
t0rW pf d blind ear you c.ln enjoy
the hreezes for hours, or until the
train stops, for nohoiy can get at
yon. When it stops you get of
and hang around until the train ia
going to start again. Then you
climb aboard. and there you are.
| held down a ffYjt car on The way
back from San Frs3eisco as far as
0 .den three days ard . hall"
Three days and a haaf What
did YOU eat?"
"Bansnas.
Becker was Obliged to send a
postal card to his baeker. a Boston
nameum man named Austin,
from every town at which
he stopped, in order to verify his
pro 5ress. On the return he board
ed freight tram at Albany aud
went To SLEEP in a freight car.
II was head of time at Albany"
he said, "and when | woke up /
was an hour behind. The con-
founded train was a local, and |
thought it was through, and !
found myself side tracked three
miles east OF Greenbush. So
had to walk back to Albany aud
get on the trucks Of a passenger
train"
Becker s,ys that he won the bet,
and that Austin paid him $500
| $3.50 of which he seuC 10 his faith.
er, who was in prison in British
GUAM. His father, according t,
this accomplished liar, was en- gag,
ed in an Instruction in Guiana
and was sentenced to prison fe
eighteen years. That was when tn
King oftrAmps wa' MAE years old
Since then has been wandering owe
the world, sometimes as saiIo
aud latterly as protested tramp.
"I'd just MS lief work" he sale
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