Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1891-04-17
THE WOES OF ''CABBY."
1nnumerable Hardships Are His to
Bear.


: driver the other evening to New. York
Herald man, well, you can lay large,
gloomy and peculiar wagers that
l will swap lots with any police
man on the east or west side-or,
Tor that matter, with any one Of
the squad in the toughest district in
the city. guess you don't know what
we drivers have to put up with, or the
great difference in the kind of parties
we have to drive. Why. before now 1
have had parties take me at the Astor
house and give me an order to drive them
to Fifty-ninth street, and when would
get out at the address given me would
climb off the box to open the door for
my passenger and collect my fare,
when, 10! presto, change! the hack
would be empty. The Lord knows
where my freight got out, but most
probably somewhere between Twenty
third and Twenty-fourth streets. 1
don't see how they do it so quietly, for
it makes some noise to open q hack
door and takes some practice to lump
out safely. But they do it somehow,
and suppose it is partly due to our
getting tired and sleepy with our days
work.
Then, / sometimes run across hard
crowd, and when I try to collect at the
end of the route they give me the
laugh and l know that if l insist 1
will only get half killed. Policemen
are never near, either. Oh, l don't
blame hem, for if was one 1 would
hide, too.
Another thing that troubles driver
awfully is waiting-waiting perhaps in
pouring rain-for n man never went
into house yet without saying that
he would be out in few minutes. And
you never can tell when they will come
either. If they would only say how
long in the first place, it would be
easier, for then you could drive off to
some convenient spot, or else curl up
and go to sleep quietly inside, in case
the gentleman didn't give you q cigar
to comfort you. And, speaking of
cigars, it is astonishing how few fees
drivers get. A man will fee his waiter,
his barber, his porter, his chambermaid
or any people in such employment, but
he seldom thinks of offering the driver
anything but cigar or drink. Yet
driver has q hard tine, and his wages
are not large, either, to say nothing of
the responsibility resting on him in
the way of careful driving, finding the
way, etc.
'Still, 1 have known people to give
me money occasionally, and in this line
l think actors arc more generous than
others. There is one lady in particular
the wife of q star actor-who never
fails to give me at least fifty cents over
and above the fare have to turn in to
the boss. 1 never enjoy shopping ex-
ccpt when go with her.
speaking of ladies. I suppose they
are worse than anybody else at keeping
you waiting. The trouble with them is
that they get as far as the door of n
house and there they stand. Why,
have jumped up and down off my box
& dozen times just because every time
my fare opened the house door she
would close it again and continue her
conversation. Of course it fooled me,
as wanted to be ready to open the car
riage door for her.
'Ihcater parties and parties who
want to be taken to the stations are
pretty good jobs, as the distances are
almost always short and direct and
there are generally several in the party.
Another thing driver has to do is to
use Judgment rs to how he drives, ac-
cordinS to the party inside and the oc-
casion. Often have had young fell
low press fifty cents into my hand when
l would be driving him home from the
theater with his girl and whisper:
Drive slow as you can, please, and 90 q
long way Well, Sir, perhaps those same
people would take me again year or
two afterward, and l could tell they
were married, because the fellow would
put her in the carriage and shut the
door, saying: Good night, dear; will
be home soon. just want to look in ut
the Hoffman house; business engage
ment. Man takes an early train; be up
in half an hour
"When you IRE driving swells home
from the theater with their wives YOU