Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1891-12-13

Probably tramps will hang on to
most ANYTHING, from the brake-Shoe 10
the wheel box" suggested the reporter.
.sNo." said the trainman OF the Cen
tral Railroad CT New Jersey. MANY
ueople have erroneous ideas about the
habits Of trampS. Personally l never
saw a tramp on truck, but others say
taa. they have. Tramps generally pull
for an empty box car, il there
is one open. IL is curious to
see them search the yard over,
inquire about the departure Of trains
and their destination and the stops
they make along the way. Why, last
Saturday night, just before leaving for
PhiipSburg, / went TO search my train
for tramps, and found an empty Fall
Brook car full Of them, right next TO
the train shed. They knew somehow
that the car was going home, and that
i. went 90 the end OF the journey. They
always seem 10 want TO go as far as
possible.
These fellows set up whining and
begged me 20 let them 60 along. They
al. had sick families. or something just
as bad, TO 90 for, and one Of them said
be wanted 70 90 TO PhillipSburg 70 at
tend the funeral Of his brother. l
drove them all out. None of them was
professional. They didn't know one
another, and they all scattered in differ
eDt directions.
"Of course they will get into any car
that is left open, and if there is any
thing eatable they will help themselves.
10 there isn't an open car they will
Try 90 find a car Of lumber. That is
more exposed, but there are always some
vacant hooks between the piles Of
boards, and they make very good hunks.
Last summer, when l was running on
Long Branch train, we had an expert
elCe with trampS at Matawan. We
picked up car OF lumber there. A gang
Of ramDS had learned Of It's time OF de-
parture and that il was q through car,
which just suited them. They always
Try % get through sleeper like pas
seugerS who pay their way. One OF
them, who had a wooden leg, they put
on top Of the lumber in plain sight, and
then they appeared TO gOaway. OfcOurSe
the trainmen wouldn't put defOrmed
man of, and apparently he was the only
one who was going along. But no
sooner did the locomotive signal 70 start
man the gang lit upon the lumber car
Ike swarm of bees. We went back
aodpul,ed them all out from the creviceS,
ana we got curses in return.
The next night, when freight train
came along, the switch at Matawan was
open, and the train smashed lot Of
cars on a siding. The tramps were
around later 70 see the results, and they
asked the agent whether that was POr-
Sfs train. No, said the agent, and
.-ey were very sorry that they had
~sle q mistake.
An empty box car or car Of lumber
. .',, they look for a car with good
S..a al the end. But not many cars are
y-it that way now. Where a car has
.--OerS In reach Of the bumpers tramps
""I stand on the bumpers and make
ing Journey sometimes in that position.
~ generally there is nothing to cling
-r S' tae end, and many professional
40 stand between two cars with foot
n Ole bumper and the other foot on
80 0tAer bumper. OF course, this is
rgAeSs, for trains often break in two,
~ down goes the tramp and one sec
" goes over him. Probably more
az cups are killed in this way than any
,, lei Sometimes a tramp is drunk
~ tumoles off from his perch when
80 ain IS going around curve"
,,o Impose you catch a lot Of trampS
No No after the train is under way?"
go 70 you think that we pitch them
gs, vel, no, for several reasons. If
d. should get killed we should be
Sly responsible. Besides, the