Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1891-10-31


charge, while the Wagner commissariat is
located a mile above the Harlem river,
with Harry w. Taylor at the helm. To
describe either is to describe both.
Should you happen to walk about half
mile north Of the Mott Haven depot to
where the New York Central and the New
York & New Haven tracks fork apart, you
will soon begin to notice line after line of
palace cars reaching up almost to Merose.
Scores of men and women are busy with
mop and broom and brush, cleaning, dust
ing, polishing.
Proceeding a rife shot further, you come
to a long, low brick building, through
whose doors fit busy clerks, cooks and
walters. This is the commissary head
quarters, where the vestibuled trains are
made VI, equipped provisioned and
manned Should you chance to be here
early some fine morning you will see for
midable quantities of meats, dsn, poultry,
vegetables, fruits, liquors, canned goods
and Ice in process of transfer from baggage
cars to he slowed away in big refrigera-
tor or piled on capacious shelves Perish
able products have to be renewed or re-
pIenlshe7 daily, while Of non-perishable
material a large stock is always kept on
hand
at the southern end Of the building is
a huge kitchen, clean and shining as pol
ished onyx, where the larger joints and
poultry are roasted and the soups made
under the direction of an ebony cher.
PROVISIONING A CAR.
When a train of palace cars is made up
and the hour approaches for whirling it
down 10 the Grand Central depot the
equipment service Of silver, china. cutlery,
table men etc, has already been inspect
ed. The wine closet and the iceboxes are
filed and the cigar boxes checked off.
Nothing must be overlooked or forgotten
and the presence of even particle of DUST
on the hinge OF folding table could not
escape the keen eye Of Mr.. Taylor.
Into the refripators of the car 90 steaks,
chops spring chickens, etc.-everything
that may be brolled or fried in transit
where the big joints, the puddings and
other yiands which DO not spoil by keep
ing SIS rapidly as bone from the stationary
TO the movable kitchen. When all is
ready the train is whisked down to the
Grand Central depot, the passengers get
aboard, the bell rings and the hotel on
wheels speeds ives yard like a thunder
bolt.
The value Of the provender put aboard
a Dining car for a single trip is about
300, All of it may be consumed, yet
hardly any of it is to be reckoued as
wastage The train hands are too sagac.
ious to let such edIbles goto loss when they
are cleared out at the normal rate of
twenty-five cents per meal. Moreover the
cOmmisslohary can pretty closely guage
what will be required for a trip He
watches the mutations Of traffic about as
closely as a passenger agent does, and if
any exceptional rush occurs ne is all
ways prepared to meet it.
The barber shops and the libraries on
trains are also under the jurisdiction of the
COmmlsslOuary department
"Ihere cannot be a large margin Of
profit In this business p said iuterrog-
atiyely, to Mr.. Taylor.
That a secondary consideration,
was the reply. The dining service was
established as necessary accommodation
to the travelling public 1t saves human
nerves and digestion from @ vast lot of
needless wear and tear. lt is within
reach OF the purses Of the million Us well
as those of the milIionaires, and ii in
wolves valuable economy of time 10 the
railroad corporations
Then Mr.. Taylor jumped to the tele.
phone 10 learn that q supply of fruit
ordered for q private car had miscarried
through the fault of the expressman. In
less than two minutes the order was dup
heated for delivery at point q hundred
miles away.
THE CREWS.
One toward, four cooks ana five walters
compose the crew of the dining car. With
scarcely an exception they are colored
The ex-chattel and ez-Counterband has
proven himself peculiarly adapted to the
requirements of the palace car service
whether as porter, cook or waiter
He has jolly time Of il, too. He lives
on the fat of the land and his tips are many
lie Is not overw0rked, for, after he makes
trip to Buffalo and back, be is allowed a
clay off for thirty.six consecutive hours.
When a meal is ordered on a dining
car a check must be given to the cook,
who deposits it in a box provided for the
purpose. When the bill Is paid a dupG-
cate check is deposited 10y the steward in
d similar box So, ton, with the wine
room or buffet, and the various checks
must tally at the end of the trip. It
would be "a very hard matter to defraud
the company by COLLISION or othevwise. III
wine is broken because of the swaying mo.
tion of the ears the sealed necks of the
bottles must be produced in evidence.
Vi you have the money and the inciina
tam YOU can charter a hotel ear. take your
friends along, hire q crew of from two to
ten persons and travel 40 your leisure all
over the continent. The company will