Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1893-12-03
.STREET-CAR SMILES.
A Kaleidoscope Description Of Incidents by
the Iankr Scribe.
HOW TIMES HAVE CHANGED
s. NJ a, old Market-womsn--Jins
Mule Beiis-The Writers First EHpe'-
,.,ce-other "Reminiscences.

s,. ~ a, old Markst-woman-Jing
w,,e ge,,s-The Writers First Exper-
ie,ce-Other "Reminiscences.
,,o,,or hear Broad-street car passing
,,., an, not reminded Of those GOOD olp
do,s wben the merry Jingle Of the niue
heIIs on the Main-street line was pia'"'s
,,ao1a from that most Respectable OF
~.o.,,r,. where my FIVE companions IN
Guiding John Davis, the newspaper d's'a''i
myself. sat grinding out our day WORK
Eyerv time I go up Ninth street ana see
the hlg. old sore-backed horse coming
aou,v the hill TO help his fellow-crea-
,ures--,be little. short-maned quadrupeos
utilized IN that road-carry their burden
ca felv m the northern extremity OF the
Capitol-sauare fence. my heart ihVoiih-
tarlly yearns for those olden times wheh
Colonel TANNER and used 10
nrofer TO ride on top OF the
rlckety old. stage-coach. instead OF
within It, when going to Manchester.
The dear. dead past, when we boys were
wont 10 run across the platforms OF the
rrule-cars sooner than pass around them
in crossing the street, often occurs TO me
when I am I'm a medtatlve mood. and
feel as though l would. were 1t possible
n,sh hack the wheels on the dial of time
and I've through that bright. happy pc
rlod again. These reflections are so sweet
and comforting that it is almost impossi-
BILE for one when thinking Of them to
fully appreciate the blessings the present
contains for US.
In our business the street-car Is quite
an indispensable article, and just exactly
how our esteemed friend, b. Franklin.
ESD. carried out his daily duties without
them | have never been able to under
stand. As a matter Of fact journalism
could never have reached It's present eff
cient stage had it not been for the very
material aid 1t has received from motive
power. Therefore / shall contend, as /
have contended in the past, that a GER
tain amount Of reverence is due to street.
car corporations. Not only is this due on
the part of the press, but IT should come
from the public generally. l say this
from personal observation as a frequent
patron" of the street-cars. | do not
agree with my friend Davis. the canine
Journalist. lie has absolutely no use for
the Things, and tries to tear them to
pieces" whenever they come his way, and
would not ride on one II he had fifty
free passes. But I think street-cars are
good things, and note with gladness that
our people are now becoming educated to
the real city electrician 1t has taken
them long time to get fully acquainted
with the trolley article, but they are fast
shaking the moss from their gables and
are now on the march of electrical pro-
gress What l want to see next Is the
City Council give the company an ordi-
nance to run their cars faster and all our
citizens permission 10 keep up with them.
Jules Verne is somewhat my beau-ideal
in this respect. In one Of his works he
has spoken Of having some sort of cleo
trical conveyance which will bring one
over from Paris to America In about two
hours and half The only objection /
can offer 70 his plan is that he wants to
wait a century before he begins the exc
cution of it. There is some possibility OF
my friend Jules being executed" l am
afraid, before his plan is.
But II Is not matter Of any imme-
date consequence what Jules proposes
10 do hundred years hence. We have
received many blessings In what we have
achieved I'm this direction. How well do
| remember eleven years ago when my
amiable. gOOd-natured fellow-scribe Peter
Jones Burton, used to tramp at midnight
first to the Old Market StatiOn-house
and then up TO the Third Station to get
our police news. Nor was this all. for
he then had 10 saunter over TO the aims
house, not more than twelve or fifteen
blocks away, making a round-trip walk
of about three miles. We had this to
do before the telephone was introduced,
when the street-cars would happen to be
delayed, or when they had stopped run
ming for any cause. Now, as a rule, we
get that same news. and a little more too
by simply going to the phone and calling
up the station-houses. almshouse and the
genial, shasey-headed Coroner. DR.. VIII
liam II. Taylor.
But | am almost dverging from my
subject. Our street-car service has proved
both a great blessing and "A convenience
10 the community. | can't say that the
community has proved such To the street
cars. especially the drivers and motor
men. Not long ago when 1t was Gus
tomary for the cars TO stop whenever
hailed. the lives of these employees were
continuously tortured. Within the dis
lance Of two blocks | once saw motor
man hailed seventeen times. and on an
other occasion a car I'm which | was n
passenger lost nine minutes waiting for
an old colored woman who Was anxious
To catch the car. She WAS carrying a cOu-
pie OF turkeys, a basket of eggs. A bag
of sweet potatoes, and large number
of other articles TO her huckster-stand in
jackson Ward. Just as she was hurrying
TO board the electrical conveyance, which
had waited for her to run block. she
stumbled and fell. There were many re-
marks. such as, Poor old woman"
What a pity" &c. but she had scat
tered her potatoes all over creation her
eggs had been nearly all crushed, and a
small rivulet, with an egg-nog hue, was
cOursing its way to the nearest sewer
opening, and, alas! one Of the turkeys had
gotten loose. II took seven men and two
boys, and the mortorman and conductor
titNti minutes 10 eaten the UNtlilR iOWl.
1t was n memorable event in the life of
that sable dame, and she, until this day,
enjoys telling her friends OF the expert
enCe.
on another occasion the car was stopped
at the corner of Ninth and Main streets
for lady TO get off. She had a transfer,
and was on her way up Broad street TO do
some shopping. After gathering up her
portmanteau umbrella, wrap, and start
ing her little girl out Of the car the fol-
lowing conversation took place between
her and a friend, who did not intend TO
get on until Fifth street was reached:
well, good-bye so you are going to
buy yourself one OF those new style
cloaks. are you?" Intercepted the friend
Eyes, goodbye. BE sure to meet me al
Morrlss as you said you would"
"Oh, yes, I'll do that. But | wish you
would get tan-colored cloak"
IL know, but Cousin Molly thinks a
blue would be more becoming to me, and
I'm half inclined to think so too
THAT may be so, but l like the other
color best. Goodbye, be sure TO meet
me at g."
"Oh. l won't forget it,"
Goodbye"
Goodbye"
"Tell Aunt Lucy. II you should happen
10