The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1893-07-12
LYING AWAKE TO CATCH THE TRAIN.
It's Mighty Mean Experience, but There
Is No Help for 1t.

The man who has to catch the early
train to Somewhereville is to be pitied.
He retires early, the earlier the more
sad his case. Every passing sound
from tho street falls upon his strained
ears. He falls at last along toward
ten o'clock into a light slumber. His
dreams are broken; there is no rest
for him, for he has to catch the early
train.
Along toward midnight he awakens
with a start, grasps out in the dark
ness wildly, fumbles for a match and
knocks his heels and his favorite corns
against the spikes of the rocker. There
are always spikes on the rocker of the
fellow who has to hunt a match in
order to look at the clock in order to
see the time in order not to oversleep
in order to catch the early morning
train.
He blows out the match in disgust.
1t is only twelve o'clock. His train
time is 4:40; so he turns in for another
snooZe.
The man who has to catch the early
| train-what awful dreams he has!
Over his pillows dance all his grand
mothers since the flood, singing in a
wild, discordant way. He sees sights
and hears voices; he rolls uneasily,
now and then catching little cat winks,
only to be awakened again and again
and again-to find that it is too early
to get up.
The man who has the train fever is
a pitiful sight to behold. He sighs
desperately in the darkness. He
thrashes around in bed. He hits his
head against the wall. He curses his
evil luck. Why has he to catch train
when all the rest of the world is asleep?
| Why must he be slaveP Confound
those awful early trains, anyhow! Why
cannot the world be run on common
sense ideasP If the managers of the
railroads of the land only had grain
of sense-just grain-what a world
this would bel
It is in this fashion that the catch-a-
train man passes the earlier part Of
the night. But the worst is yet tc
come.
As the night wears on, or off, his
fears grow more and more pronounced.
Now he is not only afraid that he will
not catch the train but he fears thai
he will actually go to sleep. In the
first part of the night he tried to sleel
and couldn't succeed: now he coulC
succeed, but he dare not try. All hi:
efforts are thus directed toward keep
ing awake-a hopeless task!
The catch-a-train man rolls uneasily
in his bed. He drops into a CHASTITY
nightmare of sleep. This is what ht
| sees:-
Horrible visions of railroad wrecks
The figures 4:40 in blood, written by
destroying angel on the side of al
open grave.
Four-forty! four-forty! four-forty!
Now he sleeps a moment, and nov
he has left the toiling millions in tn,
big city and is rolling away, ia
across the wide land, when biff, ban,
there is grand railroad wrec K, and h
wakes up, or rather starts up, to strik
his thirteenth match to look at hi
watch, to see what time it is, so that b
will get that train!
After tossing, rolling, pitching. heav
ing, groaning, moaning and all tn
rest for the better part of the last ter
rible hour he finally sinks into soft
dreamless rest, such as the belove
poet loves to figure as blessing tn
sleep of the innocent little child, or th
"M-e chy-ldee" of the Bowery stag
recitationist. All, that sleepi Blesse
be the man who invented it! Enoug
that the poor. weary catch-a-train fen
can sleep at all, even if it be but a mc
ment. And sleep he does. He
snoring away like sawmill.
Then white robed figure, bearin
! large lamp, suddenly appears like a
|; apparition in the intense India in
gloom. It is his wife. Dear, patient
!. loving soul, faithful to the last, ha
) somehow, in a way known only t
/, woman, managed to keep awake, c
rather, to sleep until the proper time
and now she is here, and is saying, q
: she shakes him in lively fashion,
Z slim! jim! Jim! Wake up; IL is tim,
t for the train!"
"Train? Wazzer- train-what is it
+ anyway? Go way now! Yes, I'm
o coming, COM
i "You bet you are!" gasps the woman
4 taking him by the hair and tuggini
i away viciously-and then he awaken
n with a start, to hear her say:-"Yo
d have just ten minutes to catch tf
: four-forty! Now, hurry, dress an
n come down to the kitchen, where ther
n is pot of hot coffee for you: l hav
: been up half an hour and have every
4 thing in readiness"
. And then the man rises and says:-
"Humph! Well, there is no need {
all this fuss. was just on the poin
of rising as you came in the room an
made all this Internal racket. Where
r my socks, anywayP"-N. 7. Herald.