The Portland daily press., 1893-08-08
PEDESTRIAN YoYs.
The Young New Yorker Relates Few FIX
periences in Walking from Connecticut
to Maine-How He Knew He was in a
Prohibition State.

To the Editor Of the Press:
n would be natural to suppose that
with the great strides that have been
made in cycledom in recent years pedes-
trian feats should find themselves num-
bered with the ashes of the past There
are still some people who prefer to rely
upon those things which were made be-
fore any kind of wheels except indeed
the wheels of time and answering to the
name of "Shank..s mare.".
Pumps and wells are dear to the heat
of the weary tramp. There were times
when there was silent "Thank you" in
my heart to the farmhouse before whose
door stood pump.
I drank from all sorts of them. There
were pumps that had all the colors of
the rainbow and others were sombre and
dark colored. The wells were as varied
in character as they were numerous.
Some had long poles to reach the water
with and others had windlasses. Now
I would get down on all tours and water
myself, after the fashion of the horse,
after talking it through the nose as well
as the mouth, causing me some terrific
uUS OI SutoLlug. -NOW SOUUlaS lily hOdd
underneath the spout of pump, where
there was no cup and working the ham
die with one hand whileI held on with
the other and in my haste to catch
some of the precious drops receiving a
deluge over neck and head. Sometimes
I would strike disused pump and would
not be aware of tn fact until had spent
enough energy and manual labor to carry
me mile along the road. Some of the
town pumps were wheezy with age. The
water from the deep wells always found
to be coolest, but in many cases 1T had
a stale taste.
I stopped at a grocery store in York,
Me-, and asked for something to drink
am teetotal and of course meant some
thing "soft") but was told that there
was a pump just around the corner"
Presume prohibition law had something
to do with it,
I found soda wateer, that made in drng
stores, to leave the mouth very mnch
parched, especially when I walked few
whole, as l have said, the cool we'll
water is best of all drinks.
Grasshoppers! On some roads in Maine
I found these insects in enormous guam
titles Every time placed my foot to the
ground number met their doom. My
stick found work enough in whacking
them all around me. Now and again
they would leap into my hands and wish :
ing to appear friendly l gave them
"liftn in life and sent them still higher.
met with one Snake two miles East
of Eliot, but he was dead and took
advantage of his condition to help myself
to his fangs.
I caught one turtle and passed many
squirrels, but made no attempt to pos
sess myself of any of them.
| had to put up at all kinds of places.
One night it would he a. wretched o.
| cent German lodging house, and the next
| palace of hotel. In town in Mas
sachusetts, where 1 was compelled to re-
main over night, the room for which I
paid beforehand the amount being regu
lated by my answer to the query WAS
peddling for myself or for a firm?n
(of course / was peddling myself) re
sembled an old barn. There was no at
tempt at decoration except indeed piece
ancient table. There were four beds in the
room. The door couldn't be fastened on
the inside, so I piled one of the beds
against it to make things safe. Then
I turned my attention towards the win
dows and found one had neither shutter
nor shade, so got to bed by the light of
q street lamp. In the morning | hustled
around for water, but there wasn't q
pitcher or basin within sight. | conclud-
ed to "gitn unwashed and unshaven.
Just AS fast as my legs would take me
| fed down over the stairs but as /
reached the bottom step heard a shrill
voice behind calling out that [ kin
wash here.
At the same time the female who owned
the voice pointed to place that might
be mistaken for an eating room. / re-
turned, and giving my face a "cat's lick"
left that town in very short time. At