The Daily Texarkanian., 1894-09-19
A WEEK IN A BOX CAR.
A Stowaway's Terrible Journey From
St. Louis to Philadelphia,

A loud humping upon the door
of a freight car on a Reading rail
road siding at West Falls station
attracted the attention of William
Pfegier, brakeman, yesterday af'
/ ternoon, He opened the door, and
the gaunt, emaciated figure of a
man tumbled out upon the tracks.
He was so weak that he could not
move, could scarcely speak. The
startled brakeman assisted the
man to a more comfortable resting
place, and the half dead man told
thrilling story of privatiOn in a
| seven-day'S ride, imprisoned in a
box car.
The man said he was Theodore
Marks, that he lived in Winchester,
Va, and had entered the car at st.
Louis, Mo, where he had been at
work He lost his position in that
city, and, desiring to reach his
home and having no money, crawled
into the car, which was loaded with
barrel slaves and hoops poles, on
the st, Louis, Chicago & Alton
railroad. He hid in the car and two
days after it was locked it started
on its way, he knew not whittier,
only taking his chances of reaching
point nearer his home. Thus he
Travelled in the stuffy box car, worse
than prison cell, without a drop
of water or a crumb of food.
Two days after the start, when
he was already suffering agony from
hunger and thirst, the train stop
ped at some big place, which Marks
learned was Pittsburg, He pound
ed and thumped upon the sides Of
the car in an effort to attract the
attention of the trainmen, but they
either failed to hear him or allowed
him to pound without paying at
tention. When the train pulled
out once more, and the poor prison
er was again subjected to his un-
certainty and the joltings of the
car, which made his flesh sore and
his bones ache, he was well nigh
frantic. Thus he rode, hour after
hour, suffering untold torture, hop
ing on His thirst drove him nearly
wild, and in his desperate craving
for food he gnawed the tops of his
shoes. That seemed to accentuate
his hunger, and the poor fellow
gave up in despair.
Three weary days more, and the
hapless prisoner found the train
stopped at Bridgeport. He didn't
know whether Bridgeport was in
Kamschatka or Tinbuctoo, but he
was just as eager to get out of his
stuffy prison and get succor of some
sort. If it had been the South Sea
Islands it would have been all the
same to him, Yet he was 50 weak
and exhausted that his renewed eff
forts to draw attention to the car
fell upon no needing ears. He beat
furiously upon the door, upon the
wooden sides, and stamped upon
the floor until he fell back exhaust
ed. The train started off again
with a rush and jostle, but it's
poor prisoner was almost beyond the
needing Of pain and suffering. He
had sunk into that listlessness
which comes to utter weakness, de-
spair and abandoned hope. But
suddenly he was aroused into fresh
activity by the stopping of the
train again and the sound of voices
near him. Pulling himself togeth
er for one last effort, he again beat
against the door of the car, and as
it slowly opened he could scarcely
believe his senses and promptly fell
out in a faint.
After Brakeman Pfegler lifted
Marks up and had heard the out
line of the story of that terrible
ride the trainmen gathered about,
and their humanity promptly as
serted itself. They got the poor
fellow some milk. He drank it With
a feverish eagerness, and his stomach
rebelled His abdomen became 50
distended that the kind hearted
trainmen became alarmed. The"
notified Policeman Wilkinson, who,
summoning an ambulance, had the
starving man carried to the Phila-
delphia Hospital There, last night
it was reported that the travellers
chances of recovery were not good.
His stomach rebelled against taking
in nourishment, and he is so week
that he cannot stand. - [Philadel-
phia Record.