The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1895-10-10
THE STREET CAR sPoIIER.

lie Keep. Tab IN the Conductor by Means
al Pocket Register.
There ARE men who hnbitually stand on
the rear platform Of street cars. That Is
the sp0tters position. Professional spot
tiers never give "themselves away" by
counting passengers. The spotter carries
small noiscless register In one Of the
pockets Of his overcoat. He Is most likely
to appear ON IA car that is TO carry big
.oad. lie takes his place on the rear plat
'orm and always appears to be the most
unconccrned man on the car. The first
thing he does Is to glance at the register In
the front o. the ear He makes mental
poto OF the number of fares that have been
rung up. Every time n passenger gets on
be presses the button Of the little register
In his pocket. He never appears to I've
watching the persons who are getting In
the car, but he must be careful not to miss
one. lie rides On the platform until the
fares OF all the persons who have got ON
the car since he took his position have
been collected. His last act before getting
off IL the mental registration Of the mum.
Der Of fares indicated by the register In the
car. IL he has another test to make before
making his report, he will probably stop
under the first electric light, write down
on the blank furnished him the number OF
fares registered when he got on the car
and the number registered when he got
of. He subtracts one from the other and
has before him the number OF fares the
conductor should have registered Then
he looks at his Indicator. and IL there Is
discrepancy between his count and the
count the conductor registered he reports
the fact to the company.
A conductor who is discharged is never
accused OF having stolen money from the
company The charge Is "improperly
collecting fares" 1t is not often that
conductor is discharged the first time Il is
reported to the company that he II sim
properly collecting fares" The test IL APP
piled to him frequently, and II II IL found
that he IL habitually not ringing up fares
for all the persons who take passage on
his car he IL dismissed. Conductors be
iievc that the means employed by spoilers
ure unfair. They say that It IL often i'm
possible for amy man to get all the fares
on "A car; that II IL an easy matter TO get
all the fares when car IL not crowded,
but when so or 60 persons board a car
bound up town it is next 10 impo ssible to
collect without an error. Often persons
will get OF the car before the conductor
has reached them, and hampered M he Is
by the crowd. they say, lie cannot prevent
this Then persons are getting on and
OIL, exchanging seats and doing other
things that mystify the conductor as he
pushes his way through the crowd In
search OF the nickles that are due the com
pany.
Persons who travel regularly on the cars
are sometimes surprised that conductors
do not lose their temper oftener. They
are not permitted to talk back, " no mat
ter how great the provocation may be.
Recently one Of the old conductors on the
Illinois street line lost his temper. The
next day he lost his position. A woman
got on his car at Illinois and Washington
streets. She offered him transfer ticket.
which, he said, had expired.
at cannot he so, " said she, "for ] got
this ticket just few minutes ago"
"Madam, you lie," said the conductor,
who maintained that the woman had 70.
ceived the ticket from representative Of
the company at another crossing nearly an
hour earlier. One Of tho company's de
tectives overheard the remark Of the con
ductor and reported him.-Indianapolis
News.