Democratic Northwest and Henry County news. [volume] (Napoleon, O. [Ohio]) 1894-1905, 1895-12-19
COURTESY OF RAILROAD MEN.
Passengers Wen Treated as . Rule, Ds
spite Tradition to the Contrsrx.

Passengers Wen Treated as . Rule, De-
spite Tradition TO the Contrary.
Country folks still have an odd belief
that railway officials Of all sorts are per-
sons to be approached with fear and trem-
bling that q railway ticket ooco bought
must be used or thrown away, and that
baggage intrusted TO a railway company
Is in imminent danger of being lost or de-
strOyed. There must be somewhere in
the dim past of railway history some foun-
dation for the still living tradition in tho
country that pictures tho traveller as for
ever the victim of neglect, insolence and
ohicanery.
'Pm sure you'll never get the money
back, " said lady from the country with
strong conviction on hearing lat her host
had purchased her return ticket by one
railroad, and then, having changed his
mind rs to the best route for the guest,
had bought second ticket by q competing
line.
Something of the rural lady's apprehen.
sion seized the host when he went to have
the first ticket redeemed.
cts good any time" said tho busy
ticket seller.
"But can't use it in months, " an
swered the purchaser.
Every good" was the answer. "What
did you pay for it9"
"Three dollars md half" said the
purchaser, and before no had got over his
surprise at the easy confidence Of tho ticket
seller the money was in his hand, his word
having been taken without moments
hesitation or investigation.
My change was dollar Short" said q
well dressed man to the ticket agent at q
New York railway station, half an hour
after purchasing his ticket.
"SoS was the answer. "If find I'm
81 in when make up my cash balance
III put that amount aside for you. :"
But" said the traveller, ''my train
goes in ten minutes, and it happens that /
shall need that dollar before get home"
In that case, J." said the ticket seller,
"here's your dollar. Will you be coed
enough to write mo an acknowledgements"
The acknowledgment was given and the
traveller went off. Returning, ten days
later, he reported to the ticket agent and
received back the acknowledgment, the
cash balance having proved that tho trav.
eler was right.
The commufer Is the man who has more
grievances against the railway companies
than any other traveller, but 1t is tho way
of the commuter to get even with the 9TH
er party to the contract renewed every
month. If 10, 600 commuters could be in
duced to say truthfully whether or not they
had over lent or sold their tickets, ever
used them when their currency had cx-
pired, or ever lodged the conductor after
leaving their communication tickets at home,
the replies would reveal vast number of
petty frauds upon the railway companies
The commuter is really trusted to con-
siderable degree by the conductors, and
he often rewards the trust reposed in him
by descending to fraud. Thousands of
commuters are faced every month by
temptation involving a very pretty case of
conscience. Most commuters buy their
tickets with the knowledge that they will
almost certainly not be able to rido them
out, SO to speak, before their currency OK
pires, but few commuters believe that in
accepting such terms and pro6ting by the
special rate accorded, they become morally
bound to relinquish their tickets at the ex-
piration of their dates. There is absolute
ly no risk in using ticket after its dato
has expired, save tho possibility of being
detected and compelled to pay full fare for
q ride that might have been taken at COM
rates.-New York Sun.