Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1895-01-17
A BRITISH SPAT.


Travel on an English Railroad.
"Thcre,are several things that strike
the American travcleron.1 English rail-
roads as being curious" said re-
turned New-Yorker. to New York Sun
reporter, but none more so than the
custom that obtains of the passengers
talking at each other. There is a slid
Ing window set in the door at each
end OF the transverse compartment, as
you know, and there is no other airholc
in the whole outfit. The persons who
sit by these door windows control the
ventilation of the compartment. Gen
orally, too, there Is a diversity of opin-
ion on the subject of ventilation be-
tween those who sit by the window;
the party who travels with his back ID
the engine declaring In favor of having
the window open, while the other man
who would sit in the draught is i'm favor
of having the window closed. The stu
pid faults of construction are primarily
responsible for these Inconvenience,
but the Briton perpetuates them by re-
fusing to attempt anything in the line
of concession. Nobody ever, or rarely
ever, thinks Of appealing to a fellow
passengers idea of the fitness of
things, and they content themselves
with growing at each other or else
appealing to the guard and talking ut
each other through that official.
l saw very amusing Instance Of
this while travelling on the Great West
ern Railroad. / was one of two passen
gers In a second-class car, the other
being chunky, middle-aged man,
with very red face, a stubby, iron
gray mustache, and the bluest blue
necktie l ever saw. At one station,
Bath, thinn 1t was, third passenger
got into our compartment. This was
lady, also of middle age, as prim,
chilly and severe as new granite
gravestone in snowstorm. Both the
gentleman and myself had been sitting
with our backs to the engine and with
the windows way down, SO that there
was plenty of fresh air for both of us
without our being in it,
when the lady got in it was on the
other fellows end of the compartment,
| and as he did not attempt to move she
arranged her parcels and her cage AMI
herself on the seat opposite him, facing
the engine. AS soon as the train start
ed the wind rushed in and nearly blew
the tail feathers out of her parrot. She
at once reached over and pulled the
window up. The fellow, who had
been watching her over the top OF his
paper, instantly reached over and let
the window down. Out streamed the
ribbons of her bonnet, away spread
the tail feathers of her parrot, and up
flew the window. This sort of thing
was kept up continuously, with short
intervals of glaring at each other, but
without a word, until the next station
was reached.
1.-THE fellow damned the window
down-it happened to be an up SPELL
and yelled for the guard.
"Look ere, guard he cried, as soon
as that official presented himself, ham
l to be smothered to death because
there 'appens to be a rheumatic ole
critter in ere who caunt bear a breath
of fresh harp
"'Mr Guard screamed the lady,
there is no reason, even IL am unpro-
tected, why / should be insulted by a
rough-faced brute
$50 they went at Ii hammer and
tongs, larruping each other over the
guards back until the gentleman
knocked the lady out by telling the
guard that he knew 1t was against the
company's rules to allow parrots in the
passengers compartments, and threat.
ening to report him unless he imme-
diately took the thing away. At that
the conductor whispered to the lady,
and Selling the parrot and parcels she
hurried away with hin, evidently To
some promised seclusion, giving her
late antagonist a Parthian shot as she
swept out about travelling hogs 1t
was the funniest thing ever saw and
certainly could never have happened
any where outside or an English rail-
road"