The San Francisco call., 1896-04-26
How a Strange Driver of a One.
Horse Bobtail Was Lost
in Town.
GRANT AVENUE TO THE DUMPS
Drove the Car That Holds a Franchise.
but Went Wrong On Various
Tangents.

Struggling all over the business part of
San Francisco, permeating the streets
without any apparent end in view, are
miles of abandoned tracks OF the South
ern Pacific streetcar hundred and one sys-
TENS.
Where these rusting rails begin or where
they end is q mystery of itself, as they
may be found in every conceivable place
downtown, and are united by switches
scattered at somebody's sweet will by sun
dry corners. So that a streetcar-one of
the ancient patterns drawn by horses
might meander along the main thorough
fares and keep going without fear OF reach
ing the end. The abandoned line on
Grant avenue, which finds an outlet west
ward through devious ways and then con-
tinues toward the dumps with charac-
teristic lack of direction, is included in
the general scheme, or want of scheme of
streetcar systems.
With the advent of the cable and cleo
tricity those old lines gradually fell into
oblivion, until at last people forgot whittier
the rails tended. The Grant-avenue and
dumps system faded away with the pass
ing of the horsecar.
However, it is still there, on the pave
ment, and the MarkeU-street Company
stands guard over it from day to day. The
company does not wish to lose the fran
chise. 1t runs a one-horse bobtail car
over the line once day, and this ills the
bill-for the corporation.
People on the street notice the relic NOV
ing past in dreamy jog trot. But, nobody
has been found who can tell whence 1T
comes or whittier it goes. Only it passes,
and is gone for another day. For the soli-
tary car makes but one diurnal appear
ance and one disappearance.
The task of driving this car over the
rails included in the franchise was en-
trusted to a new employe, stranger to
the City's streets.
"Do | know my business?" he asked
rather Indignantly in reply to the superin.
tendent's question.
"You just leave that to me and I'll corve
the tracks," And the superintendent,
convinced by the fellows positive manner,
let him go. All the new driver asked was
the names of the streets through which he
should drive.
"That's enough; l know my business !;
get up there
The old horse ambled off with the "bob-
tail'' and green driver. All went well
until the driver got into Market street
from somewhere else. Then there was a
crush. He stopped cable-cars, and Incl
dentally forgot his route. He thereupon
determined Ifldb IL LIE kept on the track
the end would soon be reached. 1t would
be an easy matter to return. Somehow
the rails did not seem to be the right sort,
for they would insist on crossing and re-
crossing Market street, and somewhere
about Grant avenue and Post street the
tracks went in two directions. The hope
lessly puzzled driver got into Post street,
stopped cablecars, switched into Kearny
or Montgomery street, and soon found
himself in difficulties between two Union
streetcars on Montgomery avenue.
Once out of this tangle he headed for
the ferries, but went wrong on curve at
a corner downtown. This led to Sansome
or Battery street into California and the
lost car was in the way of trucks where a
horsecar had not been seen for years be-.
FORE From the wholesale district the be-
wildered driver beat his way to Rincon
Hill, blocked cable and electric lines on the
route, and at last found peace in the en-.
vironment of the Potrero at night.
"He would be going yet" remarked a
railroad man, "only his fortune changed
when a switch on the homeward Journey
put him on tracks to Fourth and Towns
end streetSp ~