The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1896-02-07

me to Bloomsbury square, or I'll make
it 'ot for you'll
NOW L knew too much to get into an
argument with woman, and so drove
to bloomsbury square. But when had
stopped at the number that she had
given me she did not attempt to get
out. She was perfectly sober, but, in
my opinion, she was stark crazy, for
she insisted that l had lost my way
and that we were not in Bloomsbury
square. got down from my seat and
tried to argue the matter with her. |
asked her to look at the corner of the
street, where she could see Blooms
bury Square, North in large letters,
but she told me not to be impertinent
or she would summons me, and refused
TO look at the corner of the street or
anything else. / rang the door-bell of
the house, but when the servant had
answered it, and looked at my fare,
she said that she didn't know her. and
went back into the house, calling out
to me from the doorstep that ought to
be ashamed of myself for being in such
state so early in the morning. | got
back on the box, and wondered if every
body in London was made either drunk
or crazy by an extra thick fog.
"There was very little fog by this
time, and l made up my mind to drive
back to the place where l had taken
the woman up, leave her on some quiet
doorstep and drive off before anyone
could stop me. 1t wasn't very long
before was back again in the Finsbury
Quarter hit If wasn't q TNIo
drive, for the woman kept yelling to
me out of the window. When got to
Finsbury l selected good, quiet
street, and then got down and told
my passenger that she must get out.
Of course, she said she wouldn't do any
thing of the kind, and when she saw
that meant business she set up veil
that promised to wake the whole
street. About so windows went up,
and more than so men and women put
their heads out and remarked: 'Fire!'
and 'Murder!' at the top of their lungs
1t was clear that this sort of thing
would never do; so jumped upon my
perch again and drove away, feeling
more sympathy for cabmen than had
ever felt before.
Having started to scream the wom-
an kept it up. Moreover, she managed
to pull the front window open and set
to work to jab me in the ribs with her
umbrella. The street filled up with
people, though where they came from
] couldn't imagine, and some of them
cried 'Shame!' and Stop him' Boys
seemed to spring up out of the ground
md followed r11nninor oil
The cab, and all the time that dreadful
woman kept screaming murder and
thieves and making other unpleasant
personal remarks of the same general
character.
ct would have been useless for me
to abandon the cab and run away, for
l would have been caught before [
could have fairly got off my box. 1
knew that policeman would turn up
presently, and for the first time that
morning was anxious to see one. Any
thing would be better than driving that
yelling demon of woman and having
mob gather round me. The thing
went on for perhaps ten minutes longer,
when policeman arrived, and the WON
an gave me in charge for attempted
murder and a general assortment of
miscellaneous offenses.
"That policeman was an intelligent
man. He saw at once that the woman
was crazy, and he was evidently ready
to accept my version of the affair; but
when he asked me for my number and
saw that / hadn't any he changed his
mind. 1t certainly was a suspicious
circumstance from his point of view
that | didn't have any number; and
after he had asked me few questions.
which l answered in a way not to give
him much information, for 1 didn't
want to explain things before the
crowd, he got into the cab, SO as to
keep the woman quiet, and told me to
drive to the station house.
"Of course, when saw the officer in
charge 1 told him the whole story. It
did sound rather improbable, as :
couldn't help feeling while l told it;
and l could see that he didn't believe s,
word I said, but was of the opinion
that I was some desperate sort of vii
lain who had been caught in the act o!
tying to kidnap an inoffensive woman
So they locked me up. What they die
with the woman don't know.
81 sent off messengers for my land
lord and my banker and half dozel;
other people, and the upshot of it alt
was that the next morning was taken
before a magistrate, who, after ex~
aiming into my case, gave me to I'M
derstand that 1 wasn't guilty of the
great majority of the crimes that had
been charged against me, but that as
sort of warning to me never to commit
any of them he should fine me. paid
the fine-I needn't mention just how
much it was-and went home in cab
that had real cabman on the box.
"I've considerable more sympathy
for cabmen than 1 used to have, and IL
as a class they are men who look on
the rest of mankind as their natural
enemies, whom they have perfect
right to impose upon, l don't much
wonder at it, now that I've been cab
man myself and know little of the
troubles that an honest cabman may
have to endure.''-Cincinnati Gazette.
The GOOD work Is PrOsPering.
The good roads movement is spread
ing. many of the states giving it
special attention. In Connecticut, each
town may use $1,000 of the states
money. the highway commission of