The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-11-27

a SINKING, on that SIDE. he Va JUST II
time to see the young woman VITA the
sharp heels disappearing from MS SIS NJ al
about the hight Of his knees. He reached
down and caught her under the shOuldel.
I he found himself almost dragged under
with her. She was screa ming for dear
life; 50 were one or Two other women. He
brought ner 10 her feet, and as he did 50
! he felt things ripping. she leaned against
I MIN for minute, breathing hard. and
then turned away and looked up angrIy
over her shoulder.
You've ruined my dress she said.
Then, and not until then he became con-
scious that the train had gone, and that
he was in the front rank of a rapidly
forming semi-circular crowd ike that
which he had Joined three minutes be
fore. II ne had thought that the back OF
the crowd was a precarious place, he now
1 learned that the front of ii was positive
~ bair-raising in its possibilities Tor in
stant destruction. He was one of eight
or ten men, not 10 speak Of the angry
young woman. who were leaning back
and wedging themselves together to keep
from being pushed out on the track.
Every minute the pressure became strong
er and stronger. After a while the uni
formed railroad emplOye, clinging in COM
paTatiYe comfort to the on side OF the iron
railing, ceased yelling, Harlem expressi
Harlem expressl This way for Harlem!'
these: Stop showing back there!'
There's plenty Of time, don't push.'
Easy, easy, easy now" and other things
that neither consoled nor convinced.
Just as the stranger began TO wonder
whether the rail itself was not in danger
of being pushed over, a train came IN. It
was all he could do to keep from being
damned up against the side of the moving
cars. The moment the train stopped he
was projected as from a catapult plump
into the people crowded together on the
platform. After the tense suspense of his
position on the edge of the platform, over
hanging the track the thumps and knocks
around the door of the car were a posi-
tive relief. He breathed hard for a min
ute or 50 and then squeezed himself into
the car a the head of the invading host.
The entire car was empty, and, some
what dazed, he walked leisurely toward
one of the middle sections. When he
reached it he woke from his confused state
of mind to a realization of the fact that
every seat in the car was filed. He
thought about this for a while, then look
ed up for a strap to which he could cling.
They were all occupied, too
He peered out to the platform. He saw
the young woman with the heels leaning
against the railing opposite the middle
of the car. She was pulling desperately
at the arm of a man who was trying to
work into the crowd. Even as he looked
there was a swaying of the mass of strug-
glers that whsked her ten feet further
away from the entrance of the car. Just
then man the stranger had known at
college, and who was more prominent
there as a foot ball player than he is likely
to become in Wall street, where he is at
present employed at s. a week pulled at
the strangers arm.
Say, how are your" he said cheerfully
This is great, amt it?' and stretched out
hand to be shaken. The stranger nodded
colby and said something severely nom
commital. He did not shake the proffered
hand. Instead he made his way a little
further along toward the front of the
train.
Long before Ninth street was reached
the stranger concluded that he did not
want to stay in that train until it reached
One Hundred and Sixth street. He went
to the front platform with intent to get
off When the train came to a stop he
was Mortified to find facing him on the
station just as determined looking as that
at the city hail. There wasn't any one
behind him TO help him get off, and he
was too thoroughly angry to give up and
go back into the car. He chung to the
platform gate while the passengers squeez-
ed and hauled. and pushed by him until
no one else could get in. Then when the
guard jerked the gate until it closed, it
closed with the stranger on the outside.
He was on the Ninth street platform, but
not to save his life could he reach the
stairs to the street. He crawled along the
ledge on the outside of the platform rail-
ing. and then crawled between the rails
and fed for safety, disregarding the re-
Dukes of a man IN uniform, who tried to
reprove him for his informal method of
saving his own life
Two hours later the stranger again ap-
preached the city hall station of the Third
UraG NIL br,c
ness-lke. Two ticket sellers were busy
dealing out tickets to two lines of pas
sengers. Two tcket-choppers were busy
chopping tickets. Trains were coming n
comfortably filled and were going out COM
fortably filed. There was no fighting, no
screaming, no cursing, no risk of human
life. In short, the railroad was doing just
about all the business which its existing
equipment and arrangements were capa>
bic of handling without the help of the
police. The crowd was smaller by three
fourths than the crowd at the rush hour