The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-12-25
was a sharper and reused things gen

was a sharper and reused things gen
orally"
The peanut trick of the old time
train-boy was executed as follows: The
tin measures which the boys used were
Ions and narrow. They tapered gradu-
ally, being slightly smaller at the top
than at the bottom. In filing a meas
ure the boy would push it rapidly
through the peanuts in the open bas-
ket. A few nuts would rattle inside,
but almost Immediately a dozen or two
would jam or wedge in the narrow
mouth of the measure. When lifted up,
the measure would appear to be full,
and as the trick would be performed
in full view of the purchaser, the latter
would suspect nothing and allow the
boy to dump the contents of the half
empty can into his pockets, when, of
course, all trace of the deception would
be lost.
Mr.. Edison laughed heartily at the
remembrance of the trick and with the
incentive thus given, stories of train
boy life flew back and forth. The two
men, for the time, became train-boys
again. They forgot the triumphs and
cares of their after lives and the rest
of the company present listened silent
w and enjoyably to the "reminiscences
of the days when the greatest inventor
in the world sold newspapers and pea
nuts. Some of the stories told by Edi-
son have been published, but the fol-
lowing one has never before appeared
in print:
THE "STIFFIES.
Curious how these things come back
to you," said Mr. Edison. 81 remember
a funny thing that occurred in one of
the old three-car trains In my day
you know they used to run trains
made up of three coaches-a baggage
| car, a smoking car and what we called
| the ladies' car. The ladies' car was al
ways last in the string. Well, one day
I was carrying my basket OF nuts and
apples through the ladies' carl hadn't
! sold a thing so far-when I noticed two
young fellows sitting near the rear end
! of the car. They were dandies, what
| might be called dudes now, but we
called them 'stiffies' in those days.
They were young southerners up north
/ on lark, as l found out afterwards.
| Behind them sat a negro valet, who
had a large iron-bound box beside him
on the seat. Probably he was an old
| family slave. He was dressed in as
many colors as an English flunlSy.
1.-THE young men were complaining OF
the duIlness of things. They stopped
when they saw me. l came along
wabbling my basket from side to side
as asked each passenger IL ne WdHteu
to buy anything. When l reached the
southerners 1 asked them if they want
ed some. Nor replied the fellow near
est to me. we do not, and Furthermore
we are not going to have any, where
| upon he grabbed the basket out of my
hands and dumped the nuts and apples
out of the window. Here's your bas-
ket,' he said, handing it to me. For a
moment 1 was too surprised to speak.
Then yelled at. him in a way that
made everybody jump around. 1 did
not say anything. l just yelled at him
on general principles.
What's the matter, boy? he said
/ when 1 stopped. Some of the passen-
gers laughed; others were indignant,
and some who had not seen his action
simply looked at me in amazement.
One man turned around and said: My
stars, where have they gomez I sup
pose he meant the peanuts. Then /
protested.
Look here, boy said the young
man, how much were they worth?'
oh, about a dollar, 1 guess, said L.
/ "He turned to the negro on the next
/ seat. Nicodemus,' he said give this
boy a dollar
The negro effnned and, turning to
the box beside hirn, he opened it. 1t