The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-03-27
A LIMITED TYPEWRITER.
The Man Who Takes Down DictatiOn
on Through Train.

Through Train.
New York Evening Sun.
Convenient? Yes, 1 suppose it is, SIR.
At any rate, the passengers keep me fairly
busy most of the time between here and
Chicago"
The typewriter man was speaking He
was youth of good appearance, with face
clean-shaven and clothes that suggested
many brushings He had folded the note
book in which he had just made short
hand record of a business letter dictated
by the traveller. Laying the book beside
his typewriting machine, he turned to make
reply to the question the traveller had
asked.
Pm surprised. sir" was the next re-
mark, that you didn't happen to know
about US typewrters. We've been running
the limited now for quite some time.
Guess I went out on the first trip of the
There's four of US, all told They work
us every other day. Say | start out this
afternoon. Well, then, tomorrow at the
four hours there, then the return trip, and
then night and day in New York. That's
not bad. Keeps the typewriters going every
day and doesn't Kill us operators
'Tiresome, you should think? oh, l
don't know. I've always been sort OF
knOckabout chap and ] don't mind the car
riding. / was born and raised in Chicago,
so l partly like the town and partly don't.
Being there one day in four is just about
enough I've worked all round the West,
and l rather guess there's some jobs worse
than running a typewriter on limited
train with ali your meals in the dining car,
on the company.
meet such lot of folks on the train; all
sorts and kinds l should call my book
Wheel or perhaps The World Through
Typewriter don't you see? Just like
'Alice's Adventures Through the Looking
Glass.
Queer letters? My goodness, you just
ought to hear what letters some of these
travelling folks can write. Women mostly
f1nfv~
spondenee and not tell all about their af-
fairs to a typewriter Only the New York
women dictate letters to me. Those that
get on at the small cities haven't got used
to business ways.
men aren't SO careful. Some of them
would tell anything to typewriter, | be-
1ieve. There's queer things written down
in shorthand in this notebook Often a fell
low comes back to this end of the train late
at night and wants to write a lot of nom
sense. ! always humor that kind for it's
easier than persuading them not to, and it
makes funny record for me to look over
afterward
do ] ever mail them? OF course / do.
Everything goes. There's the box right be-
hind where you sit. A postman collects the
trip. There must be fun when some of
them reach the folks they're addressed to.
NO, I'm not going TO read you the let
tiers. You'd wonder If l did the same way
with what you just dictated. I'll just give
you an idea of what's in the book.
Here's man that sent letters of regret
tue evening he left town. Here's another
fellow that wrote to his grandmother all
about a new missionary scheme for Klon-
dixie, while he sat around and drank brandy
and soda. He says he remains her poor
and grateful grandson Matthew Jehos-
aphat-oh, but the name is his business,
Listen to this; it's a peach An old man
dictated 1t, and l wrote it out on the ma
chime and sent it off as he directed, though
1t wasn't on st. Valentines day or any
other day of celebration.
He calls her his darling, and says he
couldn't see her before he left because the
old Woman-no, that's not the part l want
ed. This is it:
When you read these lines I shall be
Tar away he says, and my thoughts will
even turn back over these weary miles of
countless ties that separate us. The ties
that bind me to you in memory are stronger
than oak or iron. / am thinking now of
the things that might have been. II We
We're free as the song birds that fly above
should not now be in a lonely easy chair
after last solitary meal in the dining car
The wines should have been Of your choos-
ing. l should hear only your voice instead
or the rumbling wheels. We would be on
our way to the broad, restless Pacific, with
its mountainous waves and roaring tenn
pests. l would protect you from its ter
rors as our great ship steamed toward
quaint Japan, where you could purchase
1eacups and pick chrysanthemums as you
went about in the gayest jinricksha to be
hired for any price. l picture also the de-
light with which you would be carried by
coolies up into the highest peaks of the
hlnalayaS, where your eyes would look
upon scene of celestial beauty, with green
fields and wild animals below and little
white clouds dotting the sky above. / see
You riding. proud as Cleopatra, on the back
or an elephant, with harnesses of gold and
red. The white marble palaces and the
dark population of the Hindu lands should
be changing panorama all for your pleas
ure. see you at Naples going with me to
inspect the awful jaws of Vesuvius, or plan
ming how we would have lived in the open
rooms of villa in the ash-buried city. At
blue
ranean. above your head the silver crescent
OF the moon and me by your side
Ihere, l most forgot myself. I wasn't
going to read you whole letters but Just
sample here and there. You needn't worry
ABOUT that letter of yours; just write it
and send 1t off and never think of il again.
Ihats business. It's only these queer let
tiers that remember. I'd rather read them
ever a second time than start in for sec
ond trip through the hundred best novels
IN that bookcase over your head.
You q learn lot about cities ii you were
q railroad typewriter like me. You'd know
which was the town where the most brides
are and the most parties come down to the
train to give folks good send-off. That's
gay town summer and winter. You'd
know the Legislature town and the business
mens town and the sleepy town and the
town where all the Western rush strikes
this State.
You'd get so you could recognize a story
teller on sight. and pretty much always
know what part of the country he was
from. You'd know. same as / do which
man wanted to write a business note that
amounted to something, and which one was
going TO poster you with writing a lot of
ing for IL.
Hello see that signal behind? We Just
passed Dashville, and there's only fifty min
Etes left till we get to the junction, where
they leave our dining car. I guess I'll be
slipping forward TO get my own dinner
while there's plenty Of time. Thanks I'm
much obliged to have met you, too. Per-
haps you'll be coming out again some day.
III write that letter after We leave the
junction. and your porter can give 1t to you
in the morning Good night, SIR
Insure with German Fire Insurance OF In
diana. General offices. 20 South Delaware