The representative., 1900-11-29
HOMING TRAMPs.
Those Who Are Used to Chicago No
LOnYe migrate for the Winter.

LonEe migrate for the Winter.
The tramps are coming back to Chi
cago to go into winter quarters 1t used
to be that with the approach of snow and
Ice the tramp winged his fight with the
wild duck to the sunny Southland. The
tramp would explain his migration by say
ing he did not like snowballs as a steady
diet. But the tramp found that while
there was plenty of sunshine and balmy
breezes during the winter months in the
Southland, yet sunshine and balmy breezes
were far from fattening and that the op-
por'unlties @ 1or picking up sustenance dur
ing the weary winter months were much
better In big city than in the South.
large proportion of tramps continue
to go South yet with the coming of the
first frost, but constantly increasing num-
Der each year turn their wandering foot
steps toward the big cities, where bed
In the cheap lodging houses may be had
Tor dime and where the phianthropic
citizens with dimes may be had .on the
boulevards.
The tramps that come to Chicago in the
winter do not remain at a permanent ad-
dress during the cold months. Some of
them live in the Easements of deserted
buildings and others occupy quarters in
box cars on the side tracks in the rail-
road yards. In yard in Eighteenth street
are large number of abandoned traction
engines, that were used last winter by the
tramps as their homes. Old street cars
showed out behind car barns and lef to
decay are also quietly confiscated by tramps
and used until the barn boss drives them
away.
On extremely cold nights. when the box
cars and the traction engines are cheer
less and gloomy the tramps walk the
streets until they can collect the price Of
bed at lodging house, and failing to
raise the necessary amount they take ref
uge in the police stations. The policemen
nSt a fn fho in,
front of the cells. They spread news
papers on the floor and then lie down and
sleep peacefully until morning. Every
genuine hobo carries a piece of soap and
a newspaper. On rare occasions when
they perform their ablutions they scorn
to use any soap except their own and they
never think of lying down to their rest
at night without spreading their newspapers
under them. Tramps know the value of
paper in keeping out cold and sometimes
an apparently thnly clad tramp will have
newspapers judiciously stuffed in his cloth
ing in lieu of underwear
The tramp usually dimes in the winter
months at the cheap saloons in Clark streer
and in Halstead and West Madison streets,
where for five cents paid for a large vase
Of beer they are permitted to stand in front
of the lunch counter and harpOOn the tempt
ing viands there displayed until the hoarse-
voiced bouncer moves down upon them and
demands: well, d'y' tink dis is de Pam
mer house, How much perwsions d'y' tink
yer bought wild dat five cents?
In the cheap lodging houses the tramps
can find bed for prices ranging from five
cents to %. The customary prices in the
majority of the cheap lodging houses are 10
and Is cents. In the early part OF the even
ing the big front room of the lodging houses,
which correspond to the corridor Of the
higher priced hotels in Michigan avenue is
filled by a miscellaneous crowd, among
whom are many tramps and who sit as
close to the red hot stove possible AS
the evening passes on those of the crowd
who have 10 cents seek their beds. At 10
O clock big red faced bouncer appears
and announces in clarion tones, Now,
youse fellers watts got de price get to
yer holes, and youse fellers wot got ter
carry the banner, carry
To carry the banner means to walk the
street all night, or until the wanderer can
get enough money to pay for bed. So the
plutocrats who have a dime each in their
pockets rise languidy from their chairs,
and casting superior glances about them
to call attention to the fact that they are
guests of the lodging house, say, "Well,
mite fellers," and stroll off to their hunks.
The unhappy ones, who feel themselves
elected to carry the banner are all sud-
denly smitten with deafness when the
bouncer makes his announcement. They sit
staring steadfastly at the stove until the
bouncer, who often carries a baseball bat
on the shoulder and says: well, young
felly. If youse a-goin to carry, why carry
Then out into the night they go.
Many tramps, however, lodging
houses except on the coldest nights. They
manage to live somehow, no matter how
cold the weather may be, though how they
do it is a mystery They often drag con-
siderable clothing into the nest they inhabit
under sidewalks and in the Easements Of
deserted buildings and on cold nights, af-
ter putting all the clothes they have,
they build small fires and some one sits
UP and tends the fire while the others
sleep.
I'm a-goin' back ter Sheecago" said a
tramp who sat by the side of the track at
Oak Park. where the freight crew had put
him off. LAS de schoolboys used ter say,
De cole wind does bio an we shall hev
snow, on wot will de hobo do then, poor
thing? Why, he'll sit in ther s'loon an
keep hisself warm an hide his head in de
free lunch, poor thing Amt it de truth.
OATS right. We uster always go down to
Orleans it cold but dere's so
many goes down dat way dot it's poor pick
in 1t ant so hard ter get along in Shee-
cagO in de winter time. De colder it is de
quicker somebody IL say ter US, Poor
man, wat shame. an it's cold ernuff ter
freeze de tail often ren monkey Den
dey coughs up er dime. In summer time
dey wud jest say. You big hulkin rascal,
wy don't you go ter wuk? an dey give us
de chilly nit Sure. in de summer time de
chilly init. Amt It chilly? An in de
Sure, de warm smile. Den we kin alwuz
rustic up few hanouts on de col'est day.
It's dead easy to pick up coal off de rail-
road tracks, an we alluz fin some good
place ter crawl into an build fire. It's
me to Sheecago for de winter"