The Cape Girardeau Democrat. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1876-1909, 1900-03-31
THE subject was railroad fares and

travelling expenses in general.
We'll. for my part" said the shoe
drummer, costly as it is and if :he
money came out of my own pocket,
l should always prefer to pay my
fare or walk, rather than try to beat
my way. l had a little experience
once in riding cheap. and it was
enough to last me the rest of my
life. 1t happened about two years
ago. / was stuck for Sunday in a
small. junction town not far FROM
Buffalo, and there l fell in with Tom
Collins. who's now in wholesale gro
~ceries.
Dan said he. there's a big wreck
down the line. Shall we go and see
it?'
q was for it, of course. So Tom
went down in the railroad yard and
fixed it with the conductor of a
wrecking train that was abou to
leave. Half an hour later we were in
the caboose jolting down the line on
a 5O-mile speed order. The wreck was
a bad one. Tom and 1 found all we
could do helping to get out the in
jured and looking up their property
with the detectives. and by the time
we got things into some kind of
shape it was six o'clock. Then we
learned that the wrecker wasn't to re-
turn until midnight. There was a
passenger train due at nine, but that
was two hours late. 1 was just pre-
-o--- g. ,z<<lo l1rr- ~ fha cfoffan
and go to sleep when along came a
freight. Let's take it, said Tom.
It's a cinch. All you have to do is
to get into a box car and ride
This sounded reasonable, so once
more l stayed. The train was moving
slowly because of the wreck. and we
stood by the track and watched for an
empty car. Pretty soon n came
along with the door open about a foot.
We dog-trotted along beside it and
managed to increase the opening wide
enough to climb in, and very shortly
we were bowling toward home about
as easily and ineypensively as We
came. 1t was a warn night, so Tom
and | sat down in the doorway with
our feet hanging outside. The car
va pitch-dark inside. and it
didn't ride just like a sleeper, either;
but we weren't making any com
plants. We sat there smoking and
chatting for some distance, and then
the moon came mp and threw a patch
of light onto the a floor behind us.
Tom had just started in to quote come
eulogy on the Queen of Night, when
suddenly out of the dark recesses of
the car behind us there came a voice:
"'Shut that door!'
"We pulled our legs inside the car
and started to our feet. Scared l GER
tainly was. and l doubt if Tom was
any less so: but he was the first to
speak.
Who are you?" he said. addressing
the darkness. There was no answer
for a minute. Then we could hear a
noise as % some one moving about in
the rear end of the car.
I'VE stood in the patch of light
from the door straining our eyes into
the darkness. when the voice came
again lands up, gents; you're COW
ered!'
Tom and | had both seen enough
of the west TO know what that meant.
So we elevated our digits without a
word. There was plenty of light in
the doorway for the unseen director
OF the proceedings to see that his
order was obeyed.
"sNow. gents continued the voice,
q must ask you to remove the watches
and money from your persons and lay
them in the light on the floor, n at
a time. Don't either of you attempt
to pull a gun. however. for if you do
nv pals at the other end of the car
NAV forget themselves and shoot. Am
right. Bill. Jim?
dead right came a econd voice
this one from the forward end of the
car: then still another from nearly
the same direction affirmed: That's
what
There was no help for it. Tom and
/ were fumbling in our pockets fol
our wealth. when suddenly an idea
came to both of us at once.
Needn't put it all OUT whis'
pered Tom, and we ought to save q
least one Of our Watches