The Butte inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1901-1912, 1901-09-25
LIVED AS A TRAMP
DRUMMER SPENT MANY DAYS
AMONG THE REAL HOBOES.
TO HAVE MONEY A DISGRACE
+! in the Dust to Insure
Secondhand. Appear
! &c.
! ance.

Il was initiated into his order once"
said we'll dressed man at the Finlen
this morning as he crossed his legs. as
sumed more comfortable position in his
chair and looked out through a window
at a tramp who was passing along the
street. How was that:" -peated the
speaker after friend who sat beside
him. "Oh. It came about in much the
same way that dozens of foolish expe-
rlences have been gone through by young
men. l was employed in business house
in Denver about 10 years ago, had a
good enough position and all that, but
the hours were long and I thought I
would try the road for a time. Not
far from the Colorado capital there was
colony of tramps who had organized
themselves into q sort of an independ-
emit district government. They never gave
the authorities much trouble and were
allowed to remain In their quarters for
quite awhile.
When I decided to try a rowing life
I struck out for the colony and had an
interview with the chief man of the gang
He was a sort of mayor of the place
and his lieutenants. I presume, might
have been called bum aldermen. The
mayor told me that so long as I had
formed ambition SO worthy of a young
man as that of being of perennial tour
list and not paying fare he would do all
he could to help push me along I had
little money in my clothes but I was
right away that If I let it be known
that was possessed of any cash would
either have to rush the growler until I
was broke or be in disgrace with the
members of the colony. Accordingly 1
kept my change hidden and entered with
zeal into that life where men make mer-
ry on handouts and fear watch dogs.
Il was not in very high favor among
the old-timers in the district, for I had
never counted ties. slept in box car
nor spent the winter in Jail. However,
before had been among my new friends
long the mayor informed me that a dele
cation of hobos, who were pastmasters
of the Order of Rest. was about to
start for Fort Worth, Texas, and that
they were willing to take one apprentice
with them. That, you understand, was
a tip for me to hurry up and get expert
ence as tourist and so I expressed great
I1oAcCtAoAA a. NGAHS oAAo"SN GA oppoA"
tunity Of getting out on the road with
such distinguished party. We left
the colony, there We're six Of us alto
gether. early one morning with a long
days journey before us. Now that may
seem odd for me to say that there was
long journey before us when he had
no business on hand more important than
looking for cold meat and crooks of milk,
but it so happened that the first days
journey was to be through a poor coun-
try for the hobo. Two days before we
left four old comrades had come into
the colony from Texas and they informed
the mayor that for the last 20 miles they
Travelled there were few marks on the
yard fences and few crosses on the walks
indicating that the humble tourist could
look for good cheer at the houses along
the line of march.
1.-THE hobo, you know, recognizes the
Importance of system as well as other
classes Of men. When he finds a house
where there is no savage dog and where
he is given a sandwich without being told
he should go to work, he leaves some
sort of mark about the place that
can be recognized by other members
of his order. And by the way the ref
erence l made about work reminds me
of something / saw in the papers a
few years ago that is worthy of d.
gression in my story. A tramp who was
showing his consideration for great
railroad company by counting the ties
instead of riding on a brake beam found
a place where the track had been washed
away by food and built IL fine on the
roadbed which saved the passenger
from being wrecked. What do you think
the railroad company offered him as a
reward for his services? A job for life.
Now If that was not ingratitude, l never
heard of it. There was a man who had
done signally good service for the cor
poration and then the unfeeling business
concern offered him exactly what he had
schooled himself for years to avoid. But
this is not getting on with my own ex-
periences.
.It was some distance to point where
we could find the welcome marks that
are always dear to the soul of the hobo
and for that reason we had a long way
to travel the first day. The first night
out we slept in a shed which had done
duty as COW stable. 1t was known
to the tramps as the hotel of the town
for the night Waterman had not been
known to come near it for months. That
was the report down at the colony and
the colony generally knew things of that
sort pretty we'll. After we left the 'ho-
tel in the morning the committee on