The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1902-01-31

A story that In Calculated to Make
One Feel Hungry.

NA~ EAOAtccOAs aS IN Az
per his purse into his pocket, Il admi;
it ISN'T scientific charity. but when they
tell me they are hungry they usuaily
get my dime. I've been hungry N.Y.
self Did I ever tell you how I ones
Travelled a thousand miles or so for a
souar meal? No?
Well, it was the year I took my de-
gree in Berlin. What with your fees
and the cost Of printing your thesis. and
all that. it takes some money to become
a Her Doktor.' and toward the last !
was counting the marks twice over.
Fortunately. my passage home was
| paid for. and / had enougtfto get me 10
Liverpool. where / expected to Ini
funds awaiting me. You may imagine
my feelings when I arrived in Liver
pool. only a few hours before my boat
was to sail. and found no money there
for me. 1 decided 1 would sail ANYWAY.
as l had my ticket, and / thought thai
perhaps the money had been sent to
New York instead. Anyway, IL WAS
better to be in America without money
than in Europe.
so 1 landed in New York on Satur-
day morning with the reflection that IL
linoiS, which was where my friends
were, was a long way off, ever for a
good walker. My last hope was the
Park bank; the remittance would be
there. OF course. Well. it wasn't; not a
cent II my family had lived in some
good-sized town it would have been
easy to have them telegraph me funds.
But they lived on q farm. If / tsle-
graphed, the message very likely would
not reach them until Sunday. They
probably would have to drive to town
to get the money and send it, and the
chances were l wouldn't get away from
New York until Tuesday or later.
"At last 1 decided to take the bull by
the horns. and on a bench in Union
Square L examined my cash and divid-
ed it into three parts. The first TART
would just buy me the cheapest kind Of
a ticket to Chicago. The second, 40
cents. would get me from there to Ev-
anston. Mr.. friend Thompson lived in
Evanston. The third pile was So cents,
and that would have to keep me alive
until 1 reached Thompson.
by the time l bought my ticket I
was beginning to realize that 1 was a
large and healthy young man, Just
landed from a ten days ocean trip. and
hat 65 cents looked like something less
han 80. 1 boarded the train with recol-
lections Of Benjamin Franklin in my
mind. and 10 cents worth of bread I'M
der my ARM. The railroad company
kindly supplied ice water.
1.-THE next morning l recalled that my
last substantial food was the very early
breakfast on the ship the day before. L
was trying to guess when 1 would have
my next. when a man came through
distributing advertisements of a table
d'hote breakfast at Buffalo,; the pro-
gramme included oatmeal, sausage
cakes, chops. Now you imagine whether
nv mouth watered as 1 read it over. 1
could almost taste the sauSageS, and I
decided that his was the investment
for my money; for 1 said to myself That
I would be the first man in that dining
room, and it was going to be a mighty
funny thing if I didn't gather in my
stomach and pockets together-enouSh
to last me the rest of the day.
"Well. when the train slowed up at
Buffalo I was hanging to the railing Of
the very first step back of the tender
and the train had hardly stopped before
I was in the restaurant n seated at
the table. The waiter came up, but In
stead of taking my order, he said:
What's the matter with your nose,
young MANI I put my hand up and
sure enough, my nose was bleeding-a
perfect stream. Was there ever worse:
luck? I couldn't smell the coffee, 1 saw
the hot cakes coming one way n the
sausage another. but they were not for
me. 1 simply had to retire and check
that nose-bleed. 1t was a slow process,
and when 1 got back to the table at last
my heart sank, for all that remained
to mock at my hunger and my lost so
cents was one cold gray chop and TWO
trivial corn mullins! And there was
scarcely time to swallow those when
the train was called, n I rushed on
board with 5 cents and an appetite
what an appetite! The 5 cents was soon
zc4z- -,~,40l -. - opn1n and if ~ S11n1
any part of the gap the effect was ILL
~perceptible.
THAT was the longest morning I ever
spent in my life. I buckled my trousers
a tightly as possible and read fierceiy,
and waited. and at last-at last!-We
drew near Chicago. Evanston wasn't
so far away, if l could only get there,
but 1 suddenly remembered now that
on Sunday afternoons there was only
| one train out to Evanston. If tram
should be late I might not catch 1t. SO
I hunted up the conductor. Lets see
said he. we are now forty-five minutes
late Ct groaned) but if we don't lose
any more time well get there at 8
O'Clock. Your train, leaves the other
station at 3:15. Why, yes; I guess You
can make tiff you take a cab A cab!
I felt like asking him If he didn't mean
a balloon, but / refrained. 1 n
him and thought Of the shortest cut
across Chicago. If a cab could get there
my feet simply had to-.
The train was still moving when
started, and Chicago gazed after me
and wondered what my crime was: My
big leather bag knocked against my
knees, but I painted along through street
after street. My head swan. things
began to look queer to me, but L stu
I went on. I a almost reached it when
I remembered the river. I would have
to cross it on a swinging bridge. WHAT
il it should happen to be open? At the
hex corner the bridge came In sight,
and also the big funnel of a tug waiting
to go through. The gates were alreaoy
locked: the bridge began to move, AND
I began hopelessly to slow up. Then
thought Of another night without q
meal. and I tumbled somehow over
those gates, lodged the bridge keeper
and landed on the other bank the rio-
ment the bridge swung clear away from
It. And I caught that train. The brake
man pulled me up on the back platform
of the last car. and held me there untli
I could breathe and see again.
1890 ~nn mo NJ f1G