The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-11-22

HIS START IN LIFE.
A Successful Railway Man Sees n
Great Change I'm Boys.

Great Change I'm Boys.
Washington Star.
whats become of the unsophisticated
boys. or are there any left?" inquired
recent Washington visitor, q man who, al
though well under fifty. is a noted figure in
the railway world. 1.-The lads that we
meet up with nowadays are SO marvelously
wise and UP to date, 1t Is SO utterly out Of
the question to fool them; they seem, in
short. such finished men Of the world In
miniature that 1 never cease to wonder
where and how they pick IL all UP. I've got
a house full Of grown boys myself. and 1
declare that they are great deal more
blase than / am. Things that still amuse
and entertain me have long since become a
bore to them. And ! am quite certain that
any imposter could still befool me a great
boys. There seems to be no kink whatever
Of city life that they don't know. Now
adays. in fact. boys know SO much that 1
their youth, and especially during their
early manhood. as the boys OF generation
ago did.
II got to thinking of this when took
on a few extra young men-most OF them
under twenty-in my office the other day.
They were well-groomed lads, held them
selves we'll looked alive and alert. and
seemed to be smarter than steel traps The
sight OF them made me think OF what a
'Rube Of boy was when took my first
job-it was with the same railroad that /
am still connected with by the way.
Il was fifteen years old and small for my
age. 1 was born and brought up In q little
Michigan town. When I was fourteen I
made I'D my mind to become a shorthand
writer. 1 peddled newspapers and did
chores to get the money to attend a short
hand school twice week in Detroit. /
day and bamboozled all of the boys In the
town to dictate to me when 1 got to the
point where could take dictation. In just
one year / was an expert stenographer-
able to take speeches. Yet 1 was about as
uncouth zap OF a country boy as ever
you heard tell of.
MY mother had a relative who was an
auditor for a railroad that had it's head
quarters in Omaha. She wrote to him that
she had a son who was an expert short
hand writer and and aanl and who
Der how old / was, IL he ever knew, and
my mother didn't tell him in her letter.
He wrote to me to come along to Omaha
roads Omaha ONCE. He Enclosed letter
for me to present to the railroads agent in
Chicago. so as to get transportation from
"Weli, when I left the little Michigan
town for Chicago 1 had exactly s2535 in a
huge wallet that had belonged to my faith
was what of my SAVINGS
news and chore boy. had. besides. one OF
those big old-fashioned black-glazed bags,
which contained all Of my clothes and
sThe train was late In getting to Chicago,
and 1t was after office hours when arrived
there. My idea was to get that transporta-
through. So 1 started to lug my big black
glazed bag through the Chicago streets to
the Office of the railroad agent to whom /
was. as / say. only a small boy. and the
things were so dreadfully heavy that had
to drop 'em about every half square and
rest. After about an hour, however. I
night, and the agent had OF course gone
home. The 5anitor gave me his house sd-
dress. i determined to start there imme-
street car to his home address. The reason
for this was that was afraid to show my
money or to break bill. i had spent the
and I had Ave S bills left Nothing in the
world would have induced me TO expose the
wallet containing them on Chicago street
car.
so I walked to the agents house. which
was away over on the South Side of Chi
cago. 1t makes my arms ache now even to
think of that journey. 1t took me three
to get back. / had to drop the heavy bag
and the heavier typewriter three or four
times In each block II was IL o'clock
the wooden-paved street was as quiet as
death. thought Il would be all right to
pull the bell at that hour-dfdn't know any
better. / rang for ten minutes before the
agent poked his head out of the second
story window and grufny asked what was
wanted. told him
"'G'way, boy growled the agent What
the dickens do you mean by ringing me up
in the middle of the night on such an ex-
cuse? Come to my ONCE In the morning
and I'll look at your letter.
And there was nothing for me to do
but pick up those two awful burdens and
walk down town again. 1 didn't know
where to go, but wanted to get where the
lights were.
reached my destination. I was just abou,
able TO stand I'D. what with fatigue and
sleepiness. / was also pretty lonesome for
home. / was decidedly sorry that / had
ever learned to be shorthand writer.
thought of my coy bed at Homeland then
1 dropped my black-gfazed bag and sat on
il and blubbered.
"I was doing this when a huge figure OF a
uniformed man-whom i know now, but
erton men who still patrol the Chicago
streets at night-swung by me, carrying his
lantern. He saw me, and heard my sup
pressed blubbering.
What ails you, SOM" he asked me in
kindly sort or way.
II told him.
Nothing to cry about. laddie.' said the
big man. All you've got TO do is 10 go to
a hotel-I can direct you TO a cheap one
and get in nights sleep. You've got the
money for that, haven't your"
That's Just what I'm afraid Of re-
piled. I'VE got so much money with me
that I'm afraid to so TO hotel-afraid I'll
".Oh. no chance OF that son. said the