The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1904-01-31
PARADISE OF THE TRAMP.
Glimpse of the Feeding Spot and Dor
mitOry of 10000 ''Hoboes."
Hereford lPal Snecial in PHILADELPHIA Rec


Hereford (Pa.) Special in Philadelphia Rec
Paradise on earth, as located in the
tramps' geography, lies very near the lower
end of Berks county, Pennsylvania; and no
Garden of Eden in the Adamic era ever
held out stronger allurements to the Knight
of the Road than can be enjoyed right
here among the hospitable Pennsylvania
Dutch. The latter, somehow, have come
to believe and act upon the principle that
the weary. from whatever walk in life they
come, are to be rested, and the hungry,
whether they earn their bread in the sweat
of their faces by the customary orthodox
forms of toll not, are to be fed
And the tramp is a mighty appreciative
fellow. tradition to the contrary notwith-
standing, several men and women in
this vicinity can, ont of the abundance Of
their own experience. testify.
Pennsylvania as a whole, feeds and shell
tiers more wandering men than all the New
England States together; but this little cor
ner of the Keystone State is the Light par
ticular spot toward which the wayfaring
Willie gravitates naturally as the needle
seeks the pole. Two men who summer and
winter here are more largely responsible
in the county. They are j. c. GOtshall, the
Fleetwood baker, ably sustained by his
generous wife, and Jacob Hiestand. the
well-known farmer of Hereford township,
In the Perkiomen valley. The former feeds
the 'hoboes'' and the latter shelters them,
and has done so for ten years or more. In
deed, his splendid and roomy barn is esti-
mated to have been the dormitory OF at
least 10000 men in the last decade.
Over at Fleetwood, Mr.. and Mrs. Gott-
shall have conjured smiles of gratitude
faces n thousands IL
nate fellows who seemed to know just the
best place in the world TO stow away rolls
biscuits, cakes, pies or coffee, and who
early learned that the Fleetwood bakery
was the surest place in the world to obtain
these comforts without money and without
price.
"They must certainly be fed by some
body" Gottshall has said many a time,
land under no circumstances shall a weary
or hungry person ever leave my doorstep
without being furnished with sufficient food
to supply his immediate hunger. Yes, we've
treated the Weary Willies right, and
they've treated us right, and not to our
knowledge have they ever stolen penny S
worth from us.
Coming in contact with so many 'Hool-
fganS' L have gained quite a popularity
among the knights Of the Road and have
come across some very queer personalities,
who have figured in many amusing Incl
dents. We have weekly diners some who
come semi-annually, others monthly, and
others seem to have mortgage on our
table. Among the most noted Of them all
is one known among the tramp fraternity
throughout Berks county as Prince Bis
marck-One of our summer boarders.' He
is of very kind disposition and one of the
most witty fellows among the Knights Of
the Road.
Another of our rather regular diners is
Frank Berkeuman, who came from Ger
many in 1869 and who has supped at the
hands of all kind hearted people from
Maine to the Lone Star State. He is sloven-
ly in garb, but is very fond of a glass Of
good wine, and so grateful for II that he
never leaves his hostess until he has re-
plenished the woodpile in her back yard
These regular tramps never ask for lodg-
ing from those persons who furnish them
with food, but usually trudge along for sew
eral miles to other farmers who have large
barns. One of the most comfortable of
these structures is the big Hiestand barn,
an old-fashioned Swiss structure. probably
known by every tramp in the habit of jour
neying from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
No hobo" passes through the Perkiomen
valley without stopping to while away a
night at this popular resort. They all
know that they are welcome to this shelter,
and for the many years not a single Knight
of the Road has inflicted any injury TO Mr..
Hiestand's property. Furthermore, no barn
in this vicinity has ever been burned down
by a tramp. Mr.. Hiestand has, however, a
few rules for his nightly dodgers to OBJ
serve. First, they must surrender all their
matches, and If they are in the. habit of
also give up these for the night. When
| these conditions are compiled with the
hobo" is led forth by. the benevolent
farmer. his big shepherd dogs are called
aside and the tramp crawls into his bed of
straw. feeling as proud as if he were the
| guest of king.
tramp offers his help TO the farmer and
sometimes the farmer accepts the offer
and sends him to the woodpile or lets him
| threSh grain.
The tramps' lodgings are on the first floor
| alongside the cattle, and they seldom go
on the haymow. They crawl into bunch
| of straw as a snail sinks into his she'll
and there never was a case on record in
| which a tramp Caught cold" in the Heis-
| tand barn.
| ask for lodging and they never ask Heis-
] tand for breakfast; but they just work one
| over against the other in a way to make
| both hold out TO the end
Some of the tramps have been guests OF
! Hiestand for so many years that they are
| well known. Among them is Charles Sny-
| der, tailor by trade, who in the height
| of his season, returns every alternate night
| TO the tramp quarters. He is a good tailor
| and has repaid Hiestand many times by
| mending wearing apparel for himself and
| his farm hands. He Is one of the oldest
| knights of the road. and is known all over
| eastern Pennsylvania.
Another is Captain Charles Smith, 9
Frenchman by birth, seventy-three years
| old, and forty-nine of his years were spent
| in America. He has slept in every State
east of the Mississippi river. but mas not
| slept in a bed for the last twenty-five
years. He is a kind-hearted fellow, strong
| and active for his age having been a black
smith in France in his youth. He is also
| an expert at the woodpile and many
| farmers wife has cooked meal with wooC
| cut by his muscular hands.
| Frank Bergueman, one of the Gottshal
| diners. comes to Hiestand's nearly every
| fortnight to surrender his matchbox anc
| snore a night away.
LAS long as have food I will feed them.
| says Gottshall; and "as long as my barr
| has a good roof and they comply with my
| rules they may enjoy my hospitality" says
| Hiestand; and every tramp I'm good anC
regular standing has made a note Of these
| facts.