The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-12-03

4E@9HE advantage that the for
eigner possesses over the
Englishman is that he is born
good. He does not have to try
TO be good, as we do. He does
not have to start the new year
with the resolution to be good, and
succeed, bar accidents, in being so till
the middle of January. He Just is good
all the year round When foreigner
is told to mount or descend from a
tram on the near side, it does not oc-
cur to him that it would be humanity
possible to secure egress from or in
gress TO that tram from the off-side
In Brussels once / witnessed a daring
attempt by a lawless foreigner to en-
ter a tram from the wrong side. The
gate was open; he was standing close
behind Ii. A line of traffic was in his
way; to have got round to the right
side of that tram would have meant
missing 1t. He entered when the con-
ductOr was not looking and took his
seat. The establishment of the con-
ductOr on finding him there was inn
mense. How did he get there2 The
conductor had been watching the pro-
per entrance and the man had not
passed him. Later the true explana-
ton suggested itself to the conductor
but for awhile he hesitated to accuse
fellow being Of such crime. He ap-
pealed to the passenger himself Was
his presence there to be accounted for
by miracle or r. sin2 The passenger
confessed. 1t was more in sorrow than
in anger that the conductor requested
him at once to leave. This tram was
going to be kept respectable. The
passenger proving refractory a halt
vas called and the gendarmerfe ap-
pealed to. After the manner Of pO-
ncemen, they sprang, as it were, from
the ground, and formed I'D behind an
imposing officer whom I took to be
their sergeant. At first the sergea nt
could hardly believe the conductors
statement. Even then had the pas
senger asserted that he had entered by
the proper entrance. his word would
have been taken. Much easier to the
foreign official mind would have been
TO believe that the conductor had been
struck by the Lord with temporary
blindness than that man born of wo-
man would have deliberately done any
Ihlng expressly forbidden by a printed
notice, Myself, in his case, I should
have lied and got the trouble over. But
ne was proud man or had not much
sense-one OF the tWO-and so held
fast to the truth. It was pointed ont
10 MIN that he must descend fmmed-
lately and wait for the next tram.
Other gendarmes were arriving from
every quarter; resistance under fhe cir
cunstances seemed hopeless He sal q
ne would get down. He made to de-
scend this time by the proper gate, but
that was not Justice. He had mounted
the wrong side, he must aIfRbt fbe
wrong side Accordingly. he was put
out amongst the traffic, after which fSe
conductor preached a sermon from the
centre of the tram on the danger of
accents and descents conducted from
the wrong quarter. There is a law
throughout Germany-an excellent
law 1t is, would we had 1t in England
that nobody may scatter paper about
the street. An English mfIitarv
friend told me that one day in Ores
den unacquainted with this rule, he
tore q. long letter he had hanT7 van dine
into some fifty fragments and threw
them behind him. A policeman stop-
ped him and explained to him quite
politely the law upon the subject. nv
military friend agreed that it was a
very good law, thanked the man for
ms information. and said that for the
future he would bear it in mind. That
as tne policeman pointed out. would
make things right enough for the fu-
lure but meanwhile it was necessary