The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-07-13
ADVANCE MANS WOES.
steve o'Grady of Innes' Band Relates
His Experiences.

His Experiences.
Steve .O'Grady, manager in advance
for Innes and his band, has just exper-
fenced the delights of trouping in the
Pacific Northwest. AS related by let
ter from Helena, written on the glorious
Fourth to Arthur Kane in Topeka. Mr..
O'Grady's experiences form a most in
teresting yarn. He was formerly a KAN
sas City reporter. The letter follows:
Yes, I will come to Topeka and
stay there more than one day. I will
remain a week if possible. oh, how glad
l Will be to get back to dear old Kan
sas, or Missouri, or Illinois, or any other
old state, just so it is east of the Rocky
mountains.
Il have been having an awful time
up in this part of the country. You may
appreciate my condition when tell you
that night before last rode on a freight
train and all the sleep I got was four
hours on the hard board of a caboose.
| left Spokane Monday morning, via the
Northern PACING. took the boat at
Occur D Alene. and entered upon a ma
rine journey of % miles. The boats ma
chinery got loose and we rolled into
Harrison, Idaho, % minutes late. The
passenger train, with which the boat is
supposed to make connections, had
gonei There is only one passenger
train a day on this road. The only con-
ISOLATION I had was that about thirty
others were left stranded. Harrison
proved to be the most God forsaken spot
in the world. Its capital stock consists
of a railroad station, a saw mill, Sa-
loon, a hotel and a postoffice. The town
is built on hill, which is almost per-
pendicu1ar and which rests about one
hundred feet above the steam boat land
ing. The freight was billed for four
o'clock that afternoon. We had arrived
at 10 a. m. We waited until four and
were informed that the train was two
hours late. At six o'clock We learned
that the train was two more hours late.
At eight o'clock the operator told us
that he was unable to locate the freight
and told us that it was about two more
hours late. With this message he be-
gan to close I'D.
. Look here, said I, do you intend to
lock up and leave these passengers here
to look out for themselves
. I certainly do said the operator.
I have to go to church.
Well, what am [ going to do about
my trunks said 1 to the man. l had
two trunks on the platform and other
members of the party owned the other
five.
9 Dunno said the operator.
''Will this freight train carry them ?"
said 1.
TT will if the conductor sees flt."
said the operator, whereat he de-
parted.
AT II o'clock the freight rolled in:
I asked the conductor if he would
take the trunks on board.
You can put them in the caboose
if you load them yourself said the
conductor.
That was far better than leaving
the trunks. so the trunk owners called
for volunteers, and with the assistance
of the entire party we loaded the
trunks into the caboose and all got
aboard.
1 must tell you a funny incident that
happened prior to the trains arrival.
About 9 O'Clock the entire party, who
had all got well acquainted by this
time, organized chorus and began
to render everything in song that we
had ever heard. We finally got down
to the national hymns, and someone
started up with MY Old Kentucky
Home We had hardly finished the
song when a window in the saloon.
100 feet above on the hill, was raised
and a democratic voice yelled, Hey,
fellers, I'm the proprietor of this
place up here, and I'm from Kaintuck.
1 want you all to climb up and have
drink on the house
We were all in the hillside place i'm
billing when the freight arrived. My
stop was Wallace, Idaho, forty miles
o'clock the following morning. 1
got the manager of the opera house
out of bed at s and concluded my
business with him by Z. I took
train for Missoula at 8, arriving there
at APO that afternoon. I left Mis-
soula at the same evening on a
train that should have arrived in
Helena at midnight, but twenty miles
west of Helena the train stopped sud
denly and remained still for five hours.
A freight train had been ditched, and
the passenger was unable to pass.
There were no sleepers attached to
the train, SO at 1 a. m. I huddled up
in seat of the smoking car and with
rain coat for pillow went to sleep.
The train did not arrive in Helena
until a. m, and I was sleeping when
it arrived. The trainmen forgot to
wake me, and when I awoke a coach
cleaner was bending over me and
asking how long I intended to remain
in my present position. I was in the
Helena coach yard, the hour was 9
O'Clock, and I was two miles from the
center of town.
Do you wonder that I want to get
, back to Kansas, dear old Kansas. l
fervently hope to be with you about
| July H. STEVE O'GRADY.
| rrNUVr-