The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-10-24
THE HOBO MUST 60 Railroads Making War on Destroyers of Prop
 erty. TRAMPS LIVE EASILY Move-on Policy Detrimental to Society-Work
 Is the Remedy.
TRAMPS LIVE EASILY

That the picturesque figure of the hobo may be missing from our comic prints shortly through his disappear ance from real life is possibility to- ward which the American railroads including the New Haven line are bending every effort. Not that the comic prints are objectionable but that the pest of free-riders frequently steal valuable freight, interfere with signals and switches and set fire to cars and occasionally injure employees seriously.
 To speak truly, the tramp far from being a jolly, care-free weary-willie is more nearly a thief and not infre- quently a murderer. Even In New Haven where the tramp is far more a rarity than in the sparsely settled towns of the west the writer of this article has during the past week been held up by beggars of this genus for "a drink" or "a breakfast" four times and this is not an exception.
 Sociologists in America have not studied this problem as has been done abroad so that no headway has been made against the evil until very re- gently, It has always been the pol icy of towns large or small to give the tramp a bed and breakfast in the lock-up and then after 12 hours to get out of town. Not only has this policy not retarded the indus try" but it has even meant an addi- ton to its ranks. It is so vastly more simple to say to the vagrant move on" than to impose the alternate pen alty of ten days in jail--and besides it is cheaper This develops into con- tinuous performance with the box of flee receipts in the hobo's pocket
 It is said that figures don't lie and a glance at statistics in this direction will show the extent to which the evil has grown, and the menace 1t holds: Over half a million tramps circulate about the country each year over B. 900 were injured seriously enough to receive hospital treatment and 900 were arrested by the Pennsylvania railroad police alone and then ~mov- ed on" during the past year, while in the four years, 19O1-1905, nearly 24,- 900 trespassers were killed and over 25, ,0OO injured, the majority of whom were undoubtedly beating their way"
 Not all those who travel this man ner are dyed-in-t -the-woof "boes," and fair proportion pay their fares in cash for the privilege of free" trans portation. To explain this paradox, the brakeman upon finding tramp safely and very comfortably esconed in grain car demands what he is "traveling on" If the tramp has 10 cents, that Is good for the extent of this brakeman's division--usually 100 miles-or if the vagrant is lucky enough to possess a dollar begged from a friend" the brakeman takes half and gives the tip to the incoming brakeman who passes the latter with out charge. This graft enables a man so inclined to travel long dis tances on through trains, sleeping in and living on the grain for several days with an occasional tomato can of water for liquid nourishment.
 Some of those who travel tramp wise are respectable men without money who desire to return home and obtain work, and it is known that at least two of the men soon to gradu- ate from Yale University first reached New Haven by the hobo route. The majority however firmly believe that the world owes every man living and once in the easy life find it impos sible to settle down to earn it.
 As to the remedy, J. J. Hill, presi- dent of the Great Northern, declares that work is the cure and that with penalties enforced the army would soon disband. In addition their ser- vices, he suggests, will go far toward assisting the good roads movement by their use in breaking stone, etc., for the State roads.
 The Charity Organization society and the Association for Improving the Condition of the Poor in New York City have recently made thorough investigation of vagrancy in the Unit ed States. At the national confer ence of charity held recently a na- tional vagrancy committee was form ed to do active work to decrease the vagraney evil.
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