Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-03-02
TOOK A LONG WALK

THAT fellow who drove dog-sled or dog
wagon or whatever you call 1t from Alaska
to Washington. himself trudging most of
the way, must like that pedestrian stun"
observed a committee clerk at the Capitol
who Is now an exceedingly settled and
sedate person, but who. used to take
chances on the game of life as he obliquely
viewed it in his salad days
IF he tried to convince me that he en-
joyed that walk he'd have to produce the
blue prints. I took a long walk once
when I was first on my way to Washington,
too. I'm. The Alaska man can have It,
It's been the vanished cars and the tufted
seats for my long hikes ever since. A lot
of my friends have the habit Of asking me
why it is that I always hop street car
when I've only got block or so to travel in
town here There's a reason. l got too
much walking exercise once, and I've never
fallen for the long trudges since.
1T was quite stretch of years back.
I'd been planning to get a job here In the
Capitol-not the job I've got now, out JUST
job. was in Chicago when was ofi1-
cially notified that had got by with my
planning. had been appointed. The next
thing was how to make Washington. l
went around Chicago with trap-net, ana
found the boy who was willing TO take
chance and stake me to the price or the
fare and ten iron men besides Ii ne
hadn't given me those ten bucks for Incl
dental expenses. in addition to the price
of the ticket, maybe l wouldn't nave nao
to take that walk
But the additional ten looked large to
me when 1 got hold of it. hadn't had so
much change as that in long while 80
after buying my ticket and seeing that my
luggage was on the van, y'knaw, scut-
tied across the street from the depot IN
Chicago and annexed unto myself two large
f1agons Of stuff to relieve the tedium or
travel. l didn't take any sleeper. II
looked to be a waste of good kale to 90
that, when many moist packages coulo
be purchased for the money.
so. Immediately on boarding the train
me for the smoking car. That was gay
dog lot in the smoking car. Few OF them
knew where they were going, but they were
on their way. They'd come from some
where farther vast, and they all had their
souses with them when l landed IN the
car. Every man in the bunch had a grip
full of tirewater and the proceedings from
the outset of my journey toward the tlty
of the Dome were riotous. EVERYBODY III
the car took a wallop at the otner 1eilow
amphora. 1t was very engaging party.
There was much buck-danclng In the car
aisle Once in while a fight would break
out but these wouldn't last long, and pres
emily the combatants would be seated size
by side their arms over each others Shout
ders and their legs hanging over the seat
in front of them, and everything all rlSht
and cheerful it should be.
The conductor, rather religouS-iooklnS
man. with siders, shook his head sadly
every time he passed through that smoker
to take up tickets. Il was morning Wnen
i left Chicago on that train, but long De-
fore nightfaii 1 didn't know whether my
mess number was double 90 on the green
or seven million. And l wasn't bothered
l didn't go to sleep when the shades OF
night fell. | didn't have time. But fell
to sleep inadvertently some time after mid
,;n 7 Still DAN
Cling my legs over the seat in front of me,
but I wasn't very comfortable. l required
a long. long drink of ice water. and L went
I'D to the cooler and got it. Then noticed
fiat all of my pals who'd been on the train
all of the previous day had left 1t some
where or other. 1 was all alone In the
smoker with the exception of few Dago
construction hands who were taking Win
their mitts in the rear seats.
Worst of it was there wasn't anything
left of the wet stuff. except what was In
the cooler. My two jugs were gone-they
been kicking around on my seat, and mad
nothing to presume but that the bunch of
Indians had drunk the stuff before leaving
the car. and tossed the TASKS out OF the
window. 1t was still dark, and 1 didn I
know where the train was.
But l knew about ten minutes a1ter
waking UP. The conductors new scon-
ductor whom 1 hadn't seen before, picked
I'D somewhere after I'd fallen asleep
Zephyred along to collect tickets. dldn
bother to look for my ticket till after he
got right alongside of me. Then 1 dug the
fin into the pocket where Ia been packing
the ticket Nix. 1t wasn't there. A Dit
nervous | began to frisk myself Nope.
No ticket anywhere. Not only no ticket,
but no money I'd had seven bucks in
the same pocket with the ticket when l
left Chicago, but it was absent. I went
through every pocket, pulling them all IN
side out. Nary. Nothing doing.
1--we been frisked,' l told the conductor.
L came from Chicago. and l went to sleep
about midnight. and somebody must ma
gone through me-.
Yours replied the conductor is in
deed a sad, sad story but there was a
note of utter unbelief in his tone. and he
didn't look little bit sympathetic. He
heard a lot of that Ive-been-toucned STUN
before, no doubt.
..Well my tickets gone, all right I
went on L had 1t in this pocket, with my
money. when 1 fell aseep. but both ticket
and money are gone now.
Inexpressibly sad observed the con-
ductor, shifting to the other leg as he stood
in the aisle fiddling with his ticket punch.
But that doesn't get me anything. yo';
know Where are you going-that Is, where
did you think you were going?
MY ticket read to Washington / told
him, and l had 1t right in this pocket,
but
well chopped in the conductor then.
YOU look as if you might understand these
things, and so FL make it brief: No ticket,
no ride Savvy? 1 can't help it. It's not
nv fault. But III the u d ldIBe
and interesting family, and that's the rea-
son I've got to obey this railroads rules
and regulations
You don't mean to say that you'd put
me off, do you? I asked the conductor in
great perturbation.
Watch me- calmly replied the con-
| ductor, and he gave the bell rope few
tugs oh, Jimv he called to the brake,
| and the brake came along to do the hot
| foot stuff in case I showed an unwilling
ness to be resigned to my fate. But 1 was
| too down in the mouth to think of getting
mussy. The train came to stop.
"'Sorry, buck said the conductor as
| was escorted to the platform and down
| the steps. But it's only little walk of
| eighty-five miles so. and it'll do you good
| in this bracing, oZoney air We're just
! about FIVE miles outside Harper's Ferry
| now, and you ought to make Washington
| in about four days If you stay right on the
! Job and then he tugged at the bell rope
| again. and 1 stood there in the middle of
| the track watching the train disappear
| around bend.
81 won't go into details about that trudge.
| The brilliant-hued sumac and stuff lining
| the track didn't look good to me. l got
! handouts in the way Of scraps from the
watchmen's shanties along the road, and
| that's how 1 lived during the four days
| the conductor was right in estimating that
| 1t would take me about four days to reach