Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1907-08-03
A COLLEGE STUDENT
Tells Of HOBO Days
Popular W. S. c. Student Tells of
Experiences When Cash Was
Scarce and Walking Far
From Good.

The following story tells the exper-
ience of we'll known student of the
State College who made his way to
the West in true "hobo" style.
When stranded. with work of anv
kind but dim possibility and hundreds
of miles from a city where work is
plentiful, there is, speaking from the
! standpoint of an American working
man, but one alternative in determin-
ing the method to be used in reaching
that city, and that alternative is free
transportation. in various ways. from
the railroads. The ordinary run of
laborer in the West, when broke. u.s.
ually comes under the general cIassifi-
cation of "hobo," and is treated as
an undesirable member of society bv
the police of the cities and the consta-
bles of the towns and villages. If Fate
should be so unkind as to direct the
minions of the law to such an unfortu-
nate the probabilities are the individual
will receive board and lodging from
the authorities for a period ranging
from ten to thirty days, at the dscre-
tion of the judge. in return for which
said unfortunate would favor a stone
I pile with his attention. occasionally
dangling the chains attached to his legs
as fitting accompaniment to the
stroke of his hammer.
Not all men "down on their luck"
have the misfortune of finding them
selves included in the drag met of the
police and booked at the station as
"vags." but there is that possibility
and that makes the situation unpleas-
ant.
drifted into Salt Lake City from
! Aspen, Wyoming, where | had passed
several days in the employ of Kilpat-
rick Bros. railroad contractors, who
were driving tunnel through the Wy
orning kills for the Union Pacific.
Practically all of my cash had been
spent in the Mormon stronghold look
ing for work. but at that time $1,000
laborers were plentiful and work com
paratively scarce. Not caring to put
out my last dollar for grub in a place
where the majority of the inhabitants
had no use for a Gentle and where the
police were anything but friendly, |
determined to get out of town for the
West. Portland preferably.
With two of the five fifty-cent
pieces remaining in my pocket | en-
listed the services of an employment
agent. but could ship no farther West
than McGammon, on the main line of
the Oregon Short Line. My destna-
tion really was a little east of the
junction, just over the border line in
to Wyoming. Instead of changing
cars at McGammon, dropped off the
train on the opposite side from the
station and swung aboard between the
baggage cars as the train drew out.
The time was four in the morning, and
an hour later we reached Pocatella.
Past experiences had taught me that
daylight was a poor aid in trying to
beat ride on passenger tram, and,
accordingly, | concluded to lay over
and "make it out'' on freight some
time during the day. | went to sleep
in box car in an isolated part of the
yards and failed to awaken when the
only freight that left pulled out dur
ing the afternoon.
| That night, however, the Through
freight" which ratified over the
Switches in the Pocatella yards about
4 80, headed West, had me as a pas
senger. Before the train pulled out
had found refrigerator car with the
top doors open and had crawled into
the ice chests, which were empty.
Shortly afterward some one passing
over the cars began tinkering with
the catches at the forward end. 1t
appeared to be case of getting sealed
up, but to make sure | waited until
the workman came to my end. The
heavy tread of feet and the rafting
of the catch on the other side ended
my doubts. Bracing myself as we'll
as | could | gave the door a quick,
strong push upward. sprang on deck
and dropped to the ground without
stopping to use the ladder. A volley
of imprecations greeted my ears as |
scurried away in the darkness, and
whizzing past my head, followed by
thud, indicated hostile intentions on
the part of the railroad man. The
picturesque, calculating and volumi-
nous string of profanity that fioated
over the night air could only have
been acquired after years of railroad
work and considerable contact with
the hobo element. Evidently the
man had been in the act of STOPPING
to examine the catch at the moment l