The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1908-03-19
LEAVES MARK
in THIS CITY
A NO. l CHAMPION TRAMP
H MARK IS SEEN
OVER ENTIRE
COUNTRY TELLS
STORY OF HIS
LIFE.

waiting room of the Pennsylvan-
ia station il this city, perhaps
little knew the history OF the
man who bears that name, and
why that mark is placed there,
as it is on box cars, depots ETC.,
over the entire country.
The man was in Indianapolis
Tuesday and gave a history of
his life, and said that he was
headed north.
\ No l is his name and he is
a tramp. In fact, he is the best
known tramp i'll the country, and
the contents of his scrap book,
which he carries with him all the
time. show him to be honest and
ION the square" He has been a
tramp for twenty-five years and
in that length of time has
travelled 450,135 miles, as shown
by his mileage statement which
he keeps. Thus far, since Janu-
airy /. 1908, he has covered 2,130
miles.
X No. l tramps because he
wishes to tramp-thats the only
reason he gives for his strange
career-but he says he intends to
quit the road some day-if he is
not killed before he gets ready to
retire. He has written a book
called The Life and Adventure
of n No. l." which, he says he
hopes will be the means of pre-
venting many other boys from
taking up the life of a tramp. His
home is in Cambridge Springs,
Pa, where he has a large tomb
stone already in a cemetery
awaiting him. lie was oorn in
San Francisco thirty-six years
ago, but ran away from home
when a boy and wandered
around until his father told him
never TO return home. And he
never did. He has been a tramp
ever since.
Years ago he had a tramp part
ner known as New Orleans
Frenchy. The two travelled to-
gether for a long time, and it
was New Orleans Frenchy who
gave the younger man his nick
name. The boy was such a sue
cessful tramp that Frenchy told
him one day: Say, boy, you're
all right. You're A No. 1. Now
always stay that way
That's how he got the name
that has stuck to him ever since
He and Frenchy agreed that il
they ever became separated they
would carve their names on rail
road cars, depots, water tanks,
out buildings everywhere they
went until they found each other
again. n Nc. | has been living
up to his end OF the compect
hat is why MS name in the mys-
tic letters is found almost every
where along all the railroads in
the country. He says he has seen
the name of New Orleans
Ffenchy a few times carved on
cars or depots, but he has never
been able to find the man.
A No. | looks less like a tramp
than anything else. When he
travels he hangs on. the trucks oil
a Pullman car or clings TO the
brake beam, always travelling
alone and in the most dangerous
places on a train. When on the
road he wears a jumper suit. a
pair of big gloves and a derby
hat. Other tramps, he says, wear
caps or soft hats. but he wears
derby to be different from them
And another reason is" he
said. that | can't go to sleer
with a derby hat on under a Pull
man car, and if my head bumps
against a brake beam the derb,
protects me from injury. If
wore a cap a bump would break
my head.
The first thing that A No. /
does when he lands in a city is tc
remove his jumper suit, roll it M
into a bundle. and get a shave
and a bath. Then he iS>ready tc
meet his friends. of whom he ha.
some everywhere.
This strange man, who speak:
and writes English. German
French and Spanish. all of which
he learned through his own eff
forts. absolutely refuses to tel
his real name to any one. HI
SAYS it is nobody's business. II,
has been IN most OF the countrle.
of the old world and from Soutl
America to Alaska in the new
world. He wears a large silve.
medal, given him by Richlrd X
Fox. of New York, with tie It'll,
of the Champion Tramp" Hi
only trade is that OF carving face,
and pictures on potatoes. This h,
does with great skill, and he sell
the potatoes Is souvenirs. II,
carries with him credentials from
officials and chiefs Of police o
most of the big railroad systems
and they invariably speak of hin
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