The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-11-10
This Is Hobo Time With Guard
ians Of the Peace.
Queer Ruses Adopted by Knights
of the Road.
THEY SEEK ARREST.
Warm Neal and Place to Sleep
Are Secured
How They Dodge Manual Labor
When Pressed.
HEY SEEK ARREST.

Doing their best to get in the way of
the police the professional buns of
the country are now closing in on the
cities and preparing to spend their win
tiers with the police forces. When the
cold spell of weather came about two
weeks ago the Topeka police station
was filled with the tempting vags."
They would string up and down the
beats of the night police for blocks
and blocks trying to attract their at
tention in some way or other. In one
or two cases the vags would lie down
on the sidewalk feigning drunkenness
in order to be taken to the station for
the highland for a meal free of
charge.
Tramps have very little use for work.
In fact they are afraid of it. Many
times at the local police station the
active members of the sons of rest will
coldly turn down offers of work from
local contractors or railroad companies.
Whenever this is done, however, the
chief comes to the front with an order
that it is ''whistling out of town for
them or they go TO work In most
cases the tramps will leave the city
rather than work. Labor seems to be
a social problem with them but they
never try to solve it. Not long ago a
never-sweat came to the station on the
charge of vagrancy and after lying in
his cell for a day he was tried found
guilty and sentenced to the rock pile.
When he heard this terrible sentence
he went back to his cell and pleaded
with the jailer to allow him one more
days rest before he went to work. 1t
was given him and the next day he
claimed it gave him rheumatism to
pound rock. He was detailed to go to
the Auditorium and paint. After
thinking this matter over he said he
had always been troubled with the
painters collie and the smell of the
paint brought on a fresh attack. The
police named over job after job but
still the big healthy looking belated
traveller pleaded sickness or a weakness
of some kind. Finally a contractor
came into the Jail and offered him
good job at two dollars a day. Again
he related a sad experience in his form
er life in which he had ben stripped Of
his working power along certain lines.
Finally he lay down in his cell and
with groans and wells he complained of
awful pains which ran up and down his
back and made him incapable of ac-
complishing anything for the benefit of
mankind. When meal time came
his pain would leave him and he would
rush to the hall with renewed life. At
last Chief Eaton grew wearied at the
actions of the big buffer and he gave
him just fifteen minutes to make the
distance from the police station to the
city limits on the north. The con-
OF the size QOOT
squirmed and whined in his cell at this
order and with fearful pleadings asked
the chief to take pity on his aching
body. But the chief used his criminal
X-ray and with stern commands he
told the tramp that it was five DAYS on
the rock pile or out of town. The
sentence had hardly reached the ears
of the ballast crusher before he arose
with eyes bulged out and with muscles
quivering. Hastily grabbing his hat he
threw more coal in the fire box,
opened wide the throttle and without
trying his brakes or whistling for Or