The Canon City record with which is consolidated the Canon City cannon., 1915-05-27

made great preparations for the trim.
with a big basket lunch-fried chick.
en-, jelly cake and the things a boy
likes so we'll. All the neighbors at
home came in to give our mother
good advice and fair warnings, and
to add to the lunch basket. We had
to go through East st. Louis and in
those days. that town was said to
be a hell hole of iniquity, where
gFown-up folks were frequently
snatched from the trains, robbed and
dumped into the great Mississippi
river. The mysterious disappearance
at East St Louis of one of our own
prominent citizens was yiyidly dis
cussed and held up as warning. And
the spectacular kidnapping of little
old Charlie Ross was fresh and fore
most in my mind Hell holds no more
alarming terror for a newly converted
sinners in a Billy Sunday meeting.
than East St Louis and the old Union
depot held for me.
At East st. Louis / was afraid to
look out Of the car window. a few
bandits got on our train, but seeing
no diamonds, they either got of again
or quietly took seats and watched
the people closely. / did look out of
the window at the great old Mississ-
ippi river-miles across and a thous-
and feet below, il seemed. the new
Eads bridge, the wonder of America
at that time.
After a long. perilous ride, through
the air as II were. we got safely
across But new dangers came thick
and fast From the bridge We plung-
ed into the darkest of dark and dan
gerous tunnels Occasionally trains
got through this tunnel without col
lisions. We were fortunate that day
no accidents. Only we came near
being asphyxiated by the gas and
smoke
Soon we were under the great,
noisy car sheds-sheds large enough.
feel sure. to have covered my ma
tive town Certainly large enough
to hold all the trains Of the world.
for the trains OF all the world must
have been holding n convention there
that day.
The getting OF of a train and into
the station In a great city is not en-
tireiy free from dangers There Is
such Z mob all about that small boy
may set niepged on or pushed under
the cars md there Is always
band OF young ruffiians about who try
to snatch your satchels and lunch
baskets. But We got safely in the
station without accident or the loss
OF a single thing.
I have knocked around the country
some in recent yeara. and have seen
some large buildings. but I have new
er seen anything as big as that old
how many thousand people were in
the waiting room when we arrived
that day I do remember asking my
mother why IL was that all the
people in the country happened to
come to ST. Louis on that particular
day.
Our mother was alone with three
children and plenty OF baggage. !
do not know how old was, but
must have been about seven. II SO.
my brothers were five aud two. There
was much to do before We got our
train out for q little Missouri town.
Tickets to buy, baggage to check.
train schedule to look up proper train
gate to locate. My mother had been
warned to seek no information from
anybody. except a man in a gray uni
form. But we looked long for man
in gray. and there was none Finally
she tried a man In blue. lie was
big. good natured chap and anxious
to help a lady He went OF to show
her where to go.
was left to guard the children.
satchels and lunch basket. 1t was a
dangerous thing to do. but couldn't
he helped. We sat there on the high
seat with iron arms all along. arrang-
took things away from folks in
could sit snugly In one compart-
ment. We kept tight hold on the
satchels People in those days, often
snathced things away from folks In
places like that.
Mother was gone nearly all day.
getting the tickets, checking baggage
and making other arrangements.
There we sat. patiently waiting-too
scared to breath comfortably. We
must have looked like three little
brown eyed baby foxes-gaxing ut a
mob OF curiosity seekers. People all
around. people coming and going.
Many bad looking men. few kind
looking old women. most OF them not
paying the slightest attention to us.
ever In my mind and We saw many
men who looked like they would like
to snatch a kid or satchel
After many hours. II seemed. our
mother returned and We were safe
again. We soon got a train out and
was never so glad to get away from
any place as from that horrid old
union depot--some thirty odd years