Baraboo weekly news. [volume] (Baraboo, Wis.) 1912-197?, 1918-02-14
Travelling Is Irksolne in the Slow
Going Railway Trains---Relates
Experiences Of Trip
SNAKE CROSSED THE PATH
AND CRIMINALS RETURN
At the Mohannmedan Festival the
Natives Paint Their Bodies Like
Tigers and Dance Rythmically

Miss Ethel S. Horton, member of
the faculty of the Baraboo high school,
| has received two letters from her
| friend, Mrs. L. H. Gates, Sholapur,
India. Mr.. Gates is at the head OF the
boys school there-a Congregational
! mission. A sister Of Mrs. Gates, Miss
Van Aiken, married Rev. Arthur Amy,
formerly a resident Of Baraboo, and
now located near Chicago The Van
Aikens formerly resided at Beloit.
The First Letter
Every time that we return from a
| trip on these Indian trains, l plan to
write you about it, for it is the queer
est way of travelling that | have ever
imagined Just two weeks ago, seven
of us started to Ahmednagar for the
annual business meetings Of our mis-
sion. We were to travel on the night
train, for although Magyar is only 100
/ miles from here, it takes one from Z
D. m. until Z a. N. to make the trip
| in the best connections one can make.
This allows two hours for a wait at
the junction and allows ten hours OF
actual travelling at the rate OF fifteen
miles an hour. OF course, it really
isn't so bad as that, for the trains stop
| as much as ten minutes at even the
very smallest stations, and often
spend a half hour at the larger ones.
We usually travel third class because
it is the cheapest way of travelling.
Most Of the trains have third-claSS
European carriage, although the mis-
sionaries are about the only ones who
use them, as the government will not
allow it's officials to travel except as
frst-class passengers. We, however,
maintain that we are frst-class pa9-
sengers travelling third-class! Just to
show you what the difference in ex-
Dense it, I'll quote the rates for trip
Of $50 miles: First class, Rs II
($5.66); second class Rs 7& ($2.5O;
third class Rs. ~ $500. Do you won
der we choose the latter? Of course
there is a big difference in the ar
rangements. First and second class
have upholstered seats and are clean
and airy, as well as having nice clean
dressing rooms; third-class apart
monts have only wooden benches,
quite narrow and very hard. However,
we always carry a bedding roll, with
blankets to pad the benches and
pillow and coverings. Some people
carry even sheets. But one has to sup
p1v ones own bedding even in first
class.
They All Carried Bundles
On this trip to Magyar, there were
seven Of us to share compartment
five ladies and two gentlemen. You
would have laughed to see us! The
compartment was about Il feet long
and perhaps nine feet broad. There
were four benches lengthwise of the
train, each bench about IL feet wide.
By putting our trunks at the end Of
the benches, with suitcases on top OF
them, we heightened out the seats so
that two ladies could double up on
one bench. That disposed of four of
tall, had bench to himself, and Mrs.
Rose and her husband shared the
other seat It was a case of being
sandwiched in, but we all managed
to get some sleep, in spite OF the dis
comfort. One couldn't stand it for a
long trip, but for one night it wasn't
half bad. Almost funnier than the
trip up, was the trip on our return.
Mr.. Rose, my husband and [ had
small coupe compartment, with one
long bench and one very short one.
But besides ourselves, we had some
luggage. We had tin trunk, suit
case, a basket containing $50 oranges
as a bukshish for our school boys,
hat box, lunch box, umbrella, 2 rose
bushes, water bottle, and a cane chair.
Mr.. Ross had trunk, suitcase, lunch
basket, water bottle, umbrella, a large
bundle Of framed pictures. It made a
fairly full compartment! In addition
to all this, we were bringing with us
as luggage in the luggage car, two
beds and a huge bookcase, s feet long
and 6 feet high! After hearing all
this, you will not be surprised when
we come home, to see us walking up
Fifth street with bundles on our heads,
| am sure!
Mission Meetings Strenuous
Our mission meetings were unusual
ly strenuous this year, and we have
all returned more or less tired out.
So many of our missionaries have
gone to America, either for their own
health or because of ill-health in their
families, that we are very shorthand
ed, and it took much careful planning