The Monmouth inquirer., 1926-08-05
Americans on First Trip
Abroad Find Hotel and
Train Customs Different.

New York.--Americans contemplate
ing first trip abroad are particularly
interested in all the hints they can
obtain on differences in mail travel
and hotel customs abroad, said rep
resentative of the American Express
company recently, when asked for
some general information on baggage
and other items connected with trav-
ell. Seasoned travellers know all these
things, but each year produces
brand new crop of visitors to Eu-
rope who have to get this information.
Not only are customs different, but
common everyday things go by diff
ferent names, he pointed out, and
this applies not only to countries
where foreign languages are spoken,
but to. England, where a street car is
called tram, 'curb" is spelled
"kerb," and Check is "cheque,"
and that the latter has to bear a
revenue stamp.
Division of service on trains into
classes, since many years unknown In
America, is universal in Europe. In
most countries there are three classes
and in some four. First class is
everywhere used only by the very
rich-and by Americans Second class
has practically disappeared in Eng
land Con account of the excellence
of third class, except on few trains
connecting with boats for the Conti-
nent, on which services there is a de-
mand for second class all the way
through. The almost universal habit
among well-informed Americans he
said, is to travel third class in Eng
land and second In most of Europe,
going first perhaps in Spain and Por-
tugal Where fourth class is found
the seats are seldom upholstered.
In most countries circular tickets
(like our prewar mileage books),
good for a certain amount of travel
anywhere over certain lines or within
the country, may be obtained. In
some, reduced rates obtain for trips
of more than a certain length; in
others, tickets good for unlimited
travel for certain number of days
may be obtained at fiat price.
Ticket Examination.
Throughout Europe tickets are in
variably examined on entering the
train platform or boarding the train,
and must usually be retained and sur
rendered at destination.
Time tables, it was said, are not
freely distributed in Europe, and it is
sometimes difficult to obtain informal
tion about connections even from the
station agent. On most Of the CONT
nent the 24-hour clock is used, the
hours from l p. M to midnight being
known as IS to "a o'clock. Trains are
not commonly referred to by their
numbers, as in America, and the story
of the American who with infinite
pains had learned the number of the
evening train is classic Glow is No.
Is running this evening?" he asked
the station agent 1.-THE z:43 is re-
ported on time, SIR" replied the in
flexible Britisher
The fact that European coaches
are divided into compartments is
known to most Americans. Originally
these compartments ran all the way
across the coaches from one side to
the other, and access from one com
partment to the next was only by
opening the door and swinging along
an outside running board. Such
coaches are still to be found on local
runs, and are practically universal
in rural districts, but on through runs
on the Continent they have been SUI
perseded by corridor and-vestibule
cars. The compartments open at one
side directly out of doors, but on the
other into the corridor, which runs
along one side of the coach.
Reserved Seats.
On European railways there are al
most no separate coaches consisting
entirely of reserved seats, like the
pullman cars in America. A few lines
In England run pullman cars, and of
course all compartments in sleeping
cars are on reservation, but in general
the above holds true. Instead, any
seat, number of seats or compartments
in an ordinary day coach may be re-
served according to regulations, which
vary in different countries.