New Britain herald., 1927-05-21
JITNEY OPERATOR
 AIRS GRIEVANCES
It's Difficult to Satisfy Public,
 His Firm Conviction

"Fare inna box" and the woman
 who rides the bus line three time:
 a day Is once more reminded thai
 the passenger pays upon entering
 and not when alighting from the
 vehicle while the driver once more
 starts his Connecticut Go. yellow
 elephant on it's way towards the
 city.
 The phrase Flare inna box" ia
 repeated some 50 times a day, and
 usually to the same people and to
 persons who know perfectly well
 that the token Is due upon boarding
 the bus but who just can't seem to
 get 1t through their heads that tho rule holds good at all times.
 To some people the bus driver on long run has a pretty soft time. He pilots huge machine along the highway in manner which commands the respect of passing motorists who edge over to give plenty of room to the wide nosed vehicle. The joys of motoring without the evils of gasoline ex- penditures are his; in case of tire trouble he walks to the nearest tele- phone and sits down to await the arrival of the relief bus from head quarters. Mechanics tune up his car before leaving the garage-trouble is telephoned in from along the line and upon his arrival in his destina- ton another bus awaits him. in the pink of condition, full of gas and oil and ready to go.
 Weather Affects Disposition
 There's another side to the posi- ton. according to a chat with one of the blue capped pilots.
 Tt all depends on the weather" stated the man at the wheel as the bus sped along the highway. "On days that have plenty of sunshine the passengers are as nice as pie everything is rosy and we begin to enjoy life. But let a rainy, drizzly day show up and we're in for a tough session. Everybody crabs about anything and everything. Nothing we do is Night: they threat en to notify headquarters we're ahead of time or we're behind time or we're too near on time to suit them. They've waited an hour for 8 bus when you know for a fact that they haven't been there over five minutes.
 "Who crabs the most? Well, I hate to say it but the women-God bless 'em-are the most consistent and the most thoughtless crabbers. But let a man get grabbing streak on and he's worse than any ten women SO I guess that evens things up."
 Hardly pausing in his talk. he swung around rattling flivver that. hugged the center of the road re- gardless of the bus's whistle.
 "See that? Some day that birds going to have somebody crawl right up his back. It's always the boys in the five dollar down cars that like to hog the highways when we're coming along. suppose they figure that If they get busted up they can get more than the cars worth out of the company.
 We had crab that was crab while I was working on the Hart 'ord line. No matter what was the ime of day or the weather this boy ,ould find something to crab about. The first thing he did when, he got ,n a car was to take out his watch md compare the time with the schedule. He had every car timed 0 the second and couldn't he howl f we were two minutes late or one minute ahead of schedule! Finally le got to be pest and we all got ogether to take some of the ef- iciency out of him. ] finally caught | Jim smoking on the sixth seat from he rear of a car where five seats | were reserved for smoking. He | lever got over the shock of being .alled down in public and his own medicine didn't taste as good as he bought it would. He quit grabbing liter that and lately hear he's dis ppeared-musta bought car.
 Gets Even With Copper
 "I had a run-in with a cop in his city once and I had to wait all most month to get him right for {. He bawled me out once for some hing and 1t didn't set Sd good with ne, especially as he was mooching rides off me when he wasn't in uniform. I was ding ding ng on trolley then and this cop vas building new house on my | inc. One noon he got on with a lock of tools and things without a and busted right up to the ront Of the car-not even looking | t the fare box. I waited until he 'ot his tools all settled and got omfortable and then. with a crowd- d car listening in. I called him. we seen guys turn red but I never aw one turn the color he turned. Ie never would even ride on any ar l conductored on after that.
 Once I had another pleasing It, le experience. I was on the Plain file line and on the last run at fight a whole bunch of people that ad been on a party got on near 'arnesdale. One fellow with his fife, had been tipping 1t little too luch and he sat on the rear side eat and began telling his wife in wedish just what I was and how luch he would like to take me out nd throw me around. was rought up on the language and l nderstood every word he said so
 waited until he got all through nd began telling him in Swedish lst what l thought of him and that was going to do to him when
 got off my run. l still see the 'oman on the street once in awhile nd she crosses over every time she pots me.