by Alfred Elwes
CHAPTER VI.
STEALING A RIDE--KICKED OUT BY THE BRAKEMAN.
ARCHIE was dumbfounded. Never before had he been among such a motleycrowd, and his first impulse was to turn and run. But on second thoughthe decided that it would be best to put on a bold face and walk up tothe men. This he did, and when he reached the fire the men jumped up andasked him who he was. In a few words he told them his simple story, andthey all laughed and sat down again about the fire, making a place forhim. "You're one of us, then, laddie," said the leader of the gang."We're all soldiers of fortune, all dependent upon the generous publicfor our livelihood. But we're not goin' to the city. There's nothin'there for us, and our advice to you is for you to steer clear of theplace, too. Them police takes ye and throws ye into jail as quick asa wink, and there's no chance of gettin' anythink to eat at basementdoors, neither. They're all on to us, there, laddie, and ye'd betterstick to the country."
This bit of advice was endorsed by the entire company, and it was invain that Archie tried to make them understand that he was no ordinarytramp, walking about the country in search of an easy time. He triedto tell them that he was going to the city to work, not to beg; but theleader, a big, dirty fellow, weighing two hundred pounds or over, said,"Never mind, laddie, we knows you've run away from home to get away fromthe folks, and we appreciates yer position. If yer a mind to stand byus, we'll stand by you, and see thet ye comes to no harm."
On thinking things over, Archie decided that it was perhaps the wisestthing for him to appear to sympathise with the tramps, and make himselfagreeable while with them. He had undoubtedly run into a gang of theworst sort of vagabonds, and there was no way of getting away from therewithout arousing their suspicions. So he partook of their slender meal,and joined in the general laughter when the leader, "Fattie Foy," madesome crude attempt at punning. The meal was one to be remembered. Thecoffee had been heated in an empty tomato can over the fire, and fromits taste was evidently a combination of various collections made fromthe farmhouses round about. Besides the coffee there was a variouscollection of sandwiches and bread and butter, and two pieces of cake.One man had succeeded in striking a good house, and came back laden withpickles and crackers and cheese, which were probably the remains of somepicnic basket. Another fellow had brought some pieces of cold bacon,and these were warmed on sticks over the fire until they looked reallyappetising. From some barn had come a half-dozen fresh eggs, and thesewere quickly boiled in a can of hot water, and made a very fair showingon the slab of granite which served as a table.
When everything was ready the provisions were equally divided among thecrowd, and every one shared alike. It made no difference how much moreone man collected than another, it was always shared with the entirecrowd. Poor Archie found it almost impossible to eat, but the meninsisted that he take something, so he did manage to swallow a few sipsof coffee and eat a slice of bread and butter. But as he looked abouthim at the dirty hands and faces, and the filthy garments of the tramps,he determined not to eat again while with them.
When the meal was over the two tin cans were washed at a spring ofwater, and as it was now quite dark, they all sat close to the fire, inorder to see. Some one produced a pack of dirty cards, and they began agame of some kind. Archie was asked to join, but he told them he didn'tknow anything about card-playing. The poor lad was beginning to wish hehad never left home, and felt more miserable than at any other periodof the journey. He walked over to a corner of the ruins where the lightfrom the fire did not penetrate, and, once there, he sat down and sobbedbitterly for a time. When he had finished crying it seemed impossiblefor him to sleep. The scene about the fire fascinated him. The men wereseated in every sort of picturesque attitude, and as the flickeringlight fell upon their dark faces it wasn't hard for the poor lad toimagine that he had fallen among a crowd of brigands. He watched them asthey played until he could see no longer, and then he fell into a soundsleep.
When Archie woke it was still dark, but the moon was shining brightlyoverhead, making everything as light as day. He rubbed his eyes and satup, and it was some time before he could realise where he was. Then, ashe saw the tramps lying about the ground, he remembered his adventuresof the night before, and, horrified that he had allowed himself tosleep, he hastily jumped up, and determined to get away from the ruinsas quickly as possible. The tramps were all sleeping soundly, andthe only noises to be heard were the sound of their breathing andthe blood-curdling hoot of some owl perched on the pillars of the oldportico. The boy picked his way carefully between the bodies of thesleeping men, and in a minute stood once more on the grand flight ofsteps outside. He was trembling for fear some tramp would awake andprevent his going, and when a bat brushed him in its flight he almostscreamed with terror. Far out beyond the trees and the shrubby he couldsee the road glistening in the moonlight, and he made his way as rapidlyas possible out of the grounds, and was once more on his way to thecity.
It was lonesome work, walking along a country road at night, andArchie remembered with longing his cosy bed at home. The feeling ofhomesickness kept growing within him, despite his efforts to down it,and when at last the glorious autumn sun rose over the eastern horizonhe was miserable with longing for mother and for home. But he was tooproud to even think of turning back. He must reach the city at allhazards, homesick or not.
Archie did not think of breakfast this morning. His experience of thenight before seemed to have taken away his appetite entirely, and hisonly thought was to walk as fast as possible, so that he could reach thecity soon. About nine o'clock he entered the outskirts of a busy town,and while there he observed that the railroad going to the city passedthrough the place. All at once a new idea occurred to him. He had sooften heard men and boys tell of how they had stolen a ride from onetown to another. Why shouldn't he be able to get a ride on a freighttrain to the city. Would it be wrong? Archie thought not, since somany men did it. And anyhow it didn't seem a wicked thing to cheat therailroad. He had heard people say that the company ought to be cheatedwhenever possible, since it cheated so many others. So, from being sotired and so anxious to reach New York, Archie decided to try and steala ride. He entered the yards, where a train was being made up for thesouth, and there he saw a cattle-car with an open door. He immediatelyjumped inside and shut the door, squeezing himself into the farthestcorner, hoping that he wouldn't be discovered. He soon found that hewasn't alone, for a couple of tramps were in the opposite corner, andthey whispered to him not to make any noise. "The brakie," they said,"will soon be 'round, and if he finds ye he'll put us all in jail."
Poor Archie grew pale at the thought of being put in jail, and huddledhimself closer in the corner. After a time the train started, and thetramps, he noticed, climbed up into some sort of compartment under theroof of the car, where they wouldn't be observed, leaving Archie alonedown-stairs. Things went smoothly for a time. The train went flyingalong, and Archie counted every mile which brought him nearer to thecity. Finally the train pulled up at a crossing, and a brakeman camealong and threw open the door of the car. He was not long in discoveringthe cowering figure in the corner, and his wrath was dreadful to lookupon. "So, ye cussed vagabond," he growled, "ye thought ye'd steal aride, did ye? Get out o' this now. Quick, out with ye." Archie couldhave fainted, and, as it was, he almost fell out of the car, propelledby the brakeman's boot. For awhile he stood dazed beside the track, andfinally moved on. "I'll keep a 'stiff upper lip,'" he said, "whateverhappens." But this was by far the most discouraging adventure yet.