MISCELLANY
NO. 25
HOW
TO TRAVEL BY (VICTORIAN) TRAIN PART 6
AFTER
THE JOURNEY.
COLLECTING
BAGGAGE.
LET us now
suppose the traveller arrived at his destination. We may premise that as he
draws near to the terminus, he gathers together the various articles he has
with him, so as to be able to emerge from the carriage immediately the train
stops. We are anxious to lay some stress on this provision, because there are
persons who neglect to take this precaution, and who at the last moment are to
be seen rummaging beneath the seats, exclaiming, in half-stifled voices, “Dear
me, I’ve lost my bag.” “Where’s my hat-case gone?” “I can’t find my umbrella,”
and so on. What ought to be done is to collect the things together, and to
consider whether you have all. Place these under your arm, in your hands, or
otherwise conveniently dispose of them; if you are travelling in company let
each bear his share of the burden. If your ticket has not been taken, be sure
you have it handy and ready to deliver up.
MEETING FRIENDS.
If any friends
are going to meet you at the station, do not increase their anxiety by putting
your head out of the carriage window before the train stops, because as you
must withdraw your head to allow other passengers to alight, your friend loses
sight of you, and becomes confused in his search from one carriage to another.
Keep your place quietly, let your fellow-travellers leave the carriage, and
then show yourself at the carriage door, standing full in view, and conspicuous
above the surrounding crowd. If you have appointed to meet someone to whom you
are personally unknown, you should, by pre-arrangement, have some mark or sign
by which you may instantly be recognized; a piece of ribbon in the button-hole,
or a card inserted beneath the hatband will answer this purpose.
ENGAGING CAB,
ETC.
If you wish to
engage a cab or a fly, hand your bag or rug to one of the porters who comes to
the door as the train enters the station, desiring him to engage you a cab, and
noting his number, so that you may afterwards request him to point out the
vehicle he has engaged. If you do not see a porter, then hail a cab from the
rank drawn up in the station, keeping your eye upon the man you have engaged,
and making straight for him directly you leave the carriage. It may here be
observed that the drivers of four-wheeled cabs prefer persons with luggage to
those without, as they can see a clearer prospect of profit, and the chances
are that if you have only a small handbag, and walk down the rank, each driver
in succession will tell you he is engaged, and you will therefore have wasted
your time to no purpose. We should advise luggageless travellers to hail a “
Hansom,” that vehicle being a species of light cab, set up rather for speed
than capacity. But perhaps the quickest way of all is to quit the station yard.
as speedily as possible, outside of which there will generally be found plenty
of vehicles ready and eager for a job. If it be an omnibus you are going by,
make towards it without a moment’s hesitation, for the chances are that there
will be more passengers wishing to go by it than it is able to accommodate.
DISPOSAL OF
LADIES AND CHILDREN.
Should you be
accompanied by ladies, by children, or by both, it is essential that you should
remove them out of the noise, bustle, and confusion inseparably attendant on
the arrival of a train. If the arrangements you have to make will occupy only
two or three minutes, you may leave them in the carriage till you can rejoin
them. If you are likely to be any length of time in completing your
arrangements, then the best plan is to conduct your companions to the
waiting-room, there to remain until you have done all you have to do. If you
succeed in engaging a vehicle immediately on your arrival, and have nothing
further to detain you, then you may at once conduct them to the vehicle, and afterwards
see about your luggage.
LOOKING AFTER
LUGGAGE.
As a matter of
course, a railway traveller should, on reaching his destination, look after his
luggage as speedily as possible. If the number and position of the van in
which, or upon which the luggage has been placed, has been noted, as previously
advised, then there will be no difficulty in finding it. As the luggage is
delivered from the vans, porters are standing near to convey it to such place
as the owner may direct. Directly you recognize your articles claim them, and
ask one of the porters standing by to carry them for you. At such a juncture
beware of thieves, who infest railways for the purpose of misappropriating
luggage that is unclaimed, or claimed hesitatingly. Be cautious, also, that you
yourself do not lay claim to luggage that is not your own. Many packages
closely resemble each other, and in the hurry of the moment they may be
confounded; but in nearly every case there is some distinctive feature
perfectly familiar to the owner, and which he should look for to avoid error.
It is an extremely awkward affair to be detected in the act of walking off with
some other person’s property, and although the mistake may be explained
subsequently, it yet entails a considerable amount of mortification
humiliation, and delay.
RECLAIMING LOST
LUGGAGE.
Through the
carelessness of passengers, luggage is frequently lost or mislaid, and it will
be as well to know the best method of regaining such missing articles. In the
first place, it should be known that when the train is emptied of its
passengers one of the company’s servants enters every carriage, lifts up the
seat and the carpet, looks under the seats, and otherwise makes a careful
inspection, and any articles found by him are forwarded to the terminus. Here,
there is a lost luggage office, in which all stray property is received. A
description of each article is entered in a book, stating the day, the time,
etc., when found. If the articles inquired for are not traceable at the chief
station, a description is sent to each of the offices where lost luggage is
kept. If this application be unsuccessful, the superintendent applies to the
manager of the Railway Clearing-house, who writes to all the stations on the
various lines of railroad, and if it be at none of these stations, a letter is
then addressed to the inquirer, informing him that his lost property is not on
the railway. All unclaimed property is forwarded to the head station, and kept
there pending inquiries made with a view to ascertain the addresses of the
owners; and if such addresses can be ascertained, the property is forwarded on
the payment of a fine of 6d. for each article. If the property be not claimed
within two years, it is sold by public auction. Obviously, therefore, what a
person has to do when he misses any portion of his luggage, is to make such
loss known immediately to the stationmaster, giving as correct and minute an
account of the missing articles as he possibly can to facilitate inquiry. He
should also charge his memory as to the last place where he saw his luggage
safe. But in respect to these, we may mention a well-authenticated
circumstance in
connection with lost luggage, namely, that property is frequently not regained
because persons are so positive that they have left it in such and such place,
and therefore do not think it worth while to inquire at any other place. We see
instances of this treachery of memory combined with overweening confidence in
every-day life. Let all persons, therefore, take the hint, and be upon their
guard accordingly. If a person has reason to think that his property has been
taken in mistake or stolen, the best plan is to advertise instantly in The
Times, and at the same time to put himself in communication with the police,
who will materially assist his search. In all these cases delay is dangerous;
active measures must be taken on the instant, for every lapsing moment renders
the chance of recovery more remote. It should also be known that every cab
which leaves a railway station has its number taken by a person stationed at
the gate, together with the place to which he is engaged to drive. Thus, any
traveller who may have left any property in a cab has only to state on which
day and by what train he arrived, also whither he was conveyed, and from these
data the driver’s name and address can at any lapse of time be readily
ascertained. But beside this, it is advisable that a person should take the
number of the cab-driver previous to entering the cab, thus rendering the task
of recovery easier still.
SENDING
INTIMATION OF SAFE ARRIVAL.
When a railway
traveller has left behind him those who are near and dear to him, it is but
natural that they should be anxious to hear of the safe arrival of the “ dear
departed ;” and in such cases it is a great piece of cruelty to withhold that
which may be so readily imparted. And yet it is common enough for a traveller
to promise that he will write, but on his arrival to neglect to do so. He
himself is perfectly conscious of his safety, and appears to think that others,
however far removed, ought to be cognizant of the agreeable fact. When he gets
to his hotel or lodgings, he pretends that he is too tired to write, that it
will do very well to-morrow, and thus suffers those from whom he is separated
to be in a state of the greatest anxiety for four-and-twenty hours. The remedy
for this is simple enough. Let the railway traveller, just previous to
starting, write a note headed with the name of the place to which he is going,
and stating that he has arrived safely; this, put into an envelope ready
addressed and stamped, the traveller can take with him, so that upon his
arrival he has simply to post it, and the purpose is duly answered. Anything by
way of postscript may be added in pencil, or if it is considered more genuine,
the whole of the note may be written in pencil, and placed into the envelope
prepared for it.
DESPATCHING
TELEGRAPHIC MESSAGES.
At any time
during the journey, or when he has arrived at its termination, the railway
traveller may call to mind some important matter which he is desirous of
communicating to those whom he has left behind. For such emergencies the
telegraphic wires are ever ready to obey the behests of their employers ; and
through their medium any error may be rectified, or any neglect repaired while
the traveller continues his journey at his ease. Nearly every station has a
telegraph office attached to it, so that all a traveller has to do is to write
his message on a slip of paper, and at any station deliver it to the guard,
together with the fee, and everything is then done.
HIRING PORTER.
If a person does
not require a vehicle, he will seldom have any difficulty in finding a porter
to carry his luggage. A crowd of men and boys are usually to be met with
outside the terminus who, for a trifling fee, will convey the luggage to any
part of the town. It would be as well to hire a clean and honest-looking
messenger, and also to take the precaution of making him walk on in front, as
you will then have your eye upon him, and he cannot well decamp without your
knowledge. On the principle of seeking information from everybody, you may,
while jogging onwards, glean from your luggage-bearer such items of
intelligence as will prove advantageous.
LEAVING ARTICLES
AT THE STATION.
It is sometimes
of the utmost convenience to leave your luggage at the station while you settle
any preliminaries incidental to an arrival in a fresh place. For instance, if
you have not yet secured your lodgings, you will be able to do so much better
without your luggage than with it. Or if you are going to stay at an hotel, you
may select at your leisure the house at which you would prefer to stop, without
being forced to put up at any particular hostelry, through the cajolery of the
fly-driver and the pertinacity of the landlord. Frequently the fly-driving and
hotel interest work into each other’s hands, the flydriver receiving from the
landlord so much per head for every customer brought. When, therefore a person
arrives at a town he has not hitherto visited, and places himself and his
luggage in a fly, intent upon putting up at an hotel, but without any knowledge
of which is the best, it is a common thing enough to appeal to the fly-driver,
and he, as in duty bound, drives you straight off to his employer for the
purpose of receiving his reward. It need scarcely be remarked that the
proprietors of hotels who descend to this system of bribery have ordinarily not
the best of houses, their larder and cellar being alike indifferent, and their
accommodation execrable. But there are a variety of circumstances which render
the leaving of luggage preferable to carrying it about. The stay in the place
may only be a short one, perhaps not more than a few hours. When, therefore,
the passenger arriving, wishes to leave his luggage, he should have it conveyed
to the office set apart for that purpose, paying a small fee of some 2d. or
3d., and receiving a ticket in return. The production of the ticket will be
sufficient to insure the delivery of the articles, so that the owner need not
trouble to go for them himself if he does not feel so disposed.
FORWARDING
PARCELS BY COMPANY’S EXPRESS.
At almost every
terminus, parcels will be taken charge of and forwarded by what is termed the
Company’s Express, carts and other vehicles being employed for that purpose,
and a great deal of trouble being thus taken off the hands of the traveller who
is saddled with packages to be delivered at various places. The rates charged
are moderate, and safety and speedy delivery are insured.
NOTING TIME OF
DEPARTURE OF RETURN TRAINS
When a person
alights at a station, from which he intends returning the same day, he of
course ought to know the times of departure. If he is not provided with a
railway guide, this information will be gained on consulting the time-table which
is usually hung up near the entrance of the station, and if there be no
time-table, or there be any difficulty in understanding it, the necessary
information may be obtained from the porter who takes the ticket at the gate.
In such cases memory is not to be trusted, and a memorandum of the times should
be taken.
NOTING THE
POSITION OF THE STATION.
When a person is
about to return to the station at which he alights, and will in all probability
have to do so in a hurry, in order to catch the that is passing through, he
should observe the relative position of the station in connection with the
other buildings by which it is surrounded, and the turnings right and left
which lead from it to train the town. So that on coming back, the station may
be reached without difficulty without inquiring the way, which consumes time,
and without going in a wrong direction, which is worse than all. Should the
traveller be at a loss, let him look about him for the telegraph wires and
posts, running his eye along these till he recognizes the top of the station,
and then following up the clue.
REACHING ACROSS
COUNTRY AND OUT-OF-THEWAY PLACES.
A railway
traveller is destined occasionally to alight at a station which is removed some
seven, eight, or ten miles from the place he wishes to reach. Possibly no cab,
fly, or omnibus is to be had; he cannot walk it; what then is he to do? The
best plan in such a dilemma is to repair to the nearest; inn, and make
inquiries for any vehicle under a post-chaise and four. Generally speaking, the
landlord has a pony and gig with which he goes to ;the nearest market, or a
four-wheeled chaise that he drives his wife and daughters in to the next town,
or, if he has not one, he knows some neighbour who has, and if it even be an
ox-cart, it is preferable being conveyed by that, to passing the best part of
the day in some dreary and desolate hamlet.
WHILING AWAY THE
TIME AT STOPPING STATIONS.
It sometimes
happens that a person has to wait the arrival of the train at the station of
some little country town. Under such circumstances, time hangs most heavily,
and an hour appears as long as a day. The amusements within reach are of the
most meagre description. The two or three persons who wander in and out of the
station may have no marked peculiarities, and they are but two or three after
all. There may be a few cocks and hens in the adjacent poultry-yard, but they
are probably lazy or replete, and their movements are of the most commonplace
and uninteresting description. As to the town itself, the chances are that it
has little worth seeing, and a peregrination of its utmost limits can be
accomplished in ten minutes. To while away the time under such unpromising
aspects is somewhat of an art. If a person have a book with him, he need look
no further for recreation. If not, let him procure three or four sheets of
writing paper, a pen, and a bottle of ink, bring them back to the waiting-room,
and sit down to write two or three letters to as many friends. It is
astonishing how quickly time flies with those who are using the pen. If the
thoughts come with difficulty, then much time is consumed in bringing them to
bear; if thoughts come. readily, then the noting them down consumes time also.
Another end is accomplished, since time is economized and put to a good use,
which would be otherwise frittered away.
RATES OF
TELEGRAMS.
The rates for
forwarding telegraphic messages vary with the different railway companies; the
following scale will, however, be found to approach the general charges as
nearly as possible: For 25 miles, 1s., 50 miles 1s. 6d., beyond 50 miles 2s.,
for messages not exceeding 20 words. Half these rates are charged for every 10
words, or portion of 10 words, not exceeding 20 words. Cypher communications
sent according to same rates, four cypher or private signals being considered
equal to 20 words. Each word underlined, in Italics, or within parenthesis, or
between inverted commas, will be counted and charged as two words. Messengers
are despatched immediately on arrival of message. The charge, if within 3
miles, 6d. per mile on foot, or ls. per mile by cab, horse, etc., if beyond 3
miles ls. per mile by the readiest available means. No porterage is charged if
the distance be within half a mile. For distances within 10 miles, if sent by
rail only 6d. per mile is charged; and porterage in London is charged 6d. per
mile for the first 3 miles, and 6d. for every half mile beyond 3 miles, 1s. per
mile if by cab. As the charge for telegraphic messages is regulated by the
number of words, it is obviously essential to make the message sent as concise
as possible, pruning it of all redundant words and tautologies; but while
aiming at brevity, care must be taken not to relapse into ambiguity, as
illustrated by the following anecdote. The husband of a lady of rank, residing
at Edinburgh, engaged the services of an eminent London practitioner for his
wife’s approaching accouchement. About the time the auspicious event was
expected to occur, Dr. received the following message: “Don't come too late;”
and in obedience to this summons he immediately set out for the North. Arrived
at the mansion, he was received by the husband with an air of astonishment, and
an inquiry as to whether the telegraphic message had been received. Dr. -
replied that he certainly had received such message, and that was the immediate
cause of his appearance in Edinburgh. “God bless me!” said the husband, “that
is very extraordinary, for I should have thought the message would have had the
effect of preventing your coming, as, indeed, was the intention, for, to tell
you the truth, the little stranger had already come to light when the message
was sent, and as that was the case, word was sent to you not to come, as it was
too late.” “Well,” said the doctor, “ you may have meant such a message to have
reached me, but the one I received was, ‘Don’t come too late,’ and thinking
that the event was momentarily expected, I did not hesitate a moment to place
myself in the train, and here I am.” “ I see it all,” said the husband, “it is
simply an error in punctuation, the message as sent being, ‘Don’t come— too
late,’ so that although the same words were transmitted, their meaning was
widely different.” Similar misunderstandings, equally as ludicrous as this,
have occurred over and over again, arising, in nearly every case, from a want
of explicitness.
ACCOMMODATION
FOR RAILWAY TRAVELLERS.
A few words on
this subject may prove useful. If you intend staying at an hotel, and are a
stranger to the place, make inquiries among your friends as to which is the
best house to stop at. Under any circumstances, never select a second or
third-rate hotel, its accommodation is always inferior, and its charges usually
exorbitant. If there exists the probability of an influx of visitors into the
town, the precaution should be taken of pre-engaging a room by writing to the
landlord a few days previously. Should the bustle and noise of an hotel be
objected to, very good accommodation is to be met with at a boarding-house. If
apartments are desired, and some difficulty is experienced in obtaining them,
temporary quarters may be taken to afford time for looking out for the more
permanent home. In some cases, neither hotel accommodation nor apartments are
to be had. To remedy this want, a bed-room may be engaged at a private house,
and the meals taken at an hotel. It should be borne in mind that where private
apartments are occupied at an hotel, the charges are much dearer than when the
ordinary accommodation of the coffee-room is accepted. The same remark applies
to dinners, etc., specially ordered, instead of partaking of the fare provided
for the common table.
Some persons are
desirous of securing the comforts of an hotel, without incurring the expense or
the obligation of taking intoxicating liquors. To meet this view, many towns
have what are termed Temperance Hotels, where the desired end may be achieved.
Finally, we
would warn travellers that in many instances they will have to put up with
discomfort, and they will rarely meet with all the comforts of a home. Instead
of chafing at these drawbacks, the best way is to be prepared for them, to
treat them as lightly as possible, and as the French say, “accept the
situation.”
Having thus
brought the Railway Traveller to the end of his journey, and seen him safely
housed, we cannot do better than devote the few remaining pages of this little
volume to items of information which cannot fail to prove generally useful, and
especially so to the excursionist and to visitors from the country.
To be concluded
with this useful information next week.
