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On To Atlanta

On To Atlanta image
Parent Issue
Day
21
Month
November
Year
1895
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

The writer recurned Monday from a trip to Atlanta. Someof his experiences will doubtless, interest sone iu this vicinity who may contémplate a visit to Atlanta to attend the so ealled exposition now being held in that city. We left here a week ago last Tuesday morning for a brief visit to Atlanta's big show. At (,'incinnati we secured tickets over the L. & N. R. R. to Nashville and return and leit that city Wednesday a. m. in company with some four hundred Ohio and Michigan newspaper men and thcir wives. It was a jolly company and all anticipated a pleasant trip. The ride through Kentucky and Tennesseo to Nushville was of especial interest to the majority of the passengers who haü ncver before visited "Dixie Land," in that it it was painly apparent even from the car window kow far the South was"behind the,North in every evidence of thrift. One incident oocurred aljout four o'clock in the afternoon. The train was ruahlng along at a rate of about tifty miles an hour, the fastest running we did untü back aeross the Ohio river. Suddenly the train was brought to a standstill and then in a few minutes moved on again. The writer by merest chance lcarned that a farmer had happened to be walking along the track just before our special was due and had discovered a brokon rail. By rushing' back and frantically waving his bandana he had prevented what would othervise have proved an indiscriininate slaughter of the genus editor. A nother incident o;xurred upon reaching Nashville which did uot tend to increase the peace of mind of the passengers. Wuen the train left Cincinnati tho Palman conductor had taken up our ïailroad tickets whicti were good to Nashville and return and our sleeper eliecks good to Atlanta and return. He had promised to reiurn them before reaching Nashville, but here we were at Nashville with no return railroad or , sleeper tickets - and the conductor - well he was gone too This condition of tliiugs conuimed to cxist for sometiuae and of which we shall speak later. Thora. (iay morning we arrived in Atlanta, Arrangement had been made with a certuiu holel proprictor tomeet our delegation with hacks, but nothing in the line of a look place. Our oompany then proceeded to get to the hotel Borne throe miles away as best tiiey could and tliere learned tliat the proprietor could not im.ei us for the reason tliat he eould not ascertuiu from the Failroad tho time within six hours of when out1 special would reach Atlanta. This and a number of other incidents showed very plainly tiiat the telegraph is ot little use ia that seetion of the country. It seems to be too fast for thein. Onee located in thoir hotel the question of getting back their return tickets began to agítate the minds of the inembers of ourcompany. Many of tlioin had bfought their wives and had not coine prepared to put up an extra $20 or $25 for the return trip. As newspaper work cannot be laid aside indeünitely almost all had expecied to spend but two days at the exposition. t'ully three-fourths of this time was squandered in chasing after railroad otlicialp, ticket agents and heads of departments. located in different parts of the eit. , and usually not in their otlice, aad being sent toone pluee for an identitication and to another for an indorsetaont and to another for a certilicato all for the railroad ticket and having the same thíng to do all over ayain for une'ü sieeping car ticket and having to go to each place two or three times before you could catch the sleepy southeruera in their places of business Thia left about (5 hours to take in the (ireat Cotton Exposition, but in the state of mind in wbieh most of the edito found themselves, this was ampie timo. Sume iifty of our eompany had a pecial misery htill to endure. Special admission tickets were to be furnished, ut n m.iking thtm out, at least fifty had úeen omitted. These were given blaiiks to be lilled out by one official, ■hecked by another, eodorsed by another, countersigned by another, proved by sti.ll another ancl finally signed by an official who must eertainly have secured hia positiou by "inflooonce" for he eertainly had not the least partiële of fitness fór it. The said official seeraed to think that it was absolutely necessary to tnake his signature exactlv imítate uteel píate engravir.g and the time ho look to exorcise his hobby with fifty pooplo -.vaiting for him was exasporating enough to make the very flesh creep upon the marble statuo of liberty. What it took him fourhours to accomplish would all have b-'Ou easily done by any Ann Arbor business man in 30 minutes and fchen have enough time to spare lo have taken a nice little nap. One is constantly and overwhelraingly impressed with the intolerable slowness of the South. It is so evident in e very thing that to a northerner it is painfully distressing. Every resident of Atlanta Í3 constantly bragging that it is far in advance of every other city in the South as a widoawake, progressive place. If it is, then may the good Lord pour out a great ocean of pity on the rest of "Dixie Land." Atlanta, and the state ei Georgia, have spent a large amount of money in preparing for this exposition and the people of Atlanta ure doing their full duty & trying to inake it all back off the people who visie thcra. As au exainple the writer rented a room, and paid an extra fee to get one with a grate and fire. He wae not a little gurprised when an addttional bill was presented for the coal burned. This would have been paid without much protest had not the price askeel foi the coal been just 625 per cent above. what we happened to know the landlord paid to have it delivered at 1 is door. We finally agrood to pay tiie bill, preferlng, however, toconsider the expenditure as a donation in honor of the chivalry and hospitality of the South. Numerous other instances of a like nature which were thrust upon us, greatly to the In jury of out purse, mi ght bementioned butspaceforbids. TheExposition is considerable of an aft'air and all who can spare the time and the cash should visit it. They will at least learn :ots of the South. We are glad that we are not obliged to go a second time.

Article

Subjects
Old News
Ann Arbor Register