scot don't take up no room. 'At goat traveled
f'm N'Yawk to San F'mcisco in de vegetable bin on a dinin' cah. Lily
ain't no rampager."

When the Panama Limited roared into the train shed Lily cringed against
the Wildcat's legs. "Stan' up theh! How come you scared at de ol'
train?"

Followed by the Wildcat and Lily, the Backslid Baptist sought his car.
"Whah at's de Mazeppa?" he asked the first porter whom he encountered.

"Hello, Backslid. Is you runnin' Mazeppa?"

"Aims to."

"Menagerie cah."

"How come?"

"Dogdest cahload ob folks Ah evah see. Wait till mawnin' an' you sees
yo' passengers. 'At's de ol' battleship, five cahs back."

The Wildcat and Lily, in the wake of the Backslid Baptist, presently
boarded the Mazeppa.

Once inside the car, the porter sniffed heavily. "Gin trip. Thank de
Lawd ain't no kids. Don't smell no bananas. Lis'sen. Heah dat boy
snore?"

"Snores lak he's chokin' to death."

"Ain't chokin'. 'At's a fat boy wid de alcohol snorts."

The Backslid Baptist sniffed again. "Sho' is."

"Is what?"

"Chorus girl lady, o' mebbe one ob dem movin' picture ladies."

"Ah'll say you does."

"Does what?"

"Sees an' heahs wid yo' nose. Did anybody bust you in de beak dey'd
knock you deaf an' blind."

"Wilecat, Ah run Pullman ten yeahs--boy sho' gits deprived ob a lot ob
ignorance in dat time. Sho' gits so he knows de folks on his cah quick.
Gits to be a reg'lah mind readeh."

The Wildcat looked at the Backslid Baptist. "Whut dat fat boy wid de
alcohol snorts thinkin' about?"

The mind-reading porter looked at the Wildcat. A slow smile cut a red
gash in his face.

"Same as you--de half bottle whut's left."

"Ah'll say you's a mind reader. Read an' see does de half bottle need a
guardeen."

"Fo'get dat guardeen business. Tomorrow mawin' he gives it to you does
you crave it. 'At boy wouldn't look cross-eyed at you in town, but when
you weahs de unifawm mos' likely does you crave a dram o' his liquor he
be proud to give it to you. When him an' de headache wakes up
tomorrow--"

Zing! From above the Wildcat's head an electric bell rang with the
suddenness of a striking rattlesnake.

"Whut dat?"

"Ca'm yo'sef. Some passengeh ringin' fo' de porteh. Store dat goat in
heah befo' de ol' train conductor comes th'oo."

The Backslid Baptist opened the door of the linen closet. Lily the
mascot was ushered into the dark cave beneath the shelves.

"Lily, at res'! See kin you sleep whilst