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A story in a "Letter to the Editor from a Rebel Prisoner"
from Harper's New Monthly Magazine's "Editor's Drawer"
There is a small town on the North Missouri Railroad called Renick; and Renick is a hard place—a very hard place. In the car, the other day, sitting in a seat near me, with his feet upon the cushions and his hat down over his eyes, was a flashy but dirty-looking individual, evidently some “three sheets” gone—indeed he was “maudlin drunk.”
The Conductor, in coming around, gave him a shove and. aroused him with a short—“Ticket, Sir!”
“Ain’t got none,” said Loafer.
“Pay your fare then.”
“How much is it?” demanded the fellow.
“Where are you going to?” inquired the Conductor.
“Guess I’m—[hic]—goin’—[hic]—to the devil!” spoke Loafer, wills some air of truthfulness.
“Then,” said the Conductor, “pay your fare to Renick—$5.70!”
Smith, Dr. J. F., "Editor's Drawer", Harper's New Monthly Magazine, Volume 28, Issue 164, January 1864, page 282, New York: Harper and Brother's
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