Sometimes we would cross The Penn- sylvania Railroad tracks. It was only a few blocks from my house. I would climb onto the embank- ments they were built on and then go under the rails to flirt with danger. I could get as close as a foot below the rails while a train passed over. Imagine that!
EARLY YEARS
My friends and I often took long hikes out into the countryside. We gave no thought to the distance when we started walking. Those hikes were always full of adventure. We picked punks and lit them to keep mosquitoes away, and we jumped from rock to rock with our knickers hanging down. When we passed the big foreboding house on Flower Hill, we stayed away because we knew it was haunted! Even- tually, we crossed 9th Street all the way from 3rd and now we were really getting away from civilization.
Punks
About a mile or so out we would cross The B & O Railroad tracks. Late at night, lying in bed, ten years old I could hear way off in the
distance the wail of a B & O train whistle as it sped south. I always thought it was on its way to far-off exotic places like Florida. Florida seemed a million miles away to a little boy, a dream paradise. [this was in the 30’s air conditioning would not come to Florida until the 1950s. It would be years later it reaches most properties. Florida was hot and humid, a tropical para- dise complete with mosquitoes.] Further out, we would come upon the quarry. As we approached, we would crawl on our bellies and peer over the drop-off all while exploring our fear. Backing away from the precipice, we would continue, eventually reaching Ridley Creek. Sometimes we would keep walk- ing until we reached Chester Creek. On a hot day, we would take off our clothes and go swimming. Think- ing back it seemed like we were a million miles from anywhere. The biggest danger back then was the older kids. We had to evade them, or they might have started a fight with us. Somehow, we always managed to get home without too many scratches. Mother always thought we were nearby playing ball or something. She would have been surprised to learn the truth.
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Herman and Prince, age 7-1/2 - 1931
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