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Kansas Charley is dumped at the railroad by Mr. Booth. Charley has no money or food. He receives a letter from New York with enough money to get him back to New York.
A Boy Abandoned, A Brother FoundTo ridding himself of Kansas Charley, Mr. Booth took Charley to the train depot in St. Charles, Minnesota and dumped him there. No ticket back to New York was purchased for him. Nor did he have any money or food. Charley started walking cross-country, looking for work as he hiked. He met a farmer who offered him a job. Charley was waiting for a letter to catch up with him, either from the Children's Aid Society in New York City or his brother Fred in Kansas. Some months went buy before the New York letter came, instructing him to go to the train depot and buy a ticket for Kansas with the $5.00 that was included. In October of 1888, he arrived in Leonardville, Kansas where his brother was living with the Loofbourrow family who ran the newspaper there. Fred worked there and Charley went to work beside his brother. But he was only there for a few months. There was more change in the wind for Kansas Charley. Goodbye Charley Miller, Hello Kansas CharleyAfter being with his brother Fred and the Loofbourrow family for only a few months, Charley was sent to Randolph, Kansas. There, he lived with the Colt family and worked at their newspaper office. He was only some five miles from Leonardville, Kansas where Fred lived so could see his brother on occasion. Charley, Charley, Where Have You Gone?After just a few months with the Colt family Charley hit the road again. His brother later stated that Charlie had not behaved himself while with the Colts and couldn't settle anywhere. Also later, after Charley was cooling his heels in the Cheyenne, Wyoming jail awaiting his fate, he said that the Colts didn't clothe him. Whether this was to mean that they refused him warm clothing or the clothing they provided were not up to his taste in style is only suspect. It was a fact, however, that the two old suits that Charley owned were outgrown and overworn. He'd had them since leaving the orphan asylum and they had already been secondhand when he received them. Also, he was still drawing no wages, and therefore had no way to purchase what he thought suitable. Youthful and Windy Revenge TakenCharley made his escape from the Colts after stealing some shirts and a valise belonging to the Colts. He then headed north on the Union Pacific to Omaha and Council Bluffs. Somewhere along the way the fierce prairie winds whipped up and blew open the valise, carrying away the stolen shirts and nearly every stitch that Charley owned. Although he was headed east to where his sister Carrie lived, the state of Kansas had made an impression on him and he began to think of himself, not as Charley Miller but, at age fourteen, as Kansas Charley. Charley, although often a hungry, was his own boss at last. He learned considerable about surviving in a cold, uncaring world. He also learned how to hop a freight train without paying a fare as he worked his way across country. After several weeks of hopping trains and going without food, in the spring of 1889, Charley was picked up by a traveling salesman who took him to the town of Glenwood, Iowa. There, Charley landed another newspaper job with William Robinson. In an interview later, Mr. Robinson stated that Charlie's work in his print shop was "bright" and that he was "a smart compositor." Robinson also said that at home Charlie became "uncooperative and, finally, duplicitous." Sunday School and a New SuitMrs. Robinson saw in Charley a chance to do missionary work. She made him bathe often and bought him a new suit. She also made him promise to go to church and Sunday school regularly. Charley was with the Robinsons for two months. In that time he developed a new interest, one that he found exciting and could be had cheaply, reading Dime Novels. On the Road AgainKansas Charley again fled from adult authority. With him went the new suit of clothes and some of Mrs. Robinson's hard-earned egg money, stolen right from her kitchen. Kansas Charley continues with Kansas Charley Ships Out Previous: Kansas Charley Reaches Puberty
The copyright of the article Kansas Charley on His Own in American History is owned by Mary Trotter Kion. Permission to republish Kansas Charley on His Own in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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