How to Travel. Thomas Wallace Knox
accepts every situation with a smile of content, or at least with a feeling of resignation, is the model voyager. For him the miles go by as on the wings of a bird, while to the grumbler and misanthrope they are weighted with lead. The former comes back from his wanderings refreshed and instructed while the latter is no better in mind and body than when setting out on his journey. For your own comfort and happiness, and your own mental and physical advantage, start on your journey with a determination to see the bright side of everything and to endure as cheerfully as possible the jolts and buffetings and petty disappointments that are sure to be your lot. And in the same proportion that a light heart makes you better for yourself it makes you better and more agreeable for those who may be traveling with you.
If you have been reared in the belief that your own country, or your own state, town, or hamlet, contains all that is good in the world, whether of moral excellence, mental development, or mechanical skill, you must prepare to eradicate that belief at an early date. That you and yours have the best and are the best we will not for a moment deny, but when you attempt to claim everything you claim too much. To an observant and thoughtful individual the invariable effect of travel is to teach respect for the opinions, the faith, or the ways of others, and to convince him that other civilizations than his own are worthy of consideration. At the same time he will find his love for his native land as strong as ever and his admiration for his own institutions as warm as on the day of his departure. An old traveler once said: "I have found good among every people, and even where there was much to condemn there was much to admire. I have never returned from a journey without an increased respect for the countries I have visited and a greater regard for my own land than ever before. The intelligent traveler will certainly be a true patriot."
So much for the mental conditions of travel. We will come now to the practical and tangible needs of locomotion.
Money is the first of these things. It is true that one can travel without money, and in a later chapter we will see how it may be accomplished; for the present we will look upon money as a requisite.
Never carry a large amount of cash about your person or in your baggage. A letter of credit, procurable at any banker's, is far better than ready money, as its loss causes nothing more than temporary inconvenience. It is best not to lose it at all; but, in case of its disappearance, payment may be stopped and the finder or thief can derive no benefit from its possession. The usual form of a letter of credit is about as follows:
"New York, 18 .
"To our correspondents:
"We have the pleasure of introducing to you * * * * * the bearer of this letter, whose signature you will find in the margin. We beg you to honor his drafts to the amount of * * * * * pounds sterling upon our London house. All deductions and commissions to be at the expense of the bearer.
"We have the honor to remain, gentlemen,
"Very truly yours,
"* * * * *"
Some banking-houses have their letters printed in French instead of English, but the substance is the same. The amount is usually expressed in pounds sterling, and drafts are made payable in London; but if the traveler is going directly to the continent of Europe, some of the bankers will give him, if he desires it, a letter on Paris and state the amount in francs. Sterling credits are generally the best to carry, no matter what country you may be visiting, as London is the money centre of the world, and there is never any difficulty in ascertaining the rate of exchange upon that great city. The traveling letter of credit is printed on the front of a four-page sheet, letter size; the second page is left blank for the endorsement of the amounts drawn, and the third and fourth pages contain a list of bankers in all the principal cities that the voyager is likely to visit. Any respectable banker, even if not named on the printed list, will generally cash a letter of credit; but it is advisable to adhere as much as possible to the correspondents of the establishment that issued the document.
The traveler should only draw at one time sufficient money to last him for a few days, or till he reaches a convenient place for making another draft. A week's supply of cash is usually sufficient for a single draft; but, of course, no absolute rule can be laid down.
Another form of traveling credit is in the shape of circular notes, which are issued by some bankers, though not by all. They are for various amounts—five, ten, twenty, fifty, or a hundred pounds—and are accompanied by a letter of identification which bears the signature of the holder. The notes are useless without the letter, and the letter without the notes, and the traveler is advised to carry them apart from each other. The advantage of this kind of credit is that you can have the notes cashed at a hotel or at any large shop where you may be making purchases, and you may have remittances follow you from time to time in circular notes, the same letter of identification answering for all. The disadvantage is that they are bulky, and consequently inconvenient to carry, and the possession of two parcels in place of one, in different parts of your baggage, doubles the chances of loss. For a long journey where a considerable amount is to be carried, or where remittances are to follow, I would recommend that part of the funds should be in a letter of credit, and part in circular notes with an identification.
For domestic traveling, bankers' drafts and credits can always be procured; but American bankers are much more stringent about identifications than are those of Europe, and the traveler must be sure that he can be properly identified wherever he is going, or he may experience difficulty in obtaining his cash. An obliging banker has been known to pay a draft to an individual who had no other identification than his name written on his under-clothing or his initials tattooed on his arm. But such instances are rare, and the money-changer is very likely to be obdurate, though polite. It is said that a Boston banker once cashed a check payable to the order of Peter Bean, under the following circumstances:—The bearer said he knew nobody in the city, but he proved his identity by ripping open the lining of his coat-collar and revealing a pea and a bean, securely stowed away. "That's my name," said he, "P. Bean; and that's the way I mark my coats." But all names cannot be written with the products of the garden, and Mr. Bean is not likely to have many imitators.
Your letters can be sent to the care of any banker on whom your credits are drawn, and they will be forwarded by him as you may direct. This is the usual custom with European travelers, and there is rarely any cause for complaint.
When traveling, always be careful to have plenty of small change in your pockets, and be prepared to pay all obligations, especially the smallest, in their exact amount. The vast horde of cabmen, porters, guides, waiters, and all classes of people who render you services, or pretend to have done so, are proverbially without change, and if you cannot tender the exact sum due them you are pretty certain to overpay them. Even where they admit that they are possessed of small coin, they generally manage so as to mulct you in something by having their change give out before the proper return is reached. The New York hackman to whom you hand a five-dollar bill for him to deduct his fare of two dollars will usually discover that he has only two dollars, or perhaps two and a half, in his possession; and the London cabman will play the same trick when you ask him to take half a crown from a five-shilling piece. All over the world you will find it the same. There may be an occasional exception, but it only proves the rule. And when you enter the great field of gratuities, you will find that the absence of small change will cost you heavily. Many a man has given a shilling where a sixpence was quite sufficient, and all that was expected; but he did not have the sixpence in his pocket, and the shilling had to go.
Have as little baggage as the circumstances will justify. Don't carry anything on the principle of Mrs. Toodles, that it may come handy some time, but take only what you know to be absolutely necessary. No rule can be laid down, and each person must judge for himself. For a man, a suit of clothes in addition to the one he wears is sufficient for outward adornment, unless he is "in society," and expects to dine, attend parties, or make fashionable visits. In the latter case a dress-suit is indispensable, and in European travel it is generally well to have a dress-suit along, since there are many public ceremonies where the wearer of ordinary clothing is not admitted. For ladies, a traveling-dress, a walking-dress, and a black silk dress may be considered the minimum. The black silk garment corresponds to the masculine dress-suit, but it comes in use on many occasions where the latter is not demanded.