I saw a guy fitting that description hitchhiking the other day. Should have reported it.

The last time I heard about a hobo jumping a train was in the "Great Depression." Wait a minute.... two wars, tax cuts bigger than any in history for the top 1% of the country's wealthy, cut backs on food and most of the country needing health insurance and unemployment running out.... gosh that sounds like depression II the sequel. Thanks Bush!

Jazz11...Thanks Bush???...Wake up there, fella, the democrats have been in charge of DC since the 2006 election, and Obama has been president going on 9 months. Even he can't keep blaming Bush any more!

wow. kinda scrapin the bottom of the barrell for news? if the suspect wasn't a "transient" would this have made it into the bdn?

The best part of it all is there will no COLA (cost of living allowance) this year for folks like me who are living on nothing but disability.

(I was too young - only 25-26 - when I could no longer work as the Trained Mecahnical Engineer I once was.. Thus I had no nest egg and I haven't been able to make any real money since, when I could work a bit here and there, or working on the side, or trying to freelance in any way that I could - but that just got easten up by the increased expenses of simply trying).

As it is, I can already barely buy food. Correction, cannot afford to buy enough food, no matter how frugally I expend my $200-$300 per month food budget (an the odd trip for fancy dining out is the dollar menu at BK or McD's). I have $300 per month when the Water Bill is not due. But when its water, heating oil and electric, $200 is my entire food budget.

I haven't been to a dentist in nearly 10 years, and so I've got some very nasty cavities and aches. Probalby will lose some teeht in the next few years. May have to pull them myself at home with pliers and a dremel tool!

I can't afford to see doctors, even though I have nearly full medical coverage. They don't cover physicals and check ups and everytime I see any doctor I get some kind of bill I cannot pay, as I cannot even alwasy pay the bills I have now.

I couldn't take any advantage of the Cash for Clunkers because my 20 year old Ford Escort rust bucket death trap is well past its prime but is still TOO GOOD I guess and I would have had to buy new anyway which no abmout of subsidy or rebate would have made affordable for me.

On top of all that my rent and utilities went up nearly $300 a month this past Februrary when my duplex got declared a single family home by the city and now I can't even afford to move somewhere cheaper (and with my type of illnesses I may be dangerous to others in subsidized housing - too much noise from kids and stuff I may just run amok).

And I am sure this January many of my other current bills will still go up 5-10% anyway. And I know for a fact that I am paying like 15-20% more for many of my most basic items of need, be they food or just plain old TP. And my low-income renter's property tax refund was cut 20% this year.

And if HEAP this year gets cut too, or Hugo Chavez doesn't want to help out again, I'll have to go without heat as well.

Thus, even though they say there's been no inflation, I still will have to make what doesn' make ends meet now, make ends meet even less next year.

So Thank you Mr. Obama, , Thank You for the kind of change I just cannot help but believe in, starve in, freeze in and probably go naked and find myself homeless in the streets and maybe even looking to jump a train to warmer and hopefully better pastures!

This is not the America I was taught about in School! Maybe it's just about time to head to Mexico or Canada! Maine Central, can I bum a ride?

I knew it was Bush's fault....

And so goes the exciting life and the never-ending action of the ever viligant crime fighters of Brownville, Maine!!

We were warned about this when Hollywood Slots opened...

Damn GW, why??????????????????

Not much to do in Brownville I guess !! We used to walk on the railroad tracks when we were kids and , of course, got off them when a train was coming. I haven't heard about 'Hobo's' for decades. Are all the people walking through towns or hitch hiking 'Hobo's ? If you're going for a hike---be careful . You might get arrested if you stop to rest on the wrong property.

So where is this man supposed to stay until Nov. 16th. ????????

Probably a carnie . . .

gregdavid: Boo-de-fricken-hoo-hoo. Sounds like a spoof to me.

A man in a tight gray suit and red bowtie was seen fleeing the scene?

Very obvious the Cops in Brownville have nothing to do but drink coffee and eat doughnuts.

Hey gregdavid, cancel your disability check and go on welfare. Welfare pays much more and you can get food stamps too, eat like a king,. Lobsters and steak every night.

Hobo? Doesn't sound like such a bad option for this winter. Travel to a warmer climate free and live the simple life.

Why call this man a hobo. He is homeless trying to get around. he wasn't hurting anything. In this day and age nobody knows what will happened in a few monthes. It could happen to them also.

ronfromdowneast wrote: "gregdavid: Boo-de-fricken-hoo-hoo. Sounds like a spoof to me."

It has to be a spoof, Ron. No one could be that pathetic.

This story is sad in at least 2 ways;

Sad that this young man has had to resort to jumping on trains to get someplace. A sign of the terrible times. Ya Hobo- a word from the 1930's

so what is the difference between then and now --- not much.

And number 2: Those children working as police officers having to "call for help" every time some BoZo ( maybe hobo ) does something is rediculous.

What are they afraid of - are they scared to handle calls ALONE ? My goodness their predecessors wouldl have been fired for being so chicken hearted . If one moves - they all have got to move. Safety in numbers I guess. And so when the one officer who is getting paid to do his job calls for additional help - who gets charged ,a nd who pays for the additional help ? I understand about mutual aid- but these so called gun carrying chickens are

playing at a game we used to call " crying Wolf ", and it will come back to haunt them.

Also while I am at it - somebody please explain why when these kids in cruisers get a call - THAT IS NOT A ROBBERY OR NOT A MURDER _ why do they drive 30-40 miles over the posted speed limit- what's up with that ? Somebody please respond to my questions with a serious answer

Hey, Louise, do you have any idea who Rafael Resendez-Ramirez was? His true name was Angel Maturino Reséndiz. Since you probably have no idea who he was, I'll fill you in: he murdered 24 people in the U.S. while he was riding around on freight trains. If you decide to read about him on Wikipedia, you can also read about Christopher Maier and Holly Dunn Pendleton, two of his victims who were walking along railroad tracks when they were attacked by him. What if the Brownville crime-fighters had apprehended somebody like that? And Knightscross, thanks for your witty "contribution" to the discussion, too. Maybe the next time either of you needs help, you should call a crackhead instead of a cop.

Eastmainer: "We used to walk on the railroad tracks when we were kids and , of course, got off them when a train was coming." Well, good for you. I'll bet most (if not all) of the 886 people who were killed or injured in 2008 while trespassing on railroad property thought they'd "just step out of the way when the train comes," too. There are a lot of ways to get hurt on RR property, and not all of them involve being struck by a train.

"So where is this man supposed to stay until Nov. 16th. ????????" Hmm, looks like you just used up your monthly quota of BDN Comments question marks in that one sentence. Maybe he should have thought of that before he came out to Maine on his "carefree journey." Maybe he's one of those "Yuppie hobos" who carries credit cards while illegally riding freight trains. (Go look it up if you think I'm being facetious about that.)

People who aren't trespassing probably aren't stealing anything from the railroad, or vandalizing anything, either.

"Stay off, stay away, stay alive." And maybe stay out of jail, too.

........just wondering how this fellow rates being labeled a hobo, transient by the BDN?

I'm enjoying the comments here as much as the hobo story!

I heard about this Angel Maturino Reséndiz fellow. Quite a story.

Lest we not forget about Angel Maturino Resendez. Resendez rode the rails from Mexico to Texas, Kentucky and Illinois committing nine known murders. I am sure the families of his victims would have loved to have had the diligence shown by the Brownville police in arresting Kircher.

I am sure there are still some dedicated to their love of riding the rails across the country, but in this day in age, I would hazard a guess that the majority of the riders are running from some form of crime.

One also has to wonder why a young man from California was hitchhiking and train hopping his way across the country to get to Millinocket of all places (no offense to those who live in Millinocket) ....?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%81ngel_Maturino_Res%C3%A9ndiz

And Texas did the right thing, executed him.

I believe the preferred term is "homeless bum"

wow go figure..the weed bust ,good friend of mine .what a waste of green ..but lots of it around this time of year,be safe folks,legalize the green.peace

Train_Safety----I actually read about "Angel" on YouTube and also in one of the many books I have read. It was quite horrible. Do you live in Brownville? I know it very well and the officers there. My opinion still stands, as it is just an opinion and free for me to express. So sorry if myself and others got you so fired up today. And why would you assume that I wouldn't know who you were talking about??

I don't think this man was headed for Millinocket, but looking for illegal entry in to Canada.

Last week, I met two hitch-hikers, hippie style, with gear, young people in their 20s, an intelligent man and a good lookin' gal (who was apparently IN CHARGE...LOL...as the guy had a big mouth and revealed all of their plans...LOL) each with a dog (one of them a puppy), soliciting donations outside the Bangor Wal-Mart Supercenter at night. They were headed to Canada, and planned to grab the train at Brownville. They told me they had book of some sort which suggested places you could hop a train going to Canada, and it listed Brownville Junction as a place to grab a train.

Having hitch-hiked when young, during and after the military, I couldn't help but talk to them, but was wise enough to keep my cash in my wallet when somebody else donated a $5 Canadian bill (as their cardboard sign signaled their intentions).

I asked them about passports, and the young lady chimed in that she had hers (which I didn't necessarily believe), but the young man said he didn't. I showed them my new passport card, as he had hoped to walk across the PEACE bridge in to Canada, as it was obvious that he was an anti-war hippie, and the idea of walking across a PEACE BRIDGE got him excited....LOL...LOL I recognize all of these signals, as I was the same way when I was his age...LOL...LOL

Even without the new regulations, I doubt that the Canadian authorities would let two young people without a bit of money, and dogs without registration papers, in to Canada as hitch-hikers.

I felt mixed feelings, as I wished them well, but knew that he was heading for trouble. I asked him if he'd ever been arrested, and he said, "No!", and sounded worried. I told him that once they found him in Canada, that's what would happen to him, which is when his cute young girlfriend (both with dogs in tow) started to try to misdirect our conversation. I told him that the trains did leave Brownville and pass near my house on the way to Canada, but that this was NOT A GOOD IDEA.

They weren't looking for work, per se, as if they had to go to Canada to make money, etc. They may be beggars, or hippies out on an adventure with their dogs, but they didn't seem like it was a permanent lifestyle. I got the impression of two college students, out on a lark of some sort, perhaps after deciding to postpone the next semester of college, but I really didn't know.

He told me they planned to visit friends in Nova Scotia, and were attracted to Canada, because SOCIETY SET TOO MANY LIMITS, and WHY SHOULD THERE BE BOUNDARIES TO COUNTRIES...LOL...LOL I pointed to his traveling bags (and dogs), and pointed out that no matter what we did, there were always limitations, and that he could only carry so much in his packs, and that's the way life was....LOL

This made him think. They decided to hitch-hike to Bangor to meet another couple shopping in Bangor, and perhaps try to GRAB A TRAIN at the Bangor train yard, wherever that was.

He said he had a passport, but it was six years old, and he had lost it. I suggested he try to get a replacement BEFORE getting in to trouble over a simple desire to vacation in Canada. Especially with so much territory in the US, near the border, which is very similar to Canada (doesn't Montana have wide open spaces, also?).

When I came out of the Bangor Wal-Mart Supercenter (where I have noticed other homeless people in the past, as these are hard times....one a vet with his mother-in-law in a van with a pension to support them as they traveled around), these two young people and their dogs were gone.

I stopped at a fast food store in the Old Town/Orono area, and happened to see an off duty cop and another cop on duty. I told them the story, and the off duty cop, in his own, personal vehicle, sighed, as the on duty cop took off to answer a call. He told me that the Brownville police wouldn't, "wait around in Brownville," for these two to show up, and that the train cars headed to Canada were locked up tight.

Not to worry, he said, and I understood his position. Just another report of a minor law breaker on his way to trying to pass a boundary that tempted him, and he was off duty in his personal car, and why bother. I asked if I should e mail the border patrol, and he didn't think it was necessary.

When you think about it, these types of incidents are as common as people speeding down I-95, or anyplace else where there is a law or boundary that tempts those who like to break or cross them. I recently met a reformed alcoholic who had been to prison for drunk driving and driving without a license, who had finally reformed himself through the use of AA, and at the age of 50, finally got his very first legal driver's license in Maine. After a whole lifetime of breaking the law regarding driving without a legal license, and drinking, he had finally stopped being tempted by the lure of not conforming to the law, and had lost his desire to break it.

It may be many years before this young, hippie man who wanted to walk across the PEACE BRIDGE, BECAUSE WHY SHOULD THERE BE COUNTRIES AND BOUNDARIES, loses his desire to break the law?

PS He told me I as lucky, as I had been hitch-hiked to Canada in the good old days, when passports weren't required....LOL I had a hearty laugh, and told him that in the good old days, I had been drafted to try to kill people in Vietnam, and if I refused, I would be sent to prison where other strange men might have their WAY WITH ME....LOL Then I told him that I was taking heart medication, and was mostly just pleased to be alive that evening, and wouldn't even give him a ride because I didn't have a seat belt for his companion, which is a violation of the insurance law...LOL...LOL We parted on friendly terms, but it was clear that, if I hadn't influenced him, at least I had pointed out that the GOOD OLD DAYS were NOT ALWAYS THAT GOOD...LOL...LOL

Deschain was right, it was probably a carnie trying to get back home to a loved one, I hope your all happy now... Poor Carnie Dude (Figuratively Speaking) ~8-)

I believe it was Ashton Kircher looking for Demy Morre, they wanted to punk some railroad jumpers. HA! HA! HA!

To Knightscross, ronfromdowneas & and mainecommenter,

Nice to know you all don't give a rat's butt for all the mentally and psychiatrically challenged among you (may you or your dearest loved one's eventually be so afflicted so you too can get your due!).

You must be those "compassionate Conservatives I've heard so much about, the ones that are clearly neither compassionate nor conservative!!!. The ones that live in that other America of which John Edwards so often spoke. The entitled few who clearly know not how a vary large (15%-20%) minority among you lives each and every day of their lives here in the US of A. That other America I once grew up in (from an Upper Middle Class Family with a top tier technical college education that was fully paid for me and an engineering degree earned with honors but then a very bright future cut short because I could not fulfill the basic necessities of just about any job for reasons very much beyond my control) .

FYI to you who think that Capitalism is king and raises all boats and all social programs are a sham and no one suffers in America for any reason other than personal choice. Go screw ourselves! I never chose this! It found me and I found it and t'were it not for what I do have I would be homeless in the streets. And to those that don;t understand the causes of homelessness, they are basically me, but just we bit less capable of navigating and surviving the f-ed up system we have. And there are even millions upon millions of hard working folk out there that actually work 40 hours a week in this wonderful country of ours and they are not even that much better off than I am.

And FYI: I have food stamps already, the max that there is to a single individual living alone, $200/month, which is why I can actually still afford to at least spend and eat that much. A no jerkwads, it's not on Lobsters & Steak every night. Are you kiding me? Are you that ignorant and dumb? If I did that then I would only eat about 2 nights out of every week and have to wait 5 days to eat again. Instead I do what most any person with food stamps does, I buy the cheapest of everything, generally only when on sale or deep discount, usually in bulk even if the unit savings is only minimal (like pennies) and with coupons and then freeze, cool and/or airtight store most of it so it lasts. And buy a whole loot of things like rice and beans that are dirt cheap (esp at Walmart), much in th same way our Mexiacn Brethren to the south, Aising brethren to the east and west nd even our expoited transient agri-aliens do.

And for full disclosure's sake, I do have the odd lobster a couple times a year, when they are extra cheapo (under $5/# and only a chicken one - like during the crisis last spring). And I do eat steak, but mostly chuck or shoulder steaks (the less that $2.00/# ones) and then the odd T-bone here and there when they are on sale for ~$4.99/# but, usually I buy two of them, and make then into three meals, two as NY Strips and then the third as a meal with the two thin tenderloins (known in the French as Tornados). Luckily I am also a trained chef and highly motivated amateur chef so I know how to turn very meager ingredients into haute cuisine! But the thing that kills me the most is the cost of fresh produce and fruit and I like to eat lots of fresh produce and fruit!

And my life ain't all bad, at times, but I do try suicide at least once a year, as it surely is a very viable option (like when my rent got raised by 50% last winter and I only saw homelessness in my future)! And I do so hope that some vagrant, whose life you are clearly instrumental in making that much more hopeless and pointless, comes into your life and somehow makes it a living hell! Now that would be change I could really believe in!

When I wrote 'vary', I meant 'very.' And when I wrote 'Go screw ourselves' I mand 'Go screw yourselves.'

But as you probably still want me to just screw myself (as if I am not already) I guess I was just foreshadowing your replies.

gregdavid: Sorry for all your hardship. It isn't easy. I just had to add to what you said about fresh fruits and vegetables. They are really expensive these days, you are right. Well, carrots and a few others are still reasonably priced. As for fruit.....yikes. Priced berries at the supermarket today and forget it. The prices on those, and also grapes, is quite a bit higher this wk than even last. It is discouraging for many. The more nutrious foods are often the most expensive.

Someone should have warned him to NOT get off in Maine.

Dear GregDavid on BDN COMMENTS

Kudos to you for surviving on what you have, and NO SHAME WHATSOEVER as to making the government work for you in any way it allows you to survive. I don't think Dick Cheney or Bill Clinton ever feel guilty about what the government did for them, in terms of tax breaks, or access to power, and both of them chose to avoid the draft and their military service that others could not.

Of course, life is not fair, and we are NOT all equal (in our abilities), so once you can get past that a bit, then perhaps, one can enjoy what they do have without too much worrying about others opinions on this web site, or any other? And, we each have our own opinion, and some of the more angry bloggers may have had a few too drinks to many, or have a problem asking for help, as I have had most of my life? Or, perhaps, they lack the ability to have empathy for people who are different from themselves?

When I came back from Vietnam, I got an Accounting Degree, but couldn't hold a job due to my PTSD and depression/anxiety. By age 30, I was homeless, and after some outpatient treatment (and a few stints in jail for simple trespassing), and some help from my last family member (that's what Mom's are for....LOL), I got an apartment with my SSI, Rental Assistance (subsidized housing) and $33 in food stamps, where I lived for 19 years.

I was lucky to be near a bus/train station, walked thousands of miles, often with a pack on my back, full of discounted food I had bought. Once, I needed an electrical item, and walked several miles, back and forth, to separate stores, to save about fifty cents...LOL

And I was proud of myself for doing it, gave me great exercise, and although I was sad and depressed, and often felt left out of common, middle class activities that others my age enjoyed, I also realized that people from around the world had it a lot worse, which did not stop me from getting depressed enough for a suicide attempt near the beginning of my odyssey.

I swam at public pools at colleges for an extremely discounted disabled rate, and suffered a lot of abuse from uptight bus drivers who didn't like people with handicapped ID cards (make fun of the mental patient, because it's someone lower on the ladder you can abuse). I learned to FIGHT BACK, like you do, and find a bit of self respect.

I got very cheap dental care by going to public colleges where they have dental clinics that teach young people how to clean teeth, even thought that meant sitting in a chair for 3 hours while the student did an excellent job, where others paid money to a dentist for a 20 minute procedure. Basically, when a person has mental illness like I do, one has to learn how to compensate and find other paths in life, just as those who have severe physical illnesses that are easily discernable.

Please remember to KEEP ON ASKING FOR HELP, and my best wishes to you for doing what you need to so to survive. My thoughts will remain with you. Best wishes. Roger.

Hey Train_Safety---don't get all bent out of shape. When I was a kid I don't think walking the tracks was a crime. That would have been 60 years ago and maybe we were taught more about staying safe. We also knew how to handle hunting rifles and knives safely.

Not too many years ago the police would have shooed him off the RR property and told him just to 'Be on his way' .

OMG! Kids in Brownville---hear this!!!!! DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT dress as HOBOS this year for Halloween! You'll probably get arrested!

But seriously, HOBOS are not "BUMS". HOBOS are men (mostly) who ride the rails LOOKING FOR WORK as day laborers, produce pickers, farm laborers---you know, the jobs Americans won't do any longer. Isn't potato harvest season coming up in th next week?