At 82, I have spent many hours on the subway. In my youth, before I joined the Coast Guard in 1942, I rode the New Utrecht line into Manhattan to work or to Stillwell Avenue for the beach at Coney Island. In those days there was no air-conditioning and people didn't bathe as frequently as we do now. So, in the summer the windows were wide open. Returning from the 1936 American Legion rally in Times Square, my friends and I began horsing around and one of them got hold of my shoe, tossed it to another who missed, and the shoe flew out of the window. I had to limp home with just one shoe. I told my mother a little white lie that I had lost the shoe in the crush of the rally and was unable to bend down to search for it.

The best ride of all was not in the subway but on the trolley that ran along New Utrecht Avenue in Brooklyn all the way to Coney Island. In the summer, the side panels of the train were removed and replaced by wooden strips (so that you couldn't fall out). Along the route there were many undeveloped areas even a small farm here and there. When we crossed Gowanus Canal we had to hold our noses because of the stench. Arriving at our destination, we rushed across Surf Avenue to find a good spot on the beach. There was Luna Park and Steeplechase (all gone now) where we could enjoy the many fabulous diversions available there.

There was a conductor in a car somewhere in the middle of the train. He had a big key that he would use to open the doors. If you were in his car you dared not fool around. Still, in any of the other cars none of the windows were scratched, the wicker seats were not picked on, and, generally, behavior by passengers was much better than we see today. Despite the Depression, there were no derelicts sprawled over two seats. The floors were clean. There were toilets in many stations that were open and spotless. Best of all - the fare was only five cents

A retired accountant, Jerome Friedman spent his youth collecting silver foil, matchbook covers, stamps and coins and riding the subway. He served in the Coast Guard for 42 months, mostly in the South Pacific starting in 1942.