Character Analysis
When the Hooverville men make for the train in their desperate attempt to save their families from starvation, a row of eight railroad police stand guard. They look pretty intimidating at first, and the large band of poor men wait to run to the train until some of the cops get nervous and one of them throws down his club and hat, because, he says, "…I don't like these odds. Mr. Pinkerton ain't paying me enough to do this" (8.232). The whole operation breaks down at that point. Half of the other cops quit and then the whole big mass of men rush to train as it sets off slowly.
Are the cops in this book good or bad?