Running Away From Home

By William Safire;
Published: June 14, 1992

One dry July when I was 10 years old, I took it into my head to go to Niagara Falls. The day was hot and I was restless, my usual passive-escape paths having been cut off as punishment for my having chanced upon and read a book called "Harem Nights." My mother, who was busy perusing a religious tract at the time, an activity that filled the better part of her hours, nodded goodbye absent-mindedly, and I took the Sea Beach train from Kings Highway in Bensonhurst to the Greyhound depot; 11 hours later I was there. ...

A version of this article appeared in print on June 14, 1992, on page 614 of the New York edition.

The print version does not indicate that William Safire is the author; it indicates that Barbara Grizzuti Harrison is the author.The print version includes a drawing by Cathie Bleck and occupies one page, which was torn from the weekly magazine.

The print version's short bio of the writer is unchanged in the online version.