Suttree visits the old man who lives in the abandoned railway car. The man tells Suttree about major railways accidents and how he’s sworn off reading the newspapers because they only ever report terrible news. This man has spent a lifetime living on the rails because of a lack of employment.

J-Bone, Suttree, and two men named Cabbage and Sharpe take shelter from the cold in a car. Suttree returns to drinking to keep warm. Later, they meet up with other men, including Callahan, to barhop. They get into a barfight that turns into a violent brawl. Suttree wakes up in the hospital with broken ribs and a broken finger. The nurses take good care of him, but he leaves of his own accord when he feels well enough to walk on his own. He makes it back to his houseboat. When he tries fishing again, he only catches dead fish.

In the spring, a man herds his goats into town, frustrating the police. Suttree wakes up to the goats. He meets the goat herder, who is amiable and lets the children in the neighborhood pet the goats. The goat herder is also a preacher, and he invites Suttree to hear him preach later.