The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1855-08-14

Refbrm In Railway Manaxcment.
prom the Railway Times, August 81
Every one Interested in railway property il elo-
9uent IN favor Of q reform in railway management
what that reform consists Of, no two persons can
agree, in TERMS What they want, however, Ia sab
stantnly this: Some method to prevent stealing,
defalcations, over issues of stocks &C., by treasu
rers suPerintsnden agents, Constructors and others;
reducton OF operating expenses, and an increased
amount OF net earnings, 80 that the property will
pay dividends. This is all very well, but how shall
i be donef Within the past two or three weeks we
nave Dsen visited by quite number Of our readers
az more or less anxious or nervous regarding the
future stability and value of their investments, and
All very certain that they have the true panacea for
the Ills that railways seem born to contend with As
we cannot give the details OF all the plans submitted
to rs, we shall, in BRIEF give few heads Of what
consider N0y desirable. In the FIRST place, we
decidedly h favor Of closing the construction &C.
count Of every railway that is in operation. Next,
elect directors who are competent to supervise and
control the officers OF the roads, and make these d.
rectors responsible for the performance OF their whole
duty. Elect men who have not axes Of their own to
grind, outside OF and through the operations Of the
road, but men who shall be Interested in the pros
perity OF the property. Make them give security for
the performance Of their duty and pay them well
fer doing it. Let them examine the accounts Of their
financial officers from day TO day. and regularly
| anime in detail as often as once month. Every
man in the employ Of the company who has the op.
portunity Of handling dollar Of It's money shall
give good bonds 70 four times the amount that can
probably be left IN his hands at any one time. Let
such system Of checks and guards be established
in financial operations, that note or promise stock
or bond Of the corporation shall be valid or legal
unless It is signed by the President Treasurer, and
one, at least, Of the directors; the disburing and
receiving agents of the company to he distinct and
separate, and have the doings Of each officer serve
as direct check upon the operations Of the others,
ana an under tne drcct and daily supervision OF the
directors. ,@tH
Next, see that the officers and other employees
Of the company are properly qualified for their
duties, and let them give bonds for their
vertise for bids for the operating materials
wood, oil, waste, iron, machinery, &c The prop0-
sails to be opened and decided upon by the directors
for enc gave h
ability to furnish the required amount. Open an
account with every ticket agent and see that these
accounts are settled daily; have ticket used but
return to the auditor, destroyed. I'VE have lately
heard of case where the increase of receipts be-
tween two important points on one road, in single
week, amounted TO some five hundred dollars in
consequence Of the adoption Of this single passage
ticket system.]
Open an account with every locomotive engineer,
running regular train, and make him personally
interested, over and above his regular wages, 10
saving fncl oil, &C.; and extend this interest in
saving to repairs, as is done on some Of the
English roads at a saving Of some twenty-five or
thirty per cent For particulars of this system and
Times, May 8, 1855; May 10, 1855; and July
2s, 1861 The secret Of the success Of this sys-
tenn lies in the appeal to the selfinterest
the self-Tespect and the ambition Of the men, 1t
makes them interested in saving; and what they
save is in great degree 30 much saved to the com
pany. The principle is simple one, easy Of appl
cation, and win eventually be applied to every rail-
The system we have rudely sketched Is grounded
upon making every man employed by railway com
pany personally responsible for the fullment Of his
duties and personally interested in the success ofthe
n 40
readers can, as the world now goes, appeal to any
stronger feeling OF nterestin the majority Of man
kind. If they can let us hear II.
There is still another plan new to most men, and al
most original, that Of leasing out the roads to re-
sponsibe party with sufficient surcties, for series
Of years, at certain per centage upon the entire
cost. We can put our hand upon half hundred
men in this community that could make a fortune
annually out OF almost any road in New England,
and still pay regular annual dividend OF SIX,
seven, aud even in some cases ten per cent up
on the cost. Should these men take charge OF
the roads as personal venture, they would soon
reduce railway operation to an exact science. No
engineer would be allowed to burn three cords Of wood
where one cord will suffice, three gallons vi
oil when only one il needed. Personally interested
in reducing the expenses Of operation, the lessee
would soon make his operatives feel the same inte-
rest, and he would so0n find safeguards from steal
ing by conductors, cngine men and other employees.
Ia il not matter of common observation that the
further the responsibility is removed from interested
parties, the more expensive the service2 Il will
cost the United States government twice thrice "A
much to build ship boat, dock, or other work, as
it does the merchant So it is with State govern
ments. city and other corporations, and all these
stand in the relation to the people that railway
directors do to shareholders. The directors are not
held responsible by selfinterest and therefore they
leave their duties unper0rmed, trusting to others
what they only shonld attend to personally. Make
any single board Of railway directors personally re-
sponsible for the payment Of six per cent dividend
giving them lease Of the road, and we should coon
see an entire chsngc in the details of our railway
mana cement Order end method would soon rule,
where chaos now reigne.
The leasing system the contract system will yet
the latter will follow rs a matter Of course. The
contract system will be adopted % the old money
saving and money making system, whether the roads
operated by the companies or Ivy lessess Under
this system the men are paid for what they do, not
for what they leave nndone, for what they save and
not for what they waste. Within the last six months
have had It stated to u.s. by at least twenty super
intendents from different parts Of the country, that
to the adoption of this contract system every
pany must come at last We thoroughly believe il,
and we believe that under no other system will be
found the way to prosperity for very large number
OF our railway enterprises. Some OF our more in
teligent and active managers introducing il in
part, and from what we can learn with decided sue
cess. IL has the true elements OF successful manage
ment in it, and has only to be adopted to pave the
way for an entire change in the character of our
undervaIucd railway property.
The Slave Systems or England aud the United
COTTON cTLryv ALTON At THE sourH-BgrrIsH EAST
INDIA MONOPOLY
~ frH YDnoR OF TIE HERALD.
The East India Company, to which the British
government is tributary, have succeeded admirably