Delaware state journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1870-1883, 1881-05-05
rnE sy.ixroN AociDnsr.
What Mr. Dean T'hiuiss Of the fse.
sponslbiiIty of the ytaiir0ad Cosn-


sponsibiiIty of the gtaiiroad Cosn-
pany.
Editor state Journal. / read your cii-
torial on the Stanton railroad accident
wherein the employees were exonerated from
all blame. 1 am not one who would wish 10
charge innocent persons with m oiense, no
matter how small when 1t il plainly shown
they are not to blame The wOider to me IL
how any ~ men sworn to act on an inquest ri
the nature of the one at Stanton could eAIii-
crate the railroad company from ceilsure that
had left IL railroad crossing as dangerous ~
the one at Stanton unprotected without gate
Or ilagman or anything to note the approach
ing trains, thereby q would If allowed say
numbering innocent and unsuspecting per,n''
who are obliged TO pass mud rGpaas this dan
gerous crossing. Were the mon who composed
that Jury paid by the railroad company
some OF whom rtininr says are employees oi
the company and some Others bummors kept
for like purpOses), or through fear of bringing
down the wrath of the company unon them
gave the verdict they did, eXoueratinE thcm
from all blame. 1t looks TO me that they
did not want 10 know the facts as they never
once went into an investigation OF tue tiriS
III regard to the danger attending tins crhH--
ing. left us it was to take care of itself. Hun
dreds of people pass and repas4 this crossing
every week ON their way to market, going III
the night time. beng up nearly all night 80
as to be early in the market in the mornlusi
they sell out and start for home Hulnnu
nature not being cast iron. they fall asleep ON
their way home. l have met many, who,
while travelling on this road were asleep, and
the only wonder il that dozens of persons
have not been killed at this place, and there
no doubt would have beenw were they not cared
for By power with more regard to human
life than the railroad company.
1t does look to me that men like those who
were upon that jury could take an oath to do
anything regardless of consequences; had 1t
not been so they at least would have said that
the railroad company We're culpably careless
OF the manner in which they set their man
traps to destroy thSlives of our people at that
crossing. This railroad crossing Its nothing
better than man trap set by this uvergr0wn
foreign Ito Delaware) corporation who have
no regard or thought for the lives of persons
living south of Mason 4; DiXon's line. What
matters how many persons lives are sacri-
iced Crowded their own necks are safel by
this corporation, so long as they can grind
ont Of the people OF Delaware from the
wealth producers of the State enough money
to pay high salaries to their officers (sono of
whieh'are rated by the tens Of thousands of
dollars annually and can pay the
interest upon their bonds. pay their stock
holders per cent. per unnum i'll dividends,
keep their road and machinery in good repair
and have reserve fund of well on to
81 600 900 per annum? What, / ask, can You
expect OF such company, whose only object
is the extracting from our people the last pos
sible dollar, when man who was director.n
this same company went to Dover some years
back to prevent the passage of an act to re-
qrlire all trains where railroads crossed each
other at grade to come to II full stop before
crossing. He argued that it was better that
some persons should occasionally be killed
than that the business of the railroad CONF
puny should be interfefed with And this
kind of argument had weight with the then
legislators and the bill they passed was just
AS good us none.
These last two lives that have been taken in
the manner they have tand which the jury
would have You believe was all their own
carelessness) make six lives OF valuable citi-
zens of our little town and vicinity in my
recollection and, according to the late verdict
no fault of the railroad company. 10 me it
looks az if the railroad company only was to
blame for thus (will ! call it tif no objection Is
made) numbering our citizens, when for II
few hundred dollars out OF the millions they
receive, they can so protect their crossings
against such accidents that should Il deaf
blind or sleeping perton come to it at the
time OF approaching trains, they could not
get upon the railroad track. To do it would
cost few hundred dollars to the company
and to them that il of more consideration
than the lives of any number Of our best
citizens, which are i'isked every day in the
year But what do this company care so long
as they can draw their salaries and pay
large dividends.
There are plenty of cuntrivances .hat would
prevent such accidents, but they cost some.
thing and require some attention. Yet, in
the language " il director above quoted, ut
is better that some person occasionally should
be killed than apy interruption to the busi-
| ness of the railroad company should happen
| When any suit is brought in our courts, the
| railroad company have the best of counsel.
and they argue that it is all carelessness on
| the part of the individual and no fault of the
| company that such accidents happen. The
railroad company could not be better pro-
| tected than they are from censure if they
| themselves owned both the coroner and Jury.
1t has often. when reading the verdict Of
| jlires in such cares, been a question i'll my
mind.to whom do the coroner and Jury belong
tile people or the railroad?
| This last is not the only accident by which
persons here lost their lives, and what, | asli,
has the railroad done to prevent similar ones
| in the future? This railroad company hur
presumed to ride ronglI-shod over the people
| OF Delaware abOut long enough. The people
| should be heard from iii unmistakable Ian
guage, such that 1t shall he made to hav,
| some regard for the lives of the people. Thi'
| company has been acting as though They
were stronger than the people and US ii they
could both buy and sell olr people whicl
came very near being verified at the last
session of our Legislature. That they
try to accommodate our people along thoi
road has long since become obsolete. The!
run trains entirely to suit themselves and
not to accommodate their patrons either fOi
passenger or mail facilities, as to-day it talet
II letter by the present arrangement y hour
to so from Newark to Stanton. just six miles
If the railroad goes on killing us they hav,
done they will depopulate the State fa-tc
than all the "Iiudd"-ing they can do nr IL,
Bombay Hook Emigration Stock Society cal
make up. IL it not tune that the peopl,
expressed their feelings upon the manner IL
which they are treated by this rich, over
grown, olerbearing and tyrannical foreign
monopoly and put stop to its destroying th
lives Of our citizens?
Respectfully, WILLIAM DEAN.