Morning journal and courier., 1882-02-04
Saturday Morning, Feb. 4, 1882.
THE BRAKEmAN's LOT.


 Who would be railroad brakeman Prob ably few who could get anything else to do. And yet to help carry on the enormous rail- road business of this country there must be many thousands of brakemen. AS a class they must of necessity be industrious, intel ligent and reliable. They are all this and some of them are much more, as we occa- sionally see when one goes heroically to death at his post of duty.
 Few people realize the dangers to which brakemen are exposed or the terrible ire quency and fatality with which those dangers make themselves manifest. Statistics show that only about 25 per cent. of the brake men of freight trains die natural death and that the average life of a brakeman after he assumes the duties of his position is but ten years and fraction over. It is estimated that at least ten brakemen are killed in the United States every day, or 3,G5O during the year. Twice that number are set down as injured while on duty, making in the whole 10, 1000 who are killed or injured during each year. Life insurance companies generally decline to take risks upon the lives of brake men on freight trains, and charge an extra price on brakemen of passenger trains. Ac- cident insurance can be obtained by brake men on freight trains, but the rates are much higher than for men engaged in the ordinary eallings of life. A preferred risk, " such as merchants, lawyers editors, salesmen (not traveling), etc., is taken for about one-fourth what it costs to insure a freight brakeman
 There are several causes for the frequent killing and mutilation of brakemen. There are, of course, some unavoidable accidents. There are also careless brakemen who bring death or injury upon themselves and some times upon others also. But great many brakemen are killed or wounded who would not be if railroad companies paid proper attention to their safety. The want of uniformity in the construction of freight cars is prolific source of death and injury. Some of these cars are high and some are low. Some have place for the brakeman to safely stand on while he is "pulling pin' and some do not. Some have ladders on the ends and some on the sides; and worse than all on a road where there are low bridges some have the brake wheels on top. Of course no brakeman would deliberately run any risk on such cars when nearing bridge and railroad compa- nies have, we believe, rules against using the brakes on such cars in dangerous places. But in spite of care and rules many brake men get knocked off of cars by bridges. It seems as if most of the loss of life occa- stoned in this way could be avoided if all the brake wheels were below the tops of the cars. Then, too, it is probable that on most roads there are too few brakemen, and those there are are consequently in danger from having more to do than they can well attend to. We have seen freight trains of thirty cars with only three brakemen.
 It is high time that something were done in this State and in other States of this glori- ous Union for the poor brakeman who, in a very real sense, takes his life in his hand when he goes to his daily labor. Here is chance for expensive Railroad commissioners and humane legislators