The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-03-05
A RAILWAY PEEPrNG TOM.
A Panhandle order Compelling Trainmen to
Play the Spy in Sleeping Cars.
Chicago News.

\ Panhandle order Compelling Trainmen to
Play the Spy in Sleeping Cars.
| Chicago News.
| Last Friday evening a reporter got aboard the
night express, leaving the Union Depot at $50
o'clock in the evening. The sleeping car con
! ductOrs pursuant to the orders of their man
ayers, collected the tickets and fares Of their
| passengers for the train conductors The train
| reached LOgansport about l o'clock in the morn
! ing 1t was divided into three sections for the
! three different routes and twenty-five minutes
afterward all had departed. Before Kokomo was
reached, the train conductor entered the seepers
| 1t was the first time he had been in them during
| the trip He took the tickets and fares from the
! sleepngcar conductors, and after looking at the
| diagram of berths occupied started on through
| the ears. In turn, he drew aside the curtains,
| held his lantern on the inside, and carefully
gazed at the occupants There were one or two
| faint screams from ladies, and emphatic protests
| from gentlemen.
what do you mean by this kind of conduct"
inquired an irate passenger as the rays of the
conductors lamp shone in upon the berth, while
the trainman looked about leisurely.
I'm inspecting the BERTH sir the conductor
replied
| gested the passenger.
I'm only Obeying my orders, sir, and if you
do not like it you will have to make a complaint
at the general Offices" the conductor replied, as
he went on to other bcrths.
| In the morning. when the guests arose, the
|
of his passengers. A lonely lady far advanced
in the stages OF consumption said: II thought
when l gave you my train ticket that was
| placed in your keeping; that | should enjoy i'll
the berth which had purchased privacy respect
and rest l had just got to sleep when the con-
! ductor, stranger to me, rudely threw open
my berth and gazed at me.
| do not know how long he had been
looking before saw him, and | do not know
! what he may have done before | was awakened
! | am an invalid. and the character of my affiic
| ton is such that must sleep under as little
clothing as is possible | shall avoid such an
| insult hereafter by finding out in advance what
railroad companies treat lady passengers with
civiity."
1.-The next man that puts his head into a
| berth where my wife or | am sleeping will get
a bullet in his heart angrily exclaimed a
! young husband, who had not known of the in
cident Of travel until informed by his wife, who
said that she had been the cynosure of the con
| ductors eyes
A lady in delicate health said: II became
very sick after experiencing the shock of being
| so outrageously treated by the man to whom
l supposed l should look for kindness and pro
lection
What did he dor was asked
Il do not know. was asleep when some
sort of sensation seized me, and on waking |
was blinded by the bright rays of the conduct
! or's lamp Then I saw his face I was tempted
| to scream. but resisted and after he had gone
! by l became sick that | would have called
for physician if l had thought in the
| GER
'Why do you permit such abuses of your
companys guestsl was asked of the sleeping
| car conductor
II can't help it. he replied. ''If l resist the
train conductors efforts he will put me off the
train"
At indianapolis the reporter obtained little
history of the new method. About four weeks
| ago a sleeping car conductor on an eastern divs-
| ION of the Panhandle system found holding
back fGres He made a confession which impli-
Gated others General Manager McCrea issued
! an order that the conductors should show
| their diagrams. Soon afterward that order gave
way to another, which reads about as follows:
To Conductors-Each conductor shall look through
the herths and find by actual count how passen-
gers in the sleepngcar. In any sleeping car
conductor shall refuse show his diagram object
to you looking through the berths you shall stop at
to comply with this order shall result in immediate
dismissal JAMES MCCREA,
General Manager, Columbus o.
1--WE had not heard of it. said General Man
| ager Brown, of the Pullman Car Company, yes
you going to do to protect your patrons!
/ 81 viii look into the thing" the general man
ager continued, an expression of anger be
| came visible in his countenance. Il suppose,
however, it is only an effort OF the company TO
protect itself If the conductors do the work
quietly not much harm can come from it
In such matters how many men, who have
\ been promoted from freight train brakemen, are
| 10 be trusted!'
That's So I didn't advance the suggestion as
an argument in favor Of the system. Our con
tracts with the companies make our men subor-
dinate to those of the railroad We have our
conductors collect the fares, and the trainmen
have the right to that the collections are
properly returned"
'Do you nd4 have your collect the fares so
that the passengers may enjoy Quietude privacy,
and Vnbroken reStp
I'VE CO.
Are such ends attained by the present method
of the Panhandle"
mo, they are not"
Mr. Vanduse1, the chief local representative of
the Panhandle system, was not at the Office when
a reporter called to see him Other men con
nected with the line said that the new rule had
caused a great deal of just dissatisfaction. and
one of them ventured the remark that IF any
conductor would put his - heaS in whore or
my wife was sleeping would break it for him.
l think the order will come down.