Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1888-04-07
Fo T WORTH. TEX April


Fo WORTH. TEX April 8, 1Sss.
To the Editor Of the Gazette.
The columns OF THE GAZETTE are for
the interchange Of ideas, the gathering Of
news and for public benefits. Under the
first of these heads desire to express my
idea of a common practice, which l know
will be news to many; and II the idea was
Investigated 1t would be q great benefit
in financial sense to those interested.
In few words 1t is this: Why do rail-
road comp tnies allow section foremen to
keep the section boarding houses7 To
the uniDitiated this simple query seems
very foolish. Yet, when all the facts are
taken into consideration the foolishness
seems to come from the other side.
Right here let IL be distinctly understood
tnat never was section foreman, never
kept sec house, speak itom close
observation and actual experience Of
many yesrs as q section hand. Now take
each II te of the question separately. If
the foreman Is NOT running the house he
will tell you the board is bad, the cooking
is bal, the beds are bad, the house is
dirty, the bed bugs nearly eat him up, no
men will stay on the section on eccOunt
OF "bed chuck" meals sre late, the men
are dissatisfied and the rosdmaster ought
TO ''fi e the boarding boss bodily"
These are the complaints you hear on
every section where the "boss" is not the
boarding boss also. Now, the experience
Of every man who has worked on Sec
ton where the foreman did not keep tie
house, Will bear me out in the assertion,
that ninety per cent. OF the section house
beard Is better than when the foreman
keeps it. Why2 Because the men will
complain TO the foreman, he 10 the road
master; and the consequence Is better
"chuck" or the "boardiDg block takes
walk " Late meals, dry bede, pcCr
cooking, follows the same complaint and
Is very soon adjusted through the fore
man by the road-mas.er. These CON-
plants are made By the section boss If he
wants the house at all. At least thew are
the experience Of every old snipe. Well,
you ask what has the company TO do with
this? You say they must have men to do
the work. Well, I'll tell you by showing
how q section foreman of my certain
knowledge runs section boarding house.
! He Is on one of the big roads running
| into Fort Worth. AS rule he has very
| little to eat. Along comes man, stays
three or four days and pulls out. Say he
has worked six days. BE gets his time
l. e.: elk DAYS in "a Identification. The
boss charges him with ten days board,
gives him time before he came to
cover board bill. Thus the man who
does the work gets what time ne
works, the company pay for time he don't
work, which goes into the pockets OF the
| boss.
Again he has msn he can trust. He
works ten days and goes away, does not
take his identification. He IS charged
board until the end of the month. The
company IS my knowledge were paying
their men st one time 81 % per day while
they w,re up in Kansas. This foreman
was allowed seven men, which il he had
Kept full for one month, would have been
sos, but part OF the time he had only
four-never but SIX, but his board bill
ran to $751; Now | could relate dozens
of similar cases, but this will explain
why think 1t would be to the interest Of
the roads to not allow any man on 6
salary to run boarding house or board
ing car. REX.