St. Paul daily globe., 1889-01-12
THE TRIBUNE PARAGRAPHER
stirs Up the Train Dispatchers to
a White Heat.
To the Editor of the Globe

To the Editor of the Globe.
The train dispatcher who misunderstands
his orders should be treated by the world
with the same cold contempt as the man who
didn't know it was loaded on railroad
near Youngstown. o., Saturday, three men
lost their lives, and much valuable property
was destroyed. because the orders were mis-
understood. II is time that these adjuncts to
civilization were treated to a large dose of
Paris green--afy thing TO rid the earth of
their presence.
The above appeared in the editor
ial columns of the Minneapolis Tribune
of Jan. Z. We don't know whether we
could buy enough Paris green to have
any effect on the man who wrote it, for
we are not well enough versed in chem
iStry to know what effect Paris green
would have when it would come i'm con-
tact with the mammoth gall of this poor
fool of the Tribune. But coming from
the Tribune we are not much surprised.
Doubtless, he got his newspaper train
ing in the same school as the man who
wrote the famous Mrs. Cleveland ed
itorial, which was SO roundly denounced
by the press of the world regardless of
politics. have seen no press report of
this accident that directly blamed
the train dispatcher. They read
that there was misunderstanding
of ORDERS" II the Trbune's hired man
knew anything at all about railroading
he would readily have seen that the mis-
understanding was most likely between
the train crews and not the dispatcher,
who could and does make mistakes, but
could hardly send an order that he
would misunderstood himself. If he
did send such an order the conductor
and engineer was to blame for leaving
the station before they read and under
stood the order correctly. 1t is mys-
terry to me why newspaper proprietOrs
will employ such talent ~ and allow
them to impose on suffering public by
thrusting such sickening gush (as the
above sample) in its face every day.
Railroad men of all classes will de-
nounce this editorial (?) because it is so
manifestly unjust to class of men for
whose care and vigilance over our trains
the travelling public should feel thank
full that there are so few accidents hap
pen for which he is to blame. ''To err
is human" the best dispatchers some
times make mistakes. and it always will
be so. Ii railway managers would ''pariS
green all their dispatchers and substi-
tute careless, ,scribbling editorial writers,
do you not imagine that passenger earn
Ings would decrease at an alarming rate,
indicating as it would which of the two
the public had the more confidence in.
L will drop the subject by asking long
suffering public which of the two can
you Spare-WhO shall take the Tribune
antidote? FAIR PLAY.
Duluth, Mimi, Jan. 10.
HERE'S ANOTHER.
To the Editor of the Globe.
WEST SUPERIOR, Wis, Jan. 11.-Such
freaks of nature as the person who
wrote the editorial in the Minneapolis
Tribune of Jan. z. in reference to train
dispatchers should be placed upon ex-
hibitiOn in dime museums and adver-
tlsed as humans that ''do not know
little Bit" but have mania for trying
to make people think they are masters
OF all the intricacieS of ancient and
OF it was to expose its ignorance and
advise the world what to do. | hardly
think an official report was made to the
freak, consequently what it knew re-
garding the accident near Youngstown,
o.. was CLEANED from some other source.
L wish to inform the poor deiuded
thing that train orders are handled not
only by dispatcherS, but by conductors,
engineers and telegraph operators,
among some of which the miSunder-
standing might have occurred. Nine
times out of ten it is not misunderstand-
ing. but forgetting some portion of an
order issued by dispatcher, which
causes the accident. The losses of life
and property through train dispatchers
is not caused by tiendishneSs, but this
''What-is-it'' of the Tribune comes out
boldly in print and advises the whole
sale destruction of life and the conse-
quent wrecking of homes by the use of
poison. Ii his advice were needed and
all dispatchers wiped from the face of
the earth, what result? Several years.
setback and great impeachment to the
progress OF the world. r. U. On Now.