Omaha daily bee., 1889-06-16

world. They arc, by ordiSery' iraios, less
than one-half cent per mile and by mall
trains only one-sixteeqth Of Q cent, Still,
the third-class passengefs at this low rate
pay more TO the roads than either tho first or
the SECOND class, AMI railroad managers tell
me they believe II will pay to reduce this
rate much lower than IL now is. Mr. Ellis
worth,o the Denver & Rio Grande railroad,
is travelling with me, and he tells me that we
have not begun to toucb bottom in our
Americap railroad fares, He thinks the
rod: would make twice as much Il their
rates were reduced one-half and says that
the reduction is sure 70 come. The English
managers well appreciate this and the .dird-
class fares in England are the fares that fill
the pockets Of the stockholders.
BIG THIRD CLASS TRAFFIC..
Here in India there IS vast difference be-
tween the prices of the various classes First
class is, on the great Indian peninsula rail-
road, which is fair type Of the WHOLE two
and one-half cents per mile. Second class is
just one-half this rate and intermediate one
half OF second class. Third class is one-half
the intermediate and the third class pays.
The third class cars carry thirty two pas
seugers. They are divided into compart-
ments with benches uncushioned, running
so across the car that the passengers face
each other and the passengers are packed in
as close as sardines. They are always full
and these east Indians travel as much as do
the citizens of the United States. have yet
to find train in which the third class cars
were not packed. aud many of those
upon which ! rode had three times
as many third-class cars as first
and second class Each native carries q
bundle with him containing his brass pot
out of which he drinks, and often the pans
with which he cooks his food. Accustomed
TO the poorest of beds at home, cotton
blanket sufces for his travelling rug, and in
waiting for the trains at the stations he often
puts his shoe under his head for n pillow
and l..
cotton cloth which covered his bare should
eis, sleeps upon the ground until the train is
called.
THE SEXES SEPARATE.
The Hindoo women travel US lightly asthe
men, but the two sexes are never put into
the same cars, There are closed cars on all
OF the trains for high caste Hindoo women
and these have windows of blue glass in the
first and second classes, which permit the
women to look out, but which prevent the
men from looking in. These women come
to the depot in closed chairs and as they go
to the train they pull their shawls close
about their faces though their ankles and
bracelets, often show. In some of the
cars the windows Of the women's compart-
ments are so fixed with shutters that there
can be no looking out, and in the train
which carried me to Darieeling there was
one car covered entirely with canvas as
thick as that of a circus tent. This con-
taincd Hindoo women, who as they rode up
the Himalaya mountains through the finest
scenery in the world, were thus shut in the
stuffy darkness of this tent-like car, and saw
no more of the grandeur of the nature
about them than they would have seen had
they been tied in so many leather bags and
sent along rs mail.
NOVEL INVESTMENT OF WAGES.
One of the greatest roads in India is the
East Indian railway. This railway has
curious method of investing n percentage of
the wages which it pays its hands, which is
found to work both to the advantage of the
railway and the employees Wages are very
low in India, but through this method many
OF the employees have become rich. All Of
the hands who receive over thirty rupees or
$40 month, have to pay 2 per cent of their
earnings into certain fund. They can pay
as much more than per cent as they please
The road receives the money, pays interest
on 1T, and upon their leaving the service hon
orably, gives them back double the amount
they have paid in with interest. This seems
incredible, but am assured it Is so. An
English clergyman told me that he knew a
railroad employe who went in at S10 a month
and who will soon take out 5000. This
method was eutered into at the time the
railroad was built. The managers were hard
no for capital and they wished to bind their
hands to them. The company is now phos-
porous and it keeps UP the same system.
WHAT RAILROAD MEN MAKE.
Speaking of railroad wages in India, find
that section men work here for from to s
cents day and that the roads can get all the
men they want at these prices Engineers
work on ?tine and distance, and they are
about the highest paid of the railroad
employees. They get about seventy
dollars a month while running regularly, but
they can increase this by extra running to
eighty-fve and one hundred dollars month.
The Indian railways have no conductors in
our sense of the word. The tickets are col
lected and examined by men at the various
stations and the guard who manages the
train in other respects has nothing to do with
the tickets. Such guards get about twenty
hve dollars mouth and on the smaller rail
roads they receive from seven to twenty
dollars month. The most of the guards
are natives or half-breed, while majority of
the engineers are English. don't think the
English engineers are as well posted as our
American ones l asked one of them the
weight of his engine. He stammered and
replied that that he did not know. The
American engineer can tell you just what his
engine weighs, how much steam she carries
and all about her.
SOME PECULIARITIEs.
The engines here are lighter than ours
and the whole equipment OF the railroads is
upon smaller scale. Most of the freight
cars are mane of iron, and you could crowd
three OF them into one American caboose.
They carry on an average about six tons,
have no trucks and only four wheels Our
freight cars will carry from forty to fifty
tons, and some Of our narrow gauge cars
carry forty tons. If these Indian trains had
such cars they could carry from seven to
eight times the amount they now do, but the
people have never been accustomed to large
cars and they stick to the old ways. None
of these freight cars are managed by brakes
from the top and you see no brakemen
trotting along on the tops OF the trains.
Freight in India is measured by The mound
or eighty pounds. Freight trains are called
goods trains and 1 find some curious rules
IN regard to freight Return trip tickets are
issued to horses and scamels cost twelve
cents per mile per truck and four camels can
be put on each truck. Elephant calves are
transported at the rate of six cents a mile,
and as to the other animals, the cost of them
is guarded at the rate for dogs.
No dogs are to be taken in the cars and no
return tickets are issued for dogs. Many of
the baggage cars have dog compartments
and cats, monkeys, rabbits and guinea pigs
are sent along at dog rates. Not long ago
woman came to one of the stations with q
turtle in her hand and was about to enter the
car with it when the guard stopped her. She
showed him the turtle and asked him
whether she could take it inside. He re-
Piled:
"Yes! Cats IS dogs and monkeys is dogs,
but turtles is fish, and there Is no rule against
fish,"
UNDER GOVERNMENT CONTROL
Nearly all the railroads in India are under
the government and many of the roads were
built by the government, guaranteeing five
-NAa rlA1.l Al..x.