Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-07-04
NO RECORDS IN CASE OF WRECKS,
And Often Charred and Mangled Remains
of Unfortunate Victims Can't
Be Identified.
AGENTS ADMIT SUCH A PLAN is NEEDED,
But the Greatest Difculty Is to Avoid Delays at the
Ticket Windows.

| suggestion InaL the IallrOduS OF une
country should adopt the booking system
for passengers. 1t is even pushed
to the point that national law should be
| passed to compel the roads to keep record
of the people they carry, SO that in case of
accident their friends can be notified and
the public would know who waskilled.
The ocean steamship lines and some of
the lake vessels find it to their
advantage to use such a plan, and the Of
ficials of a steamer would rather try to fly
than leave a port without a record behind
them of all the souls on board. If somuch
care is taken with passengers on the high seas
| and great lakes, why should the present
free-and-easy system be allowed to exist on
the railroads?
Many Graves Never Marked.
In the Chatsworth wreck, several years
ago, some of the dead were buried, and to
this day their graves are marked as un-
known, while possibly somewhere in the
broad land mother mourns a lost
child, or longing wife waits in vain
for the return of a missing husband.
Their prolonged absence is wrapped in pro-
found mystery which could easily have
been explained by little precaution. If
the reports of eyewitnesses are true, some
of the killed at Ravenna will never be
identified.
The advantages of such system are ap-
parent The most important has already been
named, that of knowing the dead. With
the present plan of selling tickets it would
only require a few additions to
the clerical force in the Offices The
ocean steamers demand the name
and address of each passenger, their
age and Slight description on some of the
lines is insisted upon. If the ship is lost
the company knows ct glance over its
records who went down with it. If simi-
lar system were adopted by the railroads
Inspector McAleese says it would be great
help to the police in tracing criminals and
getting the number of aliases they travel
under.
Views of Some Passenger Men.
Several passenger men and agents were
asked yesterday for their views, which they
gave freely. 1t was a proble~2 they otter
thought about. but the question is how can
it be remsdieG. Travellers themselves arc
largely held responsible for the present
plaza They never buy their tickets, as
rule, until the last moment, and as time and
railr1ad trains wait for no man. they are
most impatient to ges their change and piece
of cardboard which entities them to a ride.
The truth is that most men would regard it
as an imposition to ask them to fill up
blank giving their name and address, and
the chances are many of them would refuse.
The nearest approach to the book
ing system reached by the rail-
roads is in the Thousand mile
books and the Communication tickets. The
company requires the signature of the
buyer, hnt no address is given, and for pur-
poses of Identification the tickets are use
less, as the officials cannot tell
on what train the person is riding.
For short distances such a plan could
be avoided, but it is argued that on through
trains the system should be adopted. For
example, to places like Philadelphia and
New York the Pennsylvania and Baltimore
and Ohio roads ought to know who is travel
ing on each train, but they don't, and in the
event of accidents the greatest difficulty is
experienced in identifying the dead.
A Simple Plan Proposed.
Speaking on this subject one of the agents
at the Union depot said last evening: 81
have often thought of simple plan which
the company could use without
work for the conductor, but if he has too much
to do, one of the brakemen could attend to
it. Let the railroad prepare blanks for the
name and address of passengers and have a
place for remarks. When the train pulls
out, the brakeman could distribute them
among the people, and they could fill up
the spaces. If any questions are asked he
could easily explain to the passenger what
it is wanted for, and no sensible person
would object. The slips could then be col
lected and sent to the main Office
of each train. 1t seldom happens that all
the train crew are killed in a wreck, but L
see where such thing is possible, and the
record of the train would be lost. The
trouble is to devise simple system which
will expedite the sale of tickets. The pub
lie won't put up with delays at the window,
and you would soon have mob around
YOU howling fer transportation. If they
bought thci- tickets in advance, as they do
for steamships it would be an easy matter.
L have no doubt the railroads would
be willing to increase their cleri-
cal force to carry ont the booking system
if the people will have the patience to wait
at the ticket windows. When traveller
insures his life we have a record of him,
and it requires a little time to fill up the
blanks, but the number who take this pre-
caution are few in comparison with the
crowds that travel on railroad trains
Not An Easy Scheme to Work.
Thomas S. Spear, local passenger agent
for the Union Pacific road, said: ''The idea
is a good one, but it would be hard to carry
out in detail. When l sell tickets to the
West, 1 generally get the name and
address of the passenger, but not always
To any point beyond the Missouri
river, however, we require it. The road
also employs agents at Chicago, Council
Bluffs, ST. Louis and Kansas City to look
after the passengers, to see that
their baggage is transferred properly
they may desire. notify these men when
passed through their hands they send me a
postal card announcing the fact, and as far
as these places L know how my
people are getting along. 1 usually
keep the cards about week and then de-
stroy them, as they pile up and would
fill the Office l find it good plan, for
can keep track of my passengers, and know
that the men in these places have helped
them. As far as the Missouri river
also we have special agents on the road who
take up the tickets and give passengers
slip with their name on it. The conductor
has nothing to do but run the train. These
agents work for the auditing department, land
at any time the auditor by reference
to the tickets can tell who has gone over the
road. This system is not in use on any
other Western line The booking plan,
however, would be the most accurate.
Carefully Watched by the Agents.