The state herald. (Holyoke, Logan County, Colo.) 1887-1921, 1892-11-04
THE LOYAL EMPLOYS


Rio Grnnde Road ON the Relation
of Employers and their Men.
The recent strike Of locomotive engineers
| on portion Of the Rio Grande system recalls
an address made by Mr.. Z. 7. Jeffery, prcsi-
dent Of the Denver & Rio Grande railroad. In
the annual convention Of the Brotherhood Of
Locomotive Engineers, at the Central Music
Hall, Chicago. October 10, 1887 This body
Of organized labor invited on that occasion
Governor Oglcsby Of Illinois, and Mr.. Jcffery,
at that time general manager Of the Illinois
Central railroad, to address the representa-
tiycs of the brotherhood. The remarks made
by Mr.. Jeffrey created favorable comment in
the press They are n, follows:
Mr.. Chairman, brotherhood aud FrieMds:-
1t is with pardonable difiidcnce that appear
before you to-day, for there are those amongst
you who have known me from early boyhood +;
who have looked with kindly eyes upon my
boylsh blunders; who have encouraged with
friendly words my youthful endeayors; who
have taught me by their examples the great
lessons OF honesty, industry, sobriety and
manly dignity; and II would seem more fit
ting for them TO counsel me than for mo to
address them.
u common interest and common object In
view. We have like purpose and Ike aim
In life Our responsibilities, duties and
anxieties arc identical In kind, and differ only
In degree. We stand before our employers
charged with great trust, and before the
public with the gravest duties ever commit
ted to human hands. The lives Of the public
and the property of our employers are COM
mltted TO our care. The first Is trust OF
prc-cminent character and importance. How
can we III ourselves to perform these duties,
execute these trusts, carry these responsible
ties, and satisfy In full the public and corpor-
ate claims upon us.
The first great requisite is the high stand
ard Of manhood which your organization hns
set itself to hold and establish. Without
this I'LL else 10 futile. Without manly dig
nifty and manly virtues we lose the confidence
Of the public, the confidence Of our corporate
employers, and confidence and respect for
one another.
RThcrc aic many hundred thousand persons
scattered throughout the civilized world
whose money Is invested In railway proper
ties. These are they whom we serve. These
are they whose property is intrusted to our
care Unknown to us individually, and we
to them, these people conilde In us, trust us,
look to us to faithfully administer their
shares, be they large or small OF the railways
OF the land. Supreme over this Is the abid-
Ing confidence of the people in our skill, our
watchfnlness, our sobrie,y, our intelligence,
our manhood
And this leads me 10 the thought that there
must be mutual confidence between the rail-
| way corporations and their engineers. Dis
trust by either OF the other Is the seed OF dis
cord, and discord Is the growing plant upon
which danger blossoms-danger to ourselves,
TO the millions whom you move and To the
great commercial interests OF this free and
progressive land In which We live.
speak whereof | know when affirm that
the managing officers OF the great railway
corporations spare no effort consistent with
good discipline to create and foster family
feeling, feeling of close relationship be-
tween the corporation and the men. When
formed, such n bond Of union Is strong one,
and Is transmitted from father to son. To
me there Is no pleasanter sight than 10 see
father and son working upon the same road;
10 see boys growing up trained to usefulness
and manlincss By the corporation which the
father has served long and faithfully. 1t be-
gets community Of interest which manifests
In such loyal expressions AS My engine"
'.my station" .'our road.n ..our company.n
Said nm old engineer 10 me few days ago:
my love Is divided between my engine and
my wife" hope you ladies will forgive him
for naming his engine first.
BE manly, frank aud just In your relations
with the officers OF the railroads which you
serve. Nearly all these men have risen from
the ranks, and appreciate the value OF human
labor, be II Of the muscle or Of the brain.
The little nutocrats OF narrow Views and brief
authority grow fewer In number year by year,
and 50 do the captlous, dissatisfied, fault-tind-
ing engineers.
For my part, after laborlng In various
capacities from boyhood, am convinced that
II Is as unwisc for the engineer 10 serve y
corporation IN which he lacks confidence as
II IL for n corporation 10 retain In Its employ
an engineer whom II cannot trust. The faith
must be mutual. the respect he well grounded
upon both sides. The confidence must be
absolute and unqualified; and right dealing,
iruthfulncss, honesty and purpose, consldcra-
ton by each for the right- Of the other, form
the pedestal upon which this confidence must
rest.
Success IN your vocation makes faith In
mankind n necessity. You must have faith
In the men who make the steel and Iron from
which the boilers, wheels, axles and other
parts Of your engines are constructed; faith
In the man who designs the engines; faith In
the men who make the rails they run on |;
faith IN the irackmcn; faith In the bridge
men, the switch tenders, the signal men, the
conductors and brakemen. faith In your
brother engineer, who meet aud pass and fol.
low you ON the road; faith In the manager
and his lieutenani-, and, above all, faith In
the matches love Of the tender wife whose
lonely hours art full Of anxiety, bu. whose
face lighiehs with joy each time you return
safely from trip over the line.
Your labor has market value. Tour la
Dor can be bought and sold; but loyalty 10y
atty Is priceless. II Is founded on respect, on
mutual trust and confidence, and Its main
spring is duty. Duiyl The watchworl Of
the engineer.
A man plows with his engine through snow
storms, moves slow, heavy freight trains, per.
forms work NJ every station, operates his en-
gine by day or by night. That Is labor and 4.
paid for Ills work Is sold at the market
price.
A man stands for thirty seconds with his
nerves like steel; one hand ON the throttle,
the other on the reverse lever; the brake set /;
the engine reversed; the sand running 10
make the brakes hold; train Of human be-
ings behind him; he stands for them between
life and death lie saves Them. That Is
duty The wages Of lifetime would not buy
that thirty seconds Of nerve aud strain.
Loyalty and duty arc not for sale. Money
cannot purchase them. Wealth. position,
power and other considerations bride ambl.
iions men into the seinhlancc Of loyalty aud
the fcmblanrr Of unsrlnsh devotion 10 duty I;
but tear away the veil that hide, the Inner
man. and II j. seen that the motives are igno-
bile and the apparent loyalty aud duty are
hollow shnins.
Your labor aud your skin. not your moral
qualities. are what you .cli Your labor aud
your ,kill are made more valuable 10y your
moral qualities. sobrirty, 1 nth, Justice,
morality, loyalty, duty. thrift, Industry and
intelligence niny not aid materially To your
ply sical ror :, To the skin u your hand, to
the auicknrss IL your eye, or To your bodily
activity, but they make yuu noble men,
worthy citizens VI q great nation, aud ~.
spectri aud reliable representative
Of the greatest Instrument 81 commerce which
the civilized world has produced.
In hi. address one year ago your grand
chief used these words I'VE have taken,
upce the adoption 81 our motto, 'sobrieiy,
Truth, justie. aud Morality strong stand
for right Right alone far iiseif, Ani In Itself
considered, stands upon broad basis. aud Il.
the only lasting foundation upon rhich n
man can buili."
No truer word. wrrc EVER spoken by mortal
tongue. aud with them Ter your guide the
Legitimate objects u your organization must
he obtained. Aud thcsc object. vrr worthy
oncsi Greater intelligence, higher moral
aud intellectual standard GREATER mechnn.
l...l a alaNNN