The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1894-09-21
RAILROADS AND THE PEOPLE.
An Excellent Address by President Nj. e.
Ingalls,, OF the Big Four, on Their Rela-
lions, the One to the Other.

Ingalls,, OF the Big Four, on Their Rela-
lions, the One to the Other.
On the occasion of the recent OPEN
ing of the new and magnificent
terminal station of the Missouri Pa
cific & Iron Mountain, the Wabash,
the Louisville & Nashville, the Balti-
more & Ohio Southwestern and the
Big Four at st. Louis, begun five years
ago, President NJ. E. Ingalls,, of the
Big Four, delivered an address on the
Necessity for Better Feeling Between
the Railways and the People" After
reviewing briefly the history of the eff
fort which had had it's fruition in, as
he declared, 1.-The best, the most artis-
tic, the most commodious of any rail-
way station in the world" and con-
graduating the people of st. Louis on
its completion, President ingalls,
paid just tribute to DIR.
Taussig, president of the Terminal
association, to whose efforts
large part of the success of the new
structure is due. He then referred to
the phenomenal growth of the rail-
roads in this country during the past
sixty years, and claimed the unparal-
ieled development and prosperity OF
this country during that time was its
direct result and that it's future de-
pended upon the success of its trans
portation facilities. THAT the rail-
ways should prosper" he said, sis to
the interest of every man, woman and
child in this great country of ours, no
matter what his calling or business.
To attain this success there must be
better feeling between the railways
and the people, between the railways
and their employees"
Referring to the recent strike as
"the greatest. the most causeless and
the most unsuccessful in the history
of strikes and questioning what con-
ditions made it possible that "a few
worthless demagogues" could induce
such large number of railway en-
ployes to neglect their interest and
forget the loyalty due the companies,
the speaker asked what was the cause
of the great dissatisfaction? AS man.
ayers il behooves them to consider the
question carefully and endeavor to
find a solution, for somewhere there
was an answer. The great strike was
not without it's lessons, one of which
was that mo strike can succeed which
has no real ground of grievance and
which public opinion does not sup
port" Continuing. President Ingalls,
said:
But out of 1t the wise men should seek for
tenn of proit-sharing among employees could
be adopted, have always believed that it
would be a cure for these evils; but before this
can be successfully adopted we must secure
the profits. We ought also to establish
a system of pensions for those dlSa-
bled in the service, and for annuities
for those who have been worn out serving
their corporations. There must also be
q better feeling built up between the railways
and the communities they serve. The situation
is much improved now and il is not as fashion
able as it used to be for newspapers and public
bodies to abuse railways and their manage
ment. but there are many states and communi-
ties to-day where there exists feeling OF
great hostility towards railway corporations.
This is unfortunate, and it is the duty of rail-
way managers and OF statesmen to discover
wherein lies the trouble and endeavor to cure 1t.
To-day more than one-fifth of all the rail-
ways in the country are in the hands OF re-
ceivers, and nearly one-fifth of all the invest
ment in railways is unproductive. This repre-
sents a capital OF over two thousand millions
of dollars. And yet you will find people
preaching q crusade to-day through the
ballot box against railway property and
its management You will find all man
ner of threats of hostile legislation.
Taxes in every state and city are being
increased almost beyond endurance, and
yet these very communities depend for their
existence and their future prosperity upon the
railways which they would destroy. This must
be cured in some manner. The railway man
ayers themselves are responsible in many
cases and to "A great extent for this trouble.
They have managed their railways arbi-
trarily; they have endeavored to main
tain that they were private corporations
and could not be controlled by the public,
but that day has gone by. The wise
manager to-day has accepted the situation; he
fully realizes that railway corporation is not
o private partnership; it is a great public in
stitution with public duties to perform and
with responsibility to the public and sub
ject in certain ways to public control Even
the interstate commerce law. which was Bit
terry opposed by the great majority Of the rail-
way managers, has been accepted; they all be-
lieve ii has come to stay and that it will take
the place of the discounted legislation OF the diff
ferent states, and out OF it future good to the
be obtained.
I'VE must have certain reforms and railway
managers must work these out subject to law
and legislation. 1t seems to be the consensus
of opinion that the interstate commerce law
should be amended: amended so Us to legalize
contracts between railways, so as to bring this
vast interest OF our country under the protec-
tion as well as the burden of the law. Our sys-
TEN of freight rates must be changed. We can
not raise the rates on the great products which
are exported and which have to be carried
long distances, for they will not bear higher
rates Of transportation. but a terminal charge
should be exacted on all freights, as 1t is in
England One cent q hundred pounds terminal
charge would not be felt by the great mass OF
the people. but it would bring prosperity and
comfort to the railway owners and employees
and would enable them to better serve the
communities which are their patrons
The system OF running passenger trains
and OF making passenger fares must be
changed. We haul Pullman or Wagner car
weighing fifty tons with twenty-five passen-
gers fifty miles an hour and charge the
same rate per mile to the passenger occu-
pying the same that We do to the one occu-
pying coach that weighs twenty-five
tons and carries fifty people at speed
of thirty-five miles hour. The rail-
ways should own, either by contract or lease,
their own sleeping cars; they should sell their
tickets at one rate, goou on limited Trains ana
this ticket should furnish sleeping and parlor
car accommodations and they should sell a
ticket at another rate on their slow trains,
which should furnish merely seat accommoda-
tons.
Finally. a better state of feeling between
employees and the management, between busi-
ness communities and the management, should
be built up by association. by an accommodate
ing spirit on the part CT each. pledge you to-
fha raj To N