Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1895-02-21
BATES FOR cLERoYMEN.


ing on January /, 1895, changed their
rules regarding the issue of reduced
rates to clergymen, and unauthorized
statements as to the reasons for making
the change having been published, con-
siderable correspondence between the
clergy and the railroads has resulted.
The recent letter from Hon. Chauncey
M. Depew, President of the New York
Central, cOrrectS certain erroneous inn
pressionS and states that company's po-
sitiOn in the matter very clearly. The
letter is as follows:
New York Central and Hudson River Railroad
Co., Grand Central Depot.
NEW YORK. January 10, 1855.
Rev. Nelgt0p j. ConkLia and Il. H. !Ste5bins,
d. d. Committee:
GENTLEMEN:-I am in receipt of your
letter of January 18th, enclosing the
resolutions of the Presbyterian Minis
ters' Association of Rochester.
The resolutions are based upon a
misrepresentation of the facts. The
press dispatch announcing that the
New York Central had withdrawn the
ministerial half-rate tickets because
some Of the ministers had abused the
privilege, loaning their permits to I'M
authorized persons, and sometimes even
selling them," was wholly unauthor-
lied. No such information or notice
was given to the press or to anyone else
by any officer of this company. There
was also an interview reported with me
on this subject, making similar. if not
more serious charges, but no such in
terview ever took place.
deeply regret the publicity which
was given to this matter and the dis
cussion which has grown out of it be-
fore we had really arrived at what was
the best policy for this company and
it's associates in the Trunk Line Asso-
citation to pursue. It had been devel-
oped that very great abuses existed in
the issuance and use of the so-callcd
ministerial ticket. It was not, however.
the fault of the ministers. So far as /
can ascertain, no clergyman of any
church has been guilty of any impro-
priety in the use of this privilege. Like
most departures from regular rules,
this one led after awhile to serious de-
moralization of passenger rates. The
privilege of the ministerial order be-
came extended to all persons who had
ever been ordained as clergymen,
whether they still had any charge or
performed any ministerial services OK
not. Many who had gone into business
claimed and received the order. Then
it was extended to missionaries and
officers of the Salvation Army, of the
Y. M. G. A, and of other religious or
semi-religious organizations. This ena-
bled railway officials who desired to do
SO to issue the half-rate ticket to almost
anybody.
am sorry to say that some railways
do not treat their agreements with each
other with the same sense of honorable
obligation which the officers would OBJ
serve in their individual transactions.
We were amazed to discover that in or
der to increase their business without
apparently cutting the rates a few of
the roads placed the ministerial tickets
in scalpers' offices for sale. In this way
they came into the hands of the general
public. It frequently occurred that
the conductor, when calling upon some
passenger whom he did not think was
a minister to produce the ministerial
order which every clergyman carried,
was met by fat refusal, simply be-
cause the passenger was not minis
| ter. had no order and had received OF
purchased the ticket in some one OF
the ways which I have described. Or,
the conductor would find that under
| the guise of missionary or an officer
of one of these organizations he had re
ceived the order and ticket or else haG
| bought ticket which some one who
could not be vouched for as a clergy
man with charge had secured, anG
then placed in scalpers Office for sale
Of course the essential principle at the
bottom of the relations between the
railways and the public is that every
body shall be treated alike; that the
railway fare shall be like the postage
of the government, the same to every
one who boards the train and becomes
a passenger between the same points
The wisdom of the prohibition of dis
examinations in favor of one person a.
against another, or of one shipper as
against another, or of one locality a:
against another, is now universally ad
mitted, and is incorporated in the rail
way laws.
The ministerial ticket was issued al
reduced rate, not as an act of charity
as some have alleged. but because il
was believed that the clergy and the
church performed an essential service
! which was felt throughout the vast EN-
| ployment of these corporations.
Personally, I would be very glad i
| the privilege could be continued under
restrictions which would conf1ne i
| within legitimate bounds. You will see
| however, from the explanations which
I have given, how difficult a problem
| this is