Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-03-01
In behalf of the lexington Ratlwa,
EmplOyea.

IN behalf of the lexington Railway
Employees.
To the Editor of Tie Evening; Star:
l want to tell the public of the manner IN
which the lexington and Soldiers Home
Railroad Company treats its men. I deem
tMs solemn duty to my fellow-man, and
do 1t without personal feeling toward the
company. am acquainted with nearly all
the drivers and conductors of the company
ana tney are all hard-working. faithful
men. The company makes them. vork
thirteen hours per day, at 81 20 Der dav
wages. There Is no possible excuse for this
as the company does a large business and
can Wen AFFORD to pay $500 per day, with
ten hours as the limit. Moreover the NAV
are only given six minutes in which to eat
their dinner, and the same number of min
utes In which to eat their supper. How
they do 1t, the men are probably unable to
tell. but they do it. Some time ago, when
the new Street Railway Protective Union
as incorporated, and was making its wei
come presence felt and appreciated, a num-
per OIL the Eckington men Joined it, and
these men We're discharged by the COM
pany. Several days ago l was talking to a
conductor who resigned because he refused
to work twenty hours or run nineteen trips
although he resigned and there was no
charge against him, his name was inscribed
on the blackboard: discharged for leaving
his car on stand" Every conductor finds
1t absolutely necessary to leave his car on
runs short of transfers or tickets or when
he goes to the toilet room. He certainly
has to leave his car on the stand for these
purposes. because he cannot put it in his
pocket. Another conductor who was dis
charged on going to the main office for the
purpose of making an application for his
deposit, $44, found he was charged with an
overcoat, costing him SIG, that he never saw.
And still another one who was discharged
was treated in the same manner Some
weeks ago the driver and conductor of a
car on the G street branch were arrested
for cruelty to animals. Now, the driver is
compelled to run his car on time; II he does
not, he is discharged; If he does, he has to
drive his horses almost to death In order not
to 5eopardize his position. These men were
arrested, taken to the station house, con-
fined there for four or five hours. and had
to procure, on their own responsibility $40
collateral to insure their appearance in the
court the next morning, and when the case
was called up they were fined IS each,
which they had to pay themselves The
company would not pay them for the time
they lost. and the driver was discharged.
The conductor Is still employed, but he
will probably be discharged when the COM
pany gets sufficient number of extra men.
The cars which these horses have to pull
are storage battery cars, and they weigh
somewhere in the neighborhood Of two or
two and half tons. They were never
manufactured for propulsion by horse pow
err. 1t seems to me that the officers of the
law should move upon the lexington COM
pany for making two poor horses pull those
heavy cars, thereby making the driver and
conductor liable to arrest and Imprisonment
for doing what they are compelled to do In
order to exc out an honest living. In writ
ing this am only actuated by a motive of
the strictest sense of duty to those who
have to toll for small wages and work long
hours; and in the hope that 1t may influ-
ence shorter hours and more pay for the
employees Of the several street railroad
companies. PLAIN JUSTICE.