The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-05-17
EVERY MAN IN HIS PLACE
A GLIMPSE AT IL PRACTICAL
WORKINGS OF A GREAT RAILWAY.
Increase i'm the LOaded-Car Movement
Last Week, the Improvement
Being in Local Traffic.

what the operations of a large railWay syS-
TEN, with it's complex interests and multi
farious duties, involve. They see the trains
come and go; they know they can take a.
Pullman or other through car at a certain
place at a specified time and arrive in a
distant city at some other time equally
well known; that their goods, when loaded
in a freight car at one station, will be
carried at the rate quoted over one or a
dozen railroads to the point to which they
ship them; that the express companies are
ready to take their smaller, lighter or more
valuable packages from their houses or
stores and deliver them to the persons to
whom they are addressed on the other side
of the continent, if need be, and that the
United States Postoffice Department, by
the aid of the railways, brings them into
Intimate epistolary relationship with people
in distant cities with whom they have bust
ness or social relations, but of the means
by which this is accomplished and of the
machine itself they have usually only a
very vague conception. To the lay mind a
man employed by a railway is a railroad
man, and under that general term are in
cluded financiers, lawyers, men practicing
engineering in nearly all it's branches, traf-
fic officials with their knowledge of COM
mercial conditions, transportation men
upon whom it devolves to move the traffic,
and a long list of specialists, with duties
as varied as those required in conducting
governments, manufacturing industries and
commercial establishments. 1t is therefore
well to understand that a railroad man.
even though he be high up in the service,
rarely, if ever, has that close, personal
knowledge of the details and requirements
of each of the departments that is, or should
ha poccaSca1 Inv tho Snaoia1jctc Of tho heads
of those departments, and that a man may
be eminent in any one of them and yet
possess less knowledge concerning another
department than an outsider whose bust
ness is OF such a character as to bring him
frequently in connection with it. The higher
officials, such as the president and vice
presidents, come in time to have a general
knowledge of those branches over which
their jurisdiction extends, in addition to
the special knowledge of that branch
through which they have been promoted;
but it is noticeable that in their actions
they proceed with more certainty and most
ly with more success when dealing with
questions arising in connection with mat
tiers on which they have been thoroughly
trained than when acting upon the infor-
nation impaired to them by their assist
ants.
TT ~fountain head of all administration
is in theory the whole body of stockholders;
in reality 1t is usually some majority of
the stockholders consolidated in interest,
who elect their own board of directors and
officers. On a few railroads, notably the
pennsylvania Railroad, the board of direc-
tors is divided into committees, each hay-
ing charge of certain matters and acting
through the president, but the general rule
is that the president is the active and real
head of the railway. In him centers all
authority and power. To him finally come
ments, and the policy as to each and all
is such as he directs it shall be. On the
larger systems he is assisted by three and
sometimes four vice presidents. one hdV-
ing charge of transportation ana traffic,
another of law matters, another of the
treasury and the other of accounts. The
general manage has charge of the opera
ton and the maintenance of the property,
under the vice president in control of trans
portation, and is assisted sometimes by a
general superintendent, always by division
superintendent, a chief engineer a super
intendent of motive power, superintendent
of telegraph, car accountant, etc. The chief
engineer makes the plans and estimates
of the new work and keeps the records of
the real estate. The superintendent of mo-
tive power supervises the work of repairs
to machinery and cars and makes plans
for new equipment. The superintendent of
telegraph, attends to the construction and
repairs of the telegraph lines. The car ac-
countant keeps an account of all cars
owned, of their mileage and location and of
the mileage of cars of other companies on
his lines. The division superintendent ac-
tually attends to the movement of the traf-
fc and to the maintenance of his division.
He has under him a trainmaster, who looks
after the trainmen; a road foreman of en-
III III DIi III Ills IIlC oollIC as "
enginemen, train dispatchers, VINO give the
orders to trains and attend to the diStribu-
ton of cars on the division; a master me-
chanic, who has charge OF the repair shops;
a ~roadmaster, or engineer of maintenance
of way, who looks after the track and struc-
lures. These, in their turn, have foremen in
charge of subdepartments, the authority of
each being clearly and exactly defined.
Then there are the station agents, with
their forces large or small, as the business
requires. The heads of the traffic depart
ment, under their vice president, are some
times a traffic manager, but more often q
general freight agent and a general pas
Senger agent, having the solicitation and
the making of rates for freight and pas
senger business specially under their direc-
ton. The general freight agent makes and
formulates tariffs, agrees. with connecting
lines for the division of through rates and
settles claims growing out of the movement
of freight. He has his commercial agents,
travelling freight agents and city soliciting
agents under various titles. The general
passenger agent performs the same duties
as to passenger matters, sees to the print
ing and distribution of tickets and has a
similar corps of assistants and outside
agents, and attends to the advertising. The
general baggage agent, who looks after the
movement of baggage, is a subordinate of
the genuine passenger agent.
Under the vice president in charge of law
matters is a general counsel and q corps
of attorneys. This department drafts all
written contracts and conducts the litiga-
ton. The treasurer is under the appro-
pirate vice peSident, as is also the controller
and auditor. Their duties of receiving and
disbursing the ~companys money and OF
keeping the accounts are indicated by their
titles. There is scarcely one railroad organ
lied in exactly the same way as another,
the scope of the authority of an officer
being widened in one case and narrowed in
another, and while the duties of the various
officials vary somewhat on different rail-
roads they are in a general way as stated,
the separate efforts of each being co-ordi-
mated into an almost perfect mechanism.
Belt Road Traffic.
IL III