The evening times., 1899-10-16
MR.. INGALLS, A WITNESS.
The Railroad President Before TIN
Industrial Commission.

The Railroad President Before the
Industrial Commission.
The Industrial Commission today con-
tinued the investigation into the transpor-
tation question. M. E. ingalls,. Of Cinc!n-
natl, president of the Cleveland, Cincin-
natl, Chicago and st. Louis Railroad, and
also of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway,
was the witness.
Mr.. ingalls, said that he had been con-
nected with the management of railroads
since 1870. There are at present 10000
men in the employ of the systems in when
the witness was interested.
The witness had no knowledge OF an
agreement between his roads and other sys-
tens, whereby a black list is maintained.
man who is discharged from one division
cannot be re-employed on another division
of the same road without the consent Of
the general manager.
The witness stated that he believed In
giving the employees one day of in week
and is opposed to Sunday work In Vir-
ginia thare is a law prohibiting all except
perishable and passenger traffic in that
State Cn Sunday.
This law, he said, is evaded by placing
train On the Chesapeake and Ohio Rail-
road hospital service. has been establish
ed, supported by voluntary contributions Of
the employees, who pay stated portion of
their wages to il. In case OF accident,
man who has contributed is taken 10 the
hospital and treated until he has fully re-
covered without charge other than the con-
tributions he has made
The witness believed that general prof
it-sharing system in which the employees
should participate ought to be adopted
where there are any profits to share. AT
the present time the business OF the rail-
roads is so uncertain that the profits will
not permit of such a plan. Mr.. ingalls, be-
lieved that a pension system should be in
augurated by which the old men can be
cared for after their period of usefulness
has passed.
The companies represented by the wit
ness do not countenance intoxication on the
part Of their men. a man who drinks on
duty is discharged and the chances of pro-
motion of those who drink off duty are
small.
The unions the witness stated, are the
greatest mediums by which temperance is
enforced. In discussing ticket brokerage
and the practice of issuing passes, the
witness denounced it strongly Ticket
brokerage cuts heavily into the revenues
of the railroads, he said and prevents the
granting of cheaper rates to the public.
1t is a practice of the roads represented
by the witness, so Mr.. ingalls, said, to
grant members of State legislatures,
whose homes are located on their lines a
pass good during the session of the legisia-
ture. This practice has been observed
for the last thirty years, and has come to
be regarded as a necessity until a general
reform is made.
Mr.. ingalls, strongly urged that the pass
system be abolished, and laws be passed
by Congress making ticket brokerage I'M
lawful
Mr.. ingalls, expressed the belief that the
railroad interests of the country are in
danger, unless some remedial legislation
is effected. The welfare of one-tenth of
the people of the country who are employed
by the railroads is endangered. The pres
ent interstate commerce laws in their
present form afford restrictions, and make
railroads amenable to legislative control
without granting them rights which are
necessary to their existence. He thought
that violations of the interstate commerce
laws should not be considered felony,
but should be punishable by fine. He ar
gued for uniform rates agreed to by COM
peting railroads and sanctioned by the
violation of such a rate should be punish
able by fine.
He further believed that the Interstate
Commerce Commission should be instruct
ed to examine the works of railroads at
stated periods. He believed that the re-
sulting publicity of the inside affairs of the
companies would have the tendency to hold
them above the suspicion of the public.
The bonded Indebtedness of the railroads
in the country, the witness stated, is
much smaller than the cost of building the
roads.
Mr.. ingalls, said he believed that bonds
and stock certificates of railroad compa-
nies should be issued only under the sane
tion of the Interstate Commerce Commits
sion, and expressed the opinion that un-
restricted competition is ruinous for the
railroads for the shipper and for the coun-
try at large ,and that it leads to the bank
ruptcy of the railroads.