Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1901-02-21
SPOILERS ON A BIG RAILROAD.
Found in Every Department From
Yardmen to Division Officials.


Yardmen to Division Officials.
Probably the most perfect spotter
system achieved by any private cor
poration is that of one of the big East
ern railroads, which is to some extent
modelled on the secret service system
of some of the Europe governments,
though by no means so complex. So
and so direct, however,
are its lines of communication that
the president of the organization is
himself kept constantly informed OF
the trend of affairs, and the changes
of sentiment among the employees OF
every division and subdivision of the
whole railway system, and that with
out the knowledge of any other per-
sons but his own special corps of
clerks and secretaries. Nobody but
himself knows the entire personnel of
the wonderful service that he has per-
fected. His agents are drawn from
every branch of the roads operating
staff. They are engineers, freight
brakemen. passenger trainmen, con-
ductors, signalmen, yardmen, station
agents, track walkers, and even divi-
sion officials. Should that road have
a strickland strikes are far less like
ly to occur than they were before the
present system was put into opera
tion-the president will have detailed
warnings of it from all the storm
centers long before the first mutter
ings find cautious utterance in the
newspapers While it also acts as
defense against thefts by employees,
this system is intended primarily to
prepare, so to speak, diary of the
disposition, character, working eff
ficiency and sentiments toward the
road of the men who constitute the
vast human machinery of the corpora
tion. The feeling which eliminates
in a general strike is not the result of
one act alone, but slow growth
made up of many grievances, real or
fancied. To keep track of the shift
ing mental attitude of his employees
is the aim of this railroad president.
If certain division superintendent has
made himself unpopular with his sub
ordinates, information to that effect
comes by underground wire to the
central office, and the matter is taken
under advisement If the newest fire
man on the road attempts to stir uI
discomfort by inflammatory talk his
views soon reach the official ear. Every
leading spirit in the employees organ
ization is known to the president, who
also knows whether, in case of trouble
the man is to be reekoned upon as a
conservative or a radical. Sometimes
this works out the mans career in a
manner quite incomprehensible to him.
For instance, Night Waterman Brown
is shifted. without cause that he can
fathom, from one division to another.
How should he know that rumors of
trouble in that division have reached
the presidential ear, and that he him
self, being down in the presidents lit
tie book as a speaker of weight and
counselor of conservative methods.
has been shifted over to act as I'M
conscious agent in checking a danger
GUS tendency?
Some of the admiring co-workers
of the head of this system declare
that in two minutes reference to his
collected funds of information he can
unroll the family history of the woman
who washes the windows of Car No
Ajax, and tell whether, in her esti.
nation, he himself is an oppressor of
the downtrodden or a perfect gentle.
man.
Where so many invisible lines radi
ate from the same office it is inevi
table that some of them should cross
Curious complications result from con.
tact between spoilers as unknown to
each other as they are to those whom
they watch. Several years ago. at a
time OF general labor troubles Ger.
tain railroad got no less than five re-
ports from its confidential men in.
forming them that an employee (who
was several degrees higher in the
secret service OF the road than any
OF them, had they but known it, had
been making incendiary speeches.
his was true. Matters had so shaned
themselves that the man accused had
to appear as radical in order to gain
admlttance to inner councils where
the important questions would be
hnally decided. To the chagrin of the
authorities. they were Obliged tn
transfer him. Had they not done so
the suspicious of the men who make
the reports would have been aroused
mat spoilers should know each other
as such is held 20 be highly undesir-
able. There is always the chance
That they might work in conjunction.
instead of acting as checks Oh each
other, IS. Fl. Adams in Ainslee's.
Inc greatest number of the worlds