Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1901-09-28
IRE TRAMP RAlLROADER.
DRINK STARTS him ON A CAREER
OF WANDERING,
oismissals For ,ntosieasion commonest
Among Switchmen Experiences Men
Whom Any Road Would Employ Except
For Incorporate habits.

For Incorporate habits.
That human nature is pretty much
alike i'll all callings is shown By study
OF the tramp railroad man" said
division superintendent OF one OF the
trunk lines running into Washin,on to
Star" man at the station.
The tramp railroad man usually be
gins his career of wandering. seeking
employment from road TO road. after his
first dismissal because OF drinking. lie
may be an experienced man. such as any
road would be glad to employ. but his
weakness for whisky caused his down
fall. and. like other men. once the down
ward slide begins. every jolt in the
toboggan path sends him farther toward
the bottom.
Railroads all over TIE country arc
enforcing the rule demanding strict So
briefly with great rigduess. They are
the most practical advocates of temper
ance in the land They do not plead with
men. and hold tip frightful examples Of
the result of drink The question is
resolved to its most simple terms: II
man wishes to keep his place he has got
to keep liquor out of his .omach. Rail-
road men all know this. and the result,
is that railroad employees as great
body are the most temperate OF the
classes OF the employed.
"A few years ago it was common
sight to see trainmen come out OF a
saloon or a hotel near the depot after
preliminary 'bracer" before starting on
their run. 1t is rare sight now. and
furthermore. the rule holds good at all
times OF the day. whether on or off
duty. II trainman is known to tipple
on duty. he is at once called up before
the division superintendent and severely
lectured. II the admonition fails to
have the desired effect. he is summarily
dismissed. The managers OF the roads
have determined that men who possess
a disposition to drink cannot remain on
their payrolls. and the wholesale re-
formations and the good in general which
has been accomplished has been almost
incalculable.
Probably there arc more dismissals
for drunkenness among switchmcn than
in the other grades OF railroad employees
This is because swi,chnen and yardmcn
are stationed at one place. frequently
near saloons. Ii is possible for them to
slip away occasionally for drink. rush
the growler and drink its contents on the
sly, or have drink smuggled to them
surreptitiously by companion Of a
friend. But off goes their heads il they
are detected and close watch is kept.
as their positions. though humble. are
among the most important as to results
should they prove derclict in their duty
OF any on the road.
mo. we have no blacklist OF men
dismissed. II man applies to us for
employment we write to his references.
and il the cause of his dismissal is in
temperance, we do not employ him. and
he passes on to try his luck elsewhere
Previous experience on a railroad. how
ever, counts for great deal. II we
have evidence that man has really re-
formed, and he is good railroad man.
we sometimes give him a trial on what
is known as hard division. and IL
he lives tip to his determination. he re-
tains his place. and good citizen has
been made OF him.
1T is singular. though true that once
railroad man begins to tramp. as we
say, it is the exception that he climbs
mp again. He soon develops n grievance,
like other men on the downward road.
and falls into The error that everybody
is against him. lie seldom lays the
FAULT at his own door, where it bcloi.ss.
1--WE demand the strictest sobrc,y
lao Nras, 4 II,
must always be in the full possession OF
MI their faculties unaidcd by Stimulants
II the smell OF liquor is detected on the
breath OF train dispatcher, the 'old
man calls the culpri, down in unmiS-
taxable terms, and a repetition OF his
offenSc means the loss OF his place. As
rule, train dspatchcr' are tcctotalcrs
The prevention OF destruction Of is
property by accident and the safeguard
ing OF the lives OF its passengers are
the cardinal principles governing the
control OF railroad employees. The
swagger conductor or engineer. with his
nerves keyed up by few drinks" is
now almost a memory. Each year the
habits OF sobriety. neatncss. accuracy and
truthfuncss are becoming more and
more part and parcel of railroad man
by reason OF rigid enforcement OF the
rules. While 1t is true TO a large extent.
the companies are actuated by self-in,cr-
est, and not by temperance or hum;-ri-
tartan motives, the result, as far rs the
men are concerned, is the same as il the
latter considerations were the only ones
at issue. ~ Washington Star