The Birmingham age-herald., 1902-09-09

eers. who have served an apprenticeship
 as firemen, to the conductors who, as a rule have served an apprenticeship as l brakemen, but to all the men of all the
 organization connected with railroad work l know you do not grude my say ing that through you am talking to all
 the railroad men of the country. You ir 1 your organization as railroad men have taught two lessons the lesson of how much can be accomplished by organiza
 ton, by mutual self help of the type that helps another in the only way by which 1 in the long run a man who is a full grown man really can be helped-that is by teaching him to help himself. Applause lou teach the benefits of organization and you also teach the indesputable need of keeping absolutely unimpaired the faculty of individual iniaative, the faculty by which each man brings him. 1 self to the highest point of perfection l by exercising the special qualities with which he is himself endowed
 "The brotherhood has deve1oped to this enormous extent since the days, DOW many years ago, when the nrst little band came together, and il mas developed not by crushing out individual iniative, but by developing it, by combining many individual iniatives The Brotherhood of Bremen does much for all nremen. sit | firmly believe that the individual flrenass since the growth of brotherhood has been i more, not less, efficient than he was twenty years ogo. (Applause.) Member ship in the brotherhood comes, as 1 un- derstand it, after a nine-Montns' proba- i tionary period After man has shown his worth he is then admitted and stands on his footing as a brother. Now, any many who enters with the purpose of let i ting the brotherhood carry him, is not worth much. (Appause) The man who counts in the brotherhood is the man who | pulls his own weight and little more. 1 Qaughter.)
 l Much can be done by the brotherhood. 1 l have just hinted in the general figures l gave you at how much has been done. l But it stlll remains true in the brother hood, and everywhere else throughout American life, that in the last resort nothing can supply the place of the man $ own individual qualities. We need those no matter how perfect the organization is outside. There Is just as much need of nerve, hardihood. power to face risks and accept responsibilities, in the engineer ant fireman, whether on a flyer a freight train, now that there ever was. (Ap- plause.) Much can be done by tho asso- clation; a great deal can be accomplished by working each for all and all for e.ch but we must not forget that the nrst re- quisite in accomplishing thar IS that eacfl man should work for others by working for himself, by developing his own capaci- ty. Isn't that common sensey 1 think sO The steady way in which u mun can r.se is illustrated by little thing that hap pered yesterday. l came down here over the Queen and Crescent railroad and the general manager who handled my train and who handled yours was MT. Mcguire. (Appause.) l used to Know him in the old days. He was on his way up-and he began right at the bottom. He was a fireman at ore tune. He worked his way straight up. and now he is general manager, and he put this conventions here, and he put me here. (Applause)
 Must Keep Individuality.
 'I believe so emphatically in your or ganization bedause, while it teaches the need of working in union. of working in association. of working with, deep in our hearts, not merely on our lips. the sense of brotherhood, yet of necessity it still keeps, as your organization always must keep to the foremost, the worth of indi- vidual qualities of a man (applause). Now. I said to you that I came here in a sense, not to speak to you, but to use your experience as an object lesson for all of us-an object lesson in good Ameri- can citizenship.
 'All professions, of course. do not call for the exercise to the same degree of the qualities of which I have spoken. Your profession is one of which, am in clined to feel plays in modern life a greater part, from the standpoint of character, than we entirely realize. There is in modern life, with the growth of civilization, with the growth of luxury,