Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1903-01-15

LII vi II " MWA COURlEl
men. made this rate unjust and by
| joint consent it was changed.
In the conferences with the officials
of the road the men asserted thai
when the present agreement was sign
ed, the engines were small and the
trips longer, and the trains had but
few cars. Now big engines are used
the strain on the engineers has grown
and the responsibility has practically
doubled. In addition to this claims
were made that living expenses are
now higher.
The Rate of Wages.
These facts were conceded and the
new schedule was arranged. This pro
vides that engineers on the passenger
engines of the eight wheel class, with
cylinders OF eighteen to twenty inches
shall receive from $3.50 to $3.50 pei
100 miles or less of travel. Engineers
on engines of the six-wheel class, with
cylinders of eighteen to twenty-one
inches, shall receive $3.50 for 1OC
miles Of travel.
In the freight service conditions are
much the same. The engineers on
| freight engines of the eight-wheel
class will receive from $500 to $4.25
| for 100 miles of travel. Engineers on
the six-wheel engines will receive
$4.20 to ,$4.60. The pay on switch en-.
! gines varies from $3.50 to $40 for ten
| hours or less of work, while suburban
engineers are to get $4.44 a day for
100 miles or less.
Orders 225 Locomotives.
The management of the Rock Island
| has given what is undoubtedly the
largest single order on record for en-.
| gines.. The order is for 225 locomo-
tives to be divided between the pas
senger and freight service, and the to-
tai cost will be about $4,O00,0O0. This
large expenditure for power is made
necessary by the enormously increased
| traffic of the system and by new con,
struction and the acquisition of new
lines which are in need of power.
Rock Island to Enlarge.
| An important announcement con.
corning a deal in which Rock Islad
and other trunk lines are interested
will soon be made This statement
has been given out at the headquar-
tiers of the Rock Island road in New
York.
The Rock Island management is
not ready to make any statement, but
admits that some important matters
and something of general interest will
soon be made public. One thing is
certain-Rock Island will not rest I'M
til it puts its nose into salt water
One theory is that community of
interest has been established between
James j. Hill and the Moore brothers
for the control Of the Erie railroad
and that the Great Northern, the Bur.
lington and the Northern Pacific will
use the road as an entrance to the
Atlantic seaboard from the northwest,
while the Rock Island will use it as
an outlet for it's southwestern and
western trc lie.
| Another theory is that the recent
heavy buying of Atchison came from
the Moore syndicate. and was in the
interest of the Rock Island railroad.
Road Plans to Rush Coal.
Additional measures are being taken
by the Chicago, Milwaukee and St
Paul Railway company to facilitate
rapid handling Of coal cars on it's lines
A rule requiring thatticoal be moved
in preference to other, business except
perishable freight has been in oper
alton TO" some time. but officials of the
st. Paul have given more specific di
/ rections for carrying out this rule.
4 Under the new rule the agent at the
| station from which the coal is shipped
\ is required to notify the superintend
i emf of transportation at once by wire
/ giving the car number, train number
| destination. and the name of the con
signee as soon as 1t leaves his station
When this notice is received by the
superintendent of transportation he is
required to at once transmit the infor
nation to the agent at the point Of
destination and this agent must imme
| diately notify the consignee. This no
tice must give the time when the GOA
| Is due to arrive.
AS a further precaution, the com
panys agents and employees are re
quired to watch the movements of the
train. II the coal fails to arrive al
the station of destination on schedule
time the agent there must notify the
superintendent of transportation al
once by wire so that the latter car
thus take steps to trace the cars.
confesses to Train Robbery.
The police at, st. Joseph, Mo-, claim
to be in possession of confession
from Roy Hardin, who says he was one
of the five men, who, on the night o.
January 10, 1894, held up the Burling
lton fast train to Chicago at st. JOSEPH
Hill, two miles east of ST. Joseph, ant
after blowing open the safe in the ex
press car, secured sum of money es
timated from $4,000 to $4,000. None
of the perpetrators ever was captured
A reward of $500 was offered by thu
state at the time for the capture of thu
men. and the Burlington duplicated the
offer.
RICHARDS STILL MISSING.
nec Moines EVIL M,.eh,I MAJ Va