The Port Gibson reveille., 1904-10-20
GRAY HAIRS COME SOON.
The TRAIN DlsPATcHER's CARES
AND RESPONSIBILITIES.

President Ledyard. Of the Michigan
Central remarked:
Il wonder why 1t Is that all Of our
train dispatchers are gray-haired-
even those under 30 years OF age.
A division superintendent who was
With the party and who had himself
been promoted from dispatcher re.
Piled:
'Mr. President, I think that If there
Is anything calculated to encourage
gray hairs 1t is to sit over train sheets
Tor eight consecutive hours and deal
out train orders, and do the other nee
essary work incumbent on the posi-
ton. The dispatcher Is practically
the sponsor for every railroad man on
bis division.
In case Of a wreck he has to know
the address Of the nearest section fore
man, how to reach him with mes
sage and about how many ties and
rails are on the section. Also at what
particular point this material is piled
up. If the accident happens at night
The dispatcher must know what tele-
yraphers can be depended on to exc
cute his orders promptly. Some night
operators get 'dozy' after midnight,
and 1t would be considered poor pol
Icy to put out an order at their sta
lion, as a serious delay might occur.
THE train dispatcher is the only Of
hcial who knows the peculiarities Of
the operators along the line and has to
be governed accordingly. 1t would
naturally be thought that a dispatcher
could put out train order to any op-
orator on the line who was regularly
employed by the company, but an at
tempt to do so might be received by
The head officials like a recent north
srn case. where the superintendent
called down a dispatcher for putting
put an order at a certain station. The
dispatcher tried to justify his actions
BY saying that, the operator was regu-
arly employed at that point and had
been holding down the job for several
years. Yes, know that replied the
official, and you ought to have learned
by this time that Jones (the operators
supposed name) cannot keep awake
after midnight
"As a matter Of equity the dispatch
er was not at fault any more than an
other dispatcher, who gave a slow
train little time on a fast train and
the latter was delayed Is minutes. The
superintendent, asking for an explain
alton from the dispatcher, was told
that the slow train only had a dozen
cars and engine No. 293, which ought
to have handled forty cars and made
the run.
They ought to have made it. re-
piled the superintendent, but did you
ever know Engineer Slowboy to make
time-and furthermore. he had Con-
ductor Awful Tired behind him and 1t
takes about 20 minutes to get him
from the caboose to the telegraph Of
dce.'
Another dispatcher put out an or
der once to an operator who could not
keep awake after 11.59 p. NJ, and while
in his usual somnambulistic state the
train he was to hold ran by the sta
ton, heavy windstorm having put !
out his signal OF course, It was
the duty Of the engineer to have
stopped when he discovered the sig |
nal light was out 1t was the duty OF /
the fireman to have called the atten- /
ton OF the engineer to the fact that
the light was out. The conductor and
two brakemen were also supposed to
be on the lookout for such evidences
Of dereliction or freaks of nature-but
rs a matter OF fact, the engineer, con-
iuctor and both brakemen were asleep
and as the station where the order
vas out happened to be on the top of a
lill the poor fireman was so busy
coal he did not notice the
signal light being out as the train ap-
the station, and very unfor-
the fireman was the only man
,illed in the wreck which subsequent
y occurred.
Who was to blame? Most people
would say the sleepy operator and
rain crew, but the officials held that
he train dispatcher should not have
lut out his order to an operator he
ught to have known could not keep
wake. directed to the conductor and
ngineer of the train early in the
of whom were known
o be redhot in their pursuit OF the
GODDESS, Morpheus. 1t did not do any
'ood fer the dispatcher to ask why
uch men we're kept in the service Of
he company; he was cody informed
hat he ought to have foreordained
THAT would have happened and that
is services were no longer required.
''Yes, the dispatcher has to be a
rst-class clock regulator. The clock
D his Office that he runs trains by
J supposed to be accurate-at least 1t
J used to settle all disputes about
me. No 6, which has just left Old
oint Comfort at 6.15 p. m, is sudden
7 reported by the operator at Fairfax,
* miles away, as passing there at
10 D. m. What time have you got?
ais the dispatcher to the operator
t Fairfax. Just GIL now You're
minutes slow; it's now 6.31 p. m;
gu better set that clcck fixed
' The agent has ordered a new one,
ut It has not come yet
How many cars did No. II have?' I
II don't know,
Didn't you see them go by?' {
CT saw part Of thems but / was
ltting some wood in the stove I
Yes, you have been asleep. .
Then there is a fight for circuit, =
which the dispatcher usually wins i
1t, as he is officially entitled to use Il
q figures 49, which means clear the e