The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-09-28
THEY HAD A TIME.

|
Continued from First Page.)
to the railroad. or that every old plu;
COW that is killed by a locomotive
turns out to be a thoroughbred. Yol
don't all know these things like we dc
but if you did you would probabl.
| want to put up a. sign over the genera
office building which reads, The publi
be id. Among railroad officials YOU
| will find men honorable and just anC
above reproach- As a proof of thi.
| statement L have only to refer to Pres
| ident Roosevelt's selection of one o.
our number to fill the post of secretary
| of the navy
THE Commercial club shall always
number among its friends the repre-
| sentatives of the Santa Fre who have
! spent so pleasant an evening here to-
night
Business Is Business.
| President Mills next introduced N
H. Loomis, general attorney for Kan
sas of the Union Pacific railroad. Mr.
LOOMS related his experience in hand
ling traffic when he attempted to run
a Presbyterian Sunday school picnic
from Topeka to Fort Riley. Mr..
LOOMS response to the toast "Busi-
ness Is Business was one of the hits
of the evening.
Business is business he said. 1T
depends entirely upon the point of
view what business is. 1 know that
the operating and traffic officials make
it their business to make dividends
for the stockholders, but it seems to
be the business of the law department
to make it convenient for the friends
who cannot pay car fare There are
those who pay car fare and think
nothing of it, and then there are a
multitude of others who go on the
theory that no gentleman pays car
fare
81 remember that in the early stage
of my railroad experience there was
a convention in a town on the Union
Pacific railroad. We had at that time
a passenger traffic man who like my
self was young in experience, and my
young traffic friend had visions of
working up a great business for the
the convention. he was greatly sur
prised that the law department had
gotten in ahead of him. And his re-
marks about interference from that
source were very forcible.
L have had but one experience in
handling traffic matters. And that ex-
perience taught me that there were
many things to learn and take into con-
1 wanted to arrange a
Sunday school excursion from Topeka
to Fort Riley and I wanted to make
the rate low so that every one could
go 1 took the matter up with the
proper authorities and they We're very
kind to me and did everything which I
asked. The fare from Topeka to Fort
Riley and return is 81. So I decided
upon a rate of so cents for adults and
% cents for children. 1 came to the
copclusion that five coaches would be
sufficient to handle the crowd and made
arrangements for the train for a lump
sum.
1.-THE first day the tickets were put
on sale enough were sold to fill the
five coaches and two more besides,
and the second day enough were sold
to fill three more coaches. Then we
took strenuous measures. We found
that people who were going to points
near Fort Riley or to points beyond
were buying those tickets with no in
tention of using the return portion.
We advertised that the excursion tick
cts were to be sold only to members
of the Presbyterian church, and Sc
lected man to have charge of the
sale. The Injunction was to make ev-
cry person show credentials that he
was a straight-Iaced Presbyterian be-
fore he could have a ticket, but will
you believe me, before the day of the
excursion tickets were sold for 16
coach loads.
linn ediately every hamlet, fraternal
society and sunday school began food
ing the company with requests for
similar excursion concessions. All
these letters We're referred to the law
department, and realized that bust
ness is business and have remained
that time
~ A1OOAlllS LUX the OCCASION last
night to compliment the Santa Fe on
account of the courteous officials which
that road employed. He recalled the
Hood of 1903 when the Union Pacific |
was completely shut off from the world
so to speak and of the kind manner in
which the Santa Fe divided supplies
and material for repairs, which We're so
much needed by that road itself at the |
same time He announced that he
wanted to take occasion to publicly
thank the representatives of the San
"a Fe for their kind action.
MIR. Bachelors Happy Talk.
r. NJ. Bachelor of St. Joseph was
by Toastmaster Mills. Mr..
Bachelors talk was short but to the |
point He was given hearty applause |
Mr. Bachelor is a good story teller. |
His slow deliberate manner is very
pleasing, so when he started out by /
saying that kansas is a great state |
and paused, the listeners knew that
more was to follow. He !
his assertion by saying land /
Topeka is a jewel in her breast And /
as an afterthought quietly said, Now /
that is pretty good. isn't it. Don't you !
-hink so? 1t took me a good while to I
think that up" Mr.. Bachelor was
given round of applause at this /
point Continuing he said that 1.-THE /
Santa Fe men have been holding their
meetings here for a long time. They
nave come to love Topeka, and to love
your people. and to love your drug
stores. and to love your water"
c. L. Morehouse responded to the
cast, Denver. or What Kansas Lost"
He referred particularly to the Arkan-
'as river case. which he treated in |
humorous light.
Assistant General Freight Agent F.
sramme and he told the wonderful
Noodle story.