The Paducah sun. [volume] (Paducah, Ky.) 1898-1906, 1905-12-27
(From the New York Press

The railroad reports for 1905 show
that the costs of damages for in
juries to persons" continues to roll
up astonishing totals. The Southern
railroad heads the list, with $1,O73,-
600 paid out for injuries to persons
during the fiscal year. This sum is
4 per cent interest on $2G, 1000,
capital almost sufficient to double
track the entire line. 1t shows at
any rate how much money railroad
can afford to spend to make travel
safe, and to cut down the damages
arising from the accidents that ex-
perience proves are bound to happen.
Every road has this personal in
jury bill to pay. This year it cost
the Erie $500, 900, the Atchison s43S
600, the Baltimore and Ohio $342,-
900. The Pennsylvania, on its main
division, escaped with $4,000 dam
ages. Last year the New York Gen.
trail paid out $355.000 for injuries to
persons, but the figures for the cur
rent year will be increased enor-
mously by the great wreck at Ma
rletta, o., when the eighteen-hour
train to Chicago ran through an open
switch.
Along with the increase of safety
devices which. in spite of the appall-
ing annual lists of casualties make
railroad travel safer year after year,
the railroad companies, besides ths
vast sums expended upon the ounce
OF prevention, add largely to their
current expenses to make as efficient
rs possible the pound of cure. All
| of the great roads maintain hos
pitGl service more or less complete
/ for first-ald treatment of employees,
but it has remained for the Southern
Pacific, which paid s2,015,000 last
year for injury TO life and property,
to carry the medical service, idea to
its highest development in the hos
pltal car.
This road has recently completed
in its San Francisco shops wonder
ful car, all immense ambulance on
wheels, with all the devices and con-
veniences of the modern hospital,
Stationed at the company's hos
pital near West Oakland, Cal, with a
trained nurse and cook assigned to
1t, and with medical supplies and
provisions always aboard, the car is
ready at an instant's notice to be
coupled to an engine and whirled at
high speed to the scene of disaster.
The hospital car is a marvel OF
compactness and hygienic conven-
fence. 1t is sixty-seven feet long
with a breadth of nine feet eight
inches. Twenty, six feet of the cen
trail body of the car is given up to
the operating and dressing room, as
complete and aseptic as any fast
anchored hospital can boast OF. and
ward with berths for twelve pa
tents. The rear of the car is bull
as an observation room. and between
1t and the hospital proper are state
rooms for doctors and nurses, all OF
which in emergency may be turned
} into comfortable resting places fol
the injured awaiting their turns a
che surgeons hands. Forward a lin
tied space Is given to the kitchen, re
} frigerator, servants quarters and al
the necessities of travel, very mucl
the same in equipment as the domes
tic economy of private car, for thu
staff must sometimes travel far, ant
on occasion, too, the car may be
called into service to do duty on al
Official junket.
The ward room ordinarily Is ar
ranged like a parlor car, with cas-,
;. chairs by the windows and the foo
space left clear. Under the car body
stored in pockets reached through
} trap-doors, is the paraphernalia
/ which goes to make up the twelve
berths. with mattresses and bee
springs to give the injured greater
ease than the ordinary Pullman bertl
affords. Close by Is the medica
: locker room. with closets containing
regular dispensary outfit and set
4