The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-07-08
RAILROAD NEWS.
Wabash Railroad AbOIishes Es-
piOnage System.
Vice President f. A. DeIano
Makes a Clean Sweep.
III MEN LET OUT.
Reduction Of Force Saves About
100000 Annually.
Gossip and Matters OF Interest
in Railroad Circles.

Chicago, July ST. A. Delano, vice
president of the Wabash railroad, has
abolished the entire secret service de-
partment of the company, including
about so train collectors, and by so do
ing has ended the most remarkable
system of espionage ever maintained on
a railroad.
The facts regarding the abolition of
the spy system of the Wabash discloses
the methods pursued by Joseph Ramsey,
Jr.. in the effort to ascertain whether
his officials and employees were true to
their trust. Through the instrumental
ty of G. o. Eames, superintendent of the
secret service, and of ]. B. Nichols,
special agent of the Wabash, Presi-
dent Ramsey built up a system Of
lei in railroad history, but which found
an mitator when I. T. Loree was pres
ident of the Baltimore & Ohio.
By the employment of III men, all of
whom have been summarily discharged,
PRESIDENT Ramsey was enabled to place
spy upon every important official and
employee of the Wabash railroad For
years these men have been subjected to
i an espionage which began when they
arose in the morning and ended only
when the lights went out in their bed
rooms at night. The system became so
irksome that the designations on the
Wabash due to it in years past have
been many. In vain did officials of the
system protest
AS soon as Mr.. Delano became vice
president of the road he learned of the
secret service system which expended
more than 500, 900 annually to be able to
convince a railroad president that his
conductors were not stealing and his
officials were not embeZzling. He found
that every official of the railroad, includ-
ing himself, was subjected to the daily
espionage of Games men. 1t did not
take Mr.. Delano long to secure the
which he summarily did.
1t is understood that the secret SER
vice organization became so strong that
many of it's members began trafficking
in railroad transportation. This prac-
tice grew to such an extent that it be-
came almost an open scandal. If any
official dared to protest against it, and
thereby incur the anger of the secret
service men, 1t was done at the risk OF
having unfavorable reports made
against him to the president of the
road. So elaborate was the system that
train collectors were not only employ
ed to prevent the conductors stealing,
but secret service men were employed
to see that the collectors did not steal.
1--WE abolished the department for two
reasons said Mr.. Delano. ''One was to
save useless expense of $4,000 to $780,
600 annually, and the other was the fact
that General Manager Henry Miller and
myself do not believe in maintaining an
espionage upon employees. Hereafter our
superintendents will be held responsible
for the proper conduct of business on
their divisions. The foolishness of such
a system of espionage is shown by the
fact that in the matter of train collec-
tors SIS a month men were hired to do
honestly what the road did not trust q
man getting from $125 to $14O month
to do