The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-02-18

spirit SnJeTlDS railroad service Is cal
culated to develop the qualities I have
mentioned, whether he work in the
shops, on the tracks, in the train serv-
ice or office OF all things avoid get
ing in a rut The man who cannot see
beyond the confines of his shop or office
viii remain in that position. The broad
man will observe the interworkings Of
the departments and he viii become
.np-essed with the necessity for per-
Iect organization.
Railroads as now operated in this
country are big machines. 1t would
not be am!ss to consider each depart
ment as a wheel and each employe in
that department as a cog in that
wheel. From the apprentice or office
boy TO the president, each does specific
work. And when railroad man, re-
gardleSS OF his position, realizes that
as a cog Of q great working mechanism,
successful operation depends on how he
fulflls his duty. it behoOves him to put
forth the best that is in him. The gen.
eraI scheme of railroad operation con-
templates the carrying out by subordi-
nate employees or departments of poll
cies outlined by the next superior. AS
a general proposition everybody on
railroad is ansv cradle only to his SUI
peTior officer. So well arranged is this
system that circumstances rarely exist
TO justify a subordinate questioning
SuperiOr'5 orders. However, there is
always warrant for the use of judg
ment. If an order is manifestly incor-
rect, an inferior would do right in call
ing the matter to his superior officers
attention. Generally speaking, how
ever, strict compliance with orders is
essential to the proper operation Of
railroads. ''Obey orders" is a maxim
in railroading- While at first this may
sound a little harsh, it will not upon
analysis be found So The word obey
is necessary when 1t is considered that
instructions sent out by any officer
usually affect the operation of hundreds
of miles of road, thousands of shippers
and hundreds of thousands Of travellers,
while back Of all these commands de-
Ponds the success of the road-its abil-
ity TO meet all obligations and give the
army Of tockhoiders a fair earning on
the capital invested.
By reason of this well-oiled system
of management the charge is often
made that railroad men are too much
parts of a machine; that their individ-
ualitv is entirely buried in the corpo-
ration Now, WREN one stops to think
of the gigantic proportions of a large
railroad, the logic of officers and en-
plOTes being cogs in a wheel must be
apparent. If every man, officer and
employee Of a railroad were left to his
own discretion. giving and taking or
ders to suit his convenience. trains
would be stalled, earnings decreased,
and a chaotic condition result 1t is
| this very system of transmitting or
ders from superior to subordinate that
makes a railroad the best managed
proposition In the world. The impress
4 sion should not be gained that in this
/ transmission OF orders, of passing au-
/ thoTity from the highest to the lowest,
/ that ones individuality is lost The
personal qualifications of a railroad
man compose his stock in trade There
must be strong individuality. There are
/ emergencies where communication with
a superior officer is impossible, and a