East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1906-05-05

James G. Kidwell, the Walla WaIla
stockman who is well known in PEN
dleton, has just returned from San
Francisco, and is enthusiastic over
the relief work of e. H. Hartman,
chief Of the Hartman system of rail-
roads, in San Francisco and Oakland.
In speaking Of the work Of Mr.. Har-
riman in placing his entire system of
roads at the disposal of San Francis
co, he says
"E. H. Hartman has done and is
doing more for the relief of San Fran
cisco than any other dozen individuals.
Ex-Mayor Phelan did nobly in sub
scribing s1,000.000 to the relief fund.
but his opportunity to aid the stricken
people of that city was not so great
as was Mr.. Harriman's. It was a case
where just such aid as was rendered
by railroad system could not be
equaled by any amount of money.
"As soon as he received the news of
the disaster he started from New
York in a special train and in the
quickest time possible was on the
scene.
Hastily viewing the remains of the
once beautiful city he subscribed
100000 to the relief fund, and, re-
turning to Oakland, he gave orders to
his whole system of railroadsr-orders
that meant more at that time than
any possible subscription of money.
He gave the word, and every train,
passenger and freight, was side track
ed for the trainloads of provisions
coming into San Francisco and the
trainloads of refugees leaving the
stricken city.
"All Of this was free. There was
no hesitation and dickering about
rates or the amount of relief supplies
Through him 1t was possible for every
station, large and small, to rush their
donations little or great to the front.
Then 1t was just as necessary for
the relief Of the situation to get as
many people as possible out of the
city as it was to get the provisions
and supplies to those who could NOT
leave. Again Mr.. Hartman was the
man of the hour and he threw his out
going trains open to the public. The
orders were that If a person has the
necessary funds to pay a rate of one
cent per mile, we'll and good; If he has
no funds, let him go Just the same
and as far as the Hartman system
extends.
NO one can appreciate the real
enormity of the value of such action
on the part of Mr.. Hartman unless he
can stand at the depot in Oakland, as
we did, and see the trains coming and
going. The immense railroad yard
was one mass of incoming and outgo-
ing trains, the one loaded with sup
plies from all over the United States.
the other with fleeing refugees, all at
the cost of the Hartman system.
"Harriman's generosity in this mat
ter has opened the eyes of thousands
of people Who have been too free to
men of his calibre, and it is
certain that he has won a lasting place
in the hearts of the people of Califor-
MIA.
After doing all these things for the
relief of the distressed and suffering,
we still hear of his attending the
meetings of the general relief COM
mittee and offering to build railroad
tracks into the city for the purpose of
removing the debris from the streets,
without cost and with the only reser-
vation that he be allowed to remove
the tracks when the work is COM
pleted.
There is little doubt that notwith-
standing the great drain upon his rail-
road system for the relief of the city.
it will soon be noted that he is doing
more than any other one man to re-
store it to its former condition or even
better.''