The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1906-02-23
INQUIRY IS TO BE MADE.
Senator TilIman Seeks Information
From Postmaster General.
MAY ABOLISH THE WOODEN CARS.
Many Of the Government Postal EN-
pIoyes Are Killed and Injur-
ed Annually.

Washington, Feb. 2l-It is SAD
story, one of death and serious injury
to large numbers of men, which is told
by Postmaster General Cortelyou, in re-
ply to the resolutions of inquiry regard
| ing casualties to railroad mail clerks
| introduced in the senate by Senator
| Iillman. Mr.. Tillman, is asking for the
passage of his resolution, explained
that he had been reading numerous
newspaper reports of railroad wrecks,
in which mail clerks had been killed or
| injured, and that he felt congress
should have at its disposal all the in
formation available on that question,
with view to enacting suitable legis-
latioh for the protection of this class
of government employees, should such
action be advisable.
Mr.. Cortelyou reports that during the
year 1901 there were S,97S railway pos
! tai clerks in the country, and that dur
| ing that year there were S25 railway
accidents, to trains hauling postal cars.
Sever clerks were killed outright, six
ty-three seriously injured, and 229 Sigh
| ly injured.
The figures for succeeding years do not
give any idea of the total number of
| accidents. Only those in which clerks
were injured being reported.
II, -, oln LII ~.
ty-eight were seriously injured, and 3O2
slightly injured. In 1903, twenty two
| were killed, seventy eight were serious
ly injured, and 39S slightly injured. In
| 1904, twenty-one were killed, ninety
were seriously injured, and 34S slightly
| injured. In 1905, twelve were killed,
l25 seriously injured, and 1856 slightly
| injured Or, in five years, sixty-four
clerks have been killed, 444 have been
seriously injured, and 1853 slightly in
jured.
The Tillman resolution was directed
! especially to the character of construc-
ton of railway postal cars. He wanted
to find out to what extent this loss of
life and jury were due to poorly built
cars. In late years it has been the pol
icy of the government to demand that
mail cars be built in part of steel, and
Mr.. TiIlman wanted to know how such
cars had withstood the shock of acct
dents as compared with the old wooden
cars cost from $1,000 to $4,000. The for
ter general gives all this information.
The old wooden cars cost from $1,000
to $4,000 to construct, and the steel
care cost from 1000 to $4,000. The for
mer weigh about $4,000 pounds and the
latter from 100000 to $4,000 pounds,
according to the quality of steel used.
At the close of the last fiscal year,
there were Lib postal cars on all the
roads of the United States, 735 of
which were built since 1893, when the
specifications of the postolfice depart
ment, demanding stronger cars, began
to apply. In May, 1904, these specifi-
cations were revised with view to adj
ditional safety for postal clerks, and
to meet the demands of the fast mail
service One hundred and eighteen pos
tai cars have been built since the revis-
ed plans went into effect, to- say moth
ing of forty old cars. which have been re-
built to meet the specifications.
One all-steel car, built by the Erie
road several years ago, has not yet been
in a wreck. Two all-steel cars are now
being built for the New York, New Ha-
ven & Hartford railway. The Pennsyl-
vania road is also to build steel car.
The Santa Fc company has contracted
for thirty nine mail cars, eight of which
have been delivered, to be constructed
sheathed with steel, and the flooring of
the same metal Over the steel floor
layer of cement will be laid, and on top
of that a layer of felt, with strong
wooden flooring over all.
The statistics submitted by Mr.. Cor
telyou show that when the mail cars
built after the government specifications
have been in wrecks. they, have escaped
with slight injury, as compared with
that done the baggage cars. the engines
stHu tic SHIONluS HC iooo VI ny
among postal clerks has been CORE
spondingly small in accidents where cars
of this sort were part of the wrecked
train.
There are 500 cars in use that were
bull more than ten years ago. or be-
fore the government specifications, is
sued in 1898, had had time to go into
full effect. Nearly all of these have since
passed through the shops for general
repairs or for rebuilding. But it is
obvious that cars built as long ago as
1869 and 1870. as some of them were,
and in the years Immediately after
wards, cannot be made accident proof,
even by going through the shops, and it
is quite possible that congress may take
up the question of radically fastening
the retirement of such cars and the
building of those of more modern type.
Five of the cars now in use were
built in 1869, three in 1870, one in 1871,