Omaha daily bee., 1906-06-26
MEN IS THE CRYOFRAILROADS
Labor in Greater Demand in West Thar
Can Be Supplied.
IMPROVEMENTS HELD BACK BY A LACK
BuIIdinE of Tracks CouId Proceed
Rapidly n sumcient Crews
COuId he Obtained to
Do the work.

Men, men. men, y the call Of the west
at present in all classes OF work. especially
for railroad work along the many new
lines which are being built An employ
ment agency in the west il said to be max
ing special efforts to secure the 1900 men
employed on the Gould line to 60 with the
Southern Pacific. With advent Of the har-
vest. which promises to be the largest in
the history Of the west, the labor problem
for the railroads now building promises to
be a serious one. Unless something I'M
foreseen happens to relieve the situation
there promises to be considerable ad-
vance in wages.
Not only does the lack OF men delay the
work at hand, but also keeps the con-
tractors from bidding on new work. In
stead OF contractors with large grading
outfits going around looking for work the
situation is reversed and the railroads have
to look up the contractors and beg them to
bid on any new work. This fact is keeping
back considerable new building in this
state and Wyoming which would be under
taken this summer were 1t not for the
scarcity OF labor.
The call is out for laborers in the harvest
fields, and this work suits many better than
the work on the railroads, az the farm
grading camps Many are now going to
the Kansas fields, as the railroads have put
in a rate of a cent mile for parties OF
FIVE or more. This same rate went into
effect for Nebraska points June rs, and
many harvest hands will soon be needed for
the bounteous Nebraska crops.
New stations to BE Opened.
The stations of waithill and Winnebago
on the new Ashland-Sioux City cutoff will
be opened for business June q. The whole
road will soon be in position to handle all
kinds OF freight and will then hustle to
get ready for passengers. This brings to
mind the fact that all talk OF a road from
this cutoff to Omaha has been dropped
since Freight Traffic Manager Crosby OF
the Burlington handed out his jolly at the
Commercial club rooms about a year ago.
with the completion of this road the
freight Of the Hill lines from the north will
evade Omaha entirely. 1t will be trans
! ferred at Ashland for the south and east,
that for the east being sent over the river
to Pacific junction by the cutoff through
! Louisville. The freight for the south will
be diverted to Lincoln and then south 10
Kansas City.
Elevators have been built at the new
| towns along the cutoff and this grain will
also have a tendency to stay away from
Omaha. With the fight now being waged
in the matter of elevator charges the mem
bers of the Grain exchange are to reopeI
the question as to whether this grain ii
| to be permitted to go by Omaha wher
the gateway of the west is the natura
market for it. BY avoiding Omaha Tho
Burlington will have an edge on othel
roads to get the grain either to the soutl
or east for itself without another roaC
i having a chance to bid.
The Burlington has decided not to place
an exclusive Burlington agent at Sioul
Great Northern agent at that point.
Big Sunday ExcursIonA.
Although generally opposed to the Sun
day excursion business, the Union Pacif
went into 1t for keeps Sunday and did
big business all over the line. The crow,
between Grand Island and Omaha. was al
orderly bunch and was returned HON
without mishap or accident of any kind
The fact the lid is on in Omaha gives EN-
, couragement TO railroad officials to ru
these Sunday excursions, and the peopl
spent the day at the various parks and a
, the ball game. In addition to the Oman
bunch the Union Pacific hauled 1.OOO int
Beatrice from the north and 700 from tn
, south 20 the Chautauqua celebration. Fror
Salina to Concordia 500 were hauled for
Knights of Columbus celebration, and 3;
returned from Denver to western Kansas.