The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1908-03-30


fees, and receive in exchange therefor
the regular form of passage" ticket
for use on the trains in the journey
to be made, just exactly as the indi-
vidual purchaser of an individual, or
single, straight trip ticket presents
the cash at the ticket window and re-
ceives in return therefor a proper form
CT ticket for the journey to be made
There are many sound reasons which
have caused the railway companies TO
adopt this plan for the handling and
use of this mileage transportation.
Required To Maintain Offices.
In the first place, the railway COM
panies are required to maintain at their
stations ticket offices for the accommo-
dation of the public in the purchasing of
tickets to be used for transportation pur-
poses
There is just as sound reason why the
holder of mileage transportation order,
sold at a reduced rate. should be re-
quired to present such order at the regu-
lar ticket office and secure the proper
form of passage" ticket as there is that
the regular passenger should in securing
his or her passage ticket present his or
her money at the ticket office for such
regular ticket for use on the train.
AS stated, the railway company pro-
vides the ticket office for that purpose
1t is through the ticket offices that It
provides and sells its tickets, and 1t is in
these ticket offices that all records and
accounts relating to the sale of tickets
are kept, and it is but businesslike that
these records and accounts should in
clude everything in competition with the
issuing of transportation used on trains
Therefore, the holder of such mileage
transportation will be expected before
starting on a journey to present at the
ticket office this mileage transportation
and demand of the ticket agent a pas
sage" ticket for the contemplated jour-
ney, whereupon the ticket agent will de-
tach from the mileage transportation the
proper amount of mileage to cover the
journey to be made and in lieu thereof
will issue to the passenger the necessary
passage ticket for use on the train, as
well as for use in having baggage
checked.
No proper record, or businesslike regu-
lation can be had in the checking of
baggage on the mere presentation of mile
age form of transportation, while no
mistake or error can arise if such check
ing is done on the presentation of the
regular form of passage ticket Hence
another reason for requiring that the
mileage transportation should be ex-
changed for a passage" ticket, and that
the checking of baggage should only be
done on the passage ticket and not on
the mileage transportation.
Have Baggage Checked Through.
Under this system it will be possible for
a passenger holding interchangeable
mileage over one line, starting from an
initial point on a line which does not
recognize such interchangeable mileage.
and going to a point on a connecting
line which does recognize interchangeable
mileage, to have his or her baggage
checked through from the starting point
to destination simply by presenting at the
starting point the regular transportation
over that line to the junction point with
the line recognizing the interchangeable
mileage, and at the same time presenting
the interchangeable mileage. For exam
ple A passenger moving from Lagrange
to Gainesville: If he or she holds South
ern Railway mileage and at LAGRANGE
purchases a ticket of the Atlanta and
west Point railroad, LAGRANGE to At
lanta, he or she should on presentation
of this A. &c w. P. ticket, together with
the Southern railway interchangeable
III. L.
through from LAGRANGE to Gainesville.
So long as the regular passage tickets
are used for transportation on the trains
the train conductors can readily take up
transportation without any particular in
reference with the more important du-
ties devolving upon them, but for the
conductor to have to take up this trans
portation in the shape of mileage tickets,
he is more or less delayed in doing So
and in keeping a record and reporting
such character of transportation so COL
lected additional labor devolves upon
him. and out of all this grows more or
less confusion and delay, by reason of
having to keep books, and these things
prove to be interruptions to the dis
charge of these more important duties,
and it is but proper that the conductors
should be relieved, as far as possible, of
such unnecessary and confusing work.
Again, for a train conductor to under
take to collect mileage transportation for
short journeys simply means on account
of the delay and labor incident thereto,
that it is physical in]possibility for him
to collect all such mileage on sucn snort
trips, ana as a result of this the railroad
must necessarily be the loser. 1t is not
presumed that the travelling public would
expect that the railroad company should
be a sufferer in such cases.
All of this is to be avoided by the new
system. to be inaugurated of having this
mileage transportation exchanged at the
ticket window for regular passage"
tickets. 1t is a reasonable regulation
from every point of view. and the rail-
roads which are voluntarily granting this
form of transportation at reduced rates
are entitled to the support and Coop
Grafton of the public in the carrying out