The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1909-01-10
POSE.

In reference to the series of ad-
VeTtisements which the Pensacola
Electric company is starting in The
Journal today, and more particularly
in reference 10 the matter of deaths
by accident which annually occur
throughout the United States, in con
nectiOn with public service utilities
and other industrial enterprises, Man
ageT Alba II. Warren, of the street
car company, talked very interesting
" TO a Journal representative yes
terday afternoon. Mr.. Warren among
other things said:
The Corporations Attitude.
The time has come to speak of VIC
lent death and injury, and of the atti-
tude of this corporation.
Violent death and injury is all too
common in this country. The acct
dent records of industrial and trans
portation activities in the United
States show 4 tremendous sacrifice
OF human life and happiness. We no
longer have to guess that this is so.
Investigators have furnished us with
the statistics: scarcely a month goes
by that some magazine does not pub
lish an article calling attention TO this
national evil.
At first, the result of the awaken
ing to the record for injury and sud
den death was to cause a great load
OF blame to be put upon the owners
and managers of corporations in
whose business occurred the serious
loss of life and limb. For example,
popular opinion in a hurry threw all
responsibility upon the management
of steam railroads for all the acct
dents that happened upon their lines.
Popular opinion even went so far
as TO accept as true accident Stats
tics which were not based upon fact.
For the moment it was forgotten that
employees of industrial corporations
and patrons of transportation COM
panies were every day taking such
risks as would possibly lead to injury
1t was forgotten that the average
American is by nature a hurried, I'M
restrained, forceful, daring individ-
ual who takes risks because ne was
bern to it.
Must Study the Men.
Today. however, while it is still
apparent L1at Industrial and railway
have not learned all that
they may learn, and that all have
probably not done everything that
they might do 10 prevent bodily in
jury, it has already become apparent
that. to remedy the situation fully,
We must study not only the machin-
cry that causes injury but also the
man who is injured. Sometimes the
machine or man that inficts the in
jury is 10 blame. sometimes accidents
happen without the fault OF anyone
are just accidents. But very, very
often the fault or a part of it rests
with the man who receives the injury.
The truta about American character
is this-an American viii take almost
better care of his neighbOT than of
himself. He is generous and good
hearted, daring and careless. 1t is
the American character.
And so when this whole subject
of injury in industry has been investi-
gated it naS been found that after ne
have studied safety devices and block
signals, and guards for cOgWheeIS and
all the rest. we must still have 10 con
slider American characterize human
element of the question. And all per-
sons who have given the subject care
full consideration agree TO this.
Educate the Man Also.
There is no way to make humanity
careful except by education. You can
reduce loss of life and limb in Amer
lean life by rules and regulations and
signals and guards but there is one
thing which will do more than all the
TeSt-6GucatiOn- Faith must be put
upon the tiTeleSS education of brake
men and engineers on steam rail-
ways and the education of miners
anG engineers below ground and con-
dUctOTs and motormen and the driv-
eTs Of wagons upon our streets. And
must be directed also to
the general public VINO having the
American traits will risk their bodies.
directly by jumping off a
train before it comes into a station
or sometimes Indirectly when they
demand speCd-alWays more and more
speed for automobiles and trains and
electric cars and flying machines.
And now to so back to the first
sentence-it is time 10 say a word on
the subject of violent death and in
jury. Popular opinion is already edu-
Gated TO the fact of the annual slaugh-
te- in the United States. To repeat
over and over this fact will not do
any good. WHAT we want is a RENE
dv, And If a remedy is TO be had Il
surely may be had best and quickest
when corporations and employees and
and the public will work together
al education.
Should Work Together.
There is no reason why they
should not work together, for eaca has
a very lively interest in the remedy
in educating each other to avoid the
sacrifice of life and limb. And cor
poratiOns and employees and the pub
lie will work for the same purpose
in the same generous, human. good {
hearted way
when man says that a corpora
ton has no soul it generally means
that the man has no intimate knowl
edge Of corporations. The manager /
of a corporation is probably about /!