Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1909-01-20
DUTY OF EMPLOYE
RAILROAD BRoTHERHooDs ARE
STIRRED UP.
Article by Unknown Author in Friendly
Magazine Has Caused Much Com
ment Among Operatives Of
Various Lines.


"The abuse of the power of the rail-
road brotherhoods in their relation to
safety, or, rather, their interference
with the disciplinary measures of rail
road arrangements, has very direct
bearing on the question of the safe
and expeditions handling of traffic. =
This statement is made in an arti-
Gle on Safety" in the Santa Fe EN-
ployes' Magazine, which is causing no
end Of comment among operating men
over the entire line. The article was
written by prominent members of
one Of the railroad brotherhoods. The
name of the author will not be dis
closed until the last article appears.
The articles are such a strong indict-
ment of the present attitude of the
brOtherhoOds upon the subject of
safety that curiosity is keenly aroused
throughout the railroad world as to
identify the author.
The writer, who believes that the
time is fast approaching when the
American public will call the operat-
ing employees to account for the lax
way in which they are discharging
their duties to the travelling public,
says:
seem to me that the American people
are going to look more and more every
year to the individual employee, in
stead of to the railroad companies, in
placing the blame for disastrous
wrecks. There are many men who are
conversant with the numerical strength
of the railroad brotherhoods who are
saying to themselves and to others:
You brotherhood men, with your vast
aggregations of organized members,
covering territory stretched from the
Bay of Fundy to the Golden Gate, and
from Alaska to the Panama, what are
you doing? What have you done in
assure us that the safety Of loved
ones we intrust to you has had and
will have the vigilant care and atten-
ton that the unity of the brotherhoods
can give, if it will?"
One reason TO rthe apparent lack of
hoods in the problem of safe operation
he says, is the fact that there has
been a sort of impression that this
was matter for the railroad manage
ments to attend to- In all the writer's
experience he does not remember of
the subject of safety ever having been
brought up in the meetings of the
brotherhood.
He now recommends thai portion
of the time of each brotherhood meet
ing be given over to discussion of the
means and of the necessity of safe op-
Grafton. What we need at this time"
he exclaims, SIS not great soul-stir
ring revival of the interest in the SUBJ
ject, but rather moral awakening to
the fullest sense of how deeply we are
all concerned in the safe handling of
trains, which help to compose the
greatest of all public utilities, the
railroads"
responsibility of the men is gathered
from the following statement: Let
us look the question squarely in the
face and dispense with that fair but
false theory that we as individuals are
immune from the danger of accidents.
Let us look at it in all seriousness,
realizing that our turn may soon come
to appear before the great General
Manager of the Universe to render an
account of our stewardship in the
handling of the people intrusted to our
care"