The Norfolk weekly news-journal. (Norfolk, Neb.) 1900-19??, 1910-05-27

duty's discipline the greatest thing
in their lives.
Here is another incident that proves
the same fact. On railroad in Colo.
RADIO short time ago a freight train
dashed down a mountain side at Il
rate of seventy.tive miles an hour was
derailed, three of the train crew were
killed outright, and the remaining two
were stunned and terribly injured.
The first thought of the two survivors
after they recovered sufficiently to rea.
lie what had happened was that the
east bound passenger train following
the freight should be tagged. SO stag.
gering as he walked one of the men
climbed over the steep grade to flag
the passenger train and avert more
deaths, while his companion went in
the other direction to summon aid.
The testimony of both these survi.
vors of the wreck agrees as to one
point. The first thing they thought of,
on coming to consciousness, was the
danger to the oncoming passenger
train.
People who know little of the life of
a railroad man can only marvel at the
sense of duty in the case of these
trainmen. The strength and the exact
ing discipline of this highly developed
sense are the result of number of
qualifications which railroad men must
possess. In the first place, this sense
of duty is deeply impressed on the
mind of a trainman because he has
! learned to obey rules and regulations
religiously. The conscientious com.
! pliance by trainmen with instructions
and directions given by railroad Of
ticials has brought about the wonder.
full progress in modern railroading.
Rules and regulations are formu-
| lated for the systematic handling of
affairs, to the end that life and pro.
perty may be protected and that the
maximum benefits may accrue to all
concerned as result of the efforts
expended. 1t is thought by many in
minor positions that these rules and
! regulations are given arbitrarily by
those in authority, and are simply de-
| vised for the inconvenience of those
| who are expected to obey them; and,
again, that discipline in many cases
is applied to satisfy some personal
grievance the superior is accused of
harboring against men under him.
Need of Strict Rules.
This is far from true, and, as mat
! ter of fact it is not the man in minor
position who has the most regulations
to follow and the most rules to OBJ
serve, but that these increase in pro.
portion to responsibility of position.
The officials of railroad must ac.
quire the same sense of duty as they
pass up through the ranks in order
that they may properly govern an ar
my of railroad men.
Railroad men are taught in the daily
school of experience that it is much
easier to obey even the simplest rules
and instructions than to disregard
them. They have learned that the
noncompliance with rules of instruc-
ton will invariably result in either
the sacrifice of life or property. There
is no such thing as partial neglect in
railroading. A trainman either must
obey orders strictly or be guilty of
overlooking them entirely. Modern
railroading is marked in particular for
the absolute regard for instructions in
the book of rules.
The safe and successful operation OF
enforcement of the rules. In this day
of railroading officials can not afford
to consider any violation of rules as
petty violations. Nothing makes a
deeper impression upon railroad man
than the strict enforcement of rules
in minor details. This makes all the
classes of employees careful and very
thoughtful regarding rules and regula
tons, and this feeling of regard for
authority will rapidly permeate the
; entire army of railroad men.
New System a Triumph
Another important factor which has
been instrumental to a great degree in
duty is the operation of the Brown
Merit System" which represents the
triumph of modern railroad operation
over the old method of laying a man
off for disobedience of rules and max
ing his family suffer. According tc
the present plan a man receives sc
many merit or demerit marks, accord
ing to his attention or inattention tc
rules. The operation of this system is
an incentive to railroad men to dc
more than merely observe rules anc
follow out instructions. If a mar
simply goes along doing his work
|, without mistakes he does not receive
any extra merit marks but if he has
received dement's in the past he has
a chance to clear up his record, as
five dement's are taken from the black
side of his envelope if he does not
: violate any rules during a months
time.
= However, the value of the Brown
system" does not come from the
: chance it gives a man to observe the
rules and clear up his record, but from
the many opportunities of performing
unusually meritorious service. Fol
instance merit marks are placed tt
\