The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-04-13
Importance OF BrotherhOods to
Railway Work.
DeFelopmentThrough Fraternal
Cooperation and Unity.
MILES ROAD, $4,000.
And Many Lines I'm United States
Are Under Construction.
Other Items OF General Interest
in Railroad World.

WeFcesteF, Mass, April 13-Address-
| ing the immense gathering OF railroad
men, hundreds of them representing
the powerful organization of which he
was once the head, Edgar E. Clark, the
I railroad conductor, who became
member OF tho interstate commerce
commission, bespoke a message of con-
servatism.
| Commissioner Clark told the men OF
the brotherhoods what an important
public service they perform in oper-
ating the railroads of the United
! States. The development of those
brotherhoods. he said, had come onIS
through fraternal unity and co-opera-
| ton.
els This Right?"
| ut has COME he said, by having
we'll considered and sound poncy' anu
| by adhering to it, by applying to every
EFFORT and desire 1.-The the t eyerv effort
and resisting every desire that "ouVo
not stand that test.
cit has come by pursuing course OF
conservatism which avoided, on tne
one hand. that conservatism which, De
yond certain point, means stagnatloIi'
and on the other hand the conserVa-
tism which, beyond certain point
means cowardice.
s.And the message wish to bear 10
Won is that the policy that has brought
to YOU so much of material welfare ana
contributed to the relations Wnlcn
bring about such gatherings as TINS, IN
which the president of the Unlteo
States and the presidents of the RAN
roads on which you are employed sIdu-
w participate with you, is not 10 pe
lightly set aside, nor to be deparlgu
from except for imperative reasons, III
those men is represented an important
part of our nations life, which mas no
need to change its methods of conducl-
ing it's business to keep WITHIN the Iour
corners of the law
Vastness of Industry Illustrated.
Commissioner Clark then went on ID
il1nstrate in a graphic way how vast is
the railroad industry in the united
States. Is
saThe total miles of tracks" he saic.
"of the railroads Of the On1teo Sta 80, -
sand If the capitalization or those
roads were laid down in silver dollars
side by side, so that the dollars toucne9
each other, the dollars would e&ten9
over every mile of those tracks and
there would be enough left over TO
more than encircle the globe.
stIf the annual revenue of those roads
were laid down in silver dollars IN the
same way, the dollars Woulo e1Iel Te
more than twice around the World. II
all those revenues were paid In actual
cash, the amount of money SO palo 70
the railroads for transportation wou!o
equal the total sum of money In clrcu-
lation in this country.
Money Paid Employees.
eff the money paid by these railroads
To their employees every year were laid
down the same way in silver dollars, IL
would extend twenty-five thousand
miles-almost once around the earth
sIf the employees of all these ROADS
were to march in a parade at the raIe
of three miles an hour day ana nlgn';
the single file would be eight hundred
and fifty miles long and 1t would re-
ouire nearly twelve days for the pro-
cession to pass a given point.
s'If the number of passengers carried
one mile annually by those roads were
formed in a parade ten abreast that
narade would require siXty-four years
to pass a given point.
Traffic Transported.
sIf the freight cars Of these roads
were coupled together they would ex-
tend from Worcester to Portland, Ore''
then to Los Angeles, then to Jackson
Vile Fla. and from Jacksonville back
to Worcester and there would De
enough left over to put in cross lines
between Worcester and San Francisco
ana Jacksonville and Portland, Ore.
.sIf all those cars were hauled IN one
train moving at a uniform speed of ten
miles an hour day and night, it would
be sixty-nine days after the locomotive
passed before the caboose would come
in sight