The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1910-06-16
The Railroads and the Press; Their Duty to the Public.

all, at least h very great majority, earnestly STRIVING to build II p ne
country they serve honestly endeavorng to promote the welbeing of the
people whose prosperity is their prosperity, whose happiness is their happi
This I have learned since I have been in the railroad business. I have
learned, too that railroad men are lot cast in a mould differing in any
degree from that in which the rest of humanity was formed To para
phrase from n of the greatest character dehneations of the master crafts
man of that field of endeavor.
Hath net a railroad man eyes? Hath not a railroad man hands, organs
dimensions. senses, affections? Fed with the same food, hurt With the
sam weapons, subject to the same diseases, healed by the same means
warmed and cooled by the same winter and summer as the rest Of you are?
II you prick him does he not bleed? If you tickle him does he not laugh?
If you poison him does he not die?"
My friends the railroad is lot a mere machine of ipn and wood and
steel; it a human institution. 1t will be a long time before ca regard
myself is a railroad man rather tina az a newspape nan fr ne airoa
business is the most complex proposition in the world. Men who have de-
voted their entire lives to intelligent study Of its problems have bee been
able TO master ot few OF its many details 5 o val you to understand
that, in my further talk to % about railroads and railroad men I'M leav-
ing ny own personality as far as may be- entirely out.
Experience has taught me that the railroads. through their officers
honestly desire TO build up the territory through which they run. A
moment reflection should suffice to convince any fair minded citizen of the
correctness of this statement
Some writer has said that when the merchant the farmer the profess
sional man the manufacturer, finds that he is no prosperlng in N com m
munity he cal move to another. When a railroad is once put it stays put
1t a never be moved. Therefore it would be the height of economic
unwisdom for a railroad to do anything inimicaI to the country it serves
To say that the railroad cannot prosper unless the country along it prospersI
is simply to state a commercial axiom.
The railroad has just nj commodity to offer for sale That is transpor
tauon. If there is nj demand for transportation the railroad must fail
And there cal be 40 demand for this single ware on the railroad shelves in
a country that has neither passengers to carry o products to move.
1t is, therefore, the policy of all well managed ranroads-and more
pafucuHary TINS Oh ours ourag Inc aonSnm OF dustrle oil
a nature that car be made to pay; it is their duty % the public as well as
TO the end that immigration may be induced, homes built farms titled,
potential wealth transformed into actual wealth.
l want to give 20 this thought. The railroad, az has been said, stays
put want you to remember that, through cold and heat, through storm
and sunshine, carrying your products to many lands, bringing you the pro-
ducts of many lands the railroad is always there. 1t takes you to loved
ones in far distant states, it brings the loved ones to you from the four
corners of the nation And from section hand to superintendent from hall
boy to president the railroad men are interested n your happiness, are
anxious to max life fr you better worth living.
In order that a wider measure of prosperity a be enjoyed by the state
as well as by the railroad, we ire working with commercial clubs and trade
organization throughout Idaho. and on u W initiative are undertaking
TO improve conditions o example, last January a Farmers Demonstra-
tin train ws sent through the state. Lectures were given by experts on
potato culture and orchard heating. The result will be more potatoes and
better potatoes, Tor fruit and better fruit.
This train wa sent out by MI. D. E. BurIey, our general passenger agent
O onns'' ann "oces sSn1l ,@'sS F @n t poS umo r.a 10 J"t tpf ,a Ta o missouri uaui river es
# title benefit to the farmer or to anvon else if they cOud nOt he moved
1t is the duty of the railroad to get in touch and to keep in touch with
the needs of its public That is what the railroads are endeavoring to do
this time and they are, generally speaking, successful. They are not
able to please everybody, and that is just another indication of their human
-
Bill Jackson thinks the railroads are depressing the great public and =
So We u Birs trouble down and we find that he hasn't been =
able to gets side track a quickly IS he thought he should have had it. =
Tom Brown complains that the transportation companies are sapping the =
life blood of the nation and W e find that his shipment OF emigrants NOV =
DIES was on Inc DAD W days longer than lie thought it should have
'een. John Thompson lays down his solo hand long enough to decaim
gainst the devouring monster and it develops that John received a ship IL
VI cheap coffee vas spilled. W
mistakes are mad " tbe nsnortati mnantes. nnna vii, co.,
hat apparent inequalities do o Green into freight tariffs that the pas fir
service to this point or that point could not be improved upon. tie
But I bappen to know that whenever a wrong is nointed ont 10 tn no- h,
n officials of a railroad company efforts to remedy it are at oncein sti- lo
whenever a recognized evil exists steps are taken to eradicate it. The
of the company have the honor to serve welcome any constructive ar
tticism of their work; they are glad to know when they have made a mis- he
Ike, and all they ask is that they be approached in the sal spirit Of fair Sol
any of you would use towards a business nan of your own city blu
And, by the same token, they are glad to know when their actions are APP TN
though expressions of approval cor so rarely that they excite
frm n NJ OF thu line to tn oher The public gets its war inc
mt for this, 7 suppose, from the popular theory that there is Tor rejoicing to
d place we all want TO go over n returned SHINE thar over SO upright 70
en-. Certainly there is more connection among shepherds over the lamb rec
at has strayed than over the $4,000 o 10000 in the fold. you
Railroad men know that the SO shipments that e % through in fast time
in perfect condition are never heard Of The hundredth, that goes sou
rong, brings o a typewriung contest that eventuates in a file a foot ne
lex. I do not mean to say that it is not the duty of the railroads o ex- cor
dte freight shipments and to provide adequate passenger service. no
wish to emphasize the point that they are trying, and in the main An
ccessfuly to do their work we'll And they get very little credit fol- the as
cd things they do my
But you gentlemen of the press have the sam experience. You praise I
m johnson once n twice a week for a whole year, assuring the public and
he is a gentleman of the highest attainments, a citizen Of sterling maj
nth. Do you ever hear from Tom? Not much. Tom takes all that sort in
thing for granted; he doesn't argue the question at all He is perfectly can
ling to admit that all the good things said about him are true. you
Some day you say just ne unkind thing about Tom. You gently init NOR
tie that after all though Tom is a very fine fellow, Bill Brown might
I'VE equally acceptable al a candidate for constable. Then you hear from