The Ogden standard. [volume] (Ogden City, Utah) 1902-1910, 1910-03-05
Railway Clubs ON the
Short Line are Models

Tho saloon without booze is the
model club II Is the model on which
all the railroad clubs along the South
crn Pacific and the oregon Short Limo
are organized said +. G. Ahearn,
superintendent of railway clubs. ac-
cording TO a dispatch from Salt Lake
published in the Railway Ago Ca
zettc. ~
"The saloon keeper Is the ono man
who has solved the question. 1t has
been long. slow growth with him.
the result of actual experience going
back for centuries The saloon is
the only place In the world where all
men meet on exactly an equal basis
II President Taft should walk into
any saloon nc at once Is on tho level
with every man In the place and ev-
cry man In the place IS on his level.
This applies 10 the saloon alone
In theory It applies To many other
places. but in practice TO none other
than the saloon There Is not a
church In this country or in any coun-
try where the members meet on an
equal footing There Is not a club Of
any kind whore membership fees or
dues arc charged in which the mem
bers meet on an equal footing.
Membership fees and regular dues
spell the death OF all clubs. There
arc many reasons for this. one. for
instance. is that il any man pays a
membership fee he feels bound TO
some cXtont TO patronize that club to
the exclusion OF other clubs. and this
in some measure interferes with his
daily personal liberty. He does not
feel free TO drop into another place
and buy cigar or meal, but feels
compelled TO go out of his way 10
his club. The consequence is that,
as most men prefer their individual
freedom above all things, they will
not join anything.
But a club that is without fees of
any kind, where man Is free to come
and go hundred times day or only
once year as he feels like 1t. where
he can spend 500 or not one penny
OF being mean, this kind OF club
succeeds. Such is the saloon. No
man likes to put the hat boy to the
trouble OF taking his hat fifty times
in day. so he does not feel free to
come and go whore there is hat boy
Just because of that hat boy. But
he Is free to walk in and out of a sa-
loon all he wants 10. free 10 stay all
day or only to light his cigar. So
say that the saloon is the model club.
all except the booze.
Most clubs are started for two
reasons. and in time pass
away. One is some religious motive.
another is because some man has
made money and feels that he should
return some of 1t to others, often his
employees. in some form. These two
movements are usually based on some
ono individual or group of mdivid
uals. and as they In time pass away
OF change their clubs or organizations
pass away OF change,
Our railroad clubs arc organized
on two basic principles; that value is
given for everything received on both
sides. and that morality is based on
A man may be clean.
healthy. and depravcd, but no one
can be dirty, diseased and moral. A
hint of charity Is confession that
no ono side is the superior OF the
other. which every man secretly re-
sents and avoids
I'VE figure that we pay for ser
vices rendered and have nothing moro
10 give the men. II we gave it to
them ii would imply two things,
either that they were bcggars or that
the railroad had held back on them
and was trying to make good The
man gets his full pay check That Is
all he is worth If he were worth
more he would get more, If not from
our road then from another
eft pays the road to have clean.
healthy mon, so VIC sell them good
beds. baths and meals at cost. They
pay for everything they get. but the
road makes not one cent out of it in
cash. In fact, the road actually pays
out cash as the investment In the
club house and all that comes from
the railroad
'Why should the railroad do this2