The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1911-08-15
To Educate American People
To be Careful on Railroads
palladium Specially

palladium Specially
PITTSBURG, Aug. 15.-Millions are
being donated to insure peace between
nations, but the number of lives lost in
wars today. with fighting continually
going on in some corner of the world.
is as nothing compared with the an
nual record of fatalities due to trespas-
sing on American railroads.
Thousands of lives are sacrificed ev-
cry year as the result of trespassing
on railroad property. Ignorance or
carelessness on the part of the tres
passer is responsible for most of this.
The railroads are bending every eff
fort to cut down the awful toll OF
death by posting signs and maintain
ing police patrol, but they will never
be completely successful without the
cooperation of the general public.
Every densely populated industrial
center near railroad is death CEN
ter. The working classes in crowded
districts, and tramps. furnish the ma
jority of victims. Railroads say peo-
pie must be taught to have more res
pect for their lives and safety.
With education of this kind in view,
the Pennsylvania railroad is preparing
pamphlets in eight or nine languages.
These will be distributed in schools
with instructions to the pupils to take
them into their homes. The board of
&c ~ 1,yov, 10
has promised it's aid, and similar
boards in other states will be asked to
lend their support in discriminating
this literature and having it read
aloud in classes.
The assistance of clergymen has
been solicited and from hundreds Of
pulpits the danger of trespassing has
been preached. From the good roads
trains run by the Pennsylvania rail-
road through rural districts, and in
the farmers oranges the warning has
been sounded.
In 1905 it was estimated that there
were 100000 tramps in the United
States and that their depredations cost
the railroads $25,OOO,00O annually. At
|
stituted a vigorous campaign against
these marauding nomads that swarm
over the country every spring, pillag-
ing, terrifying housewives, lighting
fires that wreak untold damage, and
sometimes committing murder when
their right to live as they please at the
expense of society is challenged. AS
a result of this, and the educational
campaign, the number of persons kill
ed while trespassing on the railroads
property in violation of the law, has
been gradually reduced from S87 in
1905 to 5S5 in 1910, and the number OF
injured has fallen from 794 to $50 in
the same time. To put these figures
in another way; in 1905 the railroad
was killing trespassers at the rate of
three a day for five months of the
year, and two a day for the remaining
seven months, while in 1910 the num-
Der sacrificed has decreased to two a
day for seven months, and one a day
for the other five. The number OF in
jured is but slightly less.>
This record shows that the Pennsyl-
vania's efforts have produced results,
but the number of trespassers killed
and injured each year is still appall-
ing. Thus far the railroads have done
the most toward checking this useless
waste of life. They are perhaps the
greatest sufferers from the tramp evil
and they are willing to do all in their
power to stamp it out. but this can
ho oiti
realizes the seriousness of the matter
and takes his part in the campaign.
The New York State Board of Char
tiles estimates that tramps have cost
that state 100000 annually for the
past two years. This is exclusive Of
damage done to private property, and
includes only the money spent in aims
houses and by charitable organiza-
lions, and in prosecuting and keeping
tramps in penal institutions. The
question touches every citizen vitality,
for it means that he has contributed
taxes towards this 100000 which
went to pay the tramp bill.
Writers who have studied the prob
lens agree that the tramp could not
CAlSL WlLuOUI Tic uey al
ford a means for beating his way"
from place to place that makes it pos
sible for him to live. No one would
maintain however, that the railroads
are responsible for the tramp. They
do not create him. He is one of the
excrescences on the social body for
which society is responsible. Yet thus
far the railroads have done the most
toward Kidding the country of this
dangerous pest. Too often society
takes the attitude expressed in the fol-
lowing quotation from the news col
umns of a paper in small New Jer-
esy town.
After citing several instances of
tramp violence the reporter says:
Yesterday the police in both the
Third and Sixth precincts were given
orders to boost all tramps and suspi-
cious and unwashed characters out of
their bailiwicks.'
No doubt the police obeyed orders.
The Migrants were driven to the next
town to continue their outrages until
once more forced to move on. When