The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-05-18
Unusual Number of Women
Present Is Cause of
Comment
MUCH ENTHUSIASM
is MANIFESTED
Views Showing What to DO, What
Not to Do and How to Do 1t
Are Thrown on
Screen
Safety begins at home-first.

Safety begins at home-first.
The surprising number of women at
the safety first rally held at the Bijou
last night under the auspices of the rail-
roads of Birmingham and particularly
the Frisco lines, indicated strongly to
the officials present that the women and
children at home are taking great in
terest in the fight being waged against
death and accidents on railroads.
Elderly ladies', evidently mothers of
railroad men; women with infants in
arms, wives OF railroad men; young La
dies with their beaus that are railroad
men. were there to encourage the work
of liberating railroad men from the ex-
treme hazard which is now part of
their work
There has never been held in Birmng-
ham such meeting. Not so much on
account of the unusually large attend
ance, for the fact that the audience at
the Bijou strongly Indicated that in the
future the safety instructions of railway
managers will be more rigidly enforced
The safety war that is being waged from
one end of America to the other will
have as many loyal fighters in Birmins-
ham as any spot, If the interest and
enthusiasm of the Bijou crowd is an in
dication.
The meeting last night was for the
purpose of employees being told in words
and by views what should be done to
lessen the number of deaths and acct
dents that take place on American rail
roads daily, even hourly. The principal
speakers were railroad safety first ex-
perts that have been working on the plan
for three years. They were ex-railroad
men in the ranks, who were designated
to take up the work of life conservation
by their respective managemnts.
WeatherIy Speaks
The meeting was opened with w. L.
Tyler, general manager of the Frisco
lines absent. He was to have been chair
man of the meeting. Other speakers on
the programme were unavoidedy de-
tanned the meeting was addressed only
by Mr.. Weatherly, S. S. Morris, chair
man general safety committee of the
Illinois Central r. C. richards of the
Chicago and Northwestern safety COM
mittee, +. l.. Watkins, an engineer on
the Southern railway; ". b. Spaulding
of the Frisco lines.
Mr. Weatherly opened the meeting. He
said that the safety campaign was one
IN the interest not Of dollars but of hlI-
man life. He referred to the heartaches
tbat follow accidents and deaths and pic
tured vividly the suffering and restitution
that oftentime follows in the wake of
railway accidents. Mr.. Weatherly re-
called the fact that he had acted as d
railroad lawyer for many years and had
occa sion to see first hand how terrible
was the toll paid by the women and chill
dren. He read extracts from a maga-
zine showing that during the past quar-
ter of century one man was killed
ever seven minutes ON American railroads.
That the deaths as matter of course in
cluded passengers WAS explained. How
ever, he went on to say that the en-
lloyes suffered no other class, and 1t
was in their power to heep the great
toll from being paid.
Richard Speaks
Mr. Richard, who presided as chairman
in the absence of ar. Tyler, mas been
working on the safe.y first problem some
years lie therefore spoke from the stand
point of a railroad employe solely and
told the employees present how much could
be done TO keep down the death rate and
the accidents.
Mr.. watkins, Mr.. Morris and Mr..
Spalding all detailed the important
part that the employees play in the
campaign 1t was put squarely up TO
the railroad men. They were advised
that their mission could be no great
er than to do their duty, which would.
by self-operation, cause a decrease in
the death and accident tolls.
The views shown were specially ar
ranged They were of railroad opera
tions showing trains, couplings, hand
ling of cars and other features of the
work The pictures posed specially for
the purpose OF display indicated even
stronger than words that the employees
could by exercising reasonable
amount of discretion in large meas
ure stop the fearful death sacrifices
that are being constantly made.
The music for the evening was fur
nished by the Frisco orchestra COM
posed of the following:
Piano, Miss Edna Allisona VIOLIN
Frank Bolan; violin. Miss Beryl Pin
ner; Violin, Leroy Prater; cornet, A.
Levinn; clarinet f. f. Swafford; flute
Jerome Weinberg; trombone, e. p
Coyle; cello, J. l.. Miller.