Evening journal., 1914-01-01
NEW NEWS OF YESTERDAY
The Railroad President and
the Old Sea-DOG
BY Holland.

THE public is accustomed to re-
gard railway manager or the lead
ing executive officers Of railway COM
panies as very austere, arbitrary
brusQue and heartless, but that op n
ion Is very inaccurate. AS a class,
railroad managers are full Of fun,
they have a keen' sense of humor and
they have as kindly hearts as hu-
man nature permits anyone to pos
sess"
This statement was made to me by
the late James ID. Laying. at a time
when he was speaking remlniscently
of some OF the leading railway pow
ers in the United States with whom
he had been brought into associa-
ton between 1850 /ang 1900. Mr..
Laying had just retired from active
railway life. he having been In his
last years of railway service vice
president and general manager of the
West Shore Railway Company ana
also vice-president of the Big Four.
81 have long been associated with
Melville ingalls,, and / know how
erroneous is the opinion which many
persons have formed about him. They
have looked upon him as a very cold
hearted man, absolutely Indifferent
TO the feelings of anyone with whom
he Is brought in contact and about
as imperious as a satrap
"On the contrary, Mr.. ingalls,
loves fun. is fond of joke, and is one
of the few men who really enjoy a
good joke at their own expense. He
is very generous, but his generosity
is of the kind which does not permit
/ the LEFT hand to know what the right
/ hand does Moreover, he Is a great
lover of fun. TO illustrate that | will
tell you a little anecdote Which Mr.
ingalls, himself told to a party OF
friends-of whom ! was one--whom
he mad invited to dine with him at q
time when he was president of tht
Big Four Railroad Company.
"Ele began by saying that a veal
or two earlier he had had perfec
proof of the accuracy of that sayinl
of the Scriptures that "A prophet Il
not without honor save in his owl
country
"A year or two after becam
president of the Big Four, said Nh
ingalls,. I thought ! would spend
T. part of my summer vacation in visit
ing the old town In Maine. near III
seashore where ! was born an
where in boyhood | worked upon
farm. | had not seen the place sine
| Left il to go West
Well, it brought back old men
ories and had delightful time, al
though | was somewhat saddene
when was told that one after an
other OF the men and women whom
had known in boyhood, had passe
away
"lt was. naturally enough, rath'
gratifying to my pride TO learn thi
some of the townspeople had keI
track of me and were fond of sayin
when they heard that I had bee
made president of the Big Four II
was born and brought up in tn
town"
lone day ] went down by the Sc;
shore and there met an old-tin
Maine slOOp captain. He looked
ihe exactly as he did when / was
boy He was true salt. ! went u
10 him and asked him If he did M
remember me- He looked at n
scarchinely for a moment and the
said: who be you? | told him tn
was Melville ingalls, and that | use
to know him when I was littl
boy
"'For a moment or two he did n
say a word. but he looked me all owe
At last he said: $50 you be lit
Nell ingalls,, president of railrO;
somewhere out West Well 1t
beat all what cheek and circuI
stances will do for some folks now
days" Then he turned round al
went to the sloop, / didn't knC
whether TO feel complimented or a
noyed."
But said Mr.. Laying, "the w
& Mr. ingalls, told this story was
+, resistibly funny. and there was
man in the party who laughed mo
heartily or longer than he did aft
he finished telling il He thought
8 was a good one on him."