The Harrison times., 1916-07-01
Will Cost lust 100000. 600.
DEAR EDITOR: I:

figures. In TACT when We pause u
consider the magnitude of the railroad
business of the United States We real
izc that the story can only be told il
figures Of large denomination. 80
when the railroad companies enterec
upon their publicity campaign TO in
influence public opinion in the mattel
of the eight hour day for train service
employees with time and half for ovcl
time the officials realized that any
small figure set TO indicate the annual
increase in labor expense would not
appeal to the people. Hence they
chose the boldround number of $780,.
100000. The railroads pencil is a
nimble one and it could just as we'll
have figured it out TO be SOS, 1897, $685.
80. but that would have looked TOO
much like a bargain counter price so
they chose the dignifed figure of
sl00,OO0,OO0 as the price itwould cost
to accede to the employees demand.
In truth Sl00,000,000 has always
been a favorite figure with the rail-
roads. Every betterment that has
been forced upon them either by law
or thru the efforts of organized labor
has always been going to cost them
that sum. All persons of mature age
can remember the yearly tale of kill
ed, manned and disabled trainmen
who come 10 their injuries thru the
use of the old link and pin couplers.
When the public grew sick of the
sight of torn arms and mangled hands
and began to agitate the question of
automatic couplers, the railroads told
the people thru the press thatitwould
cost $lO0,000,0O0 to make the change
and that the public would have topay
the BILL
In the early 70's Westinghouse pa
tented the air brake. Yet % wears
later but a small per cent OF the
freight cars in the country were equip
ed with the air brake. Cars were
growing larger year by year and the
trains longer with the wrecks more
frequent and disasterous, oftimes the
burned bridge, the washout or the OBJ
struction could be seen far ahead but
before the brakeman could climb TO
the top of the train and bring it to
stop with the clumsy hand brakes a
serious wreck had occurred. The pub
lie and the employees began toclamor
for law compelling the railroad COM
panies to apply the air brake TO all
cars.
Immediately the railroads got busy
thru the press and told the people that
it would cost Sl00,0O0,000 to equip
all their freight cars with air brakes
and that it would necessitate a raise
in freight rates and the people would
have to pay the bill. :
Time went on and the public began
to read OF collisions because of the
Engineer being asleep in his cab, the
brakeman at the switch or the hagman
asleep sitting on tie behind the train
when he should have been swinging
his red light.
Naturally there came a curiosity as
to the cause of all this drowsiness and
investigation revealed that as the
locomotives grew larger aud the crews
kept on duty as much as 2l to 30
hours on a single trip in extreme cases,
That men should fail occasionally un-
der such circumstances was not to be
wondered at and the public and the
employees took up the question with
eur legislators and began to agitate
for a law limiting the hours Of service
to l6 continuous hours. The rail,
roads flew to print and assured the
public that it was only in extreme
cases that the employees were kept or
duty Ii hours or more but if they haC
to make sure that every trip would be
completed in less than Ii hours tina,
it would become necessary to shorter
all their districts, move all their ter
minals and that it would cost $780,
100000 to do it. Altho the railroad,
declared that il was only infrequently
that the employees were required tC
work more than l6 hours, we find thai
in 1913 there were 30l 74j infraction;
of the law despite the fact that there
is a penalty Of $500 for each otfense
In 1915 there was still 7S,940 case,
where train service employees hac
been required to work more than II
hours, Whatever YOU are, farmer
merchant, blacksmith or whatever
YOU may be, think of your own WORK
and see how you would like TO put ii
l6 hours per day with 20 minutes fol
dinner and do it the year round,
We are not asking for raise of pay