The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1916-03-04
GETS MANY ANSWERS
TO POSTER

! OAAO lnEAN4 14NSV LINZ
( TO POSTER
; Pennsylvania Railroad Receives Re
. sponses to Request For Advice
From Public.
Mr.. Robert C. Wright, freight traf
| fic manager of the Pennsylvania
: Railroad, addressed thet Traffic Club
| of Baltimore recently on Conf
, dence." He said, in part:
Sometime ago the Pennsylvania
} Railroad displayed on bulletin boards
all over its system large posters ask
} ing the people to give the manage
ment the benefit of their advice. The
} responses to that bulletin were very
interesting. A great many, of course,
dealt with some personal grievance,
but for the most part they showed a
most helpful spirit on the part of the
public. The railroad issued that pos
ter in all seriousness, and it was met
in the same vein. This shows that
the public Is tolerant if it under
stands.
1--WE want the people along our
lines to know that the Pennsylvania
Railroad is doing everything it can
20 give the best service possible and
to encourage the business of the ter
ritory through which it operates, and
of the country at large. We want
all the advice and assistance we can
get from our people. We want the
public to understand, and to believe
lin, the management of this railroad.
We think they will, because the man.
|agement of the Pennsylvania Rail-
road believes in the public.
"The thing that Is needed in our
business life, and which l might say
has been lacking the last few years,
and the thing which is particularly
necessary in the relations between
the carriers and the public, Is conf
dence.
The railroad companies have been
urged to take the public into their
confidence, but they can't take the
public into their confidence until the
public has confidence in them.
have tried it and I know.
You tell man your cards are all
on the table and try to take him in
to your confidence, but unless he has
confidence in you he suspects that
there are some aces up your sleeve.
1.-THE first step in mutual conf
dence between the carriers and the
u, public is to restore the public's con-
| fldence in the carriers. l realize per-
fectly that the public's lack of con-
fidence in the railroads has been
more or less justified in the past, due
to the practices of the carriers, but
let by-gones be by-gones. We must
look ahead, not behind. It is unfair
| to refer continually to the abuses of
/ times gone past, in an effort to keep
alive hostility toward the railroads.
There is still too much of an ef-
fort to make personal capital out Of
| throwing rocks at a railroad; it Is q
cheap amusement, and often it wins
the plaudits of the multitude, but is
| it fair? Is it conducive to that res
toration of mutual confidence, which,
l believe, is so necessary in solving
the railroad problem?
Our railroad company must have
rules and regulations, which we try
to make as fair and reasonable as
We can to the greatest number: these
rules and regulations will always. in
instances, bear hard on some particu-
lar situation, and may seem unjust
and unreasonable, but under the law
these rules and regulations must be
non-discriminatory and must apply
to everyone alike.
| I'VE are sitting up nights trying
to frame all our rules to be fair to
everyone. We want to run the rail-
road so as to make the greatest num-
Der of friends and the smallest num-
Der Of enemies.
1--WE are now in the midst of a
very trying freight congestion, neces-
stating placing embargoes today and
lifting them tomorrow. Many peo-
pie probably think us mean and ar
bitrary in placing these restrictions,
sometimes, but they wouldn't if they
knew how we are working to protect
the interest of the shippers, especia,-
ly those local to our own lines. Our
purpose is selfish one, admit. We
want to make friends of our patrons;
that means more patrons and more
money.
Il sometimes wonder If people rea-
lize how railroad such as ours is
being ground continually between
the upper and neither millstones.
Baltimore wants something and tells
us what great things We are doing
for Philadelphia and New York.
Philadelphia wants something and
her papers chide us about favoring
Baltimore and New York. Pitts
burg wants something and we are
reminded how we favor Baltimore,
Philadelphia and New York. Chica-
go wants something, and we are be-
rated because they say we discrimi-
nate against her in favor of Pitts
burg, Baltimore, Philadelphia and
New York. And so it goes. You
can imagine how perplexed the man
agement must get now and then.
Personally, would like to meet the
railroad officer who could please all
communities, and I would like to
work for the railroad that had the
means to enable it to do so.
Let us have confidence In each
other. If we don't understand the
others viewpoint, leet us talk It
over, and if we still cannot reach the
same conclusion, let us then submit
it with no feeling to the proper Com
mission or Court, in order that set
tlement may be reached.
''Then, let's be good sports and
stand by the decision and not keep
on complaining that the other fellow
| won't do what we want. Above all,
let's believe that each wants to be
fair.
Let us give each other a chance
to show why he thinks he is fair and
retain through any difference of
opinion confidence in each other,
which will make for furtherance Of
the mutual help of business men and
railroads, which goes to make the
prosperity of the nation"