THE PLUM HILL
RAILROAD
By M. QUAD
Copyright, 1910, by Associated Lit
erary Press.
The village of Plum Hill was and is
Situated fourteen miles from the near
est railroad. To reach it you have to
Alive the fourteen miles in a wagon.
You have to drive over three moun
tains and two rivers, and the ascent
from the outside world is 900 feet.
On a certain day not many years ago
Plum Hill was quiet. It was serene.
There was an ox team standing in
front of the only &tore in the village,
and there were two men sitting on the
postofiico steps. Nobody apprehended
a great excitement one that was to
upset the place and make things bub
ble. It was a tin peddler who brought
the news. He came from the town of
Crow- Valley, a village just about as
big and ten miles away. Crow Valley
was the rival of Plum Hill. It had
two stores to one, but its altitude was
only 898 feet.
The news brought by the peddler
was that Crow Valley was moving for
a branch line out to the railroad. If
she got it and she was determined
to have it then goodby to the prestige
of Plum Hill.
There was hurrying to and fro, and
there was public speaking. A branch
railroad had been the dream of Plum
Hill for years, and now Crow Valley
was to step in and steal the reality
away.
Squar Latham, the village justice of
the peace, nominated himself a com
mittee of one to investigate and report,
also to head ' a subscription list and
pass it around. Money would induce
the railroad company to construct a
branch to Plum Hill, and money it
should have. Every Plum Hiller was
a patriot to the core.
The Plum Hill Banner took up the
matter and printed a double leaded
editorial. An old picture of a flat car
was used to arouse enthusiasm and
inflame the public mind. Plum Hill
was called upon to defend the breast
works to the last drop of blood. If
they stood back and played second fid
dle to Crow Valley, then could it be
said of them that they were no longer
the sons of Bunker Hill.
The day of the mass meeting came.
There was an outpouring of the pa
triots. Flags waved and men cheered.
Squar' Iatham was ready with his
figures. He had spent a week figur
ing. He had got things down pat. A
part of the work and the glory must
be given to the tin peddler. He had
tolled like a hero. ' In addition they
had driven over to the railroad and
consulted with the freight agent, two
trackwalkers and a boarding house
keeper. The men had given their opin
ions and estimates on the enterprise.
It had been asserted and generally be
lieved that a branch line to Plum Hill,
owing to the mountains, would be im
possible on account of the cost.
The squar had started out expect
ing to run up against this objection,
but he had some news to communi
catee some news to delight. He had
figured and figured and figured, and he
could not make the cost of the line
over $3,000 to bring the iron horse
snorting and puffing into Plum Hill.
. That sum could be raised in fifteen
minutes. It could be raised then and
there aye, ten times that amount but
he would move among the patriots
with a subscription paper and give all
a chance. In years to come he wanted
every Plum Hiller to have the privi
lege of pointing to the snorting, puffing
locomotive, and, rolling palace cars and
bo privileged to say: -
"Look at 'em, "gentlemen! I helped
to do it!"
The meeting adjourned to meet one
week later to hear the squar's final re
port. The boom was on almost before
the motion was put and carried. The
merchant began marking up his goods
10 per cent. Various citizens who had
been holding the value of their houses
and lots at $000 added on $400 and
walked around with serene counte
nances. A site for the new depot was
selected, and it was generally conceded
that Squar' Latham would be selected
as boss of the new line. Butter went
up 2 cents a pound at sunset, but the
boom was too sudden, and at midnight
there was a drop back to old figures.
The price of eggs also wabbled and
was unsettled.
For a week the squar' canvassed.
He made no reports of progress, but it
was generally understood that he was
being offered millions. It was a week
of tension. Even the roosters of rium
Hill crowed softly. Then there was
another coming together of the patri
ots, a larger gathering than before,
fcrow Valley was to be wiped off the
map of the United States. Squar' La
tham stood up at the proper moment,
nnd when the hush came he began:
"Feller citizens, I was appointed to
figger on the cost of this branch line."
"Yes! Yes!"
"I did figger."
"Bully for you!"
"I figgered and figgered and figgered."
"Hurrah for the squar'!"
"I figgered her at $3,000."
"Whoop!"
"But I got the danged thing wrong.
What she orter bo and is is $3,000,000!
I somehow dropped three ciphers!"
Gasps of surprise.
"And I was app'inted to solicit sub
scriptions. I have solicited."
"And you got the three millions?"
"Gentlemen, the subscriptions amount
to jest '9ven dollars and a half, and I
subscribed the 'leven! Has anybody
got a fit'jrrestion to make?"
NobocV had. Plum Hill is still four
teen miles from a railroad, and Crow
Valley still has one store the most.'
CAN'T SIGN AWAY RIGHTS.
Supreme Court Holds Employees of
Railroads Cannot Do This.
Under a decision rendered recently
by Justice Hughes of the United States
supreme court employees of railroads
in Iowa cannot sign away their right
to damages for injuries suffered
through the neglect of their employers.
The fact that they may be members
of a relief association and have signed
contracts relieving the railroads of
liability for damages in case of injury
does not affect their rights.
An Iowa law passed in 1898 estab
lished this proposition. The constitu
tionality of the law was attacked when
Charles L. McGuire sued the Chicago,
Burlington and Quincy railroad com
pany for $2,000 damages for injuries.
McGuire had been given $S82 by the
Burlington relief department, an as
sociation maintained by the railroad
and its employees, one of the regula
tions of which was that employees
must elect between accepting relief
from it and pressing a claim against
the company.
Strike Guards Costly.
The strike at the mills of the Inter
national Paper comraay, at Corinth,
Saratoga county, N Y., last summer
cost the county $26,J71.17. This mon
ey was expended for the national
guard and deputy sheriffs who were
detailed there during the strike.
Did You?
Did you ever whistle xierrily as you
combed your hair on the morning aft
er the night before? St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
PERILS OF TOILERS.
Workingmen Must Risk Their Lives or
Go Hungry.
An idea of the dangers to mechan
ics engaged in perilous occupations
may be gleaned from the testimony
presented to the Wainwright commis
sion, appointed by the New York legis
lature to investigate employers' liabil
ity and industrial accidents.
There appeared before the commis
sion Miles Nelson, an electrical line
man, who had been burned and dis
abled last summer at Canarsie by a
high tension wire, the power having
been turned on by mistake. He said
his injuries made it impossible for him
to work regularly.
Thomas McCoy, representing line
men, declared there ought to be a
state regulation as to the placing of
high tension wires on poles and some
regulation as to the condition in which
such wires should be kept when men
are at work on them.
Thomas Clark of the Electrical
Workers' union said workmen are
forced to use imperfect tools.
"Not long ago," he said, "a mechanic
was sent out on a job on a six story
building at the top floor. He called
his foreman's attention to a faulty pipe
bender, and the foreman told him to
use that particular tool or quit.
"That man had to lean across an
air shaft between two buildings. The
pipe bender would not grip the metal,
and when the man put extra pressure
on it he lost his balance, fell down the
shaft and was killed."
John Gill of the Bricklayers, Plas
terers and Stone Masons' union said
something ought to be done about
scaffolding and rough flooring in build
ings. Good flooring would prevent
broken skulls, he said.
"There was a law requiring this pro
tection," said Mr. Gill, "but some fine
citizens had it repealed."
Another witness declared there is a
law requiring netting around scaffolds,
but that It is not enforced.
"Do you mean to tell me there is no
netting placed around a scaffold twen
ty stories high?" asked Senator Wain
wright. "Exactly," said the witness. He cit
ed the case of two men who were on
a scaffold which was swung violently
by a sudden gust of wind and who
were hurled to death.
"Why will men work in these condi
tions?" the senator asked.
"Because half of the men of our
union are walking around hungry and
looking for jobs,"- was the reply. "We
have got to work or starve."
LABOR HARD TO DOWN.
Crush Unionism and It Rises Stronger
Than Bsforo.
The management, of t'.:e Panaraa-Pa-eific
exposition in San Francisco has
been notified by some of the Seattle
v Vash.) metal -trades employers that
they will indorse the groat r.roject pro
vided the management nssuivs them
that the labor in connection with the
exposition be of the "open shop" or
der. -The progressive (?) business men of
the sound city are evidently eager to
start a labor fight in San Francisco,
which seems to be of more importance
to them than the success of the expo
sition itself.
That is a sample of the tactics em
ployed by labor haters in their en
deavors to "down the unions."
San Francisco can get along with
out the exposition, as much as it would
help the city, but it cannot afford to
surrender its union principles.
It's about time the opponents of
unionism learned the lesson that
"downing the unions" is not a success
ful project.
. The fact that San Francisco is a
union city today Is due to this "down
ing" project.
"Truth crushed to earth will rise
again." Crush unionism and it will
come up again stronger than before.
The crushing process has been going
on from the beginning, and the unions
have been gaining all the time.
If the Seattle metal trades employ
ers want to see the exposition a suc
cess they had better forget their un
ion crushing suggestion.
Unionism is established in San Fran
cisco and on the Pacific coast. It is
here to stay. It will have to fight, but
it will win. It must win. It is a vital
necessity to human advancement. And
humanity is going to succeed, wheth
er the exposition does or not. Los An
geles Citizen.
ENGINEERS' NEW SCALE.
Terms on Which Brotherhood and
Railroads Agreed.
The differences between the Broth
erhood of Locomotive Engineers and
the sixty-one railroads radiating to
the .south, west and northwest of Chi
cago were settled en the basis of an
Increase in wages affecting 33,000 en
gineers and entailing a total increase
of expenditure of $3,889,000 annually
by the railroads.
Under the terms of the compromise
settlement the engine drivers receive
an increase of 75 cents a day on the
smaller Mallet engines and $1 a day
on the larger size over the regular
schedules. Engine drivers on passen
ger trains, suburban service, through
freight, pusher and helper engines,
wreck trains, snowplows, work trains
and mixed trains are to receive an in
crease of 40 cents a day.
On way freight engines a differen
tial of 25 cents a day is allowed, mak
ing the increase in that class of serv
ice G5 cents a day. On through freight
engines with 215,000 pounds on the
drivers a differential over the regular
rates of 15 cents an hour is provided
for; A flat increase of 50 cents a day
is conceded to the engine drivers in
switch yards and transfer service,
and the advance on motorcars 1340
cents a day, with complete jurisdic
tion over the work.
The average of increase Is 10 1-3 per
cent. "
The Los Angeles Explosion.
A verdict has been returned by the
coroner's jury which investigated the
explosion that destroyed the Los An
geles (Cal.) Times building on Oct. 1
last, killing a number of employees,
pnd that was sought to be charged up
to the labor unions. The verdict says
that the explosion waseaused "by high
explosives other than Illuminating gas,
placed there by a party or parties un
known to this jury." Notwithstanding
the verdict the gas explosion theory
still finds many adherents in Los Angeles.
Indiana Compensation Law.
The Beal-Shively employers' liabili
ty bill has become a law in Indiana.
It repeals the fellow servant rule and
prescribes what shall be deemed as
sumption of risk on the part of a work
Ingman taking hazardous employment.
The liability of the employers is In
creased where the personal injury is
due to violation of the state laws.
A Parlor Trick.
Request any person to mark upon
the wall the exact height of an ordi
nary silk hat, supposing the hat to be
placed on its crown on the floor. Ex
hibit the hat before its height Is
marked, and It is curious to observe
how entirely different are the ideas of
half a dozen persons upon the sub
ject, the greater number marking high
enough for two or three hats.