12
THE -COURIEU
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The Courier
Published Every Saturday
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cteNuOtr.
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Sound Wen . . .
Onlp art Wanted
Good eyes, good ears, good lungs,
good 'heart, good bones and good sin
ews are the requisites of a good rail
road man. And the better head he has
In the bargain the better position he Is
able to hold. All the men in the ser
vice, to the very humblest, are required
to know a trifle about reading and
writing. Certain it is that a good
many know no more than a trifle. "With
respect to the physical examination
many are turned down for bodily im
perfections, while the color test weeds
out about four per cent, according to
the estimate of Dr. Joseph Scroggs, the
company medical examiner.
The color test appears to be the most
difficult obstacle to surmount. A liber
al part of humanity is bereft of a keen
color sense, the result mainly of lack
of training. It is a very essential thing
In railroading. In fact it is one of tre
mendous Importance. Color is the wire
less conveyance of intelligence in rail
road life, and the man who cannot dis
tinguish between colors may And him
self crushed under the responsibility for
some bloody catastrophe. It Is not
much over ten years ago that the rail
roads began to examine their men and
behold there was disclosed the fact that
color blindness was wofully prevalent.
It Is the Holmgren color test that
sifts out the men afflicted with color
blindness. They are applicants who
want to be either trainmen, yardmen,
enginemen or station men. None of
the others are obliged to submit to it.
The system is embodied in a neat little
pile of yarn. Once balls of colored
yarn were used but this system has
been supplanted. Little skeins are now
used, each one being numbered. Laid
out on a table three colors, generally
red, green and pink .are sorted out by
themselves. From the rest of the pile
the candidate is asked to select the
various shades of each of the three
colors. The greatest confusions result
ever the blues and the greens, almost
alt the men who fall selecting blues as
aeaae shade of green. Many confusions
occur also over the variations of red.
When the candidates get through with
the yarn and all its multitude of colors
they have yet a letter test. At a dis
tance of twenty feet they are required
to read letters of different sizes, first
with one eye and then with the other.
By their promptness and accuracy are
they judged. The colors they have
grouped are known by their numbers
aad not by name and "by these the fac
ulty of the men examined is reported
to the medical department for approval
or rejection. Likewise is the letter test
reported.
Lungs and heart reveal their secrets
to the, proper agencies, the stethescope
aad the remainder of the physique
must also be proved sound. By an
acusaeter the sensitiveness of the ears,
each ,la turn, are measured. It is a
tKtac.ttekiac instrument. Standing off
same distance the doctor manipulates
it aad at-tch tick the hearer, if he
hmn ft, will signify with a nod. If
mm uod comes the doctor will step a
)tt tie Bearer.
, It takes a very solid' organization of
serves and muscles to pass the physic
al examination required of a railway
employe. It is more rigid than that of
ledce organizations. It was not so se
vere ia years past but the companies
have come to realize that the safety of
the public lies in strong, hearty men.
They must keep in that condition, too.
If they are prone to take their grog
they will not last long in the employ of
the company. Even if seen coming
from a saloon and the matter is report
ed to the officials the man will lose his
place. He might have entered the sa
loon for nothing more nor less than a
cigar, but that cuts no figure with the
railroad company. He went in and
that is enough. No telling how soon he
will be tempted to drink. And then
what would happen to the train if the
man in some vital position were drunk?
Inebriation is not condoned anywhere
on the road.
In the course of every two or three
years englnemen are re-examined. Or
ders for one are expected now most any
time. These men, of all in the employ
of the road, must not deteriorate. If
something happens to their eyes that
blurs or dims the re ?ht ahead it is
likely to mean disas. :o the passen
gers in the rear anfu.a tremendous
amount of cost to 'the company. It
wants to know when its engineers suf
fer a lapse of vision or hearing. Other
men in the service are not put to the
test as often If they encounter an
accident they are examined before be
ing returned to work and sometimes
they, fall to pass. Otherwise they work
perhaps until old age comes and even
some switchmen are seen with spec
tacles. A time comes, however, when
they must take a back f .-at for younger
blood. Some roads pension their old
men, but the Burllngto ..does not. One
time this was agitated and some of the
officials seemed to approve of It, but
with the Idea of devoting all energy to
the perfection of the relief department
the Innovation was Indefinitely post
poned. Thl3 relief provides "a sum of
$1,700 for men who have lost a leg, for
instance. The rules say It Is optional
with the men to take this or a minor
position for the remainder of their
days. But the understanding prevails
that the Burlington, while retaining Its
maimed now employed, it does not
really want any more. It appears that
cripples are coming to learn by polite
information, of course, that they are
not desirable timber and they takej
their allowance and go. The company
wants young bodies, complete, robust'
and temperate.
I Wanted-. I
Board of Pardons
Thorny and devious are the ways of
governors and those who rule in high
places. Fierce are the torments, few
indeed the pleasures. ,lr
In Nebraska nothing Is quite so ex
cruciating as the contlifual petitioning
for pardons. Appeals for executive
clemency make the existence of a ten
der hearted governor bereft of joy.
There is only one thing that will
compare with It. That Is the Initial
apportionment of the offices Immedi
ately after the new executive takes
his chair. But a few months and this
is all over. The pardoning nightmare
remains aye and forever.
Petitions and communications are
always present and there is scarcely
a day but that somfSh comes to the
office of Governor "S JJ&age to pour
forth some plea for "hiercy and It Is
the same old story.
Perhaps the most ancient method of
securing or attempting to secure a
pardon is for some feminine member
of the household to set out for the
capital and, arriving there, make pleas
for mercy fabled In Sunday school lit
erature from time immemorial. When
the prison gates do not promptly
spring back, letting the prisoner free,
there is chagrin and disappointment.
But pardon seekers never let up. The
pleading and petitioning go on con
tinually. It is a true test of loyalty to
the Imprisoned or condemned one, but
It is decidedly wearing on the gover
nor who has to listen to it all over
and over again, when he should be
doing something else.
Every argument can be anticipated
Farmers & Merchaiits Bank
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by the worried executive. Newly dls
coveredMHjidence proves the innocence
of the..prlsoner. In other words,, the
governor is asked to set aside the con
clusions of the jury on the testimony
of a parent or a friend. Of course this
is asking a great deal. Reformation,
dire poverty of family or dependent
ones and malicious foes who prosecute
without provocation are other excuses.
Sick prisoners have been pardoned and
afterwards miraculously restored to
health, although they went through
the prison gates to die. And so on ad
Infinitum.
Wives and sweethearts journey to
Lincoln to see the governor Jn person,
after wasting valuable postage stamps
In Incoherent written appeals. In the
office they weep copiously, much to the
keen distress of the governor. As a
man he cannot help feeling extremely
sorry, while as a governor his official
oath demands that he remain ex
tremely Arm.
Preachers and amateur philanthro
pists project themselves into cases
without a thorough examination of the
facts. Sometimes the prisoners they
want released are really a menace to
the safety of the public. Yet the par
don or parole must come, else the gov
ernor Is portrayed as a man devoid 6t
feeling.
In the season when executions a c
expected the life of the executive 13
one hideous dream. On one hand is
the verdict of the courts. On the other
is a vast and discordant clamor raised
by the friends and enemies of the con
demned one. Of late Governor Savag'
has been enduring a siege over th?
Rhea proposition, while the campaign
which led to the late pardon of Bartley
was one of the most tedious in th;
history of the state.
This will probably be changed some
bright day. Already there Is a decided
drift- in public sentiment towards a
board of pardons composed of three or
five state officers. This body would of
course hold formal sessions and the
strain and worry of the pardon busi
ness would be shifted from the shoul
ders of the executive.
New Lincoln "g&S?"
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