Evening Republican, Volume 17, Number 235, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 October 1913 — TAUGHT NOT TO TAKE CHANCE [ARTICLE]

TAUGHT NOT TO TAKE CHANCE

Railroads Working to lippress on Eos' ployes the Necessity for Carefulness When at Work.

The trouble comes from the little accidents. The big cause of injuries is the little accident. It is not the big wrecks that bring up the figures but the slips of carelessness. A yard man stands in front of the switch engine between the rails, and swings up on 1 the footboard. He does this for five years with never a mishap. Then one morning, the footboard Is covered with ice, his foot twists and he slips—and his oldest son is taken out of school to help support the family. Of course the right way is to stand outside of the rails and swing on; if he slips, then he will suffer nothing more than a jar—he will not go down between the rails. *

A yard man is running along by the side of a car and is just about to swing up whep he stumbles over a chunk of coal and goes under the wheels. A loose board is left unmended bn the roof of a box car; a brakeman coming along stubs his toe and pitches off headlong into the night. These are the little accidents that make the widows.

The New York Central is one of the roads that teaches the men to be careful of the little accident through committees of safety. This company has 60 of these committees with an aggregate membership of 900 men. They wear a button and report all lapses on part of the employes. A member of the committee of safety' has authority over a man of his rank who is not a member. For instance, if a track walker who is a member of the committee sees another track walker taking a chance, he reports him for his carelessness. Then the careless track walker is laid off for 15 days. There is nothing like cutting off a man’s pay for a couple of weeks to teach him to get over his careless habits. The New York Central has 900 pairs of eyes constantly watching and safeguarding. Tb® president of the road can’t see everything; it is the track walker who finds the broken rails. —Homer Croy In Leslie’s.