Confessions of a Railroad SignalmanFagan, James O. (James Octavius)
History
Confessions of a Railroad Signalman
Fagan, James O. (James Octavius)
Railroad accidents; Railroads; Railroads -- United States -- Employees
As a result of these extraordinary conditions and the continual killing
of employees, a new and more intelligent class of men was called upon,
in course of time, to undertake the dangerous duties of railroad
service. With increased intelligence and broader mental equipment,
the thinking process in the brain of the railroad man expanded, and
very naturally his awakened attention was not exclusively centred on
the business of his employers. It soon became known to officials,
and to the world, that we had grievances. Before long, rumblings of
discontent were heard on all sides. Between ourselves we began to
discuss matters of right and wrong. The men got together in groups,
in small gatherings. Here and there, all over the country, little
Runnymedes were attended by all conscientious, determined railroad men.
With an ever-increasing demand for our services, came consciousness
of importance and power. Attention was called to the injustice, the
inconsistency of the situation. We petitioned and agitated for trifles.
Inch by inch ground was gained. Frequently we were beaten back,
sometimes routed, at other times the battle was drawn; but after every
encounter, regardless of result, the ghost of the future remained on
the field to disturb the slumbers of the management. So, through the
years, the struggle proceeded, concession followed concession, until
all kinds of injustice and favoritism, and in fact the whole system of
purely autocratic management, had gone by the board, and fair play for
the railroad trainman was an accomplished fact. For the future, to ask
was to receive. Face to face with organizations of determined men,
with the crops and manufactures of half a continent waiting to be moved
to the seaboard, what was a management or a combination of managements
going to do about it?
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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