MAINE STATE LEGISLATURE The following document is provided by the LAW AND LEGISLATIVE DIGITAL LIBRARY at the Maine State Law and Legislative Reference Library http://legislature.maine.gov/lawlib Reproduced from scanned originals with text recognition applied (searchable text may contain some errors and/or omissions) 1 PUBLIC DOCUMENrrs 0~ MAINE... BEING THI<: ANNuAL REPORTS 01'' THK VARIOUS Public Officersdnstitutions FOR THI!; YEAK 1891. VOLUME I I. AUGUHTA: BURLKIGB & FLYNT, PRINTERS TO THE STATE, 1892. THIRTY-SECOND ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Railroad Commissioners OF THE STATE OF MAINE, WITH B'l'ATISTICAL TABLES COMPILED FROM THE ANNUAL RETURNS OF THE RAILROAD COMPANIES OPERATING RAILROADS IN THE STATE, FOR THE YEAR ENDING SEPTEMBER 30, 1890, TO WHI<JH ARE ADDED THE RULES AND Decisions of the Board MADE DURIM"G THE YEAR 1890. AUGUSTA: BURLEIGH & FLYNT, PRINTERS TO THE STATE. 1891. CONTENTS. PAGE. INDE~ TO REPORT . 195 IND]jjx TO RAILROADS OF MAINE, returns, incomes ........... 43-144 P ~RT I-Report of Board, recommendations, accidents and physi- , cal condition of railroads .................................... 5 /PART II-Annual returns ..................................... 43-144 ,./' PART In-Decisions of the Board, and rules .................... 151-193 Railroads of Maine, tabulated.................................. 43-144 New railroads . 15, 43 Organization of railroad corporations. 15 Heating and lighting passenger, mail and baggage cars,........ 12 Automatic couplers. 10 Railroad employes. 8 Railroads, mileage of . 39 Accidents, report in relation to and statement of................ 5-18 Physical condition of railroads in Maine................ 19 Decisions of Board ............................................ 151-193 Expenses of Board............................................ 147 Legislation, recommendations of Board . 16 Railroad Map. • . 17 Electric railroads, recommendations of Board.... • . 14 Rules of the Board of Commissioners ......••.................. 192, 193 Transportation, passengers, freight, 1889, 1890 ........•......... H5, 146 PART I. STATE OF ~IAINE. To l!onomble E. G. Burleigh, Govern01· of 11faine: The Railrond Commissioners respectfully submit their thirty-second annual report. Unlike the acts creating Boar<.h of Railroad Commis1::doners in many other state~, in which the Commis8ioner1:l' powers and duties relate mainly to the n·gulation of traffic on rail­ roads, the original act creating a Board of Railrmtd Commis­ sioners in Maine, had for its object and was entitled "An act to secure the safety and convenience of travelers on rail­ roach,". And while many additional powers and duties have been impoRed upon the Board hy suhsf'qucnt acts relating to other matters, we trust ,ve have not, in the discharge of our multifarious duties, lost sight of the prime object for which the Board was created. SAFETY OF TRAVELERS OX RAILROADS. Absolute safety to travelers by any mode of conveyance, cannot he secured; neither can railroad8 be so constructed and operated that travel on them will be entirely safe. Still by rea::-;on of inventive genim,, approved methods, and the experience of those in charge, the danger to travelers on railroads has been greatly reduced. The number of persons who are killed or injured, while riding on railroads in comparison with the number who travel, is exceedingly small. Although it is but sixty years 6 RAILROAD CO:.\DIISSIONEIU,' REPORT. since the fir.:st passenger railroad in America, a little road running from Albany to Schenectady, N. Y., a cfo,tance of sixteen miles, was corn,tructed, the report of the statiDtician to the Interstate Commerce Commission, stated, on the 30th day of June, 1889, the railway mileage of the United States to be 157, 7 58.83 miles; the number of passengers carried during that year, 472,171,343; the aggregate number of miles traveled 11,553,820,44:>, wl1ich shows an average jour­ ney of 24.4 7 mile::, for each passenger. Of the above number of pa::;sengers carried, 310 were killed and 2,14l) more or less injured, as follows: Killed. Injured Collisions.... • • . 107 445 DeraihnentD . 28 389 Other train accidents. 26 247 At highway cros8ingH............ 3 16 Stations . • • . • • . 26 295 Other causes. 120 754 310 2,146 It will be seen from the foregoing stafo,tics, that notwith­ standing the vast number of passengert-5 carried, the number of miles traveled, and the demands for swift locomotion and transportation made upon railroads, which is the most speedy mode of travel now in U8e, and as appears, as safe as other modes, comparatively few have been, in any way injured. This freedom from accidentt-5 to passengers on railroads, is not realized by employe:::-. In connection with the railroad E>ystem of the coun.try there are 704, 7 43 workers, the most of whom are men. It is estimated that independently of stockholders, the railroads of the United States provide a living for 3,000,000 persons, or about one in twenty-two of the total population of the country, and these employes are distributed among the various sub-employments of the rail­ way industry as follows: General officers. • • . 4, 739 Office clerks.. • • 20,817 RAILROAD COl\E\lISSIONER'>' REPORT. 7 Station ngents ....................... 24, 171 Other station meu. ............ 58,037 Engine-men ......................... 30,217 Fire1nen ............................. 31,99~ Conductors .......................... 20,953 Other train-men.. ..... 55,160 lvlachinists.. ............. 2!5,214 ·Curpenters ................... , ...... 33,244 Other shop-men. ............ 7fi,959 Section foremen ...................... 25,53~) Other track-men ..................... 145,401 Switch-men, flag-men and watch-men .... 33,044 Telegraph operators, and despatchers ... lG,937 Employc:::;, floating employment ........ 6,~Hl8 All other employes ................... 80,080 Not distrilmted ............... ,. ... rn,240 Total . 704, 7 43 Ot the ahovc 11umher of employes, statistics show the ·startling fact that 1,~17t were killed and 20,028 injured during the year ending June 30, 1889, as follows: Killed. [ujured Coupling nn<l uncoupling ears ..... 300 G, 757 Falling from trains and e11gines ... 493 2,011 Overhead ohstruetions. , __ ... , .... 65 2irn Collision:::; ...................... 167 820 Derailments .................... 125 655 Other train accidents ............ 189 1,01 (j At highway crossings ............ ~4 45 At stations ..................... 70 69~ Other causes . .. 539 7 '72~1 1,972 ~0,028 The above figures disclose the dangerous mtture of rn ;1 way employment. As appears, there is one death for ever.r oj7 employes, and one injury for every thirty-five employes, or if we confine it to train-men only, that is to say, engineers, firemen, conductors, and other train-men, rnjlway accidents are the occasion of one death for every 117 ernployes, and of one injury for every twelve men employed. That this number of men employed in railway service shoulll be killed or maimed in one year is appalling and seems unn'a.;onable and unneces­ !-inry if trains were equipped with such modern appliances as are no,v at hand. The above statistic::.; show that fow acci­ dent::.; occur by reason of defective tra~ks or hri<lge strnctures of railroads. The n11rnher of passengers, ar:ove mentioned, which arc carried safely by the rail ways of the country yenrly, is evidence that the phyt--ical condition of railroads is generally well nr1intained. The great danger to travelers hy railroads. is not that raihrnys are improperly construdcd or maintained; but by reason of rnisrna1iagement and the careles8ne~s and incompetency of employes. Nearly every rni I road accident to trains of which \Vl~ read, can be clirectly attl'ihuted to the above m('ntionecl cnu::-.e8. 'vVhat i::-. true in l'e:-;pect to the accidents throughout the country is true a8 to our own State. The physical condition of rnilroacls in :Maine is well nrnin­ taincd and no accident of a s0rious nature has occurred for many years to trains that could be reasonably attributed to defect~ in construction or want of repair in track or bridge structures. H AILROAD E1IPLOYES. In connection with the statistical facts above given, as to accidents to employes on railroads. vast numbers of w horn as we have shown, are yearly being killed, maimed and other­ wise injured, we are led to inquire must thi~ slaughter of our strong, active young men be permitted to continue? Is there no remC'dy? Can it be said that we have acquired a perfect system of railroading i11 this country when out of 704,- 7 43 employes, 1,972 are killed and 20,028 injured yearly, of whom many of the latter class are maimed and crippled for life? Doubtless very many of these accidents occur by reason of the carelessness of these persons or of their coemployes; RAILROAD COl\DH:;:-,IONERs' REPORT. but from the nature of tho accidents ahove enumerated, we can not doubt that, if snch modern appliances and inventions, as are now availahl(~, were 11:-;ed, many of the live:,, and limbs of operatives on railrna<ls would be saved. It is not a little surprising, that when the dangers to train­ men are so great, so many young men are willing to engage in such hazardous employment, especially when we coth,i<l(0 r the avernge wages paid for such employment and the slight chances of future promotion fol' care and faithfulness in the discharge of their duties. It appears from the report of the Bureau of Industrial and Labor Statistics of Maine, that the average monthly wages paid is as follows: Engineers .......... $159 4G ]firen1en