not generally received the cordial recognition and support of the employés themselves; have been ephemeral, and at best have only partially afforded the contributing companies protection from legal responsibilities. Objection has frequently been made to the writer that the conditions under which railroads are operated in the United States differ so widely from those of other countries as to render the experience of the latter of little practical value to us for purposes of comparison and guidance, and this belief seems to be wide-spread. The best possible answer to such an objection may be obtained from an inquiry into the results of the efforts of those American railroads (and there are several conspicuous examples) which, following English and Continental precedents, have systematically united with their employés in establishing societies like those which have proved so prosperous abroad. Reference has been made in a previous paragraph to an association of this character inaugurated five years ago by a prominent Eastern trunk line. From the first publication of its prospectus the Baltimore and Ohio Employés' Relief Association attracted marked attention, not only among railroad managers of advanced thought, but very generally among students of social and industrial science and prominent educators, and that interest has been well sustained by frequent reports in the public press of its growth and work. Having in the five years of its existence a sustained membership exceeding 18,400; having, under its various features, distributed over a wide territory more than $929,940.14, in 42,930 separate payments; and combining within itself, in one harmonious system, provision for the relief of the sick, injured, superannuated, and for their families after death; a savings-bank, a building association, a circulating library, and other features of less importance; being a leader in railroad sanitation; and, in short, representing, on the largest scale in the United States, the most popular foreign friendly and aid societies—this Relief Association will best serve for purposes of restoration.
A general review of its theory and provisions is necessary for a proper understanding of the results it has attained, but any specially interested in the details of its organization and management are referred to the secretary of the association at Baltimore.[1]
In a circular dated May 1, 1880, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company announced that, on the petition of a number of its employés, after a very thorough examination and study of benevolent railway organizations in Great Britain, France, and Germany, having a full appreciation of the advantages which experience has uniformly shown may be enjoyed by the employers and employés of railroad and other large corporations where benevolent relief societies have
- ↑ The writer was induced, some years ago, to publish in the Chicago "Railway Age" an account of the features of this association, then in operation, but to which important additions have since been made. Having but a limited circulation, among railroad people only, that paper has been utilized in the preparation of this article.
