> I think that you are right re Menk. I remember seeing an article in the
> Chicago Tribune after Menk had been president for a while. One of his
> comments in an interview was "we're getting rid of that creaky old
railroad
> look"....
I'm not arguing against Menk as an individual, and I admit that the
apprenticeship system tended to preserve older and useless practices in some
areas. I recall in the late '50s, visiting the headquarters of my father's
insurance company . . . all chrome and glass and a spanking new Univac
computer. About a year later, we visited Superintendent Horst at the West
Burlington Shops - manual typewriters, the wooden "fence" remarked earlier, and
I even recall a couple of roll-top desks!
On the other hand, railroading is an exceptionally complex industry. It owns
every piece of its equipment and real estate and must maintain and improve it.
Contrast this to American Airlines, who never has to think about runway
maintenance or traffic control systems.
Menk was one of the first "Whiz Kid" presidents, coming into the industry with
no field experience and qualified only by his college degree. I recall another
article where Menk displayed a letter from a woman saying she had always
admired the Burlington Company, and could they send her a sample of their
pantyhose (confusing the railroad with Burlington Mills) - Menk and his
confreres never really understood the link between the public's perception of
the railroad and its business success. Take his crusade against passenger
service. Nowadays, if you ask a person what railroad runs through their home
town (and they have no passenger service), they'll almost always get it right,
and accompany the answer with a comment about having to wait for the damn'
things at crossings. If they *do* have passenger service, the asnwer will
probably be "Amtrak", and like as not, they won't know the name of the railroad
that owns the tracks!
I think we've seen the last of the railroad presidents who have a true grasp
for the complexity of the industry and a feel for how all its facets interact.
Marshall
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
|