professional schools.

In selecting an assistant, one of them told me that Toucey subjected
him to a rigid examination and then said: "What is your
railroad career?"

"I began at the bottom," answered the assistant, "and have filled
every office on my old road up to division superintendent, which
I have held for so many years."

"That is very fine," said Toucey, "but are you a graduate of the
Troy Technical School?"

"No, sir."

"Of the Stevens Tech.?"

"No, sir."

"Of Massachusetts Tech.?"

"No, sir."

"Then you are engaged," said Toucey.

Mr. Toucey was well up-to-date, and differed from a superintendent
on another road in which I was a director. The suburban business
of that line had increased very rapidly, but there were not enough
trains or cars to accommodate the passengers. The overcrowding
caused many serious discomforts. I had the superintendent called
before the board of directors, and said to him: "Why don't you
immediately put on more trains and cars?"

"Why, Mr. Depew," he answered, "what would be the use? They are
settling so fast along the line that the people would fill them up
and overcrowd them just as before."

I was going over the line on an important tour at one time with
G. H. Burroughs, superintendent of the Western Division. We were
on his pony engine, with seats at the front, alongside the boiler,
so that we could look directly on the track. Burroughs sat on
one side and I on the other. He kept on commenting aloud by way
of dictating to his stenographer, who sat behind him, and praise
and criticism followed rapidly. I heard him utter in his monotonous
way: "Switch misplaced, we will all be in hell in a minute," and
then a second afterwards continue: "We jumped the switch and
are on the track again. Discharge that switchman."

Major Zenas Priest was for fifty years a division superintendent.
It was a delightful experience to go with him over his division.
He knew everybody along the line, was general confidant in their
family troubles and arbiter in neighborhood disputes. He knew
personally every employee and his characteristics and domestic
situation. The wives were generally helping him to keep their
husbands from making trouble. To show his control and efficiency,
he was always predicting labor troubles and demonstrating that
the reason they did not occur was because of the way in which
he handled the situation.

Mr. C. M. Bissell was a very efficient supe