Steam.wagon Drivers and Various " Controlled " Establishments.
Page 4
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
By One Who Has Been Through It.
The steam-wagon driver is not a bad fellow by any means—not half SO bad as he sounds.. His occupation is -rough, and he is often the same.. His language is crude, perhaps, but force often is employed in an at-tempt to cover up defects in -argument. He has a good heart, and no-man is more ready to help a mate than he. His general code. of honour is not easily understood, and his work on -the road tends to make him an opportunist. Truthfulness is not, therefore, the virtue which attracts him most. Quick-witted and humorous to a degree, he is the natural development of his surroundings and his work. . He lives a life of his own to a, large extent, removed from his fellowmen.
. No Friends at Court.
The laws under which he works are monstrously unfair, and appear to have been constructed largely with the object of subjecting him to fines which he could never hope to pay out of his wages. Whilst in some districts the police treat him with reasonable consideration, in others his life is tormented with petty prosecutions of a most-discreditable nature. Many of the local -authorities appear to regard him. as an enemy of society. Few people recognize the heavy responsibilities which his work brings to him, or guess with what degree of fidelity it is often performed. In fact, he has no " friends at Court," and very few anywhere else, owing to the nature of his work. it is not surprising, therefore, that our legislators do not include him in any lists they issue Of those to whom special comforts apply.
Comparisons with Munition Workers.
The munition worker must be provided with a workroom which must be maintained at a given temperature. Refreshments must be provided of a tempting quality, and almost unlimited quantity—and, furthermore, at a price which frequently is less than cost. The steam-wagon driver has to take the weather as he finds it, and be thankful in the winter that there is . any temperature left to register. As to food, the Food Controller has almost reduced it to vanishing point, and the restaurant-keeper in search of an out-. let for his patriotism has extended the reduction to an almost ludicrous extent.
It. is not to be supposed that the Food Controller does not know very much about steam-wagon drivers and the amount of " packing " they absorb in a day, .but the sooner he raises the limits of supplies to such members of the community the better. Restaurantkeepers have a habit of exaggerating restrictions when it pays them todo. so, and steam-wagon drivers have to accept what is offered to them, having no time or opportunity to make a tour of the district to find out the most-honest man to patronize.
is it within the bounds of reasonable possibility for the {1.14,1.i.i.A. to establish a list of houses suitable to his requirements, as has been done for the motorists and the cyclists--the (erstwhile) other great sections of road travellers. Their reference-books tell them the houses at which to stop, graded according to quality and charges.
The Right Kind of Public-house.
If the State control of public-houses is really " on the carpet," as is stggested, it would be well for our legislators to bear in mind the enormous growth in read transport, and to legislate for the steam-wagon driver's requirements. These are not numerous, neither are they elaborate, but they are essential— very eSsential—if the man is to perform his work efficiently and contentedly. It is a comparatively-easy
626 matter to determine the; routes most frequented by motor transport. Along such routes there are already recognized stopping-places where motor drivers foregather to obtain 'refreshment and. -discuss the virtues and vices of their respective mounts. The Government might in the first instance direct their attention to such recognized .stopping-places, and ascertain whether they fulfil the following requirements : (1) whether the landlord bears a first-class character ; (2) whether the premises offer reasonably safe accommodation for the vehicles and their loads ; (3) whether the sleeping accommodation should be clean and thoroughly well aired. The Government must see that the food served is wholesome and practically unlimited in extent. During the day-time, or while men are driving their vehicles, intoxicating liquors must only be served with meals, and only then in very limited quantities. If the man is putting op for the night, and has finished his day's work, the limit could well be raised, but not entirely removed, as the man will require a clear head to carry on his work on the morrow.
The Character of the Landlord.
The character of the landlord is a nqatier of serious importance ; his responsibility is very great in Catering for men who are -engaged as motor drivers. There is, of course, the matter of the driver himself and his mate ; if they get drunk, they not only endanger their own lives but those of Others on the road ; their loads, too, are often very valuable, sometimes consisting of eatables and drinkabIes, or other articles which are of use to innkeepers. -The danger of " doing a. swop" is always present, unless the right class of man is in charge of the inn.
Ration Him Last of AIL .
The necessity for good wholesome food is so clear as to need very little comment. The men wOrk hard, their hours are long, and they areexposed to all weathers: these facts suffice. "Under such circumstances, the question of rationing should be deferred to the very last, for men engaged upon such work require all the food they can consume ; they generally have to content themselves with two good meals in the day.
That a man who has been exposed to rain and wet throughout his day's work should be put into a dampbed at night sounds criminal, Nit, alas ! this frequently occurs under present conditions. The beds should be most carefully aired for such men, and, moreover, they should be clean. .Under existing haphazard methods, a man frequently finds the bed offered is deficient in both of the above respects, and in consequence elects to sleep on his wagon, a practice which has been responsible for many accidents.
A National Responsibility.
Previous to the war, suggestions on the lines of the abOve would have been promptly laughed out of court, but as a nation we are beginning to look fads in the face. The commercial-motor driver has proved an enormous asset to the cou.ntry, both at the Front and at Home;: the man is prepared topay his way, but requires facilities for carrying on his work with at least a minimum of comfort ; this even, at times, he cannot obtain. The Government (which has so sedulously hedged in his occupation with rules and regulations and attendant fines and penalties) is responsible for seeing that the Steam and petrol drivers receive some consideration commensurate to their services to the State. At present, they do not.