THE SECRET OF HIS SUCCESS.
ONLY twelve years ago Mr. Charles M. Hays, the new president of the Southern Pacific Railroad, held a clerical position. Now he receives the highest salary paid to any railroad president in America—probably in the world. This is said to be $55,000, or $5,000 more than is paid to the President of the United States. The peculiarity of Mr. Hays’ mental equipment which enables him to command this splendid income is well illustrated by a certain bunch of old letters reposing in the pigeon-hole of the desk of an official who was a subordinate to Mr. Hays when the latter was general manager of the Wabash road. Some of these epistles are only two or three lines in length, but not one of them is too short to contain a sentence of official commendation of a kind calculated to stir the heart of the most indifferent subordinate. The ability to bestow approval with the same discernment and promptness with which he metes out criticism11is held to be the secret of his phenomenal success. But the most revolutionary practise which he carried into effect on the big Canadian road was the “open door” policy. Not only did Mr. Hays keep his own door open to all who had legitimate and important business, but he also saw to it that the doors of the officials under him were broadly open to the public. Mr. Hays is only forty-four years of age. He was born in Rock Island, Illinois.—Saturday Evening Post.