Lucius Beebe-David Morgan correspondence project
Between 1961 and 1966, prolific railroad book author Lucius Beebe and Trains editor David P. Morgan exchanged a flurry of letters, telegrams, and postcards, up to the week before Beebe’s death on February 4, 1966.
The contents of this volume of correspondence regarded many things, including the art of book publishing and commentary on various articles and book review in Trains magazine. It also provides something Lucius Beebe’s personal impression of the modern railroad scene and his impish character and romantic view of railroading often comes through loud and clear.
The vast bulk revolved around a variety of book projects that Beebe was working on with his main publisher, Howell-North in California as well as projects that the Kalmbach Books department had in the works in which Beebe had an interest or a hand.
Although their friendship started many years earlier, our surviving records only contain a concentration of letters from this time period. For your enjoyment, we’ve curated a small collection of them here, along with many of the corresponding stories or tidbits from Trains magazine to provide context where appropriate.
First installment:
BEEBE to Morgan — July 14, 1961
Single page general letter to Trains praising Arthur Dubin’s story in the July 1961 Trains magazine (pages 20 to 31). Later, Beebe would write the forward to Dubin’s book, “Some Classic Trains”, published by Kalmbach in 1964. This story appears in that book too.
BEEBE to Morgan — July 20, 1961
Two pages written as a “letter to the editor” on David Morgan’s story “Is it a crime to be a railrod,” page 20 to 24 in Trains, August 1961. As stamped at the top, some of the letter was used in Trains Magazine, but as a point of interest, see David Morgan’s note at the end to Rosemary Entringer, Trains managing editor. It appears that even Al Kalmbach read the letter. “Mr. Perlman” referred to in the letter is Alfred E. Perlman, president of the New York Central and later Penn Central railroads.
Editors’ note: These historic letters are 60 years old and reflect their authors and the times in which they were written. Kalmbach editors may digitally edit or selectively redact these documents based on a 21st century understanding of readers’ sensibilities.
Letter transcriptions:
Lucius Beebe letter, marked July 14, 1961
804 Vista Drive
Hillsborough
California
Sirs,
May I rise in meeting to remake that Arthur Dubin’s picture monograph on the Milwaukee’s Pioneer Limited in Trains for July is something remarkable and unique, not only because it represents a completely authoritative essay by a dedicated expert, but because it shows the way to a new avenue of railorad (sic) lore that may be explore d/ when we have all run out of steam and guts and action and siderods in motion? This is very sophisticated stuff and a credit to everyone concerned.
(Signed) Lucius Beebe
Lucius Beebe
(Date stamp) July 14 1961
(Archiving stamp, partially cut off)
USED
In TRAINS & TRAVEL for
News
RPO
(Cut off)…
Lucius Beebe letter from July 20, 1961
(Handwritten at top) Lucius Beebe
(Stamped) JUL 20 1961
Virginia City, Nevada,
July 20, 1961
Despite the cogent arguments of David Morgan’s piece “Is It a Crime To Be a Railroad” in August Trains and the obvious overall rightness of his thinking his title has ambiguous aspects that are irresistible for the ample reason that there are railroads, (correction mark) and anyone who wants to can name their names right out in meeting, that are criminally operated and so come up with the answer “Yes, it sometimes is a crime to be a railroad.”
In general terms I’d like to suggest that a railroad which deliberately sets out to sabotage its own passenger service in the hope of easy abandonment of service and repudiation of its first and primary public obligation which is the carriage of passengers is acting criminally.
I’d like to suggest that the management of a once respected and important main line carrier operating in Virginia and Ohio which called its passenger agents, station agents, and ticket clerks together and ordered them on of losing their jobs to discourage in every imaginable way all and any patronage of several of its top name passenger trains in the hope of showing a loss on their operations is acting criminally.
I’d suggest that the management of the New York Central which is headed by a personal friend of mine in the person of Al Perlman who is known in railroad circles as “The Butcher Boy” acted criminally in deliberately and maliciously downgrading the Twentieth Century Limited from the greatest name train in the world to a second class [deleted] run. Mr.Perlman made his reputation as an assassin of passenger runs on the Rio Grande in Colorado and has gone on to greater crimes of violence against the passenger that are the first and primary excuse for any railroad’s existence on the Central.
Less specifically, I’d name as criminal a lot of border line carriers who don’t dare come right out like some and advocate total defeatism and the murder of all passenger busines /s but sneakily subscribe to defeatism and discourage patronage by every device with their gift from filthy toilets to paper napkins on the diners, surly clerks and non-answering (with correction marks) of telephones.
In the realm of esthetics I’d name as sabotage to the railroad business the first criminal designer of moderne passenger equipment who started substituting the decor of an operating room for the beauty and grandeur that once characterized the cars and gave them elegance and romance.I’d indict the merchants of Diesel equipment and the carriers that adopted it because more than any single factor the curtailment of steam has alienated public interest in railroading and downgraded ^it in the public imagination. I would draw a true bill against railroads that constantly diminish their advertising budgets for passenger service in the hope the air lines will get (with correction marks) their business by default.
The railroad is criminal that puts its freight business ahead of the passenger business for which, in most cases, it was granted a charter that would never have been issued to a mere hauler of merchandise. With very few exceptions the railroads of the land were licensed and given public sufferance and support because they carried passengers, were run for the convenience of passengers and operated as public conveniences and necessities (with correction marks). In the scale of their obligations to the public, freight and merchandise do not even rate consideration.
These are some of the reason in my book why the management of many railroads is in fact cimrinal and provides the answer with a loud and uninhibited yes to Mr.Morgan’s enquiry: “Is It a Crime To || Be a Railroad?”
Lucius Beebe
(Signed) Lucius
Undated memorandum from David Morgan to Rosemary Entringer
Rosy . . .
Al read this, thinks it’s rather subject to libel. So edit carefully any excerpts for R.P.O.
DM.
