Los Angeles herald., 1908-06-22

mittee OF experts Defore LelllS auinAe
ted to space, but also by such corpo1
rations as the Pennsylvania railroad
the Carnegie Steel company, the IraV,
elers' Insurance company OF Hartroro
and the American Bridge company. IL
Is believed that next year the NUMBER
of exhibits will be doubled. DIR. w. II.
Tolman, the director, is planning q Trip
throughout the country in the fall for
the purpose of interesting the people
of every section in the movement.
Many of the large railroad and indus
trial corporations, as well as accident
and other insurance companies, nave
already taken cognizance OF its I'M
portance. Organized labor Is joining
hands with them. All recognize the
object the cutting down OF our annual
casualties that are increasing year by
year. which In measure cast dis
credit upon us.
More lives are lost in the United
States from accident than in any of
the countries of Europe. Some Amer
leans have attempted the explanation
that their countrymen are more inn
petuous of disposition, and in the hurry
and scurry of getting there" often
take a false step, where the more
phlegmatic European might look a
second time. They further urge the
American mechanic often works his
muscle beyond his brain and in con-
sequence Injuries his arm in belt. or
cuts his hand on a circular saw. or
kills himself in an explosion of Sire
damp"
Whether these fundamental reasons
for the great loss of life in our coun-
try are true is not q relevant matter
of discussion. For the fact remains
that Americans have not taken as
70 oxIe x.cf a q
have the inhabitants of the old world.
This is true especially in Germany.
where the individual is virtually COM
manded to safeguard himself in ways
that in this country might seem trivial
and an insult to ones intelligence.
The American Museum of Saftey De-
vices is organized for the express pur-
pose of assembling and demonstrating
the best methods and devices for pro-
tecting the workers in mining, trans
portation, textiles, building trades, ag-
riculture, chemical and varied indus
tries. 1t aims only to exhibit the de-
vices for safeguarding the lives and
limbs of workmen and preventing ac-
cidents under the ordinary conditions
to which the general public is exposed,
and no other.
But a short time ago James 7. Nor
gan of the bureau Of statistics of New
Jersey paid visit to the museum. His
attention was arrested by the view OF
a circular saw In the shops Of the
Brown & Sharp Manufacturing COM
pany, where rubber mat with a cor
rugated surface is placed in front of
the table. THAT is a brand new idea
to me- said Mr.. Morgan, so simple
and so cheap that no employer can af-
ford to object to it on the score OF
aaIx fylIr I'M n
continued, "of a particularly distress
ing accident, where a poor fellow slip
ped and fell against the saw, which
cut right through his chest and into
his ribs. If a rubber mat had been
placed In front of the machine very
likely the workman would not have
slipped" This is only typical In
stance. Each day brings its shock of
horror in the tales of death and cas-
ualties from causes which the engin-
eering and technical profession know
are preventable. Many of the victims
are breadwinners, whose families thus
become a charge on charity, the city
ing disaster, $250.000 was asked for the
care of the orphans of the men who
persisted. The United States leads the
world in this form OF casualty. For
every 1000 miners employed in England
the average killed is LIS; in Italy. 1.3O;
in Germany, 1888; in France, 30; IN Bel
GUM, 1872, and in the United States,
2.36.
The Old World has pointed the way
to better protect life and labor by the
establishment of museums of safety,
similar to that which the present move
ment aims in this country. Ten capital
cities of Europe have them. Such mus
Gums exist in Berlin, Paris, Vienna,
Milan, Budapest. Stockholm, ZURICH
Moscow and Munich. Those In Ger
many are supported entirely by the
government, which says: I'VE regard
that is the end of it. You get no
f,,rther The ona-sided Investigation