Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-12-14
DEATHS LEVY ON Toll
Over 10000 Workers Killed
Each Year by Accident.
HIGHER THAN IN EUROPE
Rate Here Is Excessive in Many
Occupations.
LABOR BUREAU BULLETIN
Startling Figures Compiled and Dis
cussed in Report of Frederic
L. Hoffman.
HIGHER THAN IN EUROPE
Dor BUREAU BULLETIN

iuGmen is discussed in Bulletin No. IS of
Tic bureau Of labor. Department of Com
mcrcc and Labor by Frederic l.. Iiof
man.
The Importance of this subject is at
once apparent when it is considered that
between 10000 and $4,000 workmen lose
their lives in accidents in the course of
their employment in this country during
a year.
BY means of statistics from official
sources and from insurance experience
Mr.. Hoffman clearly shows the high acct
dent liability to which American work
men subject. Census reports Gov
erng the years 1860 to 1906 show that out
of over 1,OHo.oOO deaths of males. more
than per cent were due to accident. A
large proportion of these deaths are due
to causes more or less related to the
occupations of the injured persons.
The liability of the workman to acct
dental injury or death is brought out
in this discussion for important occupa-
tons under a broad classification in five
general groups. viz, factories and work
shops, electrical =. industries. mines and
quarries transportation by rail and trans
pOrtation by water.
OF those employed in factories and
workshops probably the most exposed
Reports of 1856 accidents in this class
of workmen during the years 1901 to 1905
show that Al per cent of the accidents
to men employed in rolling mills resulted
fatally.
Among nut and bolt workers in Penn
sylvania the returns Of the chief factory
inspector show the fatal accident rate
during ten years to have been "a per
Geo and in miscellaneous steel and iron
work As per LOCO.
High Rate Among Electricians.
According to the industrial insurance
experience the fatal accident rate of
electricians and of electric linemen is
excessive. OF 645 deaths of electricians
AT per cent and of 30 deaths of line
men 467 per cent were due to accidents.
In the anthracite mines of Pennsylvania
the state inspectors have found that dur
ing ten years there have averaged an
nually B. IL fatal accidents for every / 600
men employed, and the rate is even higher
than this for certain specific occupations
in the mines. That this is excessive is
shown by comparison with the death rate
from accident of 10 per 1000 in the
British coal mines.
The reports of the interstate commerce
commission have shown that during ten
years IL, 1863 railway trainmen lost their
lives in accidents This is equivalent to
7.46 deaths per 1000 employees.
VI deaths OF SAILORS occurring III
the experience of an industrial insurance
company 17.6 per cent were due to acct
dents.
To the workingman himself there Is no
more important problem than the most
effective protection of his life and health
against the accident risk inherent in, or
incidental to, the occupation in which he
is employed. Much that could be done
for his protection is still neglected. though
many important and far-reaching i'm
iy,fr in, fon
tory practice during the last decade Ac-
curate repofts Of accidents alone can fur
nish reasonable basis for reform. The
possibilities for successful accident pre-
in the experience of foreign countries.
What the Figures Mean
Granting that the underlying conditions
in European countries are often quite diff
ferent. and that many of our industrial
accidents may be the result of ignorance,
reckless Indifference, or carelessness. the
fact remains that an immense amount of
human life Is wasted and a vast amount
of injury is done to health and strength,
with resulting physical impairment, which
has very considerable economic value to
the nation as. whole. If. for illustra-
ton, the accident liability Of employees in |
coal mines in the United States were re-
duced from $40 per 600 which was the
average annual rate for the period 1897 |
1905. to 1.29 per 1000, the average rate in |
the United Kingdom for the same period |
the annual saving in human life would be |
91o. If the rate of casualties of railway
employees In this country were reduced |
from 2.5O per 1000, which was the average
annual rate for 1s97-19O6. TO O.9s per |
! 600. the average for the German empire |
Tor the same period, the annual saving |
would be LBS valuable human Ives
or the more than 10000 wage-earners |
killed by accidents in the course Of a year
1t should not be impossible to save at |
least one-third and perhaps one-half by |
intelligent and rational methods of factory
inspection, legislation and control In ad- |
ditlon there were approximately not much |
less than two million non-fatal accidents |
that not only involve vast amount of |
human suffering and sorrow, but ma
terlaily curtail the normal longevity
among those exposed to the often need
less risk of industrial casualties