The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1909-04-03
Immense Amount Of Human Life.
That is Annually Wasted
in United States. s
ANNUAL LOSS or LIFE
OVER THIRTY THoUsANn
In Addition to This There Were
About Two Million Nom
s Fatal Injuries.

The subject Of accidents to work.
hgmen is discussed in bulletin No. IS
OF the bureau Of labor. department Of
commerce and labor. by Frederick L.
Hoffman. Es>... -.
- The Importance Of this. subject 10
at once apparent when it is consid-
cred that Between 10000 and $4,000
WeFksnen lose their lives in accidents
In the course of their employment In
this country during a year. ~ .
Insursnce Experience.
BY means Of statistics from off1cia1
sources and from Insurance expert-
ence, Mr.. HOFFMAN clearly shows the
nigh accident liability to which Am-
erfcan workmen are subject. Census
reports covering the years 1900 to 1906
show that out Of over 1000, 900 deaths
of males, more than 8 per cent were
due to accident. A large proportion
of these deaths are due to causes
more Or less related to the occu-
pations OF the injured persons.
Factory Employes.
OF those employed In factories ana
workshops probably the most exposed
class are the workers in iron and steel.
Reports Of S,456 accidents to this class
of workmen during the years 1901 to
1906 show that Al per cent of the ac-
eidents to men employed in rolling
mills resulted fatally. - -.
Among nut and bolt. workers In
Pennsylvania the returns Of the CHIEF
factory inspector show the fatal acci-
dent rate during 10 years to have been
6.4 per 1000, and in miscellaneous steel
and iron work 4.3 per 1000.
Electr1cians and Others. 49, .s
According to the Industrial insur.
ance experience the fatal accident rats
of electricians and Of electric linemen
* excessive. OF 645 deaths of electric.
clans 14:7zper cent and of 24C deaths of
l'nemens 467 per cent were due to acci-
dents. !. &. s5;ls.
In the anthracites mines Of Pennspl..
yanias n The state inspectors have round
that during. 10 years there have aver.
aged annually ais fatal accidents for
every 1000 men employed, and the rate
is even higher than this for certain
specific occupations in the mines. That
this Is excessive is shown by COM.
parison with the death rate from acct.
dent Of 1.29 per 1000 in the British
coal mines. - "a y
Trainmen and sailors.
The reports of the interstate com-
merce commission have shown that
during 10 years 1888 railway train-
men lost their lives in accidents. This
IS equivalent to TAG deaths per 1000
employees. ~rl #5
CT sos deaths of sailors occurring In
the; experience of an industrial insur.
ance company 17.6 per cent were due
to accidents.
Whole Subject Considered:
Granting that the underlying condi-
t1ons In European countries are often
quite different, 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 il
wasted and a vast amount Of injury ID
done to health and strength with re.
sulttng physical impairment, which has
a very considerable economic value to
the nation as a whole. II, for illus.
tratton, the accident liability Of en-.
@AoSSS IN WAL AlAlNeS In the Un1C60
States were. reduced from 80 N per
1.aoo, which was the average annual
ra,e for the period 1S97-1so6, to s1.2s5
per 1000, the average rate in thas
Uaited Kingdom for the same period
the annual saving in human life
would be s15. II the rate Of casualtiesS
Of railway employees in this country
were reduced from $50 per 1000.
which was the average annual rate for
1Ss7-1so6, to 0.sS per 1000, the aver
age for the German empire for the
same period, the annual saving would
be 1,735 valuable human lives.
CT The more than $4,000 wage-earn-
ers killed by accidents in the course
Of a year 1t should not be impossible.
to save at least one-third and perhaps
one-half by intelligent and rational
methods Of factory inspection. legis-
lation and control. s
: In addition there were approximate.a
ly not much less than 100000 non.
fatal accidents, that not only involve
q vast amount of human suffering and
sorrow, but materially curtail the nor-s
NAL longevity among those exposed to-
the often needless risk OF Industrial
casualties. S. 1s3 IS
iiaS NEW rJgEe vrOrRt nvH.s$s