Wheeling majority. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1907-192?, 1909-01-14
PERI.LS OF. THE 7OILER
Mortality Among American Work.
ers Appalling.
VAST ARMY KILLED YEARLY.

l
Reduced by Protective Methods.
! That the American workman IS ex
posed to a very high accident liability
is shown by the statement just made
by the federal department Of com
merce and labor, u
Census reports covering the years
1900 to- 1906" says the report, show
that out Of over 100000 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 occupations Of the
injured persons
The bulletin is the work Of Fired
erick L. Hoffman of the department,
and in 1t Isl shown that yearly between
10000 and $4,000 workmen lose their
lives by accident. MI. Hoffman says:
''Of those employed in factories and
workshops probably the most exposed
are the workers; In iron and steel Re
ports Of sass accidents to this class of
Morkmen during the years 1901 to
1905 show that. Al per cent of the
accidents tOsmen employed in rolling
mills resulted fatally.
'.Among nut and bolt workers in
Pennsylvania the returns Of the chief
factory Inspector show the. fatal acei7
dent rate during ten years to have
been 81 per thousand and In miscei-
laneons, steel and iroD work 4.3 peg
thousand.
According to the. <iIdustrias insur-
ance experience, the fatal accident rate
of electricians and of electric hnemen
is excessive. Of 645 deaths, Of eIeetri-
clans 14.z per cent and Nf 240 deaths
of Ineraen. 46E per cent were, dae- to
accidents 4
1.-THE. anthracite mines of Pennsyl-
vania the state inspectors have found,
that during ten years there have aN-
eraged annually 2e18 fata1 accidents
for every thousand employees and the
Bate is even higher than this for cer-
tain specific occupations in, she mines,
That this is excessive is shown! by
comparison with che death nate from
accident of E29' per thousand in the
British coal mines:
1.-THE reports Of thu interstate come
MERGE commissions have shown that.
during ten years 16i363 railway train
men lost theirsIiKesi i'm accidents. This
is equivalent % 7s46 deaths pen ttiout
sand employees
't0f sos deaths Of sailors occurring.
IN the experience, Of an industrial in
:surance company IT'S per cent we're
due to accidents; II
ITO the wOrkfngrnam himself there
is no more Important prHbIem than tile.
most effective protection of his life
and Health against the. accideM risk
inherent in or incidental to, the oecu-
patton. in which. he Is employed. Much
that could be. done for his protection
is stiM neglected. though many impor-
tant and farreaehing improvements
have. Been introdhred liz factory prac
tice during the last decade.
Accurate reports; of accidents alone
can furnish reasonable basis for re-
form. The possibilities f9r successful
accident prevention have peen CLEARLY
demonstrated In tile experispce< Of for
,eign countries.
Granting that the underlying CON
-ditions, Id European countries are. often
quite dlnfeFaht and that many of our
industrial accidents may be. the result
of ignorance, reckless Indifference. or
earelessness, the fact remains that an
immense amount Of human life is
wasted and2a vast amount Of injury
is done, to health and strength with
resulting physical Impairment. which
has very considerable economic value
to the nation as a whole.
IF. for illustration, the. accident liza
bilfty- In coaE mines in the United
States were reduced from $40 per
thousand, which was the average an
nuaF rate for the period Of rS9T-19O6, to
1.29 per Thousand, the average rate In
the United Kingdom for the same pc
Rod, the annual saving in hERman life
would be 9f5
Z IF the rate Of casualties of railway
employees In this country were re-
duced from $50 per thousand, which
was the average annual rate for 1887
n9O6, to .HS per thousand, the average
for the German empire for the same
period, the annual saving would BE-
L,735 valuable human lfves." /.
I, OF the more than 5000 wage earn
.ers killed by accidents in the course
of a year it should not be impossible
to save at least one1thfrd and perhaps
one-half by intelligent and rational
methods of factory inspection, legis-
lation and control. In addition, there
were approximately not much fewer
than. 2, 000, 900 nonfatal accidents that
not only involve vast amount Of Au-
man suffering and sorrow, but mate
rally curtail the normal longevity
among those exposed to the often
needless risk Of Industrial casualties.
National Union Of chaufEsurs.
a. I