Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1910-12-01


occurred in other mills where these
favorable conditions did not exist!
Zone company reported three acc,
dents and stopped filing. lnasIhuci'
as this company employs as many per
sons as tie first mentioned. anu 10
engaged in fully as hazardous DUST
nnss il is hardly q reasonable assump-
ton that the accidents in that miii LOT
the wear numbered but three.
"Six large plants reported two accl-
dents each "a truly remarkable recoru
if if were completely for the year. some
of them employ several hundred men,
women and children in pursuits Where
the danger of accident is very great
indeed. 1t is possible, through hlehls
improbable. that two reports ,each'
cover the accidents in these establish
ments. Only one accident during the
year was the enviab1e record reported
by % employers. Common sense teiis
anyone at all familiar with the subject
that in many of these cases the RECORD
filed with the commissioner Is lar lroih
conforming with the facts. n"
Further examination OF the Srut
soue newspaper record reFeals the
fact that a large proportion Of the ac-
cidents occurred to young Workefs
some inexDerienCed or reckless young
men and women just taking up 'lhe
burdens of life, many others to work
ers who may fairly be assumed u
have been exercising all the care com
latible with the pace 81 the ihuus'rs
and the common practices Oh their le'-
lows All Young men ana women
who work on dangerous machinery are
not reckless Most of them are faif to
themselves when they are not COM
PEELED to work too rapidly, when the
pace is not too fast.
1.-THE only statistics of accidents III
Maine which approach completen ass as
regards any single occupation, are
those furnished by the railroad COM
panies and incorporated in the report
of the Board Of Railroad Commission
ers. For the year ending June 81
1909 eleven employees were Killed ana
1O3 were injured in the movement ol
trains, locomotives and cars. Whiie the
death of one and the injury OF l4o'oth-
Crs' was attributed to other causes.
making total of II killed and 245
ifffitred on the steam roads. The total
number of employees was 1857. includ-
ing the general officers, SO that the
casualty list is 90 per cent. OF the
total On the electric railways no en-
ployc was killed and but II were in
iured out of the 1749 employed. This
presents q casualty list of but .OO6 per
cent, Il Very creditablc record. Rail-
roads. however, are a problem in
themselves.
THE great majority of the accidents
enumerated occurred on machinery
that was not properly guarded, for,
with the exception of such precautions
as have been taken by comparatively
few employers. there is no guarded
machinery in Maine. according to the
standard set by modern practice in
other states. Authorities are practi-
cally agreed that 80 per cent. of the
accidents that are happening on un-
guarded machines could be prevented
by proper guards.
1.-The industries of Maine are paying
dearly for the privilege of running I'M
guarded machinery through Industrial
insurance premiums, expense of liti-
CATION, loss of time of both employers
and employees in attending court, de-
roralization of working forces when
accidents occur, loss of product Of in
jured workman, breakage and destruc-
ton Of machinery and, through the
payment, voluntarily or by compulsion.
of indcmnitieS.
1T is freely admitted by the repre-
sentativcS of Industrial insurance com
panies doing business in Maine that
the rates are higher than they would
be if there We're statutes compelling
the employers to maintain proper safe
guards on all machinery, ways and
works.
the employers Of Maine paid nearly
a million dollars in liability insurance
premiums during the ten years ending
in 1908 and Losses amounting to slight
~ less than 100000 have been paid in
the same period. There has, there
fore, been an economic waste of APP
proximateIy 100000, arising from the
Insurance feature of the case. alone
If there * anything to be deducted
from these figures, il is The commission
account and money paid out in the
state for litigation. but in the latter
case an equal or perhaps larger
amount must be charged off for need
less litigation, which is itself an
economic waste. The losses paid
We're approximately 40 per cent of the
premiums for the ten Year period.
''WlIile il is true that Insurance com
paneS step in after an accident and
aSsilnl" the responsibility. the employ
er is not thereby relieved of All ex-
ponse. He must attend court. re-
eardless of his; business engagements
and is very likely to lose valuable time
as aresult. Again. Very often the
employer deems it good business to
have legal representative in court all
of the time that his case is on trial. in
addition TO the insurance company's
representative. Every EMPLOYER gives
valuable time to the discussion Of ac-
rldcnt cases. before, during and after
trials.
Whenever an accident occurs there is
q more or less completp Inn,or, liz ,ti,,,