The Lamar register. [volume] (Lamar, Colo.) 1889-1952, 1910-09-07

Wes NOT passed. eance thon the COM
panfes In fault have SYSTEMATICALLY an
nounced that they have done away with
the Objectionable conditions hope 80;
but whether they have or not. a law
should be passed in stringent form to pre-
vent any possible backsliding.
30 1t Is In the matter of injuries to en-
ployees. In what is called employers
liability" legislation other industrial coun-
tries have accepted the principle that the
industry must bear the monetary burden
of its human sacrifices. and that the en-
ployee who is injured shall have a fixed
and definite sum. The United States still
proceeds on an outworn and curiousiy i'm
proper principle. in accordance with which
II has too often been held by the courts
that the frightful burden of the accident
shall be borne In Its entirety by the very
person least able to bear it. Fortunately,
in number of states-in Wisconsin and
in New York. for instance-these defects
In our industrial life are either being
remedied or else are being made a subject
of intelligent study with a view to their
remedy. In New York . bill nmbodytng
moderate compensation for accidents has
already been passed. Other states will
undoubtedly follow In the same path. The
Federal government has. so far as Its
own employees are concerned. been the
first to recognise and put into shape this
principle. However. this pioneer law was
not made comprehensive enough: It does
not cover all the employees Of the Fed
eral government that ought to come with
in Its provisions. and the amount paid for
permanent disability or death IL entirely
inadequate. Nevertheless. It was great
step in advance to nave this principle OF
workingmen's compensation accepted and
embodied in the Federal statutes, and the
recent action of congress in providing for
a commission to study and report upon
the subject gives promise that the same
principle will soon be applied to private
firms that come within the Jurisdiction Of
the Federal government
Federation Planks Approved.
Women and children should. beyond
all question. be protected: and in their
cases there can be no question that the
states should act They should be par
ticular objects of our solicitude: and they
should be guarded in an effective fashion
against the demands Of = too greedy COM
neighborhood of Scranton and Wilkes
barre every one I spoke to agreed a. to
the immense improvement that had been
wrought by the effective enforcement OF
the laws prohibiting children under the
age of fourteen years from working. ana
prohibiting women from working more
than ten hours . day. Personally. I think
ten hours too long: but. be this as II may.
ten hours . day was . great advance
Among the pianks in the platform of
the American Federation of Labor there
are some to which very strongly sub
scribe. They are:
l. Free schools: free Textbooks; and
compulsory education.
. A work-day of not more than eight
hours.
seven
T. The abolition of the sweat-shop sys-
tenn.
s. Sanitary inspection of factory. work
shop. mine. and home.
g. Liability Of employer for Injury to
hadv nf
q regard the demand in this form ~ In
adequate. What We need IL an automati-
caiiy fved compensation for all injuries
receiv ed by the employee in the course of
his duty. this being Infinitely better for
the employee and more Just to the en-
pioyer. The only sufferers will be law
yers of that undesirable class which exists
chiefly by carrying on lawsuits of this
nature)
T. The passage and enforcement of rigid
ant-chiid labor laws which will cover
every portion of this country.
O. Suitable and plentiful Fairgrounds
for children In all the cities.
Inasmuch as prevention IL always best.
especial attention should be paid to the
prevention of Industrial accidents by pass
ing laws requiring tho use Of safety de-
vices. At present the loss Of life and
limb among the Industrial workers of the
United States In simply appalling and
every year equals in magnitude the killed
and wounded In q fair sized war. Most
of these casualties are preventabie: and
our legislative policy should be shaped
accordingly. IL would be . good idea
TO establish in every city . museum of
safety devices. from which the workers
could get drawings of them and inforIna-
tion to how they could be obtained and
ur~d.
The matter Of compensation for In
juries TO employees f.. perhaps. more i'm
mediately vital than any other. The re-
port OF the commission which has be-
gun to look into this matter on behalf of
the New York legislature IL well worth
reading. The bill presented by the Fed
GRAFTON of Labor in Wisconsin on this
subject seems excellent In all dangerous
trades the employer should he forced to
share the burden Of the accident. so that
the shock may be borne nv the commu-
nifty as a whole. This would be n meas
ure of Justice in Itself. and would do
away with a fruitful source Of anita gon-
ism between employer and employed.
Our ideal should n rate Of wages
sufficiently high to enable workmen to
live in a manner conformabie to American
ideals and standards. to educate their
children. and to provide for sickness and
old age; the abolition Of child labor:
safety device legislation to prevent In
dustriai accidents; and automatic COM
pensntion for losses caused by these In
tustriai accidents.