The Cairo bulletin., 1911-06-09
SCORED BY ATTORNEY BRAN.
DIES IN ADDRESS BEFORE
CHARITY CONGRESS.
Advocates System Of Wage Farmers
Insurance to Provide Against
DsabiIityAor Old Age.

Louis ~. BrandelS OF tnlS CITY IN al
address on "Workingmens lnsur
ance. the Road to Social Efficiency,
before the National Conference o
Charities ana Correction here thi'
evening.
Mr.. Brandeis said in part
Throughout the civilized world ;
developing sense of social responsi
bility has compelled the community
70 support in some manner its need,
members, whatsoever the cause O
their inability 10 support themselves
In granting this aid we are passing
from sporadic. emotional charity tc
organized charity. and from mere re
ief to preventive measures. We
nave TO learn that financial depend
4nce among the wage earners is due
IN a large part to sickness, accident
invalidity, superannuation or unem
ployment or to the premature death
Of the bread winner of the family
contingencies like these, referred to
n individual cases as misfortune, are
now recognized as ordinary incidents
of the Ives of the wage earners, and
must be met by comprehensive sys
iem of workingmen's Insurance.
American democracy rests upon
he basis Of the free citizen. Politi
eally an American workingman is
free-so far as laws can make him
so--but is he really free, can any man
De really free who is constantly in
anger Of becoming dependent for
mere subsistence upon somebody and
something else than his own eXertion
and condutc. Men are not free while
financially dependent upon the will OF
.ther individuals. Financial depend
ence is consistent with freedom only
where the claim to support rests upon
light and not upon favor
THE cost attending free ION is
sually high and the cost of provid
ng to the workingman, as essential
o freedom, comprehensive and ade
luate system of insurance will prov
% be no exception to this general
'ule Few intelligent property own
RS omit to insure against fire. Every.
cody recognizes the fire insurance
premium as a current expense. ana
yet the chance of loss by fire is yer,
Sigh; as compared with the chance
If loss TO man by sickness, acci
lent or premature death Every in
telligent manufacturer makes in some
orm regular charge for deprecia
ion of machinery and plant. and yet
the depreciation OF a man tArougl
nvalidity and approximation is NJ
ess certain and frequently more seY
ere than the depreciation OF machin
cry. Every intelligent manufactur'
er recognizes rent, interest and taxes
Us a current daily charge which con
tinues, although his tlant is shl,
Town or operating at less than full
apacity; but the cost TO the EN-
ployer of carrying an unused plant is
lot as great relatively as the cost to
he employee of carrying himself and
family yhile unempoyed.
What sum woud he required an
lually to provide an adequate system
Of workingnen' insurance cannot be
determined from existing data. The
tcst would obviously vary greatly
IN different occupations and different
communities An amount equal 10 II
Der cent of current wages would 60
ar towards relieving in many indus
,ries the distress now incident to sick
ness, accident, inyalidity, premature
Ieath superannuaton and unemploy-
nent OF the wage Garner. But it is
certain that~the proceeds of even so
large charge as 10 per cent of the
average daily wage would, under the
present condition, afford mere ale
yiofinn ~ Nd NJ Ia 30 fpr n
losses now attendant upon those con.
ingencies in the life OF the working
nan. The cost of providing complete
Indemnity would probably reach an
amount equal to per cent of the
average daily wage, for the premiums
requisite TO securing indemnity from
losses incident to sickness, accident,
'nvalidity, premature death or supe.
animation would probably aggregate
Is per cent Of the daily wage. while
the average per centage required to
indemnify for unemployment due to
lack OF work would probably reach
about 10 per cent. This huge and an.
parently prohibitive expense should
not, however, deter us from taking
action now. 1t should, on the con.
trary, incite us to immediate and Wig.
orous measures. II would disclose