El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-04-10
COMPENSATION Law
IS STRONGLY URGED
A Social Science Student
Points Out Defects in
Present Methods.

cumseh Sherman, former labor COM
missioner of the state of New York,
addressed the 18th annual meeting
of the American Academy Of Political
Social Science today on the merits Of
a compensation law. He said in part;
1.-THE compensation law is a develop
ment from the principles OF the negh-
gence law, corrected to conform to
the lessons of experience and TO mod
ern scientific knowledge and modified
with a view to concrete as distin-
guished. from abstract justice. The
compensation law differs from the law
Of negligence in principle in that II
changes the rules of 'contributory neg
ligence.' of assumption of risks and
of fellow servant" the criterion OF
negligence and the rules governing
the burden of proof and in that it
fixes a definite and limited measure
of the amount of the liability.
THE compensation law treats all the
necessary risks Of employment as joint
risks of which the consequence should
be shared between the employer and
mis- injured workman; and it accord
ingly imposes upon the employer
legal liability to pay to his injured
Workmen, or their dependents. his
share generally one-half) Of their
wage losses resulting from such risks.
This conception of a joint occuPationa1
risk-of a mutual responsibility for
accidents from occupational risks-or
a moral partnership in two resulting
losses-is the great basis of the COM
pensation liability.
I'm contrast with the compensation
law, our negligence law gives univer-
sal dissatisfaction. Not only is 1t IN
many respects absolutely unjust, but
even so far as its theories are just 1t
fails to carry out these theories In
practice but results instead in q med
ley Of cruel wrong. oppressive waste
and delayed or compromised justice.
1.-The fault lies not SO much with
the machinery of our courts as with
the law itself For the law starts
from an unfair basis, by imposing the
burden Of proof entirely upon the in
jured workmen, and thereby insures
injustice to them where. as happens.
in a large proportion of cases, from
the very nature of the accidents, there
can be no real proof.
I'm my opinion it is altogether a
mistake to seek to remedy the exist
ing evils along the lines of our en-
ployers' liability statutes. These laws
are in too many respects grossly IN
just to employers, increase litigation,
and uncertain in results and furnish
small additional RELIEF TO the victims
of industrial accidents in the mass.
TT is a principal merit OF the COM
pensation law that under it questions
Of industrial safety would cease al
most altogether to be subject for jul
dicial determination, and that the in
telligence and efforts of employers
would then be directed towards the
prevention of accidents instead of to-
wards the maintenance Of arbitrary
conditions which will merely prevent
liability for accidents"
Dawson Considers Cost.
In discussing the best system of
workmen's compensation, Miles Daw-
son, actuary of the Russell Sage foun-
dation, said in part:
THE subject must be considered in
connection with the effect of different
systems upon the interests of employ
ers, the employees and the general pub
lie. 1t is. therefore, necessary to inquire
which method will impose the lowest
and best equitably distributed cost
upon the employers, and thereby upon
the industries, which system will rem
der the most effective, reliable and
universally realized aid to injured en-
ployes whose deaths are caused by ac-
the greatest service to the public, TAX
ing into account the cost, the relief of
the pressure upon public and private
charity, the di1ninution of pauperism, of
premature compulsion to labor and of
crime.
Account must also be taken of all
the prejudice on the subject which
may have been created into fixed po-
litical principles. and of the legisla-
ton already achieved. In two states it
has taken the form of public insurance
and in the report of one state commit
tee it is recommended on compulsory
basis, and in the report Of another, on
an optional basis.
The method of insurance under state
compulsion in associations of employ
ers fixing the rates and with joint COM
mittees of employers and employees de-
termining the benefits is the wisest
course. Under such system the pres
sure of the cost will gradually increase,
but its maximum would be much
lower than under private insurance.
The system would also tend more than
any other to introduce effective pre-
vention of accidents and thereby di-
minish the waste