Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-03-10
Departments Inspectors Dere-
Iict, McDermott's Questioning
of Bryant DisclOses.
EMPLOYEES INCREASED, BUT
AMOUNT OF WORK DID NOT
Supposed to Visit Three Fac
tories Day, but the Aver
age Was One.
Especial to the Evening start

/
of the questions not responded to in
that way, were met with questions
from Col. Bryant instead of answers
The more important things brought
out by Mr.. McDermott's questions
were the following; that while the
number of inspectors in 1911 had in
creased four hundred per cent, over
| those in the factory department In
1903, the number of inspections made
in 1911 were only thirty-two per cent.
more than those made In 1908.
| The year before Mr.. Bryant took
office there were 5,s04 inspections
made by only six inspectors. In 1911
| twenty-five inspectors made only
1878 inspections with Col. Bryant as
the chief of the Department of Labor.
The average of inspections was less
than one per day by each inspector.
Negligence shown.
James H. Cullon, an inspector. was
shown not to have visited for more
than a year a factory where a man
was killed by a dangerous machine.
Quite as many men were killed in
1918 as in 1912, in fact no protection
was given the building trade. Mr..
Bryant was shown to be the highest
salaried labor commissioner in the
United States. except in New YORK
and Pennsylvania, where their work
has much wider scope.
The Labor Department. report or
death through accident showed far
less figures recorded than the Bureau
of Statistics records, but Colonel
Bryant admitted he had never in
quired into the discrepancy.
Reports show that he has prose-
cuted only one manufacturer in ten
years for violating factory safety
laws. He does nothing in fatal cases.
Holt, his deputy, receives $4,000 a
year and does clerical work in the
office. The statute requires Holt 70
inspect, but he never does.
Mr.. McDermott brought out the fact
that the number of inspections of
factories have actually decreased
from the year 1902. two years before
the department was instituted and
the present day. Meanwhile the eX-
penses have gone up from s1O,5O0 in
1904 to the following figures: 1911,
Sal 800; 1912 $57.50S; 1913, $77,601; re-
quested Appropriation for 1914. $751;
500
How many inspections ought an
inspector manage in day." asked
Mr. McDermott.
Three" replied Col. Bryant
Sometimes they make more and
sometimes less. The average is three.
"Then each man ought to make 900
Investigations a year?" You have
twenty-one inspectors?" Col. Bryant
acquiesced to both queries.
That would make q total of 1S,9O0
inspections a year. How do you ac-
count for the fact that some factories
have not been inspected oftener than
once in twenty months?'
The reply to this was a long state |
ment partly a resume of the work |
of the department and partly testl- |
monial to the efficiency of the inspec- |
tors.
Mr. McDermott asked:
O. BY what right do you employ |
an assistant commissioner of labor on
clerical work? A. Is there anything
in the act forbidding it?
@. There is, and you are breaking
the law. A. am not. L think l can
assign what work I please TO my as
sistant.
@. am not asking what you think
you can do. You evidently think you
can do what you like in that depart
ment. A. / certainly do.
Don't Talk So Much"
W. oul lltNC yOu ODStI NCu lut law
on the subject? Mr.. Bryant started
another long speech. Don't talk so
huch," said Mr.. McDermott..
Colonel Bryant will talk so much,
too. 1 am answering the question.
Mr.. Mathematician make so many
speeches we get no evidence. Sup
pose you were to hire a man to do
what Mr.. Holt does, would you pay
him $4,000 a year? A. No, I would
not.
@. Then why do you keep the as
sistant commissioner at that work
and get him raise in salary to $4,000
year? A. Because l thought the
assistant commissioner of labor of
the State was worth that much sal
airy.
Samuel Ludlow. president of the
Union Trust Company, a member of
the Economy and Efficiency Commits
sion, attending his first hearing of
the labor probe today, took hand in
the questioning. He wanted to know
about the supervision or non-super-
vision of inspectors by Commissioner
Bryant. He asked if it is true there
is no check on the inspectors to make
certain that they attend to their
daily duties.
Certainly there is a check, their
weekly and monthly statements and
sworn statements of expenses" said
Colonel Bryant.
Mr.. McDermott-Could he not suit
his own convenience?
Colonel Bryant-Unless he would
deliberately falsify his weekly state
ment and his monthly statements and
his monthly expense accounts and
commit perjury, he could not
Mr. IndlOw-Rut these statar,apf-
are all that you have to go upon?
Colonel Bryant-That is ALL,
Mr.. McDermott, wearied with Colo
mel Bryant's long speeches, at length
exclaimed: II have been asking YOU
questions all day long and l cannot
get a categorical answer from YOU.
You make long speeches, but we
gather nothing from your replies"
IF the Department OF Labor is ex-
travagant and expensive il Is due to
the acts of the Legislature and not
to me-" Mr.. Bryant said in reply to
one question. "They fix the salaries
and require that l pay expenses"
Q, Do you know that accidents have
increased during the last three years?
A. I assume that they have.
Q. Why? A. I cannot answer that.
@. You have been at the head of
the Labor Department for the last
ten years. l tell you now that the
accidents have increased in the last
three years What reason do you
assign for 1t? Al can quote to you
from work by Mr.
l don't want you to quote books.
I want an answer from you. A.
cannot give any reasons.
| Mr.. Ludlow showed the trend of
his thought on the reforms needed
| by asking.