Evening star., 1917-09-23
Sickness
Benefits.

| tisticS OF the Department
Sickness of Labor to determine
pe. certain facts about nom
's' commercial sickness and
disability benefit funds as conducted (a)
in establishments for the benefit of
employees by a single firm, whether
such funds are conducted solely by the
employees themselves. solely by the en-
ployer or Jointly by both; CO., sickness
and disability funds conducted by ma
| tional or international trade unions; (c),
such funds conducted as an activity Of
local trade unions.
| The points sought to be emphasized
| in this study. officials of the bureau
state, were the qualification for mem
bership; the benefits paid; the frequency
and duration of disabilities in relation
| both to total membership and to total
| actual beneficiaries; and, finally, the
cost of maintenance of such funds and
| the percentage of such cost that goes
to cash benefits to members and to ad-
m1niStrative expense.
| 1t was found that the membership of
| the establishment funds consists to
very large extent of wage-earnfng male
| employees, although no distinction is
made between salaried and wage-earn-
| ing applicants. 1t is estimated that fe-
| males constitute less than 10 per cent
| of the combined membership Of all
| funds. About two-thirds of the estab-
| l1shment funds have only one class of
membership. The prevailing practice,
| 1t was found. in about three-fourths of
the funds having classes is to base the
! membership classification upon the
| earnings of the applicants or members
When females join in large numbers a
| special class is usually created for
them.
| Approximately Is per cent of all the
FUNDS provide for physical examina-
ton of applicants. In less than one
third of the funds an initiation fee of
from so cents to 81 is charged.
In a great majority of the union funds
no physlcai examination is required of
member joining the union and the
tund A few of the funds have a spe-
cal non-benefit membership class,
which entities members to all the pro-
tectiVe features of the organization
| except that of sick benefits To this
non. oenefcial group belong those who
at the time of entrance are above a
specified age-usualiy fifty years-and
those afflicted with chronic diseases.
In the great majority of the funds
alntalned by the national or interna-
tlonal labor organizations the amount
or cash benefits paid per week is rather
small. the average in all but two funds
being less than s.. This amount is, of
course, INADEQUATE to afford full re-
lief. particularly in view of the fact
that none of the funds furnishes any
medical or hospital care to it's disabled
members
Ihe average annual per capita cost
of cash benefits for the eight funds
looked into with a waiting period Of
seven days was as low as 10 cents in
one fund, while it varied from s203 to
1894 in the other seven In six funds
having a waiting period of fourteen
days 1t varied from S103 to s1S2
rev OF the national organizations
nave any accounting system furnishing
data regarding the cost of administer
ing the sick benefit features In terms
OF percentage of the total cost of the
schemes the administrative cost in five
organizations was 22.5, 1876 1874 So
ana % per cent, respectively. an aver
age OF slightly over IL per cent.
Garden cleaning in the fall is as i'm
portant IN its way. point out officials
OF the Department of
Fall Garden Agriculture. as house
r1a,,; cleaning in the spring.
whether flowers or veg
etables make up the garden plat The
achievement of garden cleanliness at
this season will often do much toward
insuring healthiness and thriftiness of
plants during the next growing sea-
son. The foliage and branches of
plants which have been attacked by
disease or badly infested by insect
pests should be cleaned I'D especially
well and burned.
If it is possible or desirable to clean
away plants from some portions Of the
garden before frost, such areas may
well be sown to rye as cover crop.
the growth to be turned under in early
spring. Incidentally, also. the officials
suggest. the patches Of green will give
the otherwise bare garden a cleanly
and more cheerful appearance during
the winter.
1t is after frost that cleaning is most
needed in the garden. When annual
plants have been nipped those that may
harbor disease or insect pests should
be cut down or dug up and burned
If the soft-leaved plants. which will
rot easily. are free from disease and
insects they may be turned under ad-
vantageously at this time. 1t is not
well. however, the experts say, to turn
leaves as those from oaks. These make
valuable compost when rotted. but
usually require two years for proper
decomposition. They should be col
lected and placed in compost pile
or pit maintained in a convenient loca-
ton.
The Irvine oil field, in Kentucky,
has developed from nothing three years
ago into the richest oil
Kentucky territory in the state
and the dead-and-alive
VII 1ieiu' town of 300 people has
expanded into city of 5000 Inhabitants
Three years ago there was a sleepy
little village on the bank of the Ken
lucky river near the place where it
rushes forth from the mountains of
eastern Kentucky and becomes
quiet, navigable stream in the great,