which brought about this result were, when first introduced, bitterly opposed by operators on the ground of increased expense. To-day, he adds, the operators, once so hostile, are perfectly satisfied with these regulations, and admit that the increase in the cost of production has been trifling in amount. Mr. Roderick, in his report above mentioned, states as his opinion that with an additional cost of about one cent per ton of coal mined in Pennsylvania, safety precautions could be introduced which would reduce the number of fatalities one-half. In other words, of the 8,893 miners killed in Pennsylvania in the period from 1899 to 1908 inclusive, the lives of 4,447 could have been saved by merely increasing the cost of coal production to the extent of one cent per ton. Even if the cost of production should be increased to a greater extent than is claimed by Mr. Roderick and M. Watteyne, humane and broad-minded operators will be willing to assume this extra burden, provided, of course, that it fall equally on all competitors, so that such expenditure can be charged up to the cost of production, along with labor, freight, etc., and thus be added to the sale price of coal. The movement toward employers' liability legislation, now gaining strength in many states, will, moreover, render safety mining regulations more popular among employers; for if the employer is compelled to pay accident and death losses to the families of the killed miners, precautionary safety regulations will become an economical business policy. The broad-minded and humane employer under safety regulations will be placed on a footing of equality with his unscrupulous and inhumane competitor. It is only by clothing some competent tribunal with effective power that this tremendous waste of life will be brought to an end. And when we once realize the actual conditions we will put an end to them. When we read in the papers that some 350 miners were killed in the Monongah disaster, 250 at the Cherry mine,' as many more at Connellsville, and so on, the statements are mere figures to us; they have no human meaning. But if we could stand at the mouth of the mine upon its re-opening after an explosion and behold the seemingly endless column of charred bodies borne hour after hour 'The Bulletin of the (United States) Bureau of Labor, No. 90, p. 613, gives the number of miners killed at Cherry, Ill., November 13, 1909, as 266, and the number killed at Monongah, W. Va., Dec. 6, 1907, as 359.-Ed. to the surface; if we could witness the long line of hearses on their way to the hillside burial ground; if we could hear the heartbreaking sobs of stricken widows mingled with the pitiful wails of little children bereft of their fathers; if we could go in the days that follow to the bare homes deprived of their breadwinners, and find the little children taken out of school to gain their little pittance in the coal breakers; if we could see these things we would realize that it is not a question of "states' rights" or "constitutionalism"; we would see that it is a question of protecting the lives and the homes of our humble workers. When, after years of weak and inefficient state regulation of impure food products, the American people decided that they wished their lives and their homes protected by the strong and far-reaching arm of the federal government, all kinds of constitutional objections were brought to bear by the manufacturers of impure products. They feared for the future of our country if the constitution were to be so trampled upon at the expense of the sovereignty of the states. But when we decided that we wanted it, the lawyers found a way for us. Uncle Sam now places his inspectors in the packing houses of Kansas City and thereby protects the homes of New York and San Francisco. The question for us is, do we really want the lives and the homes of these poor miners protected? If we do-really earnestly, do—the lawyers will arrange the constitutional problems involved. At the best the coal miner leads a hard life, in the depths of the mine, shut out from the light of the sun, breathing all day foul air and gases, prone by his occupation to tuberculosis and other diseases, living with his family usually in dirty, smoke-covered villages, bare of trees and vegetation,-all this for miserable wages, in order that you and I may enjoy our bright firesides, and that the business of the nation, through factory and railroad, may go on. Is it not the least that we can do for these poor fellows to see that the present farce of state regulation should not stand in the way of a strong interstate mining commission that will protect them against the useless, foolish, and unnecessary waste of life which now characterizes our American mining industry? ANNUAL BUSINESS MEETING. The annual business meeting of the Association was held at the Hotel Raleigh, Washington, D. C., Friday morning, December 29, 1911, with President Henry R. Seager in the chair. A brief report of work for 1911 was given by the secretary, Dr. John B. Andrews. (For this report see p. 163). A short resume of the treasurer's report was then read, and the report was ordered audited and printed. (For the complete report see p. 161). Upon motion the president appointed the following committees: Nominating Committee: Professor Charles R. Henderson, Dr. Alice Hamilton, Dr. I. M. Rubinow; Auditing Committee: Mr. John Martin, Dr. Samuel McCune Lindsay; Woman's Work: Miss Josephine Goldmark, Miss Edith Campbell, Professor Ernst Freund, Mrs. Florence Kelley, Miss Susan M. Kingsbury, Miss Mary Van Kleeck, Miss Anne Morgan, Miss Mary Dreier; Industrial Hygiene: Mr. Frederick L. Hoffman, Dr. W. Gilman Thompson, Dr. Alice Hamilton, Dr. Henry Baird Favill, Dr. David Edsall, Dr. William C. Hanson, Professor Irving Fisher, Dr. F. F. Wesbrook, Dr. Warren Coleman; Unemployment: Professor Charles R. Henderson, Mr. William Hard, Mr. Terence V. Powderly, Mr. Otto Bannard, Mr. William Leiserson, Mr. Darwin J. Meserole, Mr. W. L. Sears; Enforcement of Labor Laws: Mr. John Calder, Professor Charles R. Henderson, Professor John R. Commons, Irene Osgood Andrews, Mr. P. Tecumseh Sherman. Mr. John Martin then presented the following resolutions, which were unanimously adopted: ONE DAY OF REST IN SEVEN Whereas the number of industries that are kept in continuous operation and the number of wage-earners who are regularly employed every day in the week in such industries have greatly increased in recent years; Whereas the so-called Sunday Laws enacted in the first instance |