broken or tampered with in any way. A check of the brakes revealed that they were in perfect working condition. There is no record of a claim for property damage having been filed by Mr. Ramsay with the War Department. If such a claim had been filed within the time allowed by law and if it had been supported by an estimate of the cost of repairs to the car, it is probable that it would have been approved, as it is the view of the War Department that the Government driver, under the circumstances, was proceeding at too high a rate of speed and was traveling to the left of the center of the culvert, thereby encroaching on the right-of-way of Mr. Ramsay's car, which was stopped or almost stopped on his (Mr. Ramsay's) extreme right side of the roadway. In view of the above, the War Department will interpose no objection to the enactment of legislation which will reimburse Mr. Ramsay for the actual amount of the property damage sustained, the Department having no estimate of the cost of repairs to Mr. Ramsay's car. Sincerely yours, Mr. HARRY STRAIGHT, UNITED STATES SENATE, Clerk, Senate Committee on Claims, Washington, D. C. MY DEAR HARRY: Some little time ago you advised me that Senator Townsend, to whom the chairman had referred my bill (S. 3021), for the relief of A. A. Ramsay, had submitted back to the full committee an unfavorable report on this measure for the following two reasons: First, Senator Townsend felt that Mr. Ramsay should have presented a formal claim to the War Department within the 1-year statute of limitations provided by existing law authorizing the Department to settle claims for property damage. Second, Senator Townsend had no information as to the cost of the repairs to Mr. Ramsay's automobile and was, therefore, unable to determine whether the claim in the amount of $50 was reasonable in amount I communicated this information to Mr. Ramsay, and I am enclosing herewith the notarized statement of Mr. William M. Pierson testifying that the damage done to Mr. Ramsay's car in connection with the accident of December 17, 1936, exceeded $50. I am also attaching hereto a statement, not notarized, by Hon. J. C. Jamieson, justice of the peace, stating his certainty that the damage done to the Ramsay car was in excess of $50 and testifying that within a few days after the accident, Mr. Ramsay notified the Civilian Conservation Corps camp at Winkleman and that the formal claim submitted by Mr. Ramsay to that camp was investigated by Captain Selsby and Lieutenant Elmore, Reserve officers attached to the Civilian Conservation Corps camp, both of whom promised to forward Mr. Ramsay's claim through the proper channels. In other words, I present to you herewith material which should adequately show that Mr. Ramsay did not sleep on his rights but that he made a prompt and honest effort to secure an adjudication of his claim through the channels provided by statute. While Judge Jamieson's statement is not notarized, I may say that I have known him all my life and that I can unhesitatingly depend upon any statements he may make, written or oral. Certainly, he needs no notary. As far as the damage to the automobile is concerned, you will observe that the Ramsay car was not taken to a repair shop because Mr. Ramsay did not have the money to pay for any repairs and, therefore, no receipted bill can be presented to the committee. However, in view of the character of the damage and the statements of Judge Jamieson and Mr. Pierson, who was a witness to the accident, there would seem to be no doubt that Mr. Ramsay's claim in the amount of $50 is a reasonable one. When Mr. Ramsay talked to me about the accident in August 1939, he told me that the figure of $50 was arrived at not by him but by the Army officers to whom Judge Jamieson refers, Captain Selsby and Lieutenant Elmore. In view of this material, it would seem to me that it would be entirely proper for the committee to give favorable consideration to my bill, S. 3021, and I shall be glad to have you advise me. With kindest personal regards, I am, Yours very sincerely, CARL HAYDEN. STATEMENT OF MR. WILLIAM PIERSON On the day that the Civilian Conservation Corps truck collided with the car owned and drived by Mr. A. A. Ramsay, I was at my shop in Oracle. I was in conversation with Mr. J. C. Jamieson when the truck passed and Mr. Jamieson remarked that the truck was certainly driving exceedingly fast. Just beyond my place and at the junction of the Oracle-Mammoth Roads, the truck collided with the car driven by Mr. Ramsay. The truck struck Mr. Ramsay's car when it made the turn onto the Oracle Road, crushing both fenders and side of the car on its left side. There is no doubt in my mind that the damage done would exceed $50. W. M. PIERSON. Subscribed and sworn to before me this 6th day of May 1940. [SEAL] My commission expires September 1, 1942. J. W. LAWSON, Notary Public. STATEMENT OF J. C. JAMIESON On December 17, 1936, I was at the garage of William Pierson, at Oracle, Ariz., and saw a truck from the Civilian Conservation Corps go past at an excessive rate of speed. I called the attention of Mr. Pierson to the speed that the truck traveled. Beyond Pierson's garage, approximately 200 yards, the Mammoth Road joins the main road in Oracle and at this junction the truck collided with a coupe owned and driven by Mr. A. A. Ramsay, of Oracle. I heard the crash from where I was at the garage and went to the scene to investigate. I found that Mr. Ramsay's car was on the proper side of the road and that the Government truck in making the turn had swung around so that it sideswiped Mr. Ramsay's car causing considerable damage. The damage amounted to the two fenders and entire side with the exception of the running board being crushed in. I am certain that the amount of damage was considerable in excess of $50 and there is no question in my mind that the Civilian Conservation Corps truck was responsible for the accident. The car was not taken to a repair shop due to lack of finances on the part of Mr. Ramsay. Mr. Ramsay is a reliable citizen of Oracle and has held the office of constable over a period of 35 years. He is a very careful and slow driver and has never before been involved in another accident. At the time of the accident I advised Mr. Ramsay to immediately notify the office of the Civilian Conservation Corps at Winkleman. He did so and within a few days he told me that Captain Selsby investigated his claim and advised him that he would forward it through the proper channel; he also advised me that Lieutenant Elmore investigated and agreed to do the same. Mr. Ramsay has informed me that up to the present time nothing has been done to relieve the situation. Oracle, Ariz., May 6, 1940. о J. C. JAMIESON, MAY 23 (legislative day, APRIL 24), 1940.-Ordered to be printed Mr. TOWNSEND, from the Committee on Claims, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany S. 3647] The Committee on Claims, to whom was referred the bill (S. 3647) for the relief of Paul Sanford, a minor, having considered the same, report favorably thereon with the recommendation that the bill do pass with the following amendments: On page 1, line 6, after the word "of" insert "Goodsprings,". On page 2, line 1, beginning with the word "Provided" strike out the remainder of the bill and insert in lieu thereof the following: : Provided, That no part of the amount appropriated in this Act in excess of 10 per centum thereof shall be paid or delivered to or received by any agent or attorney on account of services rendered in connection with this claim, and the same shall be unlawful, any contract to the contrary notwithstanding. Any person violating the provisions of this Act shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in any sum not exceeding $1,000. Amend the title of the bill so as to read: "For the relief of the legal guardian of Paul Sanford, a minor." Passage of the bill is recommended by the Work Projects Administration. The records of the Administration show that on October 17, 1939, Nolan Morris, a Work Projects Administration laborer, acting in the capacity of a flagman, stopped a truck on the Price Bridge Road, near Goodsprings, Ala., for the reason that a blast was about to be set off in the road about 500 feet north of this location; that the truck was driven by Eual Black, who was accompanied by Thomas H. Snow, a Work Projects Administration timekeeper; that Paul Sanford, a minor of about 17 years of age, was walking in the road in a northerly direction; that the boy went into the house of one Mrs. Irene Hopson, who lived on the west side of the road approximately parallel to the halted truck; that Mrs. Hopson requested Paul Sanford to ask the two occupants of the truck and the flagman whether they would buy any candy which her children were selling; that Paul Sanford went out to the truck and inquired whether the man desired to purchase some of the candy; that, when he was given a negative answer to the question, he so informed Mrs. Hopson, and continued down the road in the direction of the blasting operations; and that, a few minutes later, after a blast had been fired, Paul Sanford was found, severely injured, underneath a pile of rocks where the blast had been set off. The facts are not conclusive as to the circumstances under which Paul Sanford was permitted to continue down the road in the direction of the blasting operations, but it would appear that Nolan Morris, the flagman, was engaged in conversation with the occupants of the truck, and neglected to prevent the boy from walking into the danger zone. After the accident the young man was taken to the hospital at Jasper, Ala., where it was found that he was suffering from an extensive lacerated scalp wound and smaller lacerated wounds of the hands and the right leg and foot. In addition to this, he had multiple linear fractures of the vault of the skull with no depression of the bone. He also had a fracture at the junction of the middle and lower right third of the femur. He was treated in the hospital until November 27, 1939. His physician states that he will have some deformity of the right leg. In the opinion of the Administration the flagman, as well as the project officials, were negligent. The facts are fully set forth in the following communications, which are appended hereto and made a part of this report: Hon. EDWARD R. BURKE, FEDERAL WORKS AGENCY, Chairman, Committee on Claims, United States Senate. MY DEAR SENATOR BURKE: Your records will disclose your communication of March 25, 1940, and my acknowledgment of March 28, 1940, relative to S. 3647, a bill for the relief of Paul Sanford, a minor. The Administration's report is as follows: The bill proposes to appropriate the sum of $3,500 to the legal guardian of Paul Sanford, a minor, of Walker County, Ala., "in full settlement of all claims against the Government of the United States for injuries received by said minor on the 17th day of October, 1939, as a result of blasting operations by Work Projects Administration employees of the United States Government at or near Goodsprings, Walker County, Ala." It appears that, on October 17, 1939, Nolan Morris, a Work Projects Administration laborer, acting in the capacity of a flagman, stopped a truck on the Price Bridge Road, near Goodsprings, Ala., for the reason that a blast was about to be set off in the road on a Work Projects Administration project about 500 feet north of this location; that the truck was driven by Eual Black, who was accompanied by Thomas H. Snow, a Work Projects Administration timekeeper, that Paul Sanford, a minor of about 17 years of age, was walking in the road in a northerly direction; that the boy went into the house of one Mrs. Irene Hopson, who lived on the west side of the road approximately parallel to the halted truck; that Mrs. Hopson requested Paul Sanford to ask the two occupants of the truck and the flagman whether they would buy any candy which her children were selling; that Paul Sanford went out to the truck and inquired whether the men desired to purchase some of the candy; that, when he was given a negative answer to the question, he so informed Mrs. Hopson, and continued down the road in the direction of the blasting operations; and that, a few minutes later, after a blast had been fired, Paul Sanford was found, severely injured, underneath a pile of rocks where the blast had been set off. The facts are not conclusive as to the circumstances under which Paul Sanford was permitted to continue down the road in the direction of the blasting operations, but it would appear that Nolan Morris, the flagman, was engaged in conversation with Black and Shaw, the occupants of the truck, at the time Paul Sanford inquired whether they desired to buy any candy, and neglected to prevent the boy from walking into the danger zone. Eual Black and Thomas Snow state, in affidavits dated October 18, 1939, that they were unaware of what happened to Paul Sanford after he spoke to them regarding the candy, but Nolan Morris, in an affidavit of October 18, 1939, avers that shortly before the boy had asked his question of them, he had told him that "they are shooting down there; don't go through until they have finished." Morris further avers that when Paul Sanford had been told that the men desired no candy, "the boy then turned and walked off in the direction of Mrs. Hopson's house." Mrs. Hopson, who apparently was standing at the front door of her house, awaiting the results of a prospective sale, states, in an affidavit of October 18, 1939, that "I heard the boy ask these men if they wanted to buy any candy. He then turned to me and said, 'No, they don't want to buy any.' The boy then turned and walked off down the road. I did not hear the flagman or anyone else tell this boy that shots were being fired, but he could have been told this and I would not have heard it.” It further appears from the affidavits of Mack Morris, James A. McMillan, and Willie E. Lindsey, employees of the Work Projects Administration, that Nolan Morris was an ordinary laborer, and had not been fully instructed as to the duties of a flagman. It appears from the foregoing that Paul Sanford was injured by flying rocks from a blast set off by employees of the Work Projects Administration and that the injury was the result of the negligence of these employees. Although it is not definitely established whether Nolan Morris warned Paul Sanford; assuming that he did, it is the opinion of this Administration that a mere casual warning was insufficient under the existing circumstances. In this connection, it appears that Nolan Morris was an ordinary laborer, who, when temporarily assigned to act as a flagman, was not properly instructed in the performance, or importance, of his duties. It is believed, therefore, that the project officials were also negligent in failing to instruct Nolan Morris in these respects. Accordingly, the Administration recommends enactment of the proposed legislation in such amount as the Congress may deem proper. It is noted that, although lines 5 and 6 of the proposed bill indicate that the sum of $3,500 is to be appropriated "to the legal guardian of Paul Sanford, a minor," the title reads "A bill for the relief of Paul Sanford, a minor." It is sug gested, therefore, that the title be amended to read "A bill for the relief of the legal guardian of Paul Sanford, a minor." Inasmuch as the address of the injured boy is established by the files of the Administration to be Goodsprings, Ala., it is believed that your committee will desire to insert the word "Goodsprings" in line 6 between the words "of" and "Walker County." A similar report is being forwarded today to the Honorable Ambrose J. Kennedy, chairman, Committee on Claims, House of Representatives in connection with H. R. 8988, a companion bill to S. 3647. There are enclosed herewith photostatic copies of pertinent papers. Sincerely yours, CORRINGTON GILL, JASPER, ALA., January 16, 1940. Re: Paul Sanford, Goodsprings, Ala., injured October 17, 1939-WP 4545. Assistant Superintendent, Works Progress Administration, Jasper, Ala. DEAR SIR: Replying to your letter requesting medical information on the abovestyled case, will state that he was admitted to the hospital here on the above date suffering from an extensive lacerated scalp wound and smaller lacerated wounds of the bands and the right leg and foot. In addition to this, he had multiple linear fractures of the vault of the skull with no depression of the bone. He also had a fracture at the junction of the middle and lower right third of the femur. His wounds were sutured and dressed and the fracture of the femur put in skeletal traction and he was treated here in the hospital until November 27, 1939. Since that time, he has reported to my office on four occasions and at the present time, the cast has been removed from his leg and he is able to bear some weight on it. As best I can determine, he will get an excellent result with a useful leg with some deformity of the right leg. Trusting that this information will be satisfactory, I am, Sincerely yours. S. Repts., 76-3, vol. 3- -5 A. C. JACKSON. |