Compensation Case.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 2, 27 September 1907, Page 3

Compensation Case.

DISABILITIES IN DAD TIMES; (From our Marton correspondent) _ At .Marton Court recently, befmv 'iUr. Stanford, S.M. (sitting as an arbitration Court), Timothv Falic-. labourer, claimed £150 damages I'rijr Aloxandor Brown, building contractor, in. respect of personal injury caused to him by accident arising out of and in tho course of his omploymcnt. The accident occurred _in a factory. Claimant ..was-.working at a surface planing-.maihino.l and his left hand was mutilated by tho knife- of the machine, nccrpsitnting amputation c'f th.o third and fourth fingers. The insurance company, admitted - tho \iiaoilifcy, and paid,S6o,;into-. Court in- sati isfact-ion 1 of tho claim.:. The question -before tho .Court.-was the- amount tc which claimant .was'entitled. ■ ;- _ _Evidcuco was given showing thai his capacity as a.workman was permanently impaired. Counsel for claimant,; (Mr. Collins, formerly, cl' Wellington V pointed out that £6? was equivalent to only Is. 3d. a week, and cited. Cases showing tho principles for which'tho Arbitration Court acted in assessing compensation. -It-was],urged for defendant that', or soon as..,claimant's hand had pcr;i:ancntly healed, ho would be an efficient labourer;: and would bo able- to ean; full wagifs,'arid therefore the amour/, for pompViisatidh' paid into Court was «ulßcieni .. .'., ••"..",' AN; INTERESTING''' JUDGMENT. Tho judgment. of tho S.M. was delivered at Marton yesterday as fol-' lows:— '

' "Tho 'defendant admits his' liability to ;pay..compciisatioti, and has paid into Court', tho sum of £65 in satisfac-' tipn of'such liability, but considers the plaintiffs claim of £150 is cx-j cossivo. ' I am asked to" determine I what is a' proper sum to bo paid in full satisfaction of the claim under the following circumstances. Plaintiff was a'qualified blacksmith by trade, but about eighteen months ago took to' the work of a'.carpenter's labourer,' receiving" 9s. .'per diem' 'as'"wages'. 1 Wh'ilo ."working "in defendant's ' iac- : tory, at a surface planing machine, his left hand was mutilated by tho knife of. the machine and two lingers (the ring and little finger) had to bo amputated. Defendant has employed plaintiff again at a wago of 7s. per diem. Plaintiff's expectation'of life at' 26 years is 37 years according to tho Carlisle Tables. Tho question is to what extent is plaintiff's wageearning power reduced by tho pc.--innriont partial disablement which ho has suffered. No doubt plaintiff is still ablo to bn ausofulman and earn wages. Tho following questions have to bo considered:- -CI) Expectations: of life at 26,' (2) tho growing- disposition'to scrutinise application for employment with reforenco to the extra liability of the applicant to risks of accident, (3) Tho class of work which plaintiff is unable to undertake.- ■ . "Tlicro is at tho present .time a scarcity "'of- labour in tho. colony, ana employment is ■' Toadily -to bo found, hut during the-next 37. years-it is -at least probable thafthcro will again and again occur periods, when there wil bo a glut of labour, whon.only uicmost capable men will find their services in urgont demand. It is not too much to say that during such pari id* having regard to tho plaintiff's maimed hand, he will bo tho first man dismissed and tho last o-u----ployod. The plaintiff is incapacitated altogether_ as a blacksmith, at whir-'n : tracle ho is a qualified hand, and as a labouror ho must inevitably 3n!fw :. tho competition of lifo by tho want of two fingers. Judge Chapman said in a somewhat, similar caso: 'There was some difficulty in arriving at the amount by which his future oar„;p.gpowor might bo expected to bo reduced.- . : -. Tho chief difficulty was to dotormine tho extent expressed in money to which tho claimant's wage-earning power was impair d :y reason of tho condition, of. his ilium) (Murray ,-y;.- Ratli.bpno, Executors,, 4 Aibitration Court Awards, page 6.) ... •'Taking.. tho whole- circumstances of this case into consideration,, and calculating the plaintiff's oxpcctatipii of lifo at 26 years of ago at 37 years, and impairment ~to hia wage-earning power, at 2s. Cd. per week, I award plaintiff tho capital sum of £130 and all costs, amounting to £9 8s; . Marseilles has decided to build, at a cost of £1.380.000, a tunnel through which a canal from th ollhoiio to Marseilles is to pass.- Though only four and a half miles long, it will bo the ■ highest and widest tunnel in tho world. Its width will bo 70ft., to admit of two barges passing, and .its roof will be 43ft. above water. Oi: either side, in 0 font vide passages, .an electric railway will be run. The tunnel will be brilliantly lighted by electricity. Tho Rhodes trustees have selected one ■ of- their number,- Sir Lewis Micheil, to collect materials for a life of tho-Into Sir. Cecil Rhodes. Ouida. who recently accepted a pension from the British Govermiont, is r.tatcd ':o have per-isted in refusing | ban): noii-: . ii'! , i;i> , '.'i'; .by ]v .-•!■ ..:■ i