Reviews : RUSSELL, JOHN H. The Free Negro in Virginia, 1619-1885. Pp. viii, 194. Price $1.00. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press, 1913

• Author: George Edmund Haynes
• DOI: 10.1177/000271621405300151
• Published date: 01 May 1914
• Date: 01 May 1914
• Subject Matter: Articles

339

it

is

shown

that,

although

the

wage-earner

may

be

able

to

maintain

a

stand-

ard

of

life

adequate

for

efficiency,

it

is

impossible

for

him

to

lay

aside

enough

to

meet

emergencies.

Almost

one-third

of

the

book

is

devoted

to

the

subject

of

industrial

acci-

dents.

This

is

permissible,

in

view

of

the

fact

that

nearly

one-half

of

the

states

have

undertaken

to

relieve

the

worker

from

the

harmful

results

of

such

accidents.

The

analysis

of

the

number

and

causes

of

industrial

accidents

is

probably

the

best

short

statement

of

this

problem

yet

made.

The

legislation

in

America,

as

well

as

in

foreign

countries,

is

summarized,

carefully

examined,

and

constructively

criticized.

It

-is

shown

that

the

problem

of

developing

a

system

of

sufficient

and

reasonable

care

for

those

injured

in

modern

industry

is

being

rapidly

met;

the

questions

to

be

solved

are

those

of

means,

rather

than

of

end.

Basing

his

estimates

upon

figures

from

countries

that

have

sickness

insur-

ance,

Dr.

Rubinow

concludes

that

ill

health

causes

an

economic

loss

of

over

$650,000,000

each

year.

This

affects

between

40

and

50

per

cent

of

the

wage-earners.

Since

it

does

not

seem

reasonable

or

advisable

to

have

this

loss

fall

on

the

individual

worker,

the

author

finds

the

solution

in

distributing

the

burden

of

the

loss.

Some

scheme

of

insurance

must

be

adopted,

as,

with-

out

it,

the

efficiency

of

the

entire

family

is

reduced.

Again

the

European

results

are

summarized.

The

factory

worker,

whose

working

life

has

been

shortened

by

the

stress

of

modern

industry,

can

be

satisfactorily

protected

only

by

invalidity

insur-

ance.

His

wages

do

not

amply

meet

this

emergency,

and

it

is

unreasonable

to

insist

that

the

old

must

rely

upon

outdoor

relief.

Compulsory

provision

for

the

future

is

the

only

practicable

answer.

Here

also

must

be

considered

the

provision

in

case

of

the

untimely

death

of

the

wage-earner.

This

should

take

the

form

of

life

insurance,

rather

than

that

of

pensions

for

widows

and

children.

In

the

last

part

of

the

book,

the

experiences

of

various

states

and

coun-

tries,

in

their

attempts

to

solve

the

problems

of

unemployment,

are

discussed.

This

is

a

comparatively

virgin

field,

and

a

discussion

of

results

is

premature.

The

final

chapter

is

devoted

to

a

summary

and

a

refutation

of

the

usual

arguments

advanced

against

social

insurance.

The

author

feels

that

there

are

serious

problems

naturally

developing

from

modern

civilization

and

mod-

ern

industry

that

can

be

met

only

by

the

means

that

he

suggests.

This

study

is

a

valuable

contribution

to

the

subject

of

social

insurance.

With

the

present

growing

interest

in

these

subjects,

there

will

be

an

increas-

ing

demand

for

this

clear,

systematic

presentation

of

both

problems

and

solutions.

Philadelphia.

ALEXANDER

FLEISHER

RUSSELL,

JOHN

H.

The

Free

Negro

in

Virginia,

1619-1885.

Pp.

viii,

194.

Price

$1.00.

Baltimore:

The

Johns

Hopkins

Press,

1913.

This

monograph

is

a

first-hand

study,

largely

from

legal

documents.

In

1782,

when

restrictions

on

emancipation

were

removed,

free

Negroes

numbered