APPENDIX C.-FOOD CONTROL OR LEVER ACT, SECTION 4 OF ACT OF AUGUST 10, 1917 (c. 53, 40 STAT. 276), AS AMENDED BY SECTION 2 OF THE ACT OF OCTOBER 22, 1919 (c. 80, 41 Stat. 297) That it is hereby made unlawful for any person willfully to destroy any necessaries for the purpose of enhancing the price or restrict the supply thereof; knowingly to commit waste or willfully to permit preventable deterioration of any necessaries in or in connection with their production, manufacture, or distribution; to hoard, as defined in section 6 of this Act, any necessaries; to monopolize or attempt to monopolize, either locally or generally, any necessaries, to engage in any discriminatory and unfair, or any deceptive or wasteful practice or device, or to make any unjust or unreasonable rate or charge in handling or dealing in or with any necessaries; to conspire, combine, agree, or arrange with any other person (a) to limit the facilities for transporting, producing, harvesting, manufacturing, supplying, storing, or dealing in any necessaries; (b) to restrict the supply of any necessaries; (c) to restrict distribution of any necessaries; (d) to prevent, limit, or lessen the manufacture or production of any necessaries in order to enchance the price thereof; or (e) to exact excessive prices for any necessaries or to aid or abet the doing of any act made unlawful by this section. Any person violating any of the provisions of this section, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not exceeding $5,000 or be imprisoned for not more than two years, or both: Provided, That this section shall not apply to any farmer, gardener, horticulturist, vineyardist, planter, ranchman, dairyman, stockman, or other agriculturist, with respect to the farm products produced or raised upon land owned, leased, or cultivated by him: Provided further, That nothing in this Act shall be construed to forbid or make unlawful collective bargaining by any cooperative association or other association of farmers, dairymen, gardeners, or other producers of farm products with respect to the farm products produced or raised by its members upon land owned, leased, or cultivated by them. Mr. KELLEY. We will return at 1:30. (Whereupon, at 12: 10 p. m., the subcommittee recessed until 1:30 p. m. of the same day.) AFTERNOON SESSION (The special subcommittee reconvened at 1:30 p. m., pursuant to the recess.) Mr. KELLEY. The committee will be in order. TESTIMONY OF J. J. FORBES, CHIEF, HEALTH AND SAFETY DIVISION, BUREAU OF MINES, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Mr. FORBES. Mr. Chairman, I have a prepared statement and with your permission I would like to go over it and submit it for the record. My name is J. J. Forbes, Chief, Health and Safety Division, Bureau of Mines, Department of the Interior. I have been in the employ of the Bureau of Mines, engaged in safety and health work, for over 34 years. I worked in coal mines, commencing at an early age, as mine laborer, mining engineer, and mine safety inspector. I was graduated in mining engineering from Pennsylvania State College in 1911. During my employment in the Bureau, I inspected mines and furthered safety educational work in virtually all of the coal and metal mining States of the Nation, participated in recovery work and investigations following many mine disasters which involved heavy loss of life, supervised the field work of the Safety Division for 17 years, assisted with establishment of the Coal Mine Inspection work, and served as its first chief. Mr. Chairman. I think I will brief for the benefit of the committee the Federal inspection work and its procedure. Mr. KELLEY. Very well. Mr. FORBES. The Coal Mine Inspection Branch of the Health and Safety Division, Bureau of Mines, was established to carry out an act of Congress of May 7, 1941, known as Public Law 49, Seventyseventh Congress, H. R. 2082. Under the provisions in the act, the Secretary of Interior, acting through the Bureau of Mines, is authorized and empowered to make or cause to be made annual or necessary inspections and investigations in coal mines. The object of these inspections is to reduce mine accidents by determining the causes of unhealthy or unsafe conditions, accidents, or occupational diseases in coal mines, and making recommendations for their prevention or amelioration. Insofar as Public Law 49 is concerned, compliance with the Federal inspectors' recommendations is not mandatory. With respect to employment of personnel, coal mine inspectors and engineers of the Coal Mine Inspection Branch are selected from the civil service register. Applicants for the position of coal mine inspector must meet the rigid requirements set up by the United States Civil Service Commission before their names can be included in the register. These requirements for the several grades of Federal coal mine inspector are as follows: Sample of work: Applicants must submit with their application a 250-word description of some phase of coal mining, such as a description of the ventilating system, haulage system, or timbering methods used in a mine familiar to the applicant. The description must be prepared by the applicant and he must certify in his own handwriting that he received no assistance in composing it. Applicants who fail to submit this sample of their work, or who submit unsatisfactory samples, will receive no further consideration by the Civil Service Commission. Now, this next phase I would like to emphasize pretty strongly, and that is the experience and qualifications of applicants. Applicants must show as a minimum the quality and amount of experience prescribed below unless they substitute education for experience. There are three grades. The first one is CAF-9, starting salary $4,479 per annum. This requires 6 years of progressive experience in practical coal mining, of which at least 2 years must have been specialized experience in coal mining operations of moderate difficulty, which involved responsibility for providing and applying modern safety and health programs in coal mines in a position of at least the responsibility required of a mine superintendent, mine foreman, mining engineer, or safety inspector. The next grade is CAF-11, which has a starting salary of $5,232 per annum, and requires 7 years of progressive coal-mining experience of which three or more years must have been specialized experience which required supervision of difficult, important, and responsible work, subject only to the general supervision and review, in a position of at least the responsibility required of a mine superintendent, mine foreman, mining engineer, or safety engineer. The third grade, known as the CAF-12 grade, with a starting salary of $6,235 per annum. requires 8 years of progressive experience in the various operations necessary in exploration, development, and production in coal mines, including at least 4 years of very difficult, important, and responsible, specialized work which was subject only to general administrative supervision in a capacity such as direct supervisor. Of course, all of our work is done in the field, all of the inspection work, and you men who are familiar with the topography of mining regions know that it is very important that we have means of transportation to get these men to and from their headquarters to the mines. Applicants must give evidence that they can drive an automobile. One of the very important things in connection with the qualifications of applicants is the physical ability. Applicants must be physically capable of performing efficiently the arduous duties of this position. They must be free of such defects or diseases as may so constitute employment hazards to themselves or endanger fellow employees or others. They must be capable of sustained physical exertion for periods of 6 to 8 hours per day under hazardous conditions such as walking over rock falls, steep pitches, adverse atmospheric conditions, and low roof where it is frequently necessary to crawl on the hands and knees. In emergencies following a mine disaster, they may be required to work for as long as 2 hours at a time carrying mine rescue apparatus, which weighs about 40 pounds. Their eyesight must be equivalent to 20/50 Snellen in one eye and 20/70 in the other eye, and they must have hearing so that they can hear ordinary conversation 20 feet away. In view of the strenuous physical exertion required in this position, hernia, organic heart disease, varicose veins, serious deformities or disabilities of extremities, mental or nervous disease, chronic respiratory or chronic constitutional disease or other physical defect which would cause the applicant to be a hazard to himself or to others or which would prevent efficient performance of the duties of the position will disqualify him for appointment. Applicants are required to submit a certificate of physical examination made by a doctor designated by the United States Civil Service Commission. The personnel officer has authority to approve medical certificates, but rejection of such certificates may be done only by physicians of the United States Civil Service Commission. Persons who are offered appointment must pay their own expenses in reporting for duty. Applicants, of course, must be citizens of or owe allegiance to the United States. Applicants must not have passed their forty-eighth birthday on the date of filing application, except those entitled to veterans' preference. Applicants for the position of mining engineer must have successfully completed a full 4-year professional curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an accredited college or university, or have had 4 years of successful and progressive experience in technical engineering comparable to that which would have been acquired through successful completion of a full 4-year engineering curriculum in an accredited college or university. I would like to emphasize this. After a coal mine inspector or engineer has been selected from the civil service register for possible employment, he is interviewed personally by a Bureau of Mines official to determine his fitness for the position. If the interview discloses that the applicant is considered unsuitable for employment, he is no longer considered for the position. If the applicant is considered favorably and has passed the required medical examination, he is given a probational appointment of 1 year's duration, and quarterly reports are submitted of his performance to the Washington office of the Bureau of Mines for review. Probationers who do not measure up to the Bureau of Mines standards are dismissed from the service in accordance with civil-service regulations. This is another point that I would like to emphasize in connection with the experience record of our present inspectors. A study of the personnel records of 247 Federal coal-mine inspectors now employed discloses an average of 23.9 years of experience in coal mines of which 10.2 years represent experience in supervisory capacities, either as mine foreman, assistant mine foreman, safety director, safety engineer, and so forth. Inspectors and engineers after their employment are given a 4-week intensive course of training at Pittsburgh, Pa., in technical matter and Bureau policy before being assigned to field headquarters. A copy of the training schedule for the group of inspectors and engineers employed in 1948 is included in appendix A of this statement. I do not think I will go back and refer to that. The training includes lectures and laboratory work covering such vital subjects as mine rescue training, first-aid training, causes and preventions of mine fires and explosions, mine gases and methods of detection, use of electricity in mines, ventilation, explosives, methods of collecting and analyzing dust and air samples, methods of conducting a coal mine inspection, and methods of preparing inspection and investigation reports. Inspectors who complete the course of training are required to accompany experienced inspectors until they have demonstrated their ability to the supervisory official of the district to conduct inspections without immediate supervision. New inspectors are admonished to go slowly with their first inspections and be very careful and thorough so hazards are not overlooked. The need for thoroughness is emphasized throughout the training period and is reemphasized from time to time thereafter so that there is no misunderstanding of Bureau policy. A coal mine inspector of outstanding ability is assigned in each Health and Safety Division field district to assist the district engineer in supervising the coal mine inspectors under his jurisdiction. They accompany the regular inspectors and instruct them when necessary to improve the quality of their work. The supervisory inspectors report their observations to the district engineer and to the Washington office for critical review and appropriate action. I would like to talk a little at this time on inspection procedure. The Federal Mine Safety Code-and this, Mr. Chairman, is a copy of it. I do not know whether you want to have a copy introduced for the record. Mr. KELLEY. Yes, I do. It will be included in the record at this point. (The document referred to is as follows:) FEDERAL MINE SAFETY CODE FOR BITUMINOUS COAL AND LIGNITE MINES OF THE UNITED STATES (United States Department of the Interior, J. A. Krug, Secretary; Bureau of Mines, R. R. Sayers, Director) UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, ORDER NO. CMAN-4 Washington 25, D. C. Subject: Federal Mine Safety Code: Pursuant to the provisions of section 2 (a) of the agreement between the Coal Mines Administrator and the United Mine Workers of America dated May 29, 1946, the Director of the Bureau of Mines, after consultation with a committee composer of two representatives of the United Mine Workers of America, two representatives of the bituminous coal industry, and a representative from the Office of the Coal Mines Administrator, has issued a reasonable code of standards and rules pertaining to safety conditions and practices in the mines. Now, therefore, pursuant to said section 2 of said agreement, Executive Order 9728 (11 F. R. 5593) and Executive Order 9758 and the orders of the Secretary of the Interior, said code issued by the Director of the Bureau of Mines and entitled "Federal Mine Safety Code for Bituminous Coal and Lignite Mines of the United States," dated July 24, 1946, a copy of which is attached hereto and made a part hereof, is hereby put into effect for all mines in the possession and under the control of the Government pursuant to said Executive Orders 9728 and 9758. This order shall become effective 12: 01 a. m., July 29, 1946. In accordance with its terms Order No. CMAN-2 of the Coal Mines Adminis trator dated June 7, 1946, is hereby terminated effective at close of business July 28, 1946. A document entitled "Order No. C'MAN-4," dated June 26, 1946, which was given limited distribution in error but which was not authorized or duly promulgated, should be disregarded. B. MOREELL, Coal Mines Administrator. JULY 24, 1946. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, ADMINISTRATOR'S MEMORANDUM NO. 5 1. Simultaneously with the issuance of this memorandum the Coal Mines Administrator is issuing his Order No. CMAN-4 putting into effect, in all mines in the possession and control of the Government under Executive Orders 9728 and 9758, the Federal Mine Safety Code provided for and required by section 2 (a) of the agreement dated May 29, 1946, between the Coal Mines Administrator and the United Mine Workers of America. 2. This code has been prepared and issued after preliminary consultation with representatives of the United Mine Workers of America, the operators, and the Coal Mines Administrator. A reasonable opportunity for further consultation was afforded all interested persons before the code was issued in the form in which it is now being promulgated. 3. Preparation of the code presented difficult and complex questions due, among other things, to the necessity for continuing maximum production consistent with reasonable safety conditions and practices in the mines and the wide variety of types, conditions, and methods of mines and mining to which the code must be made applicable. 4. Every attempt has been made to draft a code applicable to all mines under Government possession; but, as contemplated by section 2 (a) of the agreement of May 29, 1946, and article XIV, section 2 of the code, it is subject to review and revision. This is desirable to avoid interference with the maxi |