SEC. 9. Section 1 of an act entitled "An act to require railroad corporations to equip and furnish all cars used in their service with air brakes and automatic couplers and their engines with power brakes," passed April 14, 1893, as amended April 23, 1904, is hereby repealed. Passed March 19, 1906. Mine regulations-Sprinkling dusty entries, etc. (Page 169.) SECTION 1. In case any entry or air way of any mine is so dry that the air becomes charged with dust the operator, or whoever is operating said mine, as owner, lessee, agent or in any capacity shall have such entry or air way regularly and thoroughly sprayed and sprinkled with water or cleaned in such manner that the air will not become charged with dust. SEC. 2. It shall be the duty of the State mine inspectors to enforce all possible preventive measures necessary to maintain the safety of the persons employed in any mine against the gathering or accumulating of any combustible matter that is explosive in its nature, and shall cause the operator or whoever is operating such mine as owner, lessee, agent or in any capacity, to immediately remove any such gathered or accumulated matter. SEC. 3. Any operator, or whoever is operating such mine as owner, lessee, agent or in any capacity, who shall neglect or refuse to comply with the conditions required to be performed by sections one (1) and two (2) of this act shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be fined in any sum not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500) nor less than two hundred dollars ($200), at the discretion of the court. Passed March 31, 1906. Mine regulations-Employment of miners. (Page 259.) SECTION 1. Every person desiring to work by himself as a miner in the coal mines of this State shall first produce satisfactory evidence to the mine boss of the mine in which he is employed, or desires to be employed, that he has worked at least one year with, or as a practical coal miner. Until said applicant has so satisfied the mine boss of the mine in which he seeks such employment of his competency, he shall not be allowed to mine coal unless accompanied by some competent coal miner, until he becomes duly qualified: Provided, That this act shall not [only] apply to mines generating fire damp, gas or combustible matter. SEC. 2. Any person violating section one of this act, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction be fined, not more than two hundred dollars, nor less than twenty-five dollars, at the discretion of the court. Passed April 2, 1906. Accidents on railroads. (Page 356.) SECTION 29. Every railroad shall, whenever an accident attended with loss of human life occurs within this State, upon its line of road or on its depot grounds or yards, give immediate notice thereof to the commission. In the event of any such accident, the commission, if it deem the public interest requires it, shall cause an investigation to be made forthwith, which investigation shall be held in the locality of the accident, unless, for greater convenience of those concerned, it shall order such investigation to be held at some other place, and said investigation may be adjourned from place to place as may be found necessary and convenient. The commission shall seasonably notify an officer or station agent of the company of the time and place of the investigation. The cost of such investigation shall be certified by the chairman of the commission, and the same shall be audited and paid by the State in the same manner as other expenses are audited and paid and a record or file of said proceedings and evidence shall be kept by said commission. Passed April 2, 1906. PENNSYLVANIA. ACTS OF 1906- EXTRA SESSION. ACT No. 18. -Civil service in cities of the first class-Labor service. SECTION 1. On and after the first day of March, one thousand nine hundred and six, appointments to, and promotions in, the civil service of the cities of the first class shali be made only according to qualifications and fitness, to be ascertained by examinations, which so far as practicable shall be competitive, as hereinafter provided. On and after the said date, no person shall be appointed, transferred, reinstated, or promoted as an officer, clerk, employee, or laborer in the civil service, under the government of any city of the first class, in any manner or by any means other than those prescribed in this act: Provided, That the provisions of this act shall not apply to any soldier, sailor, or marine honorably discharged from service in any war for the United States Government, nor to their widows or children. SEC. 9. All examinations for positions in the classified service shall be practical in their character, and shall relate to those matters which will fairly test the qualifications and fitness of the persons examined to discharge the duties of the office or employment sought by them. All examinations shall be free, and open to all applicants who have fulfilled the preliminary requirements stated in section ten of this act. The examinations of applicants for employment as laborers shall relate to their capacity for labor, their habits as to sobriety and industry, and their experiences in the kind of work for which they apply. All applicants for any position in the classified service may, subject to the regulations adopted by the civil service commission, be required to submit to a physical examination before being admitted to the regular examinations held by the commission. Adequate public notice of the time and place of every examination held under the provisions of this act, together with information as to the kind of position or place to be filled, shall be given at least two weeks prior to such examinations. The said commission shall adopt reasonable regulations for permitting the presence of representatives of the press at the examinations. The names of the candidates passing any examination, and the order of their standing on any eligible list, shall be made part of the public records of the civil service commission. SEC. 10. The civil service commission in each city shall require persons applying for admission to any examination provided for under this act or under the rules and regulations of the said commission, to file in its office, a reasonable time prior to the proposed examination, a formal application, in which the applicant shall state under oath or affirmation: 1.- His full name, residence, and post-office address. 2. His citizenship, age, and the place and date of his birth. 3.- His health, and his physical capacity for public service, 4.- His business and employments and residences for at least the three previous years. 5.-Such other information as may reasonably be required, touching the applicant's qualifications and fitness for the public service. * ** SEC. 19. The labor class shall include ordinary, unskilled laborers. Vacancies in the labor class shall be filled by appointment, from lists of applicants registered by the civil service commission. Preference in employment from such lists shall be according to rules and regulations to be promulgated by the civil service commission in each city. SEC. 20. No officer, clerk, or employee in the competitive class or in the noncompetitive class of the classified civil service of any city of the first class, who shall have been appointed under the provisions of this act, or of the rules made pursuant thereto, shall be removed, discharged, or reduced in pay or position except for just cause, which shall not be religious or political. Further, no such officer, clerk or employee shall be removed, discharged or reduced, except as provided in section eight of this act, until he shall have been furnished with a written statement of the reasons for such action, and been allowed to give the removing officer such written answer as the person sought to be removed may desire. * * * SEC. 23. No question in any form of application, or in any examination, shall be so framed as to elicit information concerning the political or religious opinions or affiliations of any applicant; nor shall any inquiry be made concerning such opinions or affiliations, and all disclosures thereof shall be discontinued. No discrimination shall be exercised, threatened or promised by any person in the civil service against, or in favor of, an applicant, eligible or employee in the classified service, because of his political or religious opinions or affiliations. Approved the 5th day of March, A. D. 1906. VIRGINIA. ACTS OF 1906. CHAPTER 55.-Bureau of labor- Duties of commissioner. SECTION 1. Sections three and four of an act entitled an act to provide for a bureau of labor and industrial statistics, and for defining the duties of said bureau, approved March third, eighteen hundred and ninety-eight [shall] be amended and reenacted so as to read as follows: Sec. 3. The governor shall appoint, by and with the consent of the senate, some suitable person who is identified with the labor interests of the State, who shall be designated commissioner of labor statistics, and who shall, upon the request of the governor, furnish such information as he may require. The term of office for said commissioner shall be two years from date of his appointment, with power of removal by the governor for cause. Sec. 4. The commissioner shall have power to take and preserve testimony, examine witnesses under oath and administer the same; and when he is of the opinion from said testimony that the laws of the State relating to labor have been violated or evaded, he shall make a thorough investigation as to such violation or evasion, and to that end may, under proper restrictions, enter any public institution of this State, and any factory, store, workshop or mine, and interrogate any such person, firm or the proper officer of a corporation, or file a written or printed list of interrogatories, and require full and complete answers to be made thereto and returned under oath within thirty days of receipt of said list of questions, and if any person who may be sworn to give testimony shall willfully fail or refuse to answer any legal and proper question propounded to him concerning the subject of such examination, as indicated in the second section of this act, or if any person to whom a written or printed list of such interrogations has been furnished by said commissioner shall neglect or refuse to fully answer and return the same under oath, such person shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof before a court of competent jurisdiction shall be fined a sum not exceeding one hundred dollars nor less than twenty-five dollars, or by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding ninety days, or by both fine and imprisonment: Provided, however, That nothing in this act shall be construed as permitting the commissioner or any employee of this bureau to make use of any information or statistics gathered from any person, company or corporation for any other than the purposes of this act. If the commissioner shall find, upon such investigation, that the laws of this State relating to labor have been violated or evaded, he shall notify the person, firm or proper officer of the corporation of such violation or evasion, in writing, and unless the laws are fully complied with, within a reasonable time, not to exceed thirty days, then, and in that event, the commissioner shall make a report of such violation or evasion to the circuit or corporation court, and the attorney for the Commonwealth of the county or city wherein such violation or evasion of the law may occur. Approved February 27, 1906. CHAPTER 260.-Bribery of employees. SECTION 1. Any person who gives, offers, or promises to an agent, employee, or servant, any gift or gratuity whatever, without the knowledge and consent of the principal, employer, or master of such agent, employee, or servant, with intent to influence his action in relation to his principal's, employer's, or master's business; or an agent, employee, or servant who without the knowledge and consent of his principal, employer, or master, requests or accepts a gift or gratuity or a promise to make a gift or to do an act beneficial to himself, under an agreement or with an understanding that he shall act in any particular manner as to his principal's, employer's or master's business; or an agent, employee, or servant, who being authorized to procure materials, supplies, or other articles either by purchase or contract for his principal, employer, or master, or to employ service or labor for his principal, employer, or master, receives directly or indirectly, for himself or for another, a commission, discount, or bonus from the person who makes such sale or contract, or furnishes such materials, supplies, or other articles, or from a person who renders such service or labor; and any person who gives or offers such an agent, employee, or servant such commission, discount, or bonus shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be punished by a fine of not less than one hundred dollars, or by such fine and by imprisonment for not more than one year: Provided, That nothing contained in this act shall be construed to mean that an agent, servant, or employee shall not resign his position whenever he so desires, nor shall it be construed to mean that no person shall employ said agent, servant, or employee. SEC. 2. No witness called by the court or Commonwealth's attorney and giving evidence for the prosecution either before the justice of the peace, the grand jury, or the court in a prosecution under this act, shall ever be proceeded against for any offense hereunder concerning which he testifies, but such witness shall be compelled to testify and for refusing to answer a question shall be fined not less than one hundred dollars, and be imprisoned for a term not exceeding six months. Approved March 15, 1906. CUMULATIVE INDEX OF LABOR LAWS AND DECISIONS RELATING [This index includes all labor laws enacted since January 1, 1904, and published in successive issues of |