INSURANCE OF AGRICULTURAL LAIiOURERS 



59 



local ajdeelin^en. Naturally, as the number of members increases the 

 insurance becomes gradually cheaper ; it must also be Vjorne in mind that, 

 as is easily understood, the working expenses and the expenditure in 

 connection with accidents decrease in proportion as the wages insured 

 increase, as may be seen from the following table for the year 191 2. 



Piovinoes 



Amount 

 of Wages 



(Florins) 



Friesland ' 2,760,976 



Groningen 1,798,801 



Drenthe 782,510 



Ovcrys&t-l . . 244,257 



Guelder:-; 341,533 



Utrecht 296,253 



North Holland. ... 1 2,266,348 



South Holland 2,201,032 



Zealand ! 1,999,954 



North Brabant .... 579,744 



Members registered directly with the Central j 



Society 675,051 



Expenditure 



in connection 



witli Acci'ienta 



fper Hundred 



I-lorin3> 



15.2 cents 



15.7 ■■• 

 29.8 



32.7 » 



30.2 „ 



33.7 » 



26.6 . 



24.1 -. 



24.5 r. 



26.4 » 



26.1 » 



other Ezpenaea 



(per Hundred 



Florins) 



15.2 cents 



lO.O 1 



16.5 .' 

 26.4 



22.4 ■! 



iS.i .- 



14.2 .. 



17.9 '• 



II. 5 " 



12.2 /) 



§ 4. General iMi=ORTANCE of this pranch of insurance. 



The insurance of agricultural labourers against accidents in their work, 

 independently of any compulsion on the part of the State, is an excellent 

 proof of the lofty social sentiment animating the Dutch farmers, as only 

 a small portion of the assistance and compensation received by the labourers 

 by means of this insurance is provided for in the Civil Code in its clauses 

 respecting labour contracts. All the other benefits are voluntarily on the 

 part of the farmers associated for the work of iiLSurance, and they, notwith- 

 standing the constant rise in wages and the many other burdens under 

 which agriculture labours, have not hesitated to take on themselves this 

 expenditure also. Many of them have given their time and labour person- 

 ally to the work, co-operating freely or for a very small compensation 

 in the business as secretaries or members of Ajdeelingen. 



But agricultural accident insurance in Holland is not only based on 

 the recognition of the social duty of assisting the labourers, victims of 

 accidents in agricultural work, but also on enlightened considerations of a 



