Appendix No. 11. (Manual for the Quartermaster Corps, 1916.) WARNING AGAINST ACTIVITY IN POLITICS BY FEDERAL OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES. BULLETIN WAR DEPARTMENT, I. The following War Department circular is published to the Army for the information and guidance of all concerned: CIRCULAR: WAR DEPARTMENT, Washington, September 23, 1916. At the request of the Civil Service Commission, the following is published for the information and guidance of all officers and employees in and under the War Department: WARNING AGAINST ACTIVITY IN POLITICS BY FEDERAL OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES. 1. POLITICAL ACTIVITY. Rule I, section 1, of the civil service rules reads as follows: No person in the executive civil service shall use his official authority or influence for the purpose of interfering with an election or affecting the result thereof. Persons who by the provisions of these rules are in the competitive classified service, while retaining the right to vote as they please and to express privately their opinions on all political subjects, shall take no active part in political management or in political campaigns. The first sentence of the rule applies to all persons in the executive civil service, irrespective of the method of appointment. Presidential appointees are forbidden by statute to use their official authority or influence to coerce the political action of any person or body, to make any contribution for a political object to any other officer of the United States, or to solicit or receive contributions for political purposes or to discriminate among their employees or applicants for political reasons. Otherwise a Presidential appointee will be allowed to take such a part in political campaigns as is taken by any private citizen, except that he will not be permitted 1. To hold a position as a member or officer of any political committee that solicits funds. 2. To display such obtrusive partisanship as to cause public scandal. 3. To attempt to manipulate party primaries or conventions. 4. To use his position to bring about his selection as a delegate to conventions. 5. To act as chairman of a political convention. 6. To assume the active conduct of a political campaign. 7. To use his position to interfere with an election or to affect the resuit thereof. 8. To neglect his public duties. The second sentence of the rule applies to all persons holding positions in the competitive classifled service, whether the appointment be permanent or temporary in character, and by departmental action has also generally been made applicable to unclassified laborers. The following are some of the forms of activity which have been held to be forbidden to this class of employees: Service on political committees; service as delegate to county, State, or district conventions of a political party; service as officer, representative, or delegate of a political club, or as chairman of a political meeting; activity at the polls on election day; publication of political articles bearing on qualifications of different candidates; the publication or editing of a newspaper in the interests of a political party; the distribution of political literature; making speeches before political meetings or political clubs; circulation of petitions having a political object; service as inspector of elections, ballot clerk, ballot inspector, judge of election, or member of election board; candidacy for or holding of elective office. (Seo circular of U. S. Civil Service Commission giving information concerning political activity, issue of May, 1916.) It is not to be assumed that other forms of political activity are permissible because they are not mentioned. 2. POLITICAL ASSESSMENTS OR CONTRIBUTIONS. The civil service act provides that "no person in the public service is for that reason under any obligation to contribute to any political fund, or to render any political service, and ** * he will not be removed or otherwise prejudiced for refusing to do so." Section 118 of the Criminal Code provides that no Federal officer or employee shall, directly or indirectly, solicit or receive, or be in any manner concerned in soliciting or receiving, any political assessment, subscription, or contribution from any other Federal officer or employee. Section 120 of the Criminal Code prohibits the discharge, promotion, or degrading of any officer or employee for giving or failing to make any political contribution. Section 121 of the Criminal Code prohibits any Federal officer or employee from making any such political contribution to another Federal officer or employee, and section 119 prohibits the solicitation or receipt of any political contribution in any room or building occupied in the discharge of official duties by any officer or employee of the United States, or on other Federal premises, by any person whatsoever, whether in the public service or not. In connection with this latter provision the Supreme Court has held that a solicitation by letter or circular addressed and delivered by mail or otherwise to an officer or employee of the United States at the office or building in which he is employed in the discharge of his official duties, is a solicitation within the meaning of the law, the solicitation taking place where the letter was received. Section 122 of the Criminal Code provides that whoever shall violate any provision of the four sections mentioned above shall be fined not more than $5,000, or imprisonment not more than three years, or both. While persons not in the competitive classified service are not subject to the prohibitions of section 1 of Rule I, the statutes concerning the solicitation or receipt by one officer or employee of political contributions from another officer or employee apply with equal force to all who serve the United States, whether classified or unclassified. By thus serving in the capacity of treasurer of a political club any officer or employee receiving from another officer or employee who is a member of the club any fees or dues or other contributions for a political purpose thereby renders himself liable to prosecution for violation of section 118 of the Criminal Code of the United States, and the member so paying him such fees or dues or other contribution for a political purpose violates section 121 of the Criminal Code. It is hereby directed that copies of this circular be posted by the officers in charge in prominent places in all bureaus and offices in and under the War Department, and at all arsenals, depots, and stations in the service at large of the department where civilians are employed. The law and rules on this subject will be strictly enforced. Appendix No. 12. (Manual for the Quartermaster Corps, 1916.) COMPENSATION TO INJURED GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES. REGULATIONS ISSUED BY THE SECRETARY of Labor GovERN- [United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Royal Meeker, Commissioner. C. A.19a. Revised June 21, 1915.) REGULATIONS CONCERNING THE DUTIES OF EMPLOYEES, OFFICIAL SUPERIORS, AND MEDICAL OFFICERS. DUTIES OF EMPLOYEES. 1. Reports of injuries.--Whenever any injury is sustained by an employee in the course of his employment, he shall immediately report the same to his official superior, if he is able to do so, giving also a statement of the facts and the names of witnesses, if any. 2. First-aid treatment.-No matter how slight the injury sustained, the injured employee shall immediately apply to the dispensary or medical officer, if there be one, for examination and for first-aid treatment, and it shall be the duty of his official superior to direct him to do so.. 3. Reports of disability.-In case the disability arises some time after the injury has been received, it shall be the duty of the injured employee to notify his official superior within 48 hours from the beginning of such disability. 4. Treatment. It shall be the duty of each injured employee intending to take advantage of the provisions of the act to obtain necessary medical and surgical treatment and to comply with all reasonable orders for treatment and conduct which the attending physician may give. He shall also submit to such medical examinations as his official superior may from time to time direct. 5. Notices of continuing disability.-Every employee injured in the course of employment who is unable to return to work because of such injury, shall, within 24 hours, inform his official superior of such fact, either in person or by mail, telephone, or messenger. Such notice shall be given by the injured employee or for him every week, unless, in the opinion of the official superior, the permanent nature of the injury makes this notice unnecessary. Such notice should state when the injured employee was last seen by his attending physician. 6. Examinations.-For the purpose of the medical examinations prescribed by the act, the injured employee shall appear at the dispensary of the establishment whenever directed to do so; but if he claims to be unable to present himself for such examination the medical officer or other officially designated physician may call at the residence of the injured employee in order to make an examination. The injured employee shall be entitled to have his attending physician present during such examination. 7. Disagreements.—If the injured employee refuses to accept the opinion of the official examining physician as to his ability to resume work, either because of a different opinion held by his private physician or for any other reason, the employee shall immediately so report to his official superior, who will in turn report the same to the Secretary of Labor. In case there is a local referee physician representing the Department of Labor, the employee should be directed at once to report to him for examination, and the referee physician should be informed in writing as to the history of the case and the question or questions in dispute. The facts, including the findings of the referee physician, should then be reported to the Secretary of Labor. 8. Examinations by order of the Department of Labor.-On receipt of reports concerning disagreement between the claimant or his physician and the official examining physician, the Secretary of Labor will immediately order an examination of the claimant by a physician designated by him, so as to ascertain the claimant's physical condition, unless an examination has already been made by the referee physician representing the Department of Labor; and if the employee refuses to submit to or obstructs such examination, the right to compensation shall be lost for the period covered by the continuance of such refusal or obstruction. 9. Claims.-The claim, properly filled out, must be presented by the injured employee to his official superior, who shall forward the same, with the statements of witnesses, if there were witnesses, through the regular official channels for transmission to the Secretary of Labor. 10. Certificates.-In cases of continuing disability the injured employee shall furnish such medical certificates from time to time as the official superior may require. 11. Disregard of instructions.—Where an injured employee shall fail to make any of the reports prescribed in these regulations, or refuses to submit himself to examination by the medical officer or other officially designated physician, when ordered by his official superior to do so, such refusal or failure will be considered by the Secretary of Labor as presumptive evidence against his right to compensation under the law. DUTIES OF OFFICIAL SUPERIORS. 12. Record of accident.-Whenever an accident causing injury to an employee comes to the knowledge of the person in charge of such employee he should immediately secure a record of the cause and nature of the accident and the nature and extent of the injury, however slight. The names and testimony of witnesses should also be secured, and the employee directed to apply to the dispensary or medical officer, if there be one, for examination and first-aid treatment. 13. Reports of injuries.—All injuries which prevent the employee from performing work for one day or longer should be reported to the Secretary of Labor by the official superior of such employee, on the form provided for that purpose, within 48 hours after such injuries have been brought to the notice of such official superior. The reports called for in paragraphs numbered 1, 3, 13, 14, and 16 should be made for all employees regardless of the application of the provisions governing compensation. 14. Report of termination of disability.-Whenever a person who has been reported disabled by an accident is able to return to work his official superior should immediately report the termination of such disability to the Secretary of Labor on the proper form. 15. Disagreements.-The official superior should make immediate report directly to the Secretary of Labor of all cases of disagreement between the injured employee and the official examining physician as to the ability of the employee to resume work, unless the employee has already been directed to report to a local referee physician, representing the Department of Labor, in which case the findings of the referee physician, together with the other facts in the case, should be reported to the Secretary of Labor. 16. Report of death.-Whenever an injury received in the course of employment results in death, either immediately or within one year thereafter, such death should be reported on the proper form as soon as possible after the knowledge of such death reaches the official superior of the deceased employee. 17. Blanks to be furnished.—Whenever the official superior of an injured employee has reason to believe from the statement of the medical officer or other officially designated physician, or from any other evidence, that disability has lasted more than 15 days, he should furnish such employee with a blank form for claim and call his attention to the provisions of the compensation act. Blanks forms should be furnished upon request to any employee wishing to make a claim. 18. Indorsement of claims.-The official superior or other person designated should either fill out and sign the certificate of approval provided for that purpose, or indicate the reasons for his refusal to give his approval. In either case, statements of witnesses, if any, and copies of the records of the examination of the claimant by the medical officer or officially designated physician, if such examinations have been made, should be attached to the claim, and the entire record submitted to the Secretary of Labor, to whom the determination of the validity of all claims is committed by the act. 19. Claims to be forwarded.—All claims for compensation when filled out and presented by injured employees to their official superiors should be forwarded by them through the regular official channels for transmission to the Secretary of Labor. No letter of transmittal is necessary. All information desired should be made part of the indorsement on such claims. 20. Approval or disapproval.-Notice of the approval or disapproval of claims will be forwarded from the office of the Secretary of Labor to the heads of the respective departments, or independent office, for transmittal to the official superior of the employee. 21. Payments.-Payments under this law should be made at the regular intervals at which salaries are paid to all employees, except payments accrued before the receipt of the approved claim, which should be made as soon after the receipt of the approval as possible so as to avoid unnecessary hardship to the employee. If subsistence is furnished during employment but not during the period of disability, the value of the subsistence should be allowed to the injured workman during disability in addition to the wages usually paid in cash. When compensation is approved for a fixed period, payment may be made on the authority of such approval without further evidence. When compensation is approved for an indefinite period, each payment shall be based upon the certificate signed by the claimant and approved by the claimant's official superior to the effect that during the time covered by the said payment the claimant was unable to resume work and that inability to so resume work was the result of the injury for which compensation was granted. In no case shall leave, annual or sick, be charged against any portion of the period for which compensation is due. 22. Certificates.-If the claimant's superior officer is unable to satisfy himself that the claimant was unable to resume work for any period for which compensation is claimed, he may require that the claimant submit to him a certificate from a duly authorized medical practitioner showing the continuance of the in⚫ ability to resume work. 23. Special examinations.—If this medical certificate is satisfactory to the official superior, he should then approve payment; but if the certificate does not satisfy him he may require the medical officer or officially designated physician, where such is available, to examine the claimant for the purpose of ascertaining whether the disability still exists. 24. Payments withheld. In all cases where the continuance of disability has not been proved to the satisfaction of the superior officer, or where the results of the examination of the claimant by the medical officer or officially designated physician are contradictory to the statements of the attending physician, payments should be withheld and a report of these facts should be immediately forwarded directly to the Secretary of Labor. A detailed report of the examination of the claimant by the medical officer or officially designated physician, if any has been made, should accompany this report, together with the statement of the employee and a certificate of his attending physician. 25. Examination by physician of Department of Labor.-On receipt of reports concerning disagreement between the claimant or his physician and the official superior, the Secretary of Labor will immediately order an examination of the claimant by a physician designated by him, so as to ascertain the claimant's ability to return to work, unless an examination has already been made by the referee physician representing the Department of Labor. 26. Decision.—The decision of the department will then be communicated to the official superior. If the claim of the injured person be sustained, the amount due him should be paid as soon as possible after the receipt of the decision. 27. Discontinuance of payments.-When payments are discontinued because of recovery or other reason, such fact should be reported to the Department of Labor on the blanks furnished for that purpose. 28. Examination at end of six months.-Whenever compensation has been paid for any case of disability for five months and there is a possibility of the disability lasting so as to extend over six months, or whenever there is a possibility of the disability extending beyond the date to which payment has been authorized, the official superior of the injured employee should report the fact to the Secretary of Labor, so as to enable him to order as soon as possible a medical examination, or take such other action as may be necessary. 29. Death. Whenever a person in the employ of the Government shall die as the result of injury received in the course of his employment, and his wife, his children under 16 years of age, or his parents desire to claim payment under this act, they should be furnished with blank forms of claim for compensation. If the official superior has reason to believe that the person so injured is covered by the provisions of the law he should inform the dependent relatives, if the names and addresses of such relatives can be ascertained by him, of the necessary procedure under the law and the provision as to the 90-day limit. If the persons who may be entitled to compensation on account of the death of an employee are located in a foreign country, they may file their affidavits of claim with the consular officer of the United States located most conveniently, and any affidavit so filed within 90 days after the death will be considered as having been duly filed with the Secretary of Labor, as required by section 4 of the compensation act. It was held by the Department of Commerce and Labor that the 90-day proviso of the act was mandatory, but the Department of Labor construes it to be directory and not mandatory, so that claims not submitted within 90 days after death may be allowed upon receipt of satisfactory explanation of the delay. 30. Death benefits.-Claims for compensation on account of death should be forwarded to the Secretary of Labor. If the claim be established and compensation is due to more than on person the Secretary of Labor will designate the portion to be paid to each claimant. 31. Employees to have laws and regulations.-Copies of the law and the regulations should be on hand in each establishment and, upon request, furnished free to all employees for their information and guidance. A summary prepared by the Secretary of Labor, presenting the principal provisions of the compensation act and the regulations governing its application, should be posted in establishments affected by the act, in such numbers and places as to be easily accessible to all the workmen. DUTIES OF MEDICAL OFFICERS. 32. First-aid treatment. The medical officer of each establishment or his assistant, where such services are available, should render such immediate aid as is necessary to each employee of the establishment injured while on duty, and make a report to the head of the establishment of the exact extent of the injury and the nature of the treatment administered, and a detailed record of the same should be kept on file in his office. 33. Subsequent examinations.-The medical officer or officially designated physician should examine the injured employee as frequently as is necessary in his opinion, or in the opinion of the head of the establishment, during the absence of such employee from his work. 34. Records. A record of each examination by the medical officer or officially designated physician should be made in detail and contain an accurate description of the general condition of the employee, the state of the injuries, and an opinion as to whether the disability still continues. Such record should be kept on file in the office of the medical officer or officially designated physician, and reports of the findings should be made to the head of the establishment. 35. Treatment.-The medical officer or officially designated physician should ascertain whether the injured employee is under treatment of a duly licensed practitioner of medicine, and if he finds this not to 67512°-VOL 2-17-16 |