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and given as wide coverage, as possible. Some extension of coverage and application we could do by interpretation. Other things required actual, basic changes in the law.
One of the most difficult pieces of legislation was the piece of legislation that extended the occupational disease coverage. When the law was first drawn, the people who drafted the Workmen's Compensation Law followed in general the English law on occupational diseases. American experience on occupational diseases was very slight at that time. This was one of the early laws. It was expected to make certain, definite occupational diseases subject to compensation in the same way that accident and injuries therefrom are subject to workmen's compensation.
The English law had been built up over long periods of time and had really a very high percentage of occupational diseases that are common among coal miners in England. The State of New York had no coal mines, so that we never had a case of miner's nystagmus, which is a form of chronic dizziness which overtakes coal miners in England. There were certain other things too - epithelial cancer, coming from irritation of certain parts of the skin by coal dust. These were all very carefully covered in the English Workman's Compensation Law. They were not applicable at all to New
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