Massachusetts "Part V, § 2. *** *Dependents' shall mean members of the employé's family or next of kin who were wholly or those specifically provided for in paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of the section. It is true that no express provision is made for a case like the present where there is more than one person beside orphaned children conclusively presumed to be wholly dependent. But the Act should be interpreted broadly in harmony with its main aim of providing support for those dependent upon a deceased employee. Reading the section as a whole the purpose appears to be, though disclosed not in the clearest language, to divide the payments equally among those conclusively presumed to be wholly dependent. This is manifest by express words when there are two or more orphaned children. Equal provision is provided also when, in case there is no one conclusively presumed to be wholly dependent and dependency is determined as a fact, more than one is found to be wholly dependent. This interpretation may be supported as consonant with what reasonably may be supposed to have been the intent of the legislature. When there are left a parent and children, who are the issue of the surviving dependent parent and the deceased, the natural instincts as well as the legal obligation combine to assure support to the children in case they need it. But in case of step-children there is neither the parental affection nor legal duty. The legislature well might leave the support of children to their parent by blood and hesitate to leave it to any one else when there is no parent by blood. It is argued that the widow is entitled to the whole sum on the ground that she stands in loco parentis. These words are not found in the Act. The voluntary assumption of the obligations of parenthood toward children of a spouse by another marriage is one favored by the law. They may be included under the descriptive word family. Mulhern v. McDavitt, 16 Gray, 404. But there is nothing in the record at bar to show that the widow has assumed any legal obligation to support the step-daughter. On the other hand it is agreed that she declines to contribute anything to the guardian on whom by law is cast the duty of her care. It would be a hard thing to say that the words "surviving dependent parent" could have been intended by the legislature to include one standing in loco parentis, to a child, when the effect of such construction would be to debar such child, an orphan in fact, from the benefit of a conclusive presumption which otherwise the Act establishes in its favor. Parent commonly means the lawful father or mother by blood. It does not lend itself readily to a significance so broad as to include step-father or step-mother, or any one standing in loco parentis. The use of such other word in common speech of itself has some tendency to indicate a different meaning. The Michigan partly dependent upon the earnings of the employé for support at the time of the injury." MICHIGAN1 "Part II, § 5. If death results from the injury, the employer shall pay,2 or cause to be paid, subject, however, to the provisions of section twelve hereof, in one of the methods hereinafter provided, to the dependents of the employé, wholly dependent upon his earnings for support at the time of the injury, a weekly payment equal to one-half his average weekly wages, but not more than ten dollars nor less than four dollars a week for a period of three hundred weeks from the date of the injury. If the employé leaves dependents only partly dependent upon his earnings for support at the time of his injury, the weekly compensation to be paid as aforesaid shall arrangement of the words parent and child in the present Act points to the consanguineous relation and not to that by affinity. That it does not include one standing in the place of a parent seems to follow from the circumstance that there is no continuing obligation on one who has assumed such a relation. It may be abandoned at any time. The result is that there should be an equal division between the widow and the daughter of the earlier marriage who has no surviving parent. Decree reversed. New decree to be entered in accordance with this decision. 1 See also Michigan cases cited in Article B of this chapter. Where an employé of a State Institution is injured in the course of his duties his claim for damages must be paid out of the funds of the Institution by which he is employed, and such disbursement should be included as part of the current expenses of the maintenance of such Institution. Opinion of Attorney General of Michigan, on the application of the Board of State Auditors, in re Michigan School for the Blind. January 22nd, 1913. The place of payment of compensation is at the place where the person entitled to receive payments resides. The payee must endorse the voucher and sign the receipts attached before the same can be cashed, and the genuineness of such signatures is in most cases guaranteed by local banks and business men through whose hands the vouchers pass. Ruling of Mich. Indus. Acc. Bd., January, 1913. Compensation payments must be made weekly and may not be made bi-weekly instead of in weekly instalments. Ruling of Mich. Indus. Acc. Bd., October, 1912. Michigan be equal to the same proportion of the weekly payments for the benefit of persons wholly dependent as the amount contributed by the employé to such partial dependents bears to the annual earnings of the deceased at the time of his injury. When weekly payments have been made to an injured employé before his death the compensation to dependents shall begin from the date of the last of such payments, but shall not continue more than three hundred weeks from the date of the injury." "Part II, § 6. The following persons shall be conclusively presumed to be wholly dependent for support upon a deceased employé: "(a) A wife upon a husband with whom she lives at the time of his death; "(b) A husband upon a wife with whom he lives at the time of her death; "(c) A child or children under the age of sixteen years (or over said age, if physically or mentally incapacitated from earning) upon the parent with whom he is or they are living at the time of the death of such parent, there being no surviving parent. In case there is more than one child thus dependent, the death benefit shall be divided equally among them. In all other cases questions of dependency, in whole or in part, shall be determined in accordance with the fact, as the fact may be at the time of the injury; and in such other cases, if there is more than one person wholly dependent, the death benefit shall be divided equally among them, and persons partly dependent, if any, shall receive no part thereof; if there is no one wholly dependent and more than one person partly dependent, the death benefit shall be divided among them according to the relative extent of their dependency. No person shall be considered a dependent, unless a member of the family of the deceased employé, or bears to him the relation of husband or widow, or lineal descendant, or ancestor, or brother, or sister. "§ 7. Questions as to who constitute dependents and the extent of their dependency shall be determined as of the date of the accident to the employé, and their right to any death benefit shall become fixed as of such time, irrespective of any Michigan subsequent change in conditions; and the death benefit shall be directly recoverable by and payable to the dependent or dependents entitled thereto, or their legal guardians or trustees. In case of the death of one such dependent his proportion of such compensation shall be payable to the surviving dependents pro rata. Upon the death of all such dependents compensation shall cease. No person shall be excluded as a dependent who is a non-resident alien. No dependent of an injured employé shall be deemed, during the life of such employé, a party in interest to any proceeding by him for the enforcement of collection of any claim for compensation, nor as respects the compromise thereof by such employé." "§ 12. The death of the injured employé prior to the expiration of the period within which he would receive such weekly payments shall be deemed to end such disability, and all liability for the remainder of such payments which he would have received in case he had lived shall be terminated, but the employer shall thereupon be liable for the following death benefits in lieu of any further disability indemnity: "If the injury so received by such employé was the proximate cause of his death, and such deceased employé leaves dependents, as hereinbefore specified, wholly or partially dependent on him for support, the death benefit shall be a sum sufficient, when added to the indemnity which shall at the time of death have been paid or become payable under the provisions of this act to such deceased employé, to make the total compensation for the injury and death exclusive of medical and hospital services and medicines furnished as provided in section four hereof, equal to the full amount which such dependents would have been entitled to receive under the provisions of section five hereof in case the accident had resulted in immediate death, and such benefits shall be payable in weekly installments in the same manner and subject to the same terms and conditions in all respects as payments made under the provisions of said section five. "§ 13. No savings or insurance of the injured employé, nor any contribution made by him to any benefit fund or protective association independent of this act, shall be taken into consideration in determining the compensation to be paid Minnesota hereunder, nor shall benefits derived from any other source than those paid or caused to be paid by the employer as herein provided, be considered in fixing the compensation under this act." MINNESOTA "Part II, § 13, (f) In case death occurs to a workman during the period of disability, caused by an injury due to accident, and arising out of and in the course of his employment, all payments previously made as compensation for such injury, shall be deducted from the compensation, if any, due on account of death. "§ 14. Who are dependents and allowances to each.-(1) Wife and children presumed wholly dependent. For the purposes of this act, the following described persons, viz.: Wife, minor children under the age of eighteen years, or those over that age who are physically or mentally incapacitated from earning, shall be presumed to be wholly dependent. "(2) Actual dependents.-Any dependents named in subdivision 1; also husband, mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, sisters and brothers who were wholly supported by the deceased workman at the time of his death and for a reasonable period of time immediately prior thereto shall be considered his actual dependents, and payment of compensation shall be made to them in the order named. "(3) Partial dependents.-Any dependents named in subdivision 2, who regularly derived part of their support from the wages of the deceased workman at the time of his death and for a reasonable period of time immediately prior thereto shall be considered his partial dependents, and payment of compensation shall be made to them in the order named. "(4) In death cases, compensation payable to dependents shall be distributed according to the laws of Minnesota, providing for distribution of the personal property of an intestate decedent, except as herein otherwise provided, and shall be computed and paid on the following basis: "(5) If the deceased employé leave a widow and no de |