Tom C. Clark

“ The only such qualifications which Congress has yet seen fit to enact are those effected by §§ 3 and 4 of the Act, modifying or abolishing the common-law defenses of contributory negligence and assumption of risk. ”

“ In light of the FELA and its legislative history it is difficult to regard any of these developments as other than the products of freewheeling. The FELA '* * * is founded on common-law concepts of negligence and injury, subject to such qualifications as Congress has imported into those terms.' Urie v. ”

“ And today we are told that '* * * when a railroad employee's injury is caused in whole or in part by the fault of others performing, under contract, operational activities of his employer, such others are 'agents' of the employer within the meaning of § 1 of FELA.' This is held to be so even though it has long been customary in railroading for carriers to delegate to others activities such as the switching operation here, see Fort Worth Belt R. Co. ”