Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1873-12-14

mis-statements that his habit of stating
facts is not such as to entitle him to rank
with the truly good. We are informed by
this owl-like individual that the National
Board lis a natural product of commercial
deSpotism.' which is sad, and that it '.has
been quietly forming throughout the
country an almost irresistible insurance
impeTiJmt." whatever that may be. Not
having our dictionary at hand we can't say
what it is, but we suppose it is something
dreadful, for NO Board" is evidently bad
ly frightened about something, what we
can't exactly make out, unless it is the in
terest of the ''dear people'-the darlings.
From he excitement under which ''No
Board seems to be labOring. it is
somewhat remarkable, TO say the least of it.
that this dreadful .'iHperitaH" has done its
work quietly but this, perhaps, is owing
| 10 its regard for the feelings of '.NO Board. =
According to him, this natural out
growth Of commercial deSPOtism,' this
almost irresistible insurance imPefilni,
has not attempted to equalizc rates, but
has taken the local rates and arbitrarily
raised them from 80 to 100 per cent If
the writer's knowledge had been equal to
his ability to display his ignorance Of the
subject he would have known that the
exact reverse of this is true. The National
Board has for its principal object the adOp-
tion and enforcement of uniform tariff Of
rates, and it has succeeded in putting into
operation a more uniform tariff of rates
than was ever before known. The rates have
not in any instance been ''aTbitraily raised
from 30 to 100 per cent" but in each
State they are based upon the experience
of companies, doing the most extended
business therein, added to the cost of tran
sacting the business which varies in differ
ent States in consequence Of their peculiar
tax laws. Losses and expenses must be
paid ont Ofpremium receipts or the compa-
MES must 90 into liquidation. II therefore
follows that Just as the amount Of tax
alton is increased the rates of insurance
must increase. In no State of the Union
are insurance companies so heavily taxed
as in Tennessee and in consequence, rates
are higher here than they would be if the
companies had only the fire loss to contend
with.
1t is true that risks are written in other
cities below those "demanded' by cOmpa-
nics which are known to be sound and SOL
vent. but they are written by the same class
of companies which write below the rates
established here. Risks are not
written in Northern cities at one-haH the
rates charged here, and they never will be
so long as the National Board exists. 1t
was to remedy evils of this nature that that
organization was created, and well has it
done its work.
The statement that "the people of Nash
vile have always paid nearly double the
rates of insurance that were demanded in
similarly situated places in the North" is
froth and nonsense; it has no defensible
ground whatever. To-day the rates charged
in St. Louis, Chicago, New York, Boston.
and other large cities, are nearly as great as
those charged in Nashville, and if they are
not as great, il is because those cities have
neglected no appliance known to modern
times for the suppression of fires, and taxa
tion has been reduced to Il minimum.
ANY community has it in its power
to increase the rate Of insurance
by neglecting to provide m
proved appliances for eXtinguishing
fires and increasing the amount of taxation
the companies have to pay. On the contra
Nv, they may reduce the rate by increasing
the efficiency of the fire department and by
reducing taxation.
we are IOlu Dy tulS eNptIItACtu ullucI-
writer that the insurance business OF Nash
Vile Hunder former and lower rates has
yielded large profits, and it would be hard
TO name a city in which the insurance busi-
ness yielded larger percentage OF profit
than Nashville for some years has done
As he is doubtless a ''free agent" who
does not 'register the decrees OF a master"
he doubtless has the figures at hand on
which this assertion is based. If so, will
he be pleased to present them? We boldly
assert they cannot be produced. The facts
are quite otherwise, and we defy "No
Board to disproye this statement.
TRUE Blue.