Vermont farmer. [volume] (Newport, Orleans County, Vt.) 1870-1877, 1877-01-05
Fire Insurance.

There IL another record Of FIRE occasioned
by defective Huo. OF course the proprio.
tor could have repaired that defect with
very little expense, but it was insured aad
so he let it go and the farmers, mechanics
and merchants Of this state are to be taxed
some two or three thousand dollars to pay
for the loss. This is all wrong-a defective
Auc should vitiate policy, and so should
keeping ashes in barrels or pals and pans
all about the premises. The fact is, more
than half of the fires are from carelessness,
and no insurance should ever be paid for
such losses. The agent goes around and re-
news the policies once in five or seven years
takes hasty glance at things, omits visiting
the chambers where 80 many pipes enter the
chimneys, because perhaps the"women folks"
object, as the rooms are "all up in arms"
and so he satisfies his conscience-too many
times there is not much to satisfy-and goes
away; in few weeks house is burned
cause, defective Aue or bad chimney. We
helped extinguish fire few years ago in a
farm house which was occasoned by fastening
up the pipe with narrow strip Of zinc the
house subsequently burned aud the insurance
paid Of course, while ten cents worth Of wire
and fifteen minutes time would have saved
it. The companies must insist on thorough
inspection with particulars at the time the
application is taken, and then thorough aud
frequent inspection while the policy is in
force, with minute reports Of each risk made
to the home office. This would involve some
expense, but not u quarter Of the amount
which would be saved by such course. We
are not talking about the great stock com.
panies from other states, but OF our Vermont
companies, especially the mutuals.
Every policy holder has an interest in this
matter at least one-fourth it not oue.half
Of the money paid for insurance might be
saved if these things were properly attended
to. We emphasize this just now as the state
companies fnd their losses greater than usual
a portion of this increase at least owing to
these neglects. If some company would take
the pains to examine the stoves, pipes, Chin
neys, places for keeping ashes and matches,
Of the people whose property they insure,
we know tn ey would be not little surprised.
We think they would find in nearly nine
tenths OF the cases that ashes arc taken up
into old tin pals or pans, and sometimes a
wooden bucket. and set into the back room
or "cellar way" till it comes handy to empty
them perhaps into barrel; that as often as
otherwise matches are kept in drawer OF
wood filled with pieces Of paper, strings, ETC.,
or in an old pasteboard colar.box upon the
"top SHELF in the pantry; that the pipe, es.
pecially for the kitchen stove, is old, cracked
more or less at the seams, the joints loose
and ill-ftting, some Of it not all quite worn
and rusted out, and it generally goes up
through the "chamber floor" to enter the
chimney; the pipe is usually held in place
with pieces Of old rusty and hence rotten wire
twisted around nail driven into the ceiling
All these are simply from carelessuess,
and if fires from such cases involved no ex-
penso or loss beyond what the owners suffer.
ed we should think less Of it, but we have
all tax to pay for the penalty Of his cuIpa.
BILE neglect, and this tax is levied on the
policy holders several times year. We
speak plainly as we have seen again and
again just such things, and know they pre-
vail all over the state. Reader, won't you
look at tho report of your company and note
the humber Of fires during the year, the
sums paid for each, and as far as indicated
the cause Of the fire, aud then bear 10 mind
that large per cent. of the careessness oil
which we have spoken is not reported; the
companies are little easy, and some policy
holders won't tell any more truth than is
necessary, especially if they get burned out
through their own carclessness. If we were
to build house or a store VIC should make
it fire proof and then let insurance companies
go to the winds.