Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1882-05-15
Risks
Written
Premiums Losses
Business 1881 S122 079, 500 81 ,596 1854 S914, 951
Business 1872 48,71S,1 76 89,73SI 306.S
Increase. e. $79,352 1874 $906,616 s6Os, Ill
Increase &c,

An increase of over seventy million dollars,
or ISL per cent, is here shown in the amount
written, and of some three hundred and
eighty three thousand, or 131 per cent, in
the amount of premiums. The losses have q
little more than kept pace, showing an in.
crease of barely shadow under 200 per cent.
The business of 1872 was done by thirty.
eight ompanies-that of 1881 by one hun
dred and eleven.
Ten years ago, from an insurance stand
point, Minnesota was small and inconspicu-
GUS state-to-day twenty-five states must
yield the precedence to her. This growth of
Insurance business is due, of course, to the
material advancement of the state-to the de-
velopment of her agriculture, commercial
and manufacturing interests. As wheat
growing state, Minnesota scarcely has rival;
and her geographical position is such as to
give her commercial position of unusual
mportance-making her, in fact, the natural
mercantile gateway to vast country lying to
the north and northwest. Her manufacture
ing interests have expanded to wonderful
degree. In certain directions-especially in
the manufacture of -four and lumber-she
has made marvellous advancement. As q
wheat and flour producing state none is bet
Ter known in the United States and Europe
than Minnesota.
Considering, therefore, the growth and
development of her agricultural, commercial
railroads, and other important enterprises,
largely the product of the ten years last past,
it is not surprising she should have become an
important state from an insurance stand point
In fact the insurance business has barely
kept pace with the genetal growth. The
advance has been along the whole line.
The commissioner shows that the per cent.
of profit on business in Minnesota last year,
allowing thirty per cent. for expenses. was
1900, or, in other words, $2O2,49S was the
clear profit of the companies on Minnesota
business in 1851. This is evidently vast i'm
provement on the recent record of the state.
A detailed statement, by companies, of the
fire and fire marine business done in Mime.
sofa in 1881 was published in the Weeklh
Underwriter of February Is, page 121.
The following additional extracts from Mr..
McGill's report may be found of interest by
many of our readers:
Another heavy loss, by fire and explosion,
occurred among the mills at Minneapolis in
December last, entailipg losses upon the in
surance companies, amounting to S23S, l6S.72.
This is the second disaster of the kind, the first
occurring in May, 1878, the losses to the in
surance companies in that case amounting to
$469,159. 1t had been claimed by mill own.
ers that there was no danger of recurrence
of the explosive feature of that fire, owing to
precautionary measures of safety adopted in
all the mills Immediately thereafter. But
the fire of December last refutes this effectual-
ly-at least so far as relates to the mills then
destroyed by that agency. So long as this
| liability to explosion hovers over the mills in
any degree, the mill owners need not expect
any material reduction of rates.
The following increase of capital during
| 1881 is noted among the companies:
So large an increase as four and one half mil
| lions in one year would indicate growing
confidence of capital in a business of which
| it has generally been considered timid. To-
| wards such companies, however, as the Etna
and Phoenix of Hartford, the American Gen.
| trail of st. Louis, Hanover Fire of New York
and one or two others in the above list, capital
| is never timid. An experienced, well managed,
enterprislng insurance company can always
command oil the capital it needs or wants.
| In this respect an insurance company is very
| much like an individual, or another corpora
| ton having manifested business sagacity and
prudence and demonstrated an ability to sue
coed, it attracts capital and can command all
| it needs.
| The business of the foreign companies in
| the United States is very largely the growth
of the last dozen years. The New York in
slIrance report of 1870 shows but five foreign
companies authorized to do business in that
State. Since then the number of foreign in.
! surance companies fire and marine-doing
| business in the United States has increased to
| not less than forty, with American assets ex.
ceedlng thirty-two million dollars. The whole
| amount written in the United States in 1881 by
| all the foreign companies, could not have been
| below two and one.half billion dollars. The
| twenty.six foreign companies doing business
| in this state, named in table F, transacted
almost one-third OF the United States business
reported in that table flor 1851 in competition
| with eighty nine American companies. At the
present rate of acquiring American business,
in ten years more the foreign companies will
| be doing one-half of the entire fire and marine
| insurance business in the United States. In
/ to consider whether the American companies
are not entitled to little protective legisla.
ton. Under present laws they hardly have an
equal chance with their foreign competitions
certainly not more than an equal chance. The
| subject is at least worthy of consideration.