The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1896-09-19
INSURANCE COMPACT CLOSED
Eight Months Required to Bring the Mat
ter About
1t Has Been Unanimously Adopted and
the Rates Will Be Readjusted-Fire
Losses for the Month Of August.

1t has taken eight months to convert
the provisional insurance compact into
an operative board, says the San Fran
cisco Examiner of Thursday. The last
signature was obtained yesterday when
the Pacific coast manager, Henry h.
Belden, affixed his name to the constitu-
ton in behalf of the Hartford Fire In
surance company. When the constitu-
ton was drawn up at Monterey in Feb
ruary last it was decided that no at
tempt should be made to rearrange rates
or put the compact into operation until
every desirable signature had bee OBJ
tained. There were one or two compa-
MES concerning the membership of
which the others were very Indifferent,
but all the old compact companies were
considered essential. C. F. Mullins of
the Commercial Union, Henry K. Bel
den of the Hartford, Arthur e. Magill of
the Phoenix and Home were the princi-
pal DIRECTORS. They based their opposi-
ton chiefly upon what is called the nom
intercourse clause and on the proposed
rates to agents. After time the former
matter was amicably settled and then
Rolla V. Watt, who had Joined the other
three, re-entered with Mullins and Ma
gill. This left only Henry X. Beltbsn on
the outside. The great bulk of his OBJ
jectione was removed when commits
sions were readjusted and the rate for
San Francisco. Oakland and Portland
was made 20 per cent and all other
cities Is per cent Still there remained
one little matter to be adjusted in the
right Of the manager to two votes, one
as the representative of the New
York underwriters, the other as the rep
resentative of the Hartford. There was
a general disposition last week to grant
this request and yesterday it was agreed
to, so that there remained no longer any
reason for withholding the signature of
the Hartford's manager.
The officers of the new compact or the
Board Of Fire Underwriters of the
Pacific Coast, as 1t is called, are Charles
D. Havens, president w. j. Dutton,
vice-president; f. F. Mohrhardt, secre-
tary. The president and president,
with the following gentlemen, constitute
the executive committee: Horace R.
Mann, George e. Butler, Arthur e. Ma
gill, Thomas f. Pope, George w. Spen-
Ger, William j. Landers and Robert
Dickson. This committee will get to
work at once arranging the details prior
to the commencement OF active opera
tiops. That this work will progress more
easily than the securing of the necessary
signatures to the constitution is fore
gone conclusion. Subsequently rules of
the board will need but two-thirds
vote to become law.
There Is a possibility that the compact
will be in full swing on October LIST.
The fire losses on the Pacific coast dur
ing August amounted to $685. 1922, making
So, 700, 1872 for the first eight months of the
year, against $2,855,100 in 1895, and 3d.
1874, 900 in 1894. For San Francisco the
losses during the last month, according
to the Pacific underwriters computation
were $11,476 on buildings, $15,453 on con-
tents making total of $26,929. In the
rest Of California the losses on buildings
were 1923, 94S, and on contents $1O4, 915.
total of S22S,S63. BY months during the
last three years the coast losses were as
follows: