The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1897-02-17
UP GOES INSURANCE
The Tariff Association Hits
Dawson Hard.
A BIG RAISE IN RATES.
An Advance in ALI Business Blocks,
while Residences Remain on
Second Glass Basis.
The Cause.
A BIG RAISE IN RATES.
The Cause.

The Cause.
The rate sheet of the Southeastern
Tariff Association fixing the price OF
fire insurance in Dawson for 1897 has
been issued.
On the first page of the document
which conveys the intelligence that
the people of Dawson must pay in
creased sums into the Golfers of the
insurance companies the city is credit
ed with being wellequipped for fight
ing fire. Below is the exact language
"FIRE DETERMINATIONS of
one No. 4 Silsby engine, one combined
chemical engine and hook and ladder
truck, two hose reels and 1000 feet Of
hose. Volunteer company with seven
ty members and chief. Apparatus III
good condition.
"WATER SUPPLY. Water is derived
from springs which furnish an ade-
quate supply of water at all times.
Tower is of wood on 60-fOot frame
base with a capacity of 1000 gallons
and maximum gravity pressure of As
pounds and an average pressure of 40
pounds. Direct pressure of 100 pounds
can be given.
Pumping station is equipped with
60-hOrse power boiler and two duplex
Worthington pumps with combined
capacity of l 100000 per "a hours.
mains on business streets 6 and s
inches; side streets and inches.
There are 80 double hydrants and 10
dead ends.
Engineer is not on duty except
when pumping, and station is not CON
nected with telephone"
This from the tariff association, with
the exception of the number of vOlun-
teer men, which is not so large, is a
fair statement of DawsOn's present
equipment for cOntending against fire.
Dawson isss well!equipped now in the
way of fire department and other ia
cillties on that line as it was when the
rates of insurance were reduced sever
al years ago and the city given a sec
Ond class rati lg. This being true,
property owners will not take kindly
to the increase.
Confined to Business Houses.
The increase in insurance rates is
confined entirely to the business por-
ton of the city, the rate on dwellings
remaining the same-75 cents on the
hundred dollars.
While there is an average raise
of 20 or 25 cents per hundred through
out the business portion of the city the
increase is not Uniform, as, in some
instances the rate has been increased as
much as 30 cents per hundred on one
bnilding and reduced 10 cents on an ad-
joining one.
In the blocks on the east side of Main
street from r. L. Meltons to Miss A.
B. Smiths the increase is 10 to 80 cents
per hundred with one or two eXCep-
tiOns, where reduction of 10 cents
has been made. On the west side of
Main street from Goss's to Bethune's
the increase is 20 to 1913 cents per
hundred, while in the blocks from Woo
tens to Martins and from Browns to
Alesker q Taubin's there has been no
increase but two or three reductions of
10 cents per hundred. From Baldwin
& Co.'S. TO McClelland's the average
increase is 80 cents per hundred. From
Bridges to Lewis there has been no
increase except % cents per hundred
on Perry q Roberts warehouse. On
both the north and south sides of Lee
street the average increase is 20 cents
per hundred, with one or two reduc-
tiOns of 10 cents.
The Cause of 1t.
The local agents say that this raise
in insurance rates has been partly
caused by the fact that the pumping
station Of the waterworks is not con-
nected with the city by telephone and
the engineer is not on duty except
when pumping, and partly because of
added exposures in some places and
the storing of hay in others.
Dawson pays many thousands of dol
lars for insurance annually, and this
already heavy burden has been greatly
increased by the recent action of the
Southeastern Tariff Association.
What will, or can, be done about it
remains to be seen.