Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1900-10-31
FIRE INSURANCE
CASES DECIDED
-
The Insured Wins in One
Case and Insurers
Win in Two.
AUTHORITIES LIABILITY
| LEFT OPEN QUESTION
Decisions Turn On Different Workings
Of PolicieS---Wildsr & Robertson
Gain Their Point at KOOlau-
poke Appeals.

Yesterday afternoon the Supreme
Court rendered two unanimous deci-
sions covering three Of the Ave insur-
ance cases arising out of the Board Of
Health's burnings Of property In
plague time. They go different ways
according to the workings Of the diff
ferent policies. Chief Justice Frear Is
author Of the opinions, Justices Gal
braith and Perry concurring.
v,.,,.rc. The first case In order
Company is that Of zee Wo Chan
Loses & Co. VS.. The Transit
lantic Fire Insurance Co. In this case
the decision Is against the insurance
company, which relied its case upon
the exemption in the policy from loss
or damage caused by civil commotion.
1t is held that the circumstances set
forth in the opinion did not show tina:
the loss was caused by a civil commo-
ton so as to exempt the insurers un-
der the clause in the policy that they
should not be liable for any loss or
damage caused by civil commotlon."
The Circuit Court. jury being waived,
had given judgment in favor OF plain
tiffs for the amount of the policy, $4,000.
Exceptions by defendant are over-rul-
ed by the Supreme Court.
Paul Neumann and w. Austin Whit
ing for the plaintiffs; l.. A. Thurston
and Robertson & Wilder for the defen-
dant.
TWO CASES TOGETHER.
Hawaii Land Co. VS. Lion Fire Insur-
ance Co., a submission OF facts on n
policy for $4,000, and zee Wo Chan &
Co. VS.. Madgeburg Fire Insurance Co.,
action on a policy for $4,000, are con-
sidered together, as the exemption
clauses in the two policies are identi-
cal.
,,s,,.,.. Both OF these cases are
Companies decided in favor Of the
Win Cases insurance companies.
Their defense was mainly in the clause
exempting them from losses caused "by
order OF any civil authority" The
syllabus of the opinion Is as. follows:
Insured, property was destroyed by
fire which spread from other buildings
which had been set on fire by order Of
the Board OF Health because Of infec-
ton by bubonic plague. The policy
provided that the insurer should not
be liable for loss caused directly or in
directly by invasion, Instruction, riot,
civil war or commotion, o. milit.ry Or
usurped power, or by order Of any
civil authority, or by theft; ETC., field:
The words directly and indirectl,
apply in the case OF loss caused by Or
der Of any civil authority as well as in
The case Of loss caused by invasion,
etc.
Loss caused directly or ind're ?t'y by
order Of a civil authority includes lo's
of property destroyed by fire which has
spread, unaided by any Independent
efficient, intervening cause, from the
buildings which were ordered burned
1t is not confined to the loss OF the par
ticular buildings intended to be burt
ed.
ITO exempt the insurer, It is not ne
cesary that the order of the civil au-
thority be lawful and Justihable in the
particular case. 1t is sufficient II the
civil authority may lawfully order
buildings burned when necessary for
purposes within the scope OF Its duties
and In the particular case acts official
ly and in good faith and within the ap-
parent scope Of its powers.
Where buildings are set on fire by
order OF civil authority on account OF
infection by plague, and loss caused
by order of any civil authority Is ex'
cepted but loss caused by plague Ii
neither insured against nor excepted
the order and not the plague should bt
regarded as the cause OF the loss with
In the meaning OF the policy"
Following are some interesting OBJ
servations from the body OF the opin'
ion:
A IN I'VE do not mean tc
Official say that the insurer
authority would be exempt 4;
every case in which a person or bod,
possessing civil authority might sci
fire to a building. In most cases II &
person should cause another's building
to be burned, he might be taken Il
have acted in his private capacity, ant
not as a civil authority, even though
he possessed civil authority Of some
kind and purported to act In his Off
cial capacity But It II sufficient when
as here, the civil authority, the Boarc
of Health, has the power under thu