The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1901-07-23
ABOVE TWO
MILLIONS
Fire Claims Filed
Show That
Total.

More than $1,000, 900 are represented
by the claims which have been filed
with the Fire Claims Commission All
the claims not in are in course Of prep
'aration, and it is understood that these
include the large claims for merchan-
disc and buildings, so that the total
amount which win be placed before the
commission viii be nearly double the
sum contemplated in the act which
brought the commission into existence.
The number of claims before the com
mission now reaches the total OF oslo
The claims 50 far filed seem to be
largely those OF the Chinese and Japan
este These have been principally pre-
pared in the offices of the Japanese
consul and by the Chinese consul the
United Chinese Societies and the late
Paul Neumann. Claims thus prepared
have been made up according to a sys-
TEN which has facilitated the workings
of the commission to such an extent
that Chairman MaCfarlane says that
while at first the commission was able
to pass upon only five or six each day;
now the work is going on at the rate of
fifty or sixty day. In view of this
speed the members of the commission
believe that they may get well along
with their work before the end of their
session. ecen If the Legislature does
not provide that the commission should
sit long enough to clear up its docket.
According to the announced program
there win be no judgments entered I'M
ill the work Of the commission is finish
ed, so that there win be no line upon
the methods pursued by the commission
as to the claims Of any variety of losers
by the great fire Of Chinatown.
The claims Of Chinese which have
been filed through the sources named
so far number 2,715, and the aggregate
Of these is placed at $GS6,00O in round
numbers. The Chinese claims are not
yet all in, there heing some $50 which
are yet to be taken up. and the total
Of these was estimated, by men con-
uected with the two offices which have
the papers in charge, to be in the neigh
borhood of 100000 There We're of course
many claims which We're made up by
outside attorneys. These cannot be list
ed as yet and the total which is given
for them by men who have followed
the task Of preparation of claims is
only an estimate. 1t is thought by such
sources of information that the entire
amount of the outside claims will not
exceed 100000.
The claims of the japanese sufferers
by the fire have been handled through
the office of the consul of that nation,
Mr.. Mkt Saito. Mr.. Saito has filed most
of them, but has not yet made up
complete list of claimants and amounts.
This work is now going on. Mr.. Saito
said. however, that the number OF
claimants was close to 2400 and the to-
tai amount of the damages asked would
notseXceed 5000 900.
The total amount of the claims filed
as shown by the figures Of the commits
sion is 81, l67 1+444, Taking the totals
of the claims Of the Chinese and Jap
anese as estimated from the sources
enumerated, grand total is shown of
81, 1856, 900 This would leave to others
than the Orientals, who are suing for
the amount of their damages, a total Of
S675, 900. and as the number of claims
known to have been filed is 5ll5, this
sum most be claimed by 400 persons.
The figures given are in round numbers
as the total amounts of claims filed by
the officials of the two countries cannot
be secured exactly.
Taking the figures of Mr.. SaIto the
average of the Japanese claims is $3.50,
while those Of the Chinese known would
give an average of $253 With the fig
ures of the remainder of the amount OF
the total filings. there is shown an aver
age OF 81, 700 for each claim, or nearly
seven times the amount of the average
of those claims which have been filed
through the officials OF the two Govern
ments whose subjects have been sup
posed to represent the heaviest suffer-
ers.
The claims of the haoles and natives
have been filed by many attorneys and
1t would he impossible at this time to
even estimate their amount as In the
figures given all the unknown claims
ARE punched. These consist I'm most
rgAes of losses on buildings which
might account for the great dlscrepan-
ry in the averages ~ the amount OF the
claims.