Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1901-11-15
.B[ D|[NNAL REPORT
Board OF Control Files Its Bien.
NAL Report With the Gov.
ernor Today.
II is Very Exhaustive and Gov.
ers in Detail All Boards
Transactions.
The Question OF Insurance For
State lnstitu,ions-.Care
OF the Insane.
Special to Times-Republican.

Des Moines, Nov. 1.-THE board OF
control filed its biennial report with the
governor The report is very exhaustive
and contains much valuable information
relative to the work of the board. as
well as detailed statement of all its
transactions. Chapter vi. is devoted to
a discussion of the question of ipsurine
state institutions 1t saws:
So much discussion has been had
with reference to the policy of insurine
1 the property of the state that the beard
has gathered and presents fully in this
chapter OF its report the facts touching
the losses by fires and tornadoes since
/ the establishment of the first institution
in the state. 1910, down to the close OF
the Last biennial period, from which ii
I appears that the value of the institu-
tional property of the state subject to
injury by fire is a little more than ST.
o0oOO0. and subject to injury by lorna
! does almost 100000: but these sums
embrace the cell houses of the peniten-
tiaries, the wards of the main building
of the hospital at Clarinda, the main
building and buildings for laundry. boil
| erS and engines and other machinery at
the hospital al Cherokee. and the hos
! pital of the institution for feeble minded
children at Glenwood, all OF which are
practically of fire-proof construction
and not likely to be much injured by
fire. These structures have an aggre-
gate value of about sl,650, coo. which, de.
Quoted from the value of the property
heretofore given subject to loss,
leaves little over 1884, 900 as the value
if the policy of insuring be adopted
The loss to the state by fire since the
first building of the penitentiary at FIT.
Madison was occupied in the year 1871,
has been little over 1922, 900, and the
less by wind and hail trifie over $685.
600. During the last decade the losses
by fire have been especially heavy, and
during that decade appropriations have
been made for property subject to loss,
i including buildings made fire-proof, ag-
gregating about s2,50o,000, and it is
probable that the average value of the
property OF the state institutions subject
, to loss by fire was about $4,500000 dur
ing that time. During the same time the
! losses by fire were over $4,000 and by
. tornadoes over $4,000 According to the
j best information obtainable the fire
rate for the insurance of such property
is about l per cent per annum, twice
that rate for three years, and
three times that rate for five
years. Had all the combustible property
OF the different institutions been kept
fully insured during the period desig-
mated, at the rate specified for three
years, the cost to the state would have
been $780, 600. or 100000 less than the
amount of the fire losses sustained. But
more tan "A per cent of the fire losses
of the state since the year 1S40 occurred
during the last decade. 1t is probable
that the average value OF the institu-
tional property of the state during the
last sixty years was 100000. During
much of that time the rates were high
er than now, but insurance on $4,000 600
at current rates for three year terms,
during the period Of sixty years would
have amounted to $S00,000 or much
more than the aggregate of the fire loss
es during that time. Hence it appears,
notwith standing the exceptional losses,
of the last decade, that the best policy
of the state heretofore has been not 10
carry fire insurance.
1.-THE cost of carrying tornado insur-
ance at the lowest rate would have been
far more than the losses sustained by
tornadoes.
The board, therefore, concludes that
it is not good policy for the state to car
ry either fire or tornado insurance I'M
less in exceptional cases. 1t does, how
ever. urge that important buildings
should be fire-proof in construction. 1t
also states that it is not the policy of
the board to carry fire insurance on the
steam boilers in the institutions. The
policies on these boilers insure an in
spection three or four times a year Of
The boilers themselves, and 1t is consid-
cred that the inspections made and the
information given are worth more than
the insurance costs"
STATE CARE OF INSANE.
In this chapter the board refers to its
discussion OF this question in the last BIZ
eInial report, and says that the placing
Of all county and private Institutions
under state supervision has made it pos
s;ble to remedy some of the evils which
We're referred TO therein. Some of those
institutions are we'll conducted and give
whom are doing as we'll as they would
in state hospitals, but it is not possible
for such institutions to furnish their in
mates with all the advantages and care
obtainable in state hospitals; besides 1t
il difficult to so classify the inmates as
to keep in county and private institu-
tons those only who would do as we'll
there as in the state hospitals. Further
m ore, it is said that the expense of Civ
iEg to the insane in county institutions
substantially as good care as the state
provides is as great as to maintain them
IT state hospitals.
From these facts the conclusion is that
ii is not advisable for any county to at
number of insane, and the counties now
doing SO would do well to transfer their
wards to the care of the state as soon as
they can be received.
INSANE IN COUNTY AND PRIVATE
INSTITUTIONS.
Reference is made to chapter 144, acts
OF the Twenty eighth general assembly,
which placed under the supervision Of
this board all county and private insti-
buttons in which insane persons were
kept and required each institution to be
inspected twice annually. 1t also author
ICES the board to make rules and regula-
tons for the care and treatment of the
insane.
Rules were adopted BY the board for
the government Of county and private
institutions, and they took effect the
first day of February, 1901. Most OF the
institutions have cotpnIied c,,haf a pt{a1ly