The age-herald., 1901-01-24
HALF THE HOMES
 OF BIR MINGHAM N
Are Without Insurance or Fire
 / Protection
A MOST GRAVE CONDITION
Which is Fearfully Demoralizing to the home Life of Birmingham-TheS The outrages that Come of
 Saving $12,o0o a Year.

Not half of the residences of Birming- ham are insured against fire and being for the most part far removed from the fire department stations they are practically without any sort of protection against fire" declared John W. O'Neill, president of the Board of Trade, and widely known as one of the largest crockery and hard ware dealers of Alabama, as well one of the States ablest and most progressive young business men.
 When one reads that private residence has been burned one Is more likely to be right than wrong in assuming that all damage by the fire is a total loss, for the chances are that the owner or occupant, who may be the same, is uninsured.
 My authority as to the lack of residen- tial fire insurance comes of the principal insurance agents and underwriters of the city and district, and the facts present a deplorable condition.
 Three causes apparently prevent owners and occupiers of dwelling houses from securing protection; but there is in fact but one reason, and that is the almost insane in adequacy of our fire department. In the
  disgraceful insuficiency of fire-fghting forces, men, engines and appliances, the rates for insurance are so high that thous- ands of people feel themselves unable to pay for what they need. The basis rate is 75 cents, against 50 cents in Atlanta and all other important towns, and added to that are exposure charges of all sorts, running the total rate to an absurdly and scandal- ously high figure
 But if family determine to stint itself in other directions in order to secure some protection to its home and perhaps cherish ed contents it can get covered against fire, after all the high premium paid, to the ex- tent of only three-quarters of the values involved. That is to say, as example, that a house and furniture valued at $2400 can- not be recovered on account of total de- struction for cent more than $500, which would mean $60e-worse than thrown away burned up!
 Therefore owners of residential proper ty-more than half such of owners in Bir- mingham-go without insurance and practi- cally without protection of any kind.
 General Clark, in one of his admirable and clear interviews in the Age-Herald showed that if the city government would spend $12000 a year additional on the fire department it would save the merchants and property owners $3O,0OO a year. That applies with increased force and reasoning to those who have residences, for the $12,- GOO additional would afford the. whole city proper protection, as required by the Southeastern Tariff Association, which or ganization of fire insurance companies would immediately make Birmingham a city of the first class in fire insurance ta- bles.
 Meantime the grave and startling fact is that half the homes of Birmingham are entirely without protection, not having a dollar of insurance or being In reach of any adequate aid from the fire department in event of fire! I tell you, 1t is most serious, most grave problem, this hav- ing half the homes of Birmingham unpro- tected against any sort of loss, and all for the lack of a thousand dollars a month. This fact Is of far-reaching consequence, for the demoralizing effect of having half the homes constantly in danger of destruc- don, with no recompense no recourse, is of vast unhappy consequence Tor anything that tends to 6emoralize the homes Of city means ruin if 1t be not remediedr'