The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1902-01-23
WANT THEIR
MONEY BACK
Fire Claims Office
Opened in the
Capitol.
CASES STILL
TO BE HEARD
Insurance Companies Seek TO Re
cover Money Paid Policy Hold
ers for Fire Losses.

The fire commission still has plenty
day recess comes to a close. At present
the claims already adjudicated are be-
| ing classified and docketed. and for
that purpose an office has been opened
in the Capitol building. It is located
! just mauka of the old throne room, and
| there Clerk Riggs can be found busily
| at work any day.
There are still twenty-six claims to
be presented to the court, and upon
which testimony is to be received
Twenty-one of these cases are the
claims of insurance companies and the
total amounts up to the neighborhood
of $4,000. The hearing of these cases
will form an interesting feature of the
courts session when it sits again in
February. The claims are for the mon
les paid by these companies to the pol
icy holders for their losses in the
plague fire. Some of the Insurance
agencies doing business in Honolulu, in
fact the greater number of them, had a
provision in their policies exempting
the company from payment for loss In
Cured by reason of any act of the civil
was started by the Board of Health,
these companies claimed that the poll
cies were voided by the provision above
quoted. Those companies. however, !
whose policies were not safeguarded in
that respect were compelled to adjust |
their losses. and did so finally on the
usual basis. The claims filed with the |
Fire Commission are for the amounts |
paid upon these policies.
AS the proof is largely documentary,
the trial of these cases should not oc-
cupy a very great length of time, as the
only proof to be offered will consist of
the receipts of the policy holders,
showing that the amount claimed had
been paid. Altogether, the to-
tai claimed by the insurance compan-
les viii aggregate $4,000, and the prin-
cipal examination of the commission
will be to determine whether or not
there have already been claims made
by the property owners whose build
ngs were destroyed by the big fire.
Altogether 1900 claims have already |
OSen aQJOU1c2IeO ana Clerk RIGGS is
busy classifying these so that they can
be readily paid when the funds for the
purpose become available. The COM
missioners have not been working on
the claims during the recess, as they
are anxious to have the work of filing
before they begin anew on
he large bunch of claims still remain
ng for their consideration. There are !
over $500 claims upon which evidence /
las already been taken, and which s
nave not been adjudicated by the COM
nissioners. A transcript of this evil
lence is now being made for the COM
nissioners, and as soon as Chairman
Nfacfarlane returns they will begin
york anew on the remaining cases.
Besides the twenty-one insurance
company claims there are five or six
'thers still to be considered. All of
hese are of Hawaiians, which, because
# Illness or some other reason, could
lot be presented at the regular sessions
# the court. There are several cases c
-lso which are to be investigated for s
vidences of fraud. and the closing days
I the court promise the most interest
ng developments of the entire session
70 more claims are being received, nor =
as there been since Septembr 18th. and
one of the claims already adjudicated
Efll be paid until the entire work of
he court has been completed, and thei
asis of settlement for every Individual
lain determined