The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1902-02-26
Pink slip Explained and Defended


Editor OF The Tribune
Sir: The Tribune Of this morning contains
edtorially the two following paragraphs, viz:
STATED plainly, the fire insurance companies
deliberately falsifed In their promise of re
bate Of the pink slip eStorton, and having
| pocketed the swag, declare their intention o.
keeping 1t. 1t is evident that at this particular
| time the fire insurance business in the middle
| department needs revival OF common honesty
"If the fire Insurance men had played fair nc
one could have objected 1t has generally beer
recognized that existing rates are too low consid
| ering the growth in fire losses What the people
of Scranton object to is the sneakng way ~
| which the underwriters have gone at it to hoist
the rates 1t is beyond defense"
| These paragraphs impugn the character and in
| tegrity Of the insurance companies doing busi
| ness in this city, as well as their agents. II
| the companies nsuring in the city OF Scranton
and Dunmore are dishonest, lying and sneak
| ing, as characterized above, then they are out
laws and entitled to nobodys respect, and all
| that can be gotten out OF them, whether by dis.
honest fires or otherwise, is entirely legitimate.
\ That is the position of The Tribune which poses
| as higlntoned moral newspaper. We note that
| The Tribune is glad to carry fair line OF the
insurance against fire, furnished by these same
dishonest. lying, sneakng" insurance com.
panies. This fact is remarkable. Now what is
| ro,nonios9 ma ro,,,a,,i IS ,,, ..oini, s,;n -
| and ,ho foi,rro 70 ,ohnto tho oxtr, ,ronim,
What nre tbo f,cts in ,o,oronco to tho mink
slin9 p;ae, ,I,o., ,r,. ,.nataia,, aa,,,itior -;
| the means for protection against fire in this city
had for years been going from bad to worse,
until the insurance companies sent an inspector
here at their own expense in 1S0S. and made a
| detailed statement of its condition and needs.
tbo i,sorn,,tinn ,h,t ,,,,,, ,,ran,,,,, ro,,oaod
| Insurance rotos v.a,,,d Hoe 81 ho ,,,-,roaL Nn
| attention yoo noid 10 th;s NTH i, March ,oo,
| tho oo,,nonio, ol,,,,,a.l .,, ,,,o %. oon,, n
tbn s1Oo n tho ,,o .,;n, Ill, =" ~ ,,,,,
the foIo,vinc 10 n con,,.
EXTRA PREMIUM FOR INADEQUATE FIRE
PROTECTION.
"The annual rate on this policy is increased
TWENTY-FIVE cents (e5) per one hundred dollars
($1OOOO per ann,n until ADEQUATE protection
against fire. satisfactory TO this company. shall
be provided
lnadeouate water sunplv in philadclphia had
already raised the rates there by n like pink
slim 80 cents on the 500 which still remains
The purp6se of the mink slim metIod of increos.
ing fine rates was 70 make consnicuous thc i'm.
mediate cause. viz "inodeouate fire protection." !"
with view of forcing tbe needed remedy. That
il has served its purnose in tbe INST Mt least is no
less gratifying 70 tho compouies than il is to the
nub,ic but tho null;c shou,J rep,e,nher that IT
il indebted ia the action of tbe comnonies
through the odious mink slim for what has been
acconplished in tris resnect How; lang has IL
been since tbe reourements Of the co,npanies
have boon srhstont;oll,, co,nn,ied v;th9 some
three or four months and tIe newsn,ners chief
" are calling names because the comnanics have
not tumbled over themselves 10 remove the in.
creased rate and nav hack the nremums They
forget that it was more than two long wears
before tbe citv of scranton Hfted fnocr ,o
remedv the condition os nontod out h, ,ln co,
ponies. and tbov foroat that in tbo meoutiun
tbe most disnstrous f,os scranton has over
known took nloco whom moro +h,n n half million
dollars ,verth ~ nronort, wss dostrovod ybere
with reasonably rood fire nrotection one.tcntb
of this amount should have coveral tha loss.
they forget thot dnr;ne- those two years tho rom,
nanios Lost mora from, fros in this oit, +b,r COW
oral veors, nromirms wo,lI ,no,,o good. +hev
also forget that when tlc mink slim advance was
ordered IL was made to annlv only IN nolicies
as tbev exnirod and not ON all oxieIino ins,,r
ance. The result of this is that only ,hout one.
third of tbe d,yoIlinos harms ch,,rchos and
public buildings have noid th;s advance III,
class of propertv bepp written on +,,ree and 6ve
wear term policies ONLY those nronertios whose
terms have oxn;rod durina tho yo,r La,o h,d 10
nav the mink slim odvonca II tbo comnaries had
applied this advance ,t opco to all nolic;os il
would he eopitobIo to rehate nm its ro,,or,1 prt
rs il took effect only on nolicios 49, tho,, ,oro
renewed on expirotion 50 II will discontinue
Now obout PROMISES to rohoto xohod, oon
place his hand. unon n nron,ise NJ ths Eind M.
thoritativelv hade some ooents Lova ,,1,,od
rahotn o1,r,ys ,,;,rout or,,,or;t,. MI ;
apce agent and the insurino nrhiic should Lno,.
that Tho opent is sunlv m ins,ronoo oo,,n,i,.
sion merchant. lie has insurance ,ons;gnod to
him TO sell ot certain rotos Tho co,,nanios 9v
n schedule ~ rates hollow which tho oront o,n,
not 90. These rates are fved IN varioTs c,osso,
of propcrty bv cxnerts and arc tho rns,It y,
coreful studv and cxnerienco Man, oon,na,,io.
refuse io write NJ thnsc rotns and doc1inn riSi,,
unless HIGHER rates nre obtninod # ;s n,;s+,to
TO sppose these rotes ore bindi,g unnn all con,.
NAMES The lattcr arc ot Thortv ~ tol,a .,,n,,
lines os tbcv chose and tho,, .ro oo,,ornod .,sIn1
nv ono oucytion viz Is Tho roto adoo,,,4o -
the risk involved in their viewg Tnsnranco CON,
nanies rlo othor r,orcb,pts ore ,nt do;,o, h,s;
ness for their he,lth II tboy arc to ror,oin so,,