The San Francisco call., 1903-12-30
Underwriters Place a
War Risk on Cargo
of a Liner.

nificent navy in the Pacific, this rate is
considered high.
The Nippon viii carry from here
about 1000 tons of valuable merchan-
disc She is under subsidy to the. Jap
anese Government and was built with
the view of being used as an auxiliary
cruiser in case of emergency. The Nip
pom and her sisters, the America Maru
and the Hongkong Maru, which make
up the Toyo Kisen Kaishas fleet in the
service between here and the Orient,
are particularly fine steamships,
speedy and in splendid condition. 1t is
only a few months since the three lin
ers passed their annual Government
trial, and all proved better than the
requirements of the act under which
they receive liberal subsidy
Any of the boats would prove tempt
ing to a prize-hunting enemy, and no
body realizes this better than the mer-
chants who have intrusted their wares
to the Japanese line.
LINER CARRIES PASSENGERS.
The ordinary marine insurance policy
does not cover loss by capture seizure
or detention at the hands of an un-
friendly power, and most of the Nip
pon's big cargo will be covered by this
wan risk the rate of'which was quoted
yesterday at l per cent.
The Nippon Maru will take from here
sixty-five cabin passengers, most of
them United States Government en-
ployes bound for Manila, where the
liner calls on this trip. The report that
forty intending passengers, alarmed at
the situation in the Orient, had can
celed their bookings on the Nippon
Maru, was denied yesterday by the To-
cal representatives of the Toyo Kisen
Kaisha and by Passenger Agent A. G.
D. Kerrell.
At the office of the Toyo Kisen Kai-
sha the prospect for early trouble is
considered lightly. w. H. Avery, the
company's agent here, is al present in
the East. s. A. Harnett, who is acting
in his place, said yesterday that if
there was the least danger of war be-
fore the Nippon Maru is scheduled to
reach Japan he would have been noti-
fed. He said:
The directorate of the Togo Kisen
Kaisha is very close to the Japanese
| Government. If war was imminent
| they would know it, and the first use
| they would make of their knowledge
would be to look out for the ships In
the event of war the Government
would certainly take the three ships
and would want them without delay.
When trouble really threatens we will
be nBtified in plenty of time to make a
proper disposition of ourS freight and
passenger contracts and turn over the
ships to the Government in time for
them to have them where they want
them when hostilities begin. If there
was any chance of the Nippon Maru's
running into trouble neither passen-
gers nor shippers would be asked to
share it. No bookings have been can
celed and for the immediate present we
are not expecting war"
SAN FRANCISCO'S CHANCE.
That this city would derive material
profit from actual war between Russia
and Japan has been practically demon
strated by the contract secured by
Getz Bros. & Co. 1t calls for the Ge-
livery of 5000, 600 pounds of cured beef
to the Russian base of supplies in the
Orient, and every pound of the meat
will be shipped from San Francisco,
which means work and wages for San
Francisco residents.
I'VE obtained the order through our
branch house at Shanghai" said Louis
Getz yesterday, 'and if we had not had
branch house there the order probably
would have gone TO a European agency.
If the meat could be procured on this
coast we could buy it here, but as it
is, we have been obliged to send east
for it. The first special trainload is
now en- route from Kansas City. and
will arrive in time for shipment on
the Coptic. due to sail on January Is.
The consignment consists of 2O93 bar
rels, each barrel containing $50 pounds.
and it will be in as good condition
when it reaches its destination as when
| it left the packing house,
| Getz declined to disclose where the
meat would be landed, but it is pretty
generally understood that Port Arthur
is it's destination.
THE remainder of the order will be
shipped just as rapidly as we can find
marine transportation for it," said he.
II have no doubt that other San Fran
cisco firms will, directly or indirectly
reap some benefit from the warlike
situation in the Orient, for San Fran
cisco is the logical shipping point for
all kinds of provisions"
NATURAL BASE OF SUPPLIES.
Secretary L. r. Tuttle then took IN
the theme.
THE main point of this whole
thing" he said, lis San Francisco's
unequaled opportunity. TO take COM
mercial advantage of any sudden or
unusual demand for foodstuffs i'm the
Orient. If little japan and big Russia
come to actual fighting, they must OBJ
tain their commissary supplies from
the nearest available point. That
point is San Francisco. We beat the
Suez route forty days between Europe
and Yokohama, and we beat New York
via theN same route thifty-five DAYS.
What that saving of time amounts to in
the transportation of perishable freight
hardly needs explanation. But it may
not be superfiuous to state that, on ac-
count of the heat encountered at all
times of year on the Suez route, it
would be impossible to ship such prod
ucts as preserved meats. fruits or vege-