New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-01-23
FERRETS FOR FIREBUGS
SECRETLY THWARTS EN-.
Remarkable dissertation That Pre-
cents Tncendiary Fires.

II Losses by incendiary fires be reduced In
This city 10 a point where they cease TO iniiu-
ence insurance rates much OF the credit VIII
belong TO an association OF fire insurance men
OF which the public has been ignorant Even the
name OF the association is unknown 1t has no
constitution or bylaws. and its operations are
conducted with q secrecy which prevents one
member OF the association from knowing what
action another member takes in aiding "hat Is
a common cause for all the membership.
II Is IN fact the secrecy Of the association
which makes its work SO effective. because Ho
net of the association can be stopped by an in
1t.notiou: no person who is hurt can sue Tor
DAMAGES, and the plotter Of incendiary nres re-
celves a blow IN the dark which upsets all MS
calculations and leaves him powerless. II IS
hardly necessary TO say that the association
work is in the line of preventing incenolary
fires, not seeking evidence 10 convict persons OF
arson. The association is held together by the
belief that in preventing losses by incendiary
fires its members are doing service to the
public,
The association has no officers. bookkeepers or
treasury It has only one employe man who
holds the confidence of all the members. His
services are simple and easy. When he receives
from one member Of the association an unsigned
note IA a handwriting that he knows ana
marked with a number which to him alone tells
the name and address OF the sender he makes
es many copies of that note as there are men,
'bers, and sends one copy TO each member. The
original goes into safe from which no subpoena
can draw il. 10 be used only for inquiry OF the
sende. in case there comes TO be reason TO be
lieve O mistake has been make The note in
TaE1ably consists Of a single line:
Look out for at No. 13 Blank-st."
The members Of the association now include
Representatives OF nearly every important fire
insurance company having offices in this city.
Within few hours after the copies OF the note
have been distributed, -- -, at No. ID
Elank-st., receives notices from the companies
which have issued insurance policies TO him
that the policies are to be cancelled. When he
tries 10 get insurance in other companies he is
met by refusal but if he asks why the insur-
ance is refused he gets no information. II he
has planned TO collect payment for a stock of
unstable goods from the insurance companies
he finds himself completely baffled.
Sometimes Nc. ID Blank-st. is building in
which there are several stores or offices, and the
other tenants are astonshed when they receive
notice that their insurance is TO be taken away
and there is no possibility OF getting new in
su'ance. They meet the same refusal Of in
formation from the companies. The owner Of
the building may receive the same treatment
Then there is consultation OF the tenants
and frequently suspicion points so directly at
eloquent than polite TO move. AS soon as he
leaves the building, the owner and other tenants
find no trouble in renewing their insurance.
The secret warning OF the association is sent
only in cases where there is good reason to be-
lieye that -- - is making ready to have
q fire" Rarely a mistake is made, although
az necessity. the proof against the suspect
ed man IS usually more of the moral than Of
the legal sort. The question naturally arises:
How does a member OF the association become
possessed Of the information which he imparts
so secretly to the others?
Every insurance firm and company Of impoT-
tance in this city has employees who acquire by
experience the art OF smelling fires These
employees go about investigating risks. 1t il
their business TO find out If an irsCreI merchant
S. doing a good or bad business if he rs m liking
or losing money. They examine goods insured
TO see IL they salable and are worth more
than they are insured for, and they look for evil
oencss OF preparation for fires which would
cape the attention Of less expert men. The
sociauon began when few fire insurance men,
taking over their luncheon, agreed 10 the propo-
sition advanced by one Of them: why shouldn't
we set the benefit Of each others investiga-
lions" After il was started, the association
grew TO its present large membership by one
member taking in other new members.
As an example Of the method Of smelling
Hres," member Of the association told yester-
day TO a Tribune reporter the following tale:
We had here a young Yale graduate who was
Get TO work investigating fire risks He
cent 10 a building in which merchant had
asked for insurance amounting 10 $4,000 On his
stock There were several merchants in tbs
building, and the report which he turned in
dealt with all Of them. When he came to de-
scribe the stock OF the merchant who had asked
for insurance Or $4,000 he wrote that while
most OF the goods on the counters We're new and
ealab,e. most Of the stock under the coun-
tiers, and apparently had been carried for
some wears. He added, significantly. that IL
seemed 20 be a store in which A fire would be
profitable. our company withdrew policy of
$4,000 on the stock and few weeks later fire
cleaned out the store IF the association had
been IN operation then. all that merchants in
euraace might have gone, and the fire might
never have occurred. That Yale man has risen
81 business"
Sometimes the record OF a man gives the clew
To the investigator. If a man who has had three
fires asks Cor insurance on stock that does not
appear 10 the investigator TO be salable. he
usually is made the subject OF a warning note
Sometimes G. single fire VIII direct suspicion
against :. man. An investigator for one OF the
insurance companies looked in at East Side
shop where there had been a small fire. The
iirensea said Q cat evidently had overturned
lighted lamp IN the place at time when the
place left in charge OF the cat. Then the
cat became frightened, and its yOwls directed
attention TO the fire so quickly that the loss
slight The investigator noticed that there was
q FISH on the table where the lamp had been
The lighted lamp apparently had been placed on
the rsb before the owner 81 the place had gone
more natural than that the cat should Try to
get the fish and upset the lamp? The investi-
gator reported that a man so ingenious as the
owner Of the shop did not need fire Insurance.
and the report caused the issuance OF a warning
note to the association.