Omaha daily bee., 1905-02-19

the burden of fire taxation is proportion
ately augmented and must be carried by
the gambler, who risks everything, and by
the conservative" man, who only builds
well as the insurance companies insists
he shall. share and share alike. The man
alone who has emancipated himself from
the thralldom of customs and precedents
and built a fireproof building. can snap
his fingers at insurance. "Fireproof con-
struction does not burn and ire-protected
construction cannot be destroyed" nor need
it be insured.
Rest is Cheapest.
The underwriters, as individuals, do and
say much IN favor of fireproof construc-
tion, but when it comes to actually insur-
ing they offer a man absolutely no advan-
tage or inducement to build a perfect build
ing. But to build so, even without the
encouragement of the insurance people,
does not call for purely altruistic motives
nor even great consideration for the COM
mon good. AS a cold business proposition
1t is the cheapest construction there is,
the best renting and most profitable in
vestment. This Is addressed to the man
who proposes to build store for his goods,
or a factory, or home to dwell in, or an
office building or store an investment.
To him the advice is sound. and If he
heeds 1t there is not only safety for his
investment, but profit thereon, far more
than he supposes. This is not addressed
to the speculator who builds for today
In the hope of selling tomorrow, and cares
not rap what happens the next day, or
what profit there may be to the man he has
fieeced. There Is no use giving advice to
the speculator. He will build only as well
as the law compels him to. and he will
seek by every means to evade or defeat
the purpose of the law, at that AS his
class is large one, must our laws be Sc
we're indeed? To the right-minded they
infiict no hardship. On the Budenseiks
and men of that ilk ought they to be severe,
and II is these rascals we hear lamenting
about the stringency, the injustice" OF
the building laws we are trying to have
enacted throughout the country.
Fires Death Roll.
1t is every mans duty to protect his own
life and the lives OF his family and others
in his care to the utmost of his ability.
Most men are quite willing to perform this
duty, particularly the first part, without
any insistance on the part OF the law. New
ertheless wise laws are constantly being
enacted looking to the proper protection of
life. Railroads are the source of a great
deal Of solicitude on the part of the legls.
lators People hold up their hands in hor-
ror at the terrible loss of life there is in
railway accidents and new regulations and
new devices are being brought forth at fire.
quent intervals for the proper safeguarding
of passengers. Yet during the year 1904 our
American railroads only killed los more pas
sengers than there were lives destroyed by
fire, or, TO be more specific, DUNG that year
6'612 people were burned to death!
Real Economy.
From the pecuniary viewpoint hreproof
construction, l contend, is a real economy
Eliminating the question OF insurance alto
gether the depreciation of an ordinarily
constructed building, office. store. or other
business house amounts 20 at least IA per
cent year, that is apart from the cost
OF refurbishing and maintaining the build
ing in presentable appearance the mater
ials used In its construction are decreasing
In structural value to that extent In