Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1906-08-11
CAPITAL AND SURPLUS.

AbAfAA a lN. 4lN u ,
Insurance Agent II. b. Windsor. who
has Just returned 10 Salt Lake after a
months absence on the coast, says
that the average amount being paid
out by the dollar for dollar Insurance
companies Is sl,000,000 a day. The
feeling against the companies which
have announced that they will only pay
- cents on dollar. and especially
those which boldly take the grounds
that they are not liable at all under
the earthquake clauses IN their policies.
Is specially bitter. and is growing more
intense. He estimates that probably
one-third OF the insurance involved IN
the disaster, VIII have to be tried out
in the courts.
According TO the papers. two COM
yanies which are being most bitterly
criticized are the Transatlantic OF Ger.
many and the Williamsburg City Of
New York, The president Of the lat.
ter company Marshall :. Briggs. de.
tends In The Insurance Field the
position Of his company in declining 20
pay losses incurred as a result Of the
volcano. A quotation from his an
nouncement Is as follows:
we are proceeding In an orderly way
10 have the matter settled by a Judi
cial determination. We have been
frank with the people o. san Francisco
IN that We have promptly denied liza
bility without holding them up for 80
days, as we could have done. Insurance
companies are not charitable institu-
tions, and the officers are not permitted
20 disburse the assets Of the company
however sensitive they may be 10 the
suffering and loss OF the people Of that
afflicted city and however great their
desire. IN a spirit Of philanthropy TO
relieve them"
The eastern press takes specially
strong ground against the Transatlant-
ic. The local agents Of this company
are the Wilson sherman company, who
say thar the business done IN Utah was
never very large and that they have
discontinued writing for Il since the
San Francisco ire
The New York Times editorial h.
headed German Honesty" and is as
follows;
The position taken by the Transit
lantic Fire Insurance company Of Ham
burg regarding It's losses OF $4,000. 600 az
san Francisco has the merit OF frank
ness. II simply denies liability upon
the ground that the losses arose from
an overwhelming catastrophe. due 20 a
visitation OF Providence. for indemnity
against the consequences Of which the
policy never was intended 10 provide
and does not provide Really. the con-
trast between This German attitude and
that OF representative English and
American companies makes US proud of
the comparison. Not that AN COM
panies have paid in full. on The con-
trary. many have paid all they could
upon account and retired from busi-
ness, leaving considerable sums admit
tedly unpaid Next 10 paying ln full
and continuing business. This rs the
most honorable thiug 20 DO. IN between
are two ,ldsscs--tGose who hud CA
cuses FOR not paying aud those VINO
simply Welch The German company
falls into the latter class. They viii
take no risks by going into court. They
Just won't pay Others may qubllc re-
garaing distinction between earthquake
losses ana Are losses. and "hacknriDg"
losses. for which san Francisco Is Tee
Iponsible The Transatlantic simply
repudlates an liability because the loss
was a large one.
II Il 20 he feared that this closes th,
subject. The Transatlantic IL outside
our Jurisdiction. and % would require
a Philadelphia LAWYER 10 set up any
practicable process against this frgi-
tive from justice. But once bit, twice
shy" We require 90 palmer hint nor
better excuse for adopting against for
eign COMPANIES the measures their COun-
tries are adopung agalnstAmerican COM
panics. with s0 much less reason. Here
after there ought to be required a. a
condition precedent 90 doing business
here a deposit which can Dr. sued ana
a responsible officer who shah accept
service Of papers The very least sat-
lsfactiou which cain be had l. % raake
this proceeding known .n Germany
where the Transatlantic can be trusted
TO say little about it-and the bst plan
is TO bring suit there and have the
facts established before the eyes and
ears OF an men. even though the hope
Of recovering may be small. II rs small
because. besides The difficulty Of prose
cution DO q foreign tribunal, the Trans
stlantic's surplus e under ono-tenth 81
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