The Hawaiian gazette., 1906-04-24

character, or Wnere ther contents NtIe.
1t will be assumed, for the purposes of
this article, that the figures given are
approximately correct.
Taking fire insurance first, the poll
cies of San Francisco, probably ninety
or ninety-fve per cent. of them, were
written according to the New York
Standard form. This form contains the
following provision, but has no earth
quake clause:
"If building or any part thereof
fall, except as the result of fire, all in
suranee on such building, or its con-
tents, shall Immediately cease"
The earthquake clause in insurance
policies, written or stamped in red ink
across the face of those issued in Homo
lulu and familiar to every policy-holder
here, was inserted after the great Mar
Unique disaster. The order to insert
the volcano clause was given by the in
surance companies to the Board of Fire
Underwriters of the Territory of Ha-
wall at the beginning of 1908. On the
9th of March of that year, all the insur-
ance agents of this city had to sign an
agreement binding themselves to insert
| the volcano clause in all fire insurance
policies issued by them.
There is nothing of that kind in the
New York Standard form proper, but
the New York foru contains this provi-
sion:
"This company shall not be Liable
for loss caused directly or indirectly
| by invasion, instruction, riot, civil war
| or commotion. or military or usurped
power, or by order of any civil author
! "a. l,,t ha Of
| the insured to use all reasonable means
to save and preserve the property at
and after fire, or when the property is
endangered by fire in neighboring
premises.
| The burden of proof is always upon
the insurance company, but 1t may
perhaps be assumed that there would be
some fire liability in San Francisco, but
at the same time, as a fire insurance
company insures only building and
not heaps of ruins thrown down by con-
vulsion it would be incumbent upon
| the companies to establish that the
buildings were thrown down before
they were burned. For any buildings
| blown up by the military authorities
| with dynamite to check the spread of
conflagration, of course, there would be
liability
AS to the question of liability, the
following extract from one of the
"Yale Lectures that one on
"Theory of Fire Insurance, delivered
by Richard NJ. Bissell, puts the case
very accurately:
"When building falls as the result
of weakened foundations, or is over
thrown by wind storms, or some other
cause, the fire insurance covering it in
stantly ceases for the reason that such
building at once loses its value and
becomes heap of debris. Fires usu'
ally start in such cases from some over
thrown lamp or stove, but the fire burns
only the debris of building already
destroyed-not the building itself"
And, presumably, by the same line of
reasoning, the insurance on the con
tents of the destroyed building would
cease likewise. Because the contents
insured would no longer be contained
in building.
AS to marine insurance, it is not true
that it would cease upon any vessel, oil
it's cargo, as soon as the ship had
reached the port or the wharves in Sar
Francisco. The clauses in the marin,
} | DOllClto CoNtIihR lhio tohtihRChNy OIL
of the most sweeping character. Tn,
cargo clause in these policies, as it ii
written, follows:
beginning the adventure upon the
said property or interest from and i'm
mediately following the loading there
of, on board said vessel at as aforesaid
, (meaning the point of departure) anC
so shall continue and endure until sale
property or interest shall be safely
landed as aforesaid. And it shall b,
J lawful for the said vessel in her voy
age to proceed and sail to, touch anC
stay at, any ports or places. if there
unto obliged by stress of weather OF
other unavoidable accident.
The form of policy on the ship itself
runs for the time for which it is taker
out, whether the ship has reached port
in the meantime or not. The third
clause in the form of policy reads:
"Touching the adventures and peril'
which this insurance company is con
tented to bear, and takes upon itself
in this policy, they are of the seas
fires, pirates, assailing thieves, jetti
sons, barratry of the mariners (but not
of the MASTERY -embezzlem or Illicit
; trade, or any trade in articles contra
, band of war excepted in all cases
and all other losses and misfortunes
that shall come to the hurt or damage
of the vessel hereby insured, or any
J part thereof, to which insurers are liza
BILE by the rules and customs of insur
ance in San Francisco, including the
rules for adjustment of losses and the
provisions of the Civil Code of Califor
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