The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-04-29

cause the earthquake losses do not
have to be paid by fire insurance COM
panies, and the situation is complicated,
for it is hard to draw the line, and
moreover the exact liability of the com
spanies in case of fire damage following
an earthquake is by no means clear.
But even with legal uncertainty in some
probably by thirty days from the date
of the confiagration a large portion OF
the losses will have been settled for
with money which the officials have OBJ
tanned both in Europe and America to
meet the emergency. In 1871 when
property valued at about $200,0O0,000
was destroyed in Chicago, and a year
later when the insurance companies had
to pay nearly $80,00O,000 in Boston
many Of the claims were settled within
a few days after the property was de-
stroyed.
Public's Immediate Needs.
The financing of a great fire by the
insurance companies is not all
Of the financing done. The immediate
needs Of the people must be met. These
are provided for in part by outside aid,
but in large measure by banks, the
very banks that have gone thru the
fire and that have to wait for their
their money and resources. After a
great fire there is a strong demand for
ready cash. Credit has been in a
measure destroyed by the fire, and mer-
chants want money with which to re-
stock their warehouses. Hence as soon
as vaults have cooled and banks are
| opened in temporary quarters there is a
| rush to the tellers' windows for money.
An officer of one of Chicago's great
banks tells how he fought his way thru
crowd to getsat the ruins of his bank
building the Monday after the Chicago
fire. and of an experience that followed,
showing the eagerness of depositors to
get their money. He tells what toll
lowed his leaving the vault, after an in
vestigation, thus:
II saw four men waiting for me in
what had been the cashiers office.
They were among our largest deposit
ors, and I knew we'll enough what they
wanted 1t was trying ordeal, and
one calculated to make each Of my Wis
! itors show the real stuff that was in
him. AS events proved, this did not
take long.
"a little money-lender grabbed me
first With strange little wink he
forced me one. side and said in half
whisper: - Do you know how much l
have in your bank7' "
"I said, Yes, about 100000
:" Well, ! will give you $4,000. if you
will give me that balance in cash right
away j. .s oo,a T, .1,o,,
money is all right; but you will have
to wait a week for it, until we get In
shape again.
What!' he fairly gasped, do you
decline $4,000? That is a good deal OF
money in aScity that has gone to. de
struction. ~ @ @F
81 answered no, that / would not
and told him in plain English what
thought Of him. [. said: Il am not
knave enough to- take your bride ane
give you an unfair advantage over the
other depositors, and [ am not foo
enough to do it, because I know as soo1
claims within week you would sue me
for the $4,000. Get out of here right
| away -
Then school treasurer came to MT
with straightforward story Of how hi
bondsmen were anxious to know how
he stood. When I told him that hi
money was safe, and that he would no
lose cent he burst into tears, saying
the news was too good to be true.
An out-of-t town banker was also yer,
nice. saying that he did not care t
4
it was safe. = 49, -.
Then a man who has since grow,
] enormously wealthy accosted me witt
the remark that he had come down t.
see how things stood. That gave me
chance to test him, 50 I said brusquely
A Friendly Offer.
"You know how things are as well a
are do you YES see the Resition
hastily. ct do'n't t. care re- about the fire re
We are all in the same fix. But L wan
4 to know how you stand personally
Have you plenty Of ready cash? 70
. cannot get credit these days, so if 70
need anything from the grocer's yo
j. want hard cash. I brought you a Iii
ttWith that the man threw open hi
+ coat dived down into his poke.
hands could grasp. Then he straight
eneds them out and divided them int
equal piles, retaining one himself an
handing me the other. He was dreat
fully in earnest, but I told him I: coul
not accept the money, and that
= thought could manage without it. H
assured me that whatever he had woul
always be at my disposal. That ma
has since continued one of my bes
friends.' -..- -...s ..r. ~
/ Effect on Stocks.
In any event such a fire as that
the Golden Gate means a tremendo,
shift; of wealth. displacement. Mil
ions must be withdrawn from prese1
Investments and shifted to others. Wa
street and even London felt the effect
which showed them in decline on Il
/ London stock. exchange, as well ~as {
the New York exchange. But despi
the large currency drain, past expe1
:, ence shows that the effect is not like
from financial standpoint to be vel
serious.
Despite the large drain of currency
Chicago, the New York bank positit
Id grew stronger. Naturally, railways co
es verging on Chicago had to report a
=, a creased earnings; the ST. Paul s, for i
$. s. stance, fell in October from $9O8,OOO
i'd 1870 to $841 900, and in November fro
$791, 900 to 1914, 900; yet stocks even,
rss these companies recovered most of Oct
" ber's loss. What was most notewortl
S. Of all, was the fact that despite ii
p P. catastrophe at Chicago in October, Il
! ensuing year was a period of enthus
l., astic speculation for the rise in ever
2, thing, and Of immensely increased e
o as gagements of capital.
he How is this to be explained? Was t
n: Chicago disaster really a negligible ia
~ in finance, except for a single week
10. stock exchange disturbances II
,e- would be a rather sweeping conclusio
= the seventies leaves no doubt that t
influence of such an event may be mu
overestimated. Prodigious waste
1 n pifo1 did bo, :