Omaha daily bee., 1906-08-12
suddenly called upon to dine in the Cam
bodian manner would have done so we'll
London Sketch.
HAVOC WROUGHT BY FIRE
High Figures of Losses and Insur-
ance Payments Covering
Century.


In 1855 David d. Dana published in Bos-
ton his work called The Fireman." in
which he gives a list of what he denomi-
mates large fires Ctoday they would be
called confiagrations) which had occurred
in this country in the previous nifty years.
The record, as matter of fact, begins
with the fire in Boston, March 20, 1850; but
this Is the only city where any data are
given previous to the year 1900. hence the
lisG given by Dana may be said to repre-
sent the fire loss for the first half CEN
fury from what were called large fires.
Dana does not enumerate any fire where
the loss was less than $4,000. There are,
however. a very few-possibfy not over 5
per cent, as low as this figure. and from
that point the upper limit is sl7,OooOo0.
There were two fires in the first half OF
the nineteenth century which reached this
81, 10000 figure, one being the fire in New
York City in 1895, while the other was the
fire in San Francisco in 1851. Dana's
statistics appear TO be quite complete
probably as complete as could be gathered.
The aggregate produced by his researches
makes a total Of 1871, 10000 caused by So
called large or confagration fires.
Fifty years later-or, to be more exact,
forty-eight years-the National Board of
flre OnueTWTlters, IN tnelT report lot lSo,
publish a list of what they call confagra-
lions, which occurred between 1866 and
1906. In other words they practically cover
the fifty years succeeding Dana's record.
No fire enumerated by the national board
involved a loss OF less than $4,000 and
the largest were. of course. the well known
Chicago fire of 1871, Of sl65 900, and the
Boston fire of the succeeding year, OF
s7O,OOo.0co. while the third is the Baltimore
fire OF 1904. with a loss Of $5O.O0o,0oo. The
total amounts to $557,00o,oVc.
1t should be noted that the minimum
| fire enumerated by the national board is
! twenty-five times greater than the mini
mum fire enumerated by Dana; and yet, in
the second half century, with a minimum
twenty-five times higher than in the first
| half OF the century, the loss from large
fires or CONGREGATIONS is nearly three times
as large as It was in the earlier period
| The maximum fire enumerated in the first
period is s17,oO0,0oo while in the second
period 1t is (Chicago) $165, 100000, or practi.
cally ten times as large.
The statistics for the last period are
from the National Board Of Fire Under.
writers up to the close of 1906 Since Their
the San Francisco con1aRration has &c.
CURED, and with a fire loss OF $3.50, 900 OOO g
new maximum Is established. This maxi
| mum is fifteen times greater for the latter
period. as compared with the earlier. The
first period has twenty-six fires with losse.
equal to or in excess Of 81, 100000. while
the second period has. to the close Of
! 1905, seventy-eight such fires. These mil
dollar fires thus show an Increase Of
three times for the latter as compared
with the earlier period
The totals given above are the total fir,
or property loss. as distinguished from tn,
insurance loss The first represents tn,
total loss caused by fire, while the latter
is that portion of the loss which is re
turned to the insured by the insurer II
the long run the insurance loss is about q
per cent of the total property loss. Thus
for a period of thirty years-1s75 to 1904
inclusive-the Chronicle fire tables repor
a property loss OF g. Con. ooo 900. while tn,
insurance loss was 1920, 900 COO, which 1,
81 per cent. During this same period-1s7
to 1904. inclusive-the property loss from
large or confiagration fires. as listed b,
the national board. amounted to s27e, Ooo
600, and the insurance loss. being 20 pe-
cent Of this was s16s. 900 ooo-practically ~
per cent Of either the property or insur
ance loss caused by all fres.-Journal o.
| Fire.