The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-11-10
B|G FIRE LOSSES
 THROUGH CRIME Startling Record For q Years
 In United States WORK OF INCENDlARIES Property Worth Over s2oo,ooo,ooo De- stroyed Through MischieVous Or Criminal Acts-Cause of
 1s46 Fires.

New York November 9.--Bfres started through crime or mischief have cost the people of the United States $210,Sb2546 in 21 wears according to official fire insnr- ance tables. To these causes the fire in- surance experts attribute about M'ooo or the 369,29S fires which have happened In 21 years Incendiarism. or as E. h. Hardy, lecturer on fire insurance Of New Nork university, described 1t, tho friction of a S100O policy on s2O0 worth of goods, 7 explained about 9 per cent, or $ls9,76ooH of the total loss of over R,0oo,oOOoo. Tramps, burglars, drunken men and luna- tics are responsible for about sS,S00O00 or the loss in 1S46 fires Mischievous ehh- dren, playing with matches or starting bonfires. in the period covered by the com ra1tation probably did over N,o00,O0o worth of damage-rather a tidy sum to pay TOT this form of amusement.
 The fro bill for crime and mischieI, however is far less than the bill for care Jessness In handling heating and lighting apparatus matches, cigarettes and ire crackers. For it's carelessness In play ing with fire in the 21 years, people of the tJnited States have paid a bill of S66,&O,- O5S or 12 per cent of the total loss or the itemized percentages Tor the years given hold for the entire period. This source of fires is over donbio the total fire bill for electric wires, lightning, cy- clones and earthquakes prior to the San Francisco disaster. Even forest and prairie fires can be added in without equa1inG the loss through careles5ness.
 The losses in 21 years In the United States, due to different kinds of careless ness are:
 Number fires from careless use of matches 8335; total loss, $1b,S14,553.
 Number fires from cigars, cigarettes and pipes, 29l7; total loss, $9, ,765,So2.
 Number fires from lamp accidents and explosions, IS. 460; total loss, S5l,936,Sl1 Number fires from oil stove accidents and explosions. 6795; total loss, S,546,SOl.
 Number fires from candles and gas jets, 43S; total loss $7,546,301.
 Number fires from defective nnes' and smokestacks. 2OO52; total loss, s93,6e2,- 9N
 Number fires from stoves and stove pipes, BOAT; total loss, $2s526,705.
 Number fires from ashes, hot coals, open hreplaces, 2263; total loss. $3,S29. 250.
 Number fires from fireworks, 3l02; total loss. $S551, 200.
 In contrast with this loss of over $266, 100000 through carelessness may be cited the fact that, excluding San Francisco, cyclones floods, earthquakes and suns rays caused not more than 36 fires and led to a fire loss of only $4439o0 in 21 years Lightning in a like period did only s4 ,395 of fire damage and started only 5919 fires. To forest fires and prairie fires, with their disastrous sweep fire loss of only $92,00O0 GOO is attributable. or less than the bill for defective fiues. which little forethought would have saved, for which carelessness was respon- sible.
 In addition to figures such as these, the insurance people have kept such ac- curate account of all fires in this period that they answer offhand such questions as these:
 How many human hair stores burned in IA years?"
 Answer: "Forty -three.''
 How many bird stores went up in smoke in ten years?"
 Answer: Twelve"
 They also know how many dwellings, boarding houses and hotels had fires in them; what the tendency of elder mills is to burn, and have actually recorded such queer facts as ''35 1ails burned in i1S95,' "230 police and fire stations burned in 21 years,'' and that in Il years, 72 water tanks which seem to be incombusti- ble enough, have needed the attendance of firemen.
 Such exhaustive information as this is collected by fire experts who have been specially trained to analyZe fires and other causes and to detect what changes in buildings would have prevented fire. or stopped it's spread. On this Information and the figures showing just how many buildings or businesses of a certain sort may be expected to burn per thousand. the companies fix their rates for the classes of structure and kinds of occupants If building has in it clements which make 1t less likely to burn, a lower rate may be granted.
 The insurance people even need men who are expert psychologists and trained character readers to arrive at explana- tions for mysterious fires which may or may not be due to the policys friction the small stock of goods. These ex- perts naturally are paid good salaries and vet the insurance companies cannot find enough of them fitted for this delicate work
 The demand for such men. however, is now being supplied in some degree by the School of Commerce, Accounts and Fin ance of New York University which under the advice of prominent fire in- surance men, started course to train fire experts under the direction of an expert of the fire insurance exchange About 50 men are studying in the course this year, learining how to find insurance data, inspect buildings and fires and to use this information as experts in ar irving at statistical and financial con- clusions. For fire inspection today it is found. requires a great deal more than a