The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1908-10-13

10 dhOluer 9oUU,UUV,UVU year. Tnen,
plus all that, we go to work and spend
$4,000, 900 in buying insurance an al.
legged protection that pays us back
barely $95,0O00O0 of that amount in
adjusted losses per year. In fine, the
aggregate of fires actual havoc and of
what we spend in fire fighting amounts
to just about $6OO,O00,O00 per year. It
may not be amiss to add that the big
gest year Of our building history
shows a record of about $500, 900, 900
expended in new buildings and re-
pairs. Eliminating all the incidentals
our actual fire loss is about $3.50 per
capita per year-a pretty heavy tax
while the same tax in the average
European countries is less than 80
cents per capita. Why? Because
they have no shabby fire places, no
shabby stove flues, and no such haz-
ards, better building laws. and they
are enforced. A responsibility that is
blamable for many of your gray hairs.
They tell us that we number 10000
900, and we are safe in saying that
every one of these people occupy
building for many hours in the day.
All those lives, work as you may and
expose your lives as you will. and in
spite of the heroism of your subori-
mates we pay the toll in blood as well
as money for our folly in the contin-
ued use of infamable construction
Several thousand human lives have
been wiped out of existence by fire
in this country in one years time.
An Appeal to the Public.
An average loss per capita of sO.93
for the European countries named.
In the United States, as a whole the
average per capita loss for five years
ending December 81, 1907, was $500.
The result in thirty foreign cities
gave a per capita loss of $O.61 as
against $40 in the five years average
of 253 cities in the United States.
Taking the number of fires to each
l, 200 population in the same cities
our Committee on Statistics found it
to be 405 in the American cities as
against $3.50 for those of Europe, show
ing also that, in point of frequency,
fires are confined to the buildings or
place of origin in the European cities
while such is far from being the case
in the United States, due largely to a
low standard Of construction.
Thus it would appear from all the
statistics available that the per capi-
ia loss in the United States is annual
ly greater than in any other country.
the comparison be by cities
or by countries.
During the past four years over
125 of the more important cities have
been investigated and the reports have
been supplied to municipal authori-
ties, property owners and civic organ
izations, and as a result many i'm
have been obtained.
If in the future the insuing public
will use their influence to secure prop
er building laws, such as are outlined
by the National Board Building Code.
more efficient water supply and better
fire department equipment, the de-
Struction of property by fire would be
decreased and the cost of
insurance to property owners thereby
lessened. Money thus expended in
such improvements would advantage
ously affect the welfare and prosperi-
-y of the entire community. Our
Honorable Mayor and Board of AL
1ermen should see that we get first
class building ordinance, and that it
S enforced.
;onflagraton Danser-ResponsibiIity
of State and City Governments
The aggregate of wealth in the con-
sested value districts of our cities