New-York tribune., 1910-11-23
AIM AT FIRE INSURANCE
Graft Committee Defers lnveStI'
cation of Corruption.
STATE is WITHOUT POWER
Present Laws Give Common
wealth No Authority for
Fixing Rates.

y. r;r, Rruce counsel TO the leglsla-
,iye investigating committee. opened yes
,erdav-s session Of that body with the
.-ro,,,cer,ent that for the present the
investigation into corruption "oold oe io'u
aside. 10 take IN the economic sac oi
fire insurance matters.
He also said that after to-day's session
.he committee would adjourn until Tues
6sv November % and that at the session
-o1loeifg the Thanksgiving holiday recess
he might be prepared 10 go on with the
srcrIirv as 10 the lobby fund Of the racing
interests
The fire insurance field. NT Bruce said.
would be taken up from its economic side
snd in an elementary way, and he thought
that there was so much work ahead Of
lie committee in its investigation Of FIRE
insurance matters that al the time we
,'fave left could be well spent upon it
Matters pertaining TO corruption. how
ever. he said. would not he permanently
e5Cetrac acked for the insurance end of the
investigation. hut the two sessions OF this
week would he devoted 10 insurance. with
possible return 70 the graft investigation
'3arer
The gallery which has been following
iTho committees inquiry into the racing
i1natters and other forms Of alleged cor
surtion a. Albany faded away rapidly after
sk-Hif1Ef Bruce : announcement. ana the
work of the day was not even honored
~ the presence Of the entire committee
1tself. Members drifted in and out and
q no tina during the day was the entire
anerlhersIlin present
Examine Insurance Men.
Daniel F. Gordon. chief examiner IF FIRE
strsCrance companies in the State Insur-
anoe Department: Professor Albert W.
~ho = the actuarial adviser of the COM
r7lirree, snd George " Rahb. general at
to-uer for TIE Northern Assurance Com
PAM. and ? member Of the National Board
cf Fire Underwriters, were the witnesses
@NaTlned- The great bulk OF their testi-
f1nonN Was read from printed or typewrit-
Ten reports of the State insurance depart
777erlts and tfe Fire Underwriters boards
isnd committees
After establishing tho fact that there
&c some ep7 fire ard eighteen marine in
ltlTance companies doing business in New
York State, Nr. Gordon was led around
- the subject of the New York Fire In
s9r7nce Exchange
self-constftute1 todv which licenses
brokers vas his reply to ? question from
<N-ludge Bruce asking him II tell tha
ton1rnitteA inst what the exchange is
Does II ~ rates. asked the counsel.
YES"
and il has no legal right TO Issue
1irerses7"
IT has not"
Mt Gordon sald in response 70 further
o'es'iornnE that about - rer cent Of the
a'ldl h'mneT OF fire insurance brokers in
New ork City held licenses from tbe He,,.
York Fire Insurance Exchange. and that
BROKERS not licensed by that body We're not
sble to DO the business that the licensed
brokers could
some large corporations. carrying heavy
i insurance. Nr- Gordon said employed hrok-
N ers on salary To hook after their in
VI tdrahoe. ano This, he thought, might re-
Suft in such corporations getting what
would be in effect a preferential rate He
pointed out that under the present in
sIranCe laws The state had no power to
TX or even supervise the rates that may be
charged for FIRE insurance and thar The
scheme of manufacturers banding toget her
for mutual fire protection was against the
law Of jhis state. though permitted in
Massachusetts. Connecticut, New Hamp-
shire and Rhode Island
Commissions TO AGENTS.
Professor hitnev Was examined bv Al
fTed IUrreN nna Of the assistant counsel
% the committed lie read 4 mass Of sta
IfsficS on fh.e earnings and disbursements
-echoned that the average commission of
agents on nov business amounted 10 about
q ger cent of The premiums.
TIE examination Of ETr. Babb was noint-
"a largely Al the activities of the National
Board of Flrc Underwriters, a body which
was Originally formed for the purpose of
> 1Lg EaDes throughout the country, and
5oE hxsHS uniform rate of commission
20 agents. II appeared that the National
tT2r1-E
some years ago. and turned its attention to
ltae broader fed of inspection of city fire
protection. and endeavored 10 secure i'm
iprcyenents in building construction look
ling toward d decrease in the fire loss of
The country
The work of the National Board Of Fire
Underwriters said Mr.. Babb lis educa-
Iional and Of public service nature"
About one-balf Of the stock fire insur-
ence companies in the United States hold
membership IN tie board, he said and
l1nutual companies were not wanted because
lT1ey Were aimed not at profit, but simply
q protection Building construction
throughout the United States Is gradually
iin1provinG. from the viewpoint OF fire pro
,1ecrion. he said, but European countries
Is whole are sjill far ahead Of America
.3n thai respect
The fire loss in the United States aver
sE@s about s173,000Oal a year. or s247 per
,.apita as against 33 cents per apita in
Europe ~ said and in this country out
Of every two buildings erected approx
z1lately one Is destroyed by fire
Poor construction. poor material and
osrelessness generally in the handling of
srfau7n1able materials were the chief con
1ributors TO this American fire loss. he
sad. though the fact that forests were
Erill thick in sections was an added cause
which could not be remedied 50 easily or
quickly as would be possible with the first
complaints.
Ex-Judge Bruce said last night that the
inquiry TO-DAY would follow the same tech
,7fcai lines as II did yesterday, because
1e viewed il as necessary foundation for
his Urobe of the IRE insurance business.
with sDecial reference 10 the rates charged
for fire insurance IN this state
GIVES 81 EACH TO 1000 FAMILIES.
William J. Tollnlan. Of the New York
Stock Exchange firm Of Jules S. Bache &
Co has distributed two thousand hooks