Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1910-04-15
Would Reduce Tax On Fireproof
Buildings.

Gus fire losses lies not so much in in
creased insurance as in proper build
ing. Statisticians say that in The
= year 1905 we paid 1886 100000 in pre-
miums and got back $4,000 900 10 pay
in part for the property destroyed,
To put it in another way we spend
, 81 per capita each year for fire and
smoke, while in Europe the people
average to spend 33 cents for these
Injuries. In addition 5000 human lives
were lost in a single year. Great loss
IS like those at Baltimore and San
Francisco make the total dubious IN
the extreme. All this points to the
time when real freprOof material VIII
| supplant wood and other cOmbustlbies
IN manufacturing, mercantile anu
home building construction
II is estimated that fireproof pulld-
| ines cost less than IL per cent. more
in the first place than wooden build
ings, that they last Infinitely longer
than the wooden buildings, that the
| maintenance cost is less, that the in
surance rate is reduced 10 q minimum
and that these savings, in few years,
more than wipe out the II per cent,
additional first cost. People who have
| freproOf building materials for sale
are fostering this movement very ten
derlv of course for any widespread
| adoption OF fireproOf materials means
an increase in their business and at
tendant prosperity for them. but III
| the absence of better evidence to the
| contrary than has been advanced
thus far, it would seem that their
| argument FOR buildings that are more
| nearly fireproof has much to COM
mend it to the builder.
Th.. American Architect makes the |
unique suggestion that municipalities
should encourage the building Oh ire
| proof structures through reduction !
| in taxation. the point being that with |
| this as an additional incentive many |!
men who heretofore have figured that |
il would be better business to take |!
| the risk with a cheap wooden building |
| than 10 erect a permanent structure,
would be Influenced to build the more |
expensive but more permanent and |
entirely freproof structure.
Looked at fairly" says the Ameri-
can Architect. 1T is the community |
at large that is the culprit since IL
suffers fires to take place when it
really has the power to prevent them
1t looks calmly on at the expenditure
of millions annually, millions that
come out OF its own pockets, FOR the
maintenance of imperfectly effective
fire departments and yet, if but half
of the money spent in this way had
been used in the difference in cost be-
tween cornbustible and ncombustible
construction. the greater part of our
cities would now be indestructible.
1T mas been the assumption that
real estate improver, as sane bust
ness man, should be able to perceive |
how much it was to his own ultimate |
building. The true theory is that in
comhustible buildings must be built.
1t is really immaterial to the taxpayer
whether an individual elects to let his
building be destroyed by fire, hut it
is Of very real interest to the public |
that the lives and property Of other
people shall not be ieopardiZed and |
destroyed at the same time. 1t is de-
sirable to substitute unburnable for |
burnablc buildings with the shortest |
delay possible, since a cOnf1agration
may occur any day. and the process
can be better accomplished by coaXing |
than by compulson.
THE one thing for our municipali- |
ties to do is to arrange the taxation
Of property in accordance with the |
latter's pcrmanency and !ndestructi- |
blity. fixed rate on ground values |
and sliding rate on buildings. the
minimum on freprOof buildings and
the maximum on fire-traps would be
perfectly equitable to all. 1t would !
put the burden of paying for the
maintenance of fire departments upon
those who needed the service. and
would mean a lessened load of tax
on those who are public spirited as
well as business like enough to build
60 as to not require such service. 1t
is the one sane municipal solution of
the problem, the one way of extract
ing ourselves from under the yoke of
the insurance companies: the surest
means of stopping the ravages of the
Great Red Plague-FIRE."
| An lnex perjenced Man Who Succeed-