The evening world., 1912-01-10
NO THOUGHT YET
Of BUILDING NEW
EQU|TABLEH0ME
Too Much Work on Hand in
Getting Business Back Into
Regular Channels.
THINK SECURITIES SAFE.
If Destroyed, 100000 Policies,
Bonds and Mortgages Can
Easily Be Duplicated.
THINK SECURITIES SAFE.

1oS Two hours to-day OFFICIALS OF the
Equitable Life worked to provide work.
iuO space for the $50 employees whose
onoss were destroyed by IRE. At the
sn4 Of that time type writers were
clicking. adding machines were Keeling
Oh their totals and routine business
was under way almost az though no
hitch had occurred.
President Day came with his force of
egecutvss to No. I65 Broadway. where
tte second. third ana fourth noors were
token yesterday as chief ofices Of the
company. At 0 o'clock a great. barren
yoom on the second foor had only dis
sennectsd wires to indicate It could be
0ves. clerks and stenographers stood
aomlessly for half an hour. Then the
raster head got busy and in thirty
minutes nifty desks had appeared. Fifty
employees went to work. Fifty more
1osks followed. and soon the place was
a1ivsiy. active centre Of industry.
Then the executives began to take
stock Of what the company would rave
70 DO and what real damage had been
Gene. One of the first questions was
whether the Equitable would sell It's
oh land, build q new home uptown or
build . great skyscraper OF the site Of
IL old building at No. l2o Broadway.
Bat immediate needs were too serious
te permit n time to be given to the
bsilding question to-day. T.. F.. Ritten-
house, commissioner Of conservation In
the old building was duly made COM
missioner OF conversation In the new
sfhces. and al! ofhcial information was
centred upon him at the Hazen Build
lng.
NO ACTION TO-DAY ON NEW
BUILDING.
He said:
"There IL no executive meeting set for
to-day. All the chief executives will be
close to Judge Day. ana they will have
all they can do to meet the immediate
demands of the moment. Telesrams are
pouring in from all parts Of the coun-
Try. The task Of getting the routine
business in order Is immense. and I do
not expect any action will be taken to-
day respecting a new building.
"The law provides that an insurance
company may only erect a building for
ths proper use Of its own business. l
do not think this Law would be con-
strued to mean that the company could
not erect an once building 80 the rents
might meet the interest on the invest
mont. That 10 q matter for the de-
ciaon Of the State oficial. But I do
not regard II a. standing In the way
OF erecting q great building In even,
the company decides to take this
action"
ohisf Interest centred upon the 100,o 900
pedio,ss upon which loans had been
made and which were In the vaults Of
the old building. Many inquiries had
hen made about these policies.
Z nav not the slightest idea" said
Nh Rttenhouse. that any OF the pol
SoSn0 have been destroyed. Chief Binns
yeported that the vaults were intact and
W believe their contents ere all right.
Dut svsn II this Is not the case. the
No. Of the policies will entail no more
serious trouble than the mere clerical
labor Of replacing them. We have a
solnplsts history OF each Of the policies
a 9 card index file and they can be
relDsusd without any trouble. The
oVners Of these policies need fear moth
Nc with respect 10 their property.
bonds AND MORTGAGES SAFE,
TOO.
The same condition 10 true with re-
gard to bonds and mortgages In the
vaults. We had comparatively few
stocks. All these are listed with this
state Department and an accurate de-
~scraption Of each security 10 on record.
There 10. OF course a perfectly lawful
anA regular curse to DO pursued In
duplicating such property II It Is lost
In . firs. Blu we do not think there ID
any ground for apprehension on that
score"
The executives of tho company. II was
learned to-day from other sources. are
not agreed as to the plan OF building q
new home on the old site. There II
sone disposition TO put up a new build
ing uptown.
Plans now on Ale with the Building
Department for a new building were
drawn in 1907 by n. II. Burnham a Co
OF Chicago. They called for a sixty
two-story building. to cost 81. 200, 900. IN
Guiding the ground. The plans were
nled June .. 1908. and tho building Their
suggested was a wonder of architecture
II was designed to rise ag feet above
tho curb line, or 200 feet higher thar
the Metropolitan Tower.
The temporary quarters at the City
Investing Company's Building are ample
To accommodate all the employees from
the old house. Only oIe-ffth Of thu
employees in New York were housed a
No, 100 Broadway. The company hai
an indefnite lease on the new %offices.
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