Norwich bulletin., 1912-12-17

Fire Chief Howard L. Stanton. The early part of the evening was spent in an earnest and profitable discus sion by the three speakers upon fire insurance matters, local and general. A banquet concluded the pleasant evening at 11.30 o'clock.
 For the first part of the programme the members gathered in private room, with an attendance of about 20, when President Walter F. Lester open ed the meeting by expressing his thanks for the board to the speakers who were to address the gathering, and referred briefly to the history of the Norwich board of underwriters in the 36 years of its existence, coming now to membership of thirty and having had very successful experience in all its time.
 Mayor First Speaker.
 He introduced Mayor T. c. Murphy in a pleasant way, and the mayor was greeted with applause as he arose and expressed his pleasure at attending the gathering of the local insurance agents. He referred to what the city had done for fire protection al this coming to the benefit of the fire companies, say ing that he believed Norwich had done more for the fire companies in the last len years than any other city he knew of. In the last ten years Norwich has expended $160.00 more for the depart ment than in the preceding ten years. He said he had been accused of being a chronic kicker about the fire depart nlent, and he still was willing to op- pose expenditures for that unless he thought he was getting an equivalent. He gave instances on his own property Of an increase of insurance rates, and said he believed there ought to be some arrangement by which the people in a city like Norwich should not pay as much as people in Jewett City or Putnam. He said the city had been putting more money into its fire de- partment, but the rates had been going up increasingly. He thought condi- tions in Norwich warranted an ex- pectation of lessened rates.
 An Old Croquet Player.
 State President Dale D. Butler fol- lowed Mayor Murphy, opening his in- s6ructive talk with pleasant refer vnce to former years when he came here to play roque Cor croquet, as it was them at the national tournaments here. AS for himself, he said, he was an also-ran, but he came close to hon. ors once, since his brother won the national championship one year. He assured the mayor that he was getting rate as favorable as could be expect cd, and on the question of the fire de- partment he thought 1t was probably in the same class of performance as the Middletown department, since 1t was doing the important thing of put ting out fires and keeping them down to small compass, but that probably 1t was as far short of what insurance men called an ideal fire department as it is ahead of what it was ten years ago. He spoke of the confagration hazard, which is now so much greater and so much different than the hazard of years ago, and said we were all feeling pretty good about our fire de- partments as long as they do the es- sential thing of getting there on time and putting out fires before they get much of a start, although this was not the complete test of what we ought to have.
 President Butler went on to speak of the business ethics which should gov ern an association of fire insurance agents, and advocated the membership of each local board in the national as- sociation, which could serve as val uable channel of information for all it's members.
 He made a strong point of the value of associations of local agents and of state associations and predicted increasing power and influence with the insurance companies to be exer- cised by such associations. The con- tingent commission plan was strongly advocated by President Butler as the proper way to measure the payment coming to agents from their companies besides putting a premium upon prop CT selection, inspection and rejection of risks The idea of an anti-rebate law which he said was a proposition likely to come up in the legislature was favored by the New London con- vention, but he claimed there was no need of such a law as it was a mat ter to be governed by the local ex- change. State President Butler also showed some criticism to the present method of making rates by the New England insurance exchange. Fair play was the one rule which should govern the insurance agents in their husiness relations.
 Chief Stanton.
 Local President Lester introduced Chief Stanton with some pleasant ref erences to the confidence Norwich felt in its fire chief who was to talk upon
 
 Stanton was greeted with applause.
 He said that fire prevention in some minds was chiefly in proper inspec- tion, but he thought that was not all and he considered that Norwich was as well inspected as any city in the Htate, and particularly at this period of the year. He spoke of the con stant knowledge that the local firemer had of ways of entrance and exit to an mercantile buildings and described how the data on conditions in Nor wich buildings is kept. One way ot getting lower rates that he indicated was to have sprinkled besaments 1T the mercantile risks. Chief Stanton spoke of his idea that there ought tC be a state fire marshal whose office should be distinctly divorced from tht state police This would result 1T much better work in detection and fer reting out of ineendiary fires. Because we are a shingled city. Chief Stantor said, the hazard of confagration wa! with us all the time. We had hat some big fires, but no conflagrations If 1t had not been for the 110,354 los in the Central wharf lumber distric fire this year. our whole loss for 191. would have been only a little owe $9,000 In the lumber district fire re ferred to there was a total valuation in property at risk of S257,S50 and tn insurance was $175,S00.
 Chief Stanton referred to his mem Aership on two of the twenty min committees of the National Fire Pro toctive association and spoke of tn great work it had accomplishe through which it is possible for neigh boring cities to be of help to eac ether in case of sudden call
 Fire protection, he said, was just a much one of his hobbies as putin cut fires and he had this season bee warning about Christmas decorations Fire prevention was largely matte sf education and he believed that tn foreign element could well be instruct a on methods of fire prevention. Chic Stanton said he believed Norwich com pared most fayorably with any cit on the matter of inspection and tn department, though small was as et fectlve as anything of its size. H fhanked the agents for all the cbuY