Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-03-22
The High Pressure Project.
To the Editor of The Star:

10 the Editor OF The Star:
Washingtonians who have the real in
terest of the city at heart-and their own
safety and also interest-owe you a debt
of gratitude for your editorial on this
subject in your issue of the 18th
The only fault l can find with it is that
1t was a bit mild, too diplomatic. The
commissioners deserved a severe scoring
and you gave them but a gentle repri-
mand.
Deferring that most necessary precau-
ton, a high pressure service, is false
economy. it's banking solely upon Provi-
dence or good luck. Because We have
not had a serious fire here lately is no
sign that we will not have one, that we
do not deserve one. We depend upon our
wide streets, the absence of tall buildings,
manufacturing plants and such for our
protection; San Francisco, aided and
abetted by the insurance companies, de-
pended upon the excellence of it's fire
department. and Baltimore depended
upon something else. What did all that
dependence amount to when fire really
did assail those two cities? And what
wailing and pickering there was! Every
one was blaming some one else. And by
some occult process the things they
should have done. but neglected. were
made clear to them, but too late, too
late! So will it be here some day. We
can daily with and put off the things we
should do-fire protection, proper santa
ton. etc.-but We are bound to pay
heavily in life and property loss for the
criminal neglect of our officers and our
own criminal ignorance and apathy.
But the most calling part Of the Com
missioners' report is their confession of
utter ignorance of the first principles of
fire prevention in this paragraph:
1T is fact that fire insurance COM
panieS regard such a system as means
of decreasing hazards, and therefore the
installation would inure to their benefit,
but as there is no hope of obtaining a
lower premium rate those insured would
derive no benefit commensurate with the
cost. Until it becomes apparent that by
providing the system substantial conces-
sions would be made by the companies
to the insuring public, consideration of the
project should be abandoned"
Now. what the dickens have the Com
missioners to do with the rates of the
insurance companies? Why should we
protect our lives more or less according
to the rates the latter charge? Are we to
assume that the Commissioners are SO
stupid that they still think the companies
care a continental about our protection
They are concerned in just one thing,
profits from insurance. L is asinine to
protect ourselves only to such extent as
will warrant the companies in gambling
with us that they'll have only to pay out
their Golfers in premiums. They thrive
on fires. they fear only conflagration.
And San Francisco was proof that even
in that respect they fell shy in shrewd-
ness, for they wrote ridiculOusly low
rate there in spite of the fact that it was
| a wooden city.
Arranging our building laws and cur
fire protection not we know they
should be and as we need. but only just
so much as to please or get fair ratings
from the insurance people. is as silly as
it would be for the prohibition people, for
instance, to make their campaign hinge
upon the price of beer at the corner bar
room, or for the pure food folk to say
that manufacturers of foods could use
this or that deadly poison porvided they
charged so and much less for the
food article so adulterated
Fs w. FITZPATRICK.