The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1914-11-27
GERMANY PLACES
BLAME FOR fires


Fixing fhe responsibility for fires n
Germanyi is q regular feature in the in.
vestigafion thai Is made BY the civil
authorities Of the Fatherland following
fires there How thoroughly the WORK
IL done by Che German ofieials is t6fd
by Col sam H. WOOD, member Of the
FIRE presention enApIttee ofs THO
Worlds fnsnrance Congress, inthe for
lowing. whien was recently received il
HonoI1Iu. f5if \ 'ef 4
- An Amerira6 gentleman. living wfth
his family in Berlin, was one morning
awakened BY the smell Of smoke "a bis
apartment, and found that ahfc. dfiR
mating In a room overhead, was eiftfn6
il sway down through the eciling 81 his
diningfoom. The fro WAS exfihRnisK
cd with a cheInicaf appafatns, without
any water damage and without needless
destruction Of walls and furniture aud
before the firemeh left they had r6tiov.
ed every trace ofrnebris and Scrubbed
the floor in tho room in which they had
worked. s-s
ohicers Investigates alsse
Meanwhile 4 careful ihsestiaatioh
was inside BY onlcers equipped witb
note books, not By asking Questions OF
tenants or gossiping with servants. hnt
from personal observation. Next morn,
ing the gentleman who had turned IL
the alarm was sent for and Conducted
before Z FIRE marshal, or eqniNalent OH
Ger With inquisitofiah powers. That Nc
had Important engagements elsewhere
counted for nothing. Public business
never waits on, private convenience in
PruHsiR, He was asked an sorts Of
questiOns which he WAS able TO answer
satisfactoriiy The Ere was known. TO
have originated from hot lump of
coal which dropped from laundry
stove In the attn and rolled npon an,
unprotected wooden flooE h'f
'tThe tenant showed that the stove
was an. appoihtment Of the building,
provided BY the landlord, and thar Il
was neither his duty nor his privilege
TO change itrs t
Landlord summoned s,
ssThen the landlord was called. He
showed that he had recently purchased
the building, under the usual guaranty
that AL laws and ordinances had been
compiled with instruction and appoint
ments, that he had neither set nor NOV
ed the stove in question, and that his
attention had not been called to any con.
dition involving FIRE risk This was
not considered quite satisfactory and
he was told to await further instruc-
tons. Then the builder from whom the
landlord purchased was called, He had
70 admit that he, az builder, was re-
sponsible for the setting OF the stove
as the police had found It., and that
he had violated the law i'm neglecting
TO provide a suitable metallic hearth
of the required kind and dimensions be-
tween il and the floor. For this Ne was
held eulpable.
Damages Assessed
The assessment against him began
with the estimated cost to the city of
responding to the alarm and extinguish-
ing the fre, including the damage to
the furniture and property of tenants,
and WIS rounded by an exemplary fine
OF five hundred marks as reminder that
laws are enacted for a purpose, and
carry substantial penalties for their /,
violation Tho damage TO the building !
was not included IN the assessment /
against the builder II was held that |
while the, owner had, not committed the !,
violation Of law which cnused the FIRE, !
he had been negligent in not discover
Ing and correcting IT., and for this rea.
son he should pay for HIS own repairs
and stand charged with a knowledge |
OF has duty in like cases - ..,.tt