The weekly tribune and the Cape County herald. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1914-1918, 1916-04-28
SO out of 800 Inspections Re-
veal Fire Menace in
Electrical Officials.
SAYS S. E. MO. is FIRE
INSURANCE GRAVEYARD
S. E. Cate Says City Must Paint
Up and Get Reduction in
Rates.

business houses inspected yesterday on
the opening of the Cape's "swat-the-
4 fire" campaign, have defective electric
light wiring that constitutes menace
to the city's safety, threatening it with
conflagration in virtually every bust
ness block of the city.
This was the chief feature of Chair
man W. c. Browns report after the
A committee of Fire Prevention experts
had turned in their inspection data to
him at the close Of the first days
work.
The nature of the defects in the
wiring were as varied us the number
of hazards themselves, Mr.. Brown
said.
In some places the wires were toe
old for use, insulation had been worn,
wires were too light to carry the load
placed upon them, fuse plugs in many
cases were too heavy, and in large
number of the cases Of defective wiz
ing the entrance into the building and
passage through partitions and floors
was made in the wrong manner.
every one of the electrical wiring
defects l consider menace that is apt
to start a fire at any moment" Mr..
Brown said. MANY of the defects
that we're pointed out may last with
out fire for years, and yet the char
acter of the work was such that there
is no assurance that there will not be
4 fire in any Of these places today or
tomorrow.
'One of the most common causes
that fire are ascribed to is the defect
in electrical wiring. Persons who are
burned out are always willing to shrug
their shoulders and say: 1t was defec-
tive wiring'
"That is why the 9S places we found
out of 300 inspections made where we
found wires out Of order, should be
repaired at once. 1t will mean a saw
ing in the individual rates"
In the report that was made to Mr.
Brown yesterday evening by the nine
teen special insurance agents who
scrutiniZed Cape commercial estab-
lishments, 255 defects were pointed
out, each one of them constituting a
grave danger of fire.
These defects were as follows:
In p places, gasoline was not kept
IN the proper manner and rs a cOnse-
quence the fire insurance rates on
these establishments have what are
known as after charges" of from )
TO % cents on the $1G0 valuation. By
changing the treatment of gasoline
supply, the rate could be cut that
much.
In "a places a fire menace was found
in rubbish in closets, Easements and
alleys. Such places are given an
latter charge" of ) cents on the 500
valuation.
SiXty-eight establishments did not
have the furnace or stoves installed in
the proper manner to guard against
fire.
The IS places where electric wiring
was found to be bad, 10 cent latter
charge" is being placed on the risk.
Many of the establishments inspect
ed are represented in more than one
section OF this classification of defects.
Many of the merchants and prOprie-
tors already had cleaned up in antici-
patton of the visit of the inspectors,
Mr.. Brown declared.
"The swat-the-fre notion seemed
already to have taken effect" he said.
an many corners we could see where
dust and rubbish had been cleaned out
and endeavors made to put things in
ship-shape. 1t is splendid beginning
and our association desires to do all
we can to aid the work further"
A complete record will be made of
each of the inspections in the Cape,
and copies will be sent to each of the
local agents in this city as well as the
officers of the fire insurance companies
doing business here.
The fire insurance companies will
instruct their agents to look after
their own risks, seeking to have the
defects noted remedied. In this man.
ner the work will be carried on in u
permanent way and the campaign will
be kept alive by the fire insurance
companies until the Cape is clean of
fire hazards.
Southeast Missouri has simply
been d graveyard for insurance CON-
panies," S. E. Cate of St. Louis, spe-
cial agent for enc of the companies,
declared last night at the meeting in