Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1921-09-10
INSURANCE AND THE SCHOOL BOAR

for years. No wonder the UNDER
writer's most gladly reduced the rate
To 1916 when the line was To be In
creased from about 100000 to ~
millions The school board did about
all there WAS to be done To get low
er rate when they decided on n
blanket policy carrying 30 per cent CO.
Insurance. The Increase In insurance
raised about 400 per cent. the rate re-
duced about 90 per cent-why not
make the changer
/ now enter upon phase of the
question that Is more vital from the
taxpayers standpoint than anything
yet said, either by myself or any one
else. ! refer to the tremendous over
insurance on the school property.
In 1919 the school board decided. i
believe, at MIR. Stradley's suggestion,
10 have an expert appraisement of the
entire physical outfit of The entire
school plant buildings and contents
This cost the taxpayers 81 200. This
apprnisement was made while we were
yet under wartime conditions. In
lfiated values on everything Labor. ma
teriais. etc Just how the appraisers
even under these conditions ever ar-
| rived at their conclusions is more than
can fathom. Take school No 40
| built 10 or ~ years ago for $40 a50
after being In use for 10 years the ex.
perts place value upon Il OF tee,.
| 740 II was insured last year for
| sTs,boo. with value of $4,000.
furthermore. IL is this year TO be
covered for the same sum
Take another case: The old high
| school was built in 1910 at cost oi
| si70tD0o; the appraisers I'm 1919 placed
valuation upon Il OF s42s.s00 and i
| was insured last year, and to be In.
sured this year for s340. 900. schoo
No. II was built in 1888 years ag,
at cost of s2a,2ae eo-it was ap
praised at 100000 and insured las
year. and TO be insured this year foi
$4,000. School No. 2s was built n
| 1855 at a cost of sTs, $50 4e. 1t wal
insured last year for si3s 600 and #
to be insured for the same sum thI
year. The high school annex cost les
than si50,000. 1t was appraised a
sSaa.0oo and insured Lac year 70
s2se 900: the same amount is pro
posed for thie year.
Going over the entire uutft IN
figures show that the insurance /,
each case shows an initiation of 90 pc
cent over the cost price. and thi
In face Of the fact that many Of tn
buildings are 90 to 30 years old, an
lpriees Of materials and labor being re
duced constantly. II is entirely saf
/ -. k.s -. a
Iduced by a million dollars and stiH b
safe and ample thus saving the tax
payers $4,000 to $4,000. Let some on
prove to the contrary.
| Here is real chance for Mr.. strad
ley to show his loyalty 10 the peopl
who elected him and ~ the cause h
serves. Where is the man who pur
chased q house in 1919 for $40. 600 VIII
would then or now insure Il for $50
600 and expect to recover the sum In
sured in case IL was burned unless h
deliberately proposes to take advan
tage Of our valued policy law. whie
enables people to over-insure and dc
fraud the insurance companies.
can't believe that any member Of tn
school board has any thought of usin
this law for the benefit Of the school
or disadvantage of the Insurance com
panies. Nevertheless. when they al
low an insurance twice the value {
tho school property. as the cases
cite. they mike IL absolutely posxibl
that such a thing can happen.
Why joke with the school insuraAc
on that basis ionger7
| Minor q guaf4h
Sept s. 1921.