.a5- ^, IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I 1.25 la 14.0 1.4 1 I 2.5 2.2 2.0 1.8 1.6 150mm o 7 /APPLIED A INA4GE . Inc .^^g 1653 East Main Street .^S 'j. Hochester. NY 14609 USA ^^^= Phone: 716/482-0300 J^^.^S. Fax: 716/288-5989 O 1993. Appt<«<) Image. Inc . AH Rights Reserved i\^ ;\ ^ 'y. & CIHM Microfiche Series (i\/ionographs) ICIMH Collection de microfiches (monographles) Canadian Instituta for Historical IMicroraproductions / Inttitut Canadian da microraproductions historiquaa Ttchnical and Bibliographic NotM / Notat tachniquai at bibliorapliiquas Th« C to thi Tha Initituta has attamptad to obtain tha ba sion. and anding on tha last poga with a printad or illuatratad imprassion. Tha last racordad frama on aach microfieha shall contain tha symbol «^ (moaning "CON- TINUED"), or tha symbol ▼ (moaning "END"), whichavar applias. Mapa, platas. charts, ate, may ba fllmad at diffarant raduction ratios. Thosa too larga to ba antiraly includad in ona aaposura ara fllmad baginning in tha uppar iaft hand cornar. iaft to right and top to bottom, as many framas as raquirad. Tha following diagrams illustrata tha mathod: L'axamplaira film* fut raproduit grica A la g«n4rositA da: LaH School, Dalhouafo Unfvorsltv. Halifax Las Imagas suivsntss ont «t« raproduitas svsc Is plus grsnd soin, comets tsnu da la condition at da la nattat* da l'axamplaira film*, at on conformM avac las conditions du eontrst da fllmaga. Laa axamplairaa originaux dont la eouvarturs an papiar ast ImprimAa sont film«s 9n commangant par la pramiar plat at •n torminant toit par la darni*ra paga qui comporta una omprsints d'imprassion ou d'illustration. soit par la socond plat, salon la cas. Tous las sutras axamplaira* origlnaux sont filmAs •t% commancant par la pramlAra paga qui comporta una amprainta d'impraasion ou d'illustration at an tarminant par la damiAra paga qui comporto una taila iimpralnta. Un daa symbolos suivants sppsrsltra sur ts darnlAra imaga da ehaqua microficha, salon la cas: la symbolo «^ signifis "A SUIVRE ". Is symbols ▼ signifis "FIN". Laa cartas, planchas, tabloaux. ate. pauvant «tra fllmAs A daa taux da rAducti^n diffArarits. Lorsqua la document ast trop grand pour *t a reproduit •n un saul clichS. i! ast film* S psrtir da I'angia supAriaur gaucho, c'a gaucha A droita. at da haut mn bas. an pranant la nombra d'imagas nAcaaaaira. Las diagrammas suivsnts illustrant la mAthoda. 1 2 3 22X 1 2 3 4 5 6 F A HAN] With Sun-AoKNi OF The I Ti Fire Insurance. A HAND BOOK FOR INSURANCE AGENTS. IIY FRANK 11. FAIllWEATHEll, ST. JOHN, N. B. With Articles on the Duties of Agents and Sun-AOBNTS, AND A DIGE.ST OF THE FiBE INSURANCE CaSES OF THE Maritime Provinces op Canada. BT Tub Latb REGINALD 11. FAIRWEATHER, B.C.L. ST. JOHN, N. B. ST. JOHN, N. B. TiiK St. John Globe Pitblishino Company Limited. 1900. DALHOUSIE LAW SCHOOC LIBRARy INTRODUCTION. Bt a. a. Stockton, LLD., D.C.L, Q.C. ^ JIK huHiness of Fire InHurnnco jh one which more or I IfsM det^ply (iffocts the wolfiire of all clasHes. More I ^'"*" fi^ty yiNiiH ago an t'ininent legal writer naid, -■- reHpecting tlii« flt'imrtnicnt of ImsinesM : "At no former jH-riod in the history of civilization has the law of insur- anw. aiwuniiHl the in.portanco or awakened the interoHt which belongs to it at the present time in nearly every part of the civij. ized world." The statement hol.l. good as to iu importance and status at the present day. Professional men and agenU of insurance companies are ex- pected to have knowledge of the business; but it is important that those taking out iHilicies of insurance for protection against loss should also have some intelligent knowleate Mr. L. V. DeBury, B.A., B.C.L, Barrister-at- Law, whose qualifications for the self-imposed work are rtuidilv a«knowledge,.Io to apply for a reduction in tho rates nrevaiiin ' dunng the ti,ne the extraordinary profit w.s n.a
'he claiming £5000 LtJl" 'T^^^ *" ''^*'°" '°^ ^'^d-' and SolLtor oLeraTSl" U ."' ^"'"'"^^ ^«-~> «"«« A^d': toira'z:' orB?:;iT r-^'^- *^^^- ^. accusation as T itsfan'r: cha^ 'ant^^'^^. ^'^^^ many slanders circulated about !Lo ? °°^ °^ ^^^ gentleman is any more worthv . "'"■'*'• ^'^«'^'»«'- '^i^ were on the spof aTtTeC ^1""'^"" *'"*° *^« ^^'^ -ho we cannot determ ne H.« °',"!"-'^°''«' '« * question that defective. Hr s""s ^ir^^^^'T' '°°"'"^^« '« »* '««' 1787. and that ma":^ itust hr^irL"" '' ''''*"'' ^- «' - "^et;'?r^""^^^^^^ (Page We find no further record of any further fi J actions until 1827 Tn .k- ^ """^'^ ^"^^ »"8«rance trans- «^7. In this year the ^tna and Hartfo«l 1 2 The Early History of Firtf Insurance in St. John. established themselves in St. John, their first agent being Alexander Bailoch. About this time the Mutual Fire Insurance Company of St. John was organized, with Isaac Woodward as fii-st agent. This company had a long life, and was regarded with a certain amount of confidence. It boasted of a house plate, consisting of two clasped banc's. These house plates were attached to the buildings insured in this company. The Mutual lasted until the great fire of 1877, when it disappeared, leaving unpaid losses amounting to $75,000. Between 1830 and 1850 various American companies came to St. John. Another local company, "The King's County Mutual," was started, and was in existence as early as 1847, with Justus Earle as secretary, but soon came to an end. The "Central," of Fredericton, established in 1836, came to St. John between the years 1840 and 1850. George Thomas was first agent, and although this company lost $55,000 in the St. John fire of 1877, it weathered the disaster, and is still in the field. In 1851 came the " Liverpool and London and Globe," and "Royal," the first two English companies to open agencies in St. John, though followed later, at various dates, by a number of the best of the great British companies. Edward Allison was the first agent of the " Liverpool and London and Globe," and J. J. Kaye of the " Royal." A feature of the earlier years of fire insurance in this province, was the number of American and local companies. We have already mentioned the "St. John Mutual," "The King's County Mutual," " The Globe," and " Central," but besides these there were "The Maritime Mutual," the "Provincial" of Toronto, the "National" of Montreal, the "Canada Fire and Marine," the " Croton " of New York, the " Canada Agricultural," the "Lorillard," the "Harmony," the "Stadacona," the "Morris," and the "Niagara," insurance companies. A number of these suspended after the great fire of 1877, some disappeared fi-om that date, and the rest seem to have sunk panics came to T)w. Early History of Fire Iterance in St. John. 13 mo the di.„ obscurity of the past -•. unwept, unhonouml and of hen /in U "'"^ '"" ^'« «"'^' ^ -« - longer hear or ineni in tlio insurance world. We thh.k, however, that the heavy fi„, ^^d of St. John, has Be««„ ,851 .„d ,866 (wK.„ ,l„ fi„e bo.ri .„ fomcdl THE EARLY HRE PROTECTION. codd „„, h.v, b^« f 'f J,": f- '»■• '»» «™ engine. TheM we «„d . n.n.l^e\r.rfr-l/r j,'^« rr- -" of-ying !.„*„ ,„,„,„ ;j^f„t Jtit*' nl'''-'.'''^ welJs were locatpd i^ v c """"b *«»8- The principal the Vicinity .rSl.^Zfrp''"™'""'"" ='" ("»' " '» 1820 .„L Ji'„ „r °'/°"''"'"'« Hill, .„d in P„ra.nd. I,^ «e« for th. in^r;!!.! „?r'r ""'' ''''"°"' ""f"' '»<' '" ^'0.000, p.,3d i~.:;%::7/r;* t-"- -^ 14 The Early Fire Protection. In 1837 The St. John Water Company was regularly organ- ized, surveys were made, waterworks were built, and the first practical attempt at bringing water into the city from Lily Lake was carried out. The water was not brought, as in the opinion of eminent engineers it should have been, directly fi-ora Lily Lake to the city by its own gravitation, but was taken from the tail, near Gilbert's Mill, and conducted thence by a sluice to a reservoir, or cistern, which was placed a few yards to the south- west of the Marsh Bridge. An engine and pumping house was erected over the cistern, a steam engine and gear procured, and the water was sent through a 10-inch main to the reservoir on Blockhouse Hill. The supply passed through a very limited number of pipes, and the inhabitants, up to 1850, could only get water for two hours each morning. A sufficient supply had to be drawn during the two hours the water was turned on to last for the twenty-two it was oflF; and when a fire broke out no water could be had for its extinction until the " tank " or reser- voir on Blockhouse Hill was opened and the mains filled. The time usually lost in this way was from fifteen to thirty minutes, but sometimes it was much more, when from any cause the alarm was delayed in reaching the turnkey whoso special duty was to turn on and shut off the water. When the fire was serious, or threatened to be so, a messenger had to be dispatched to the Marsh Bridge pumping station to start the steam engine work- ing, so as to supplement the supply in the reservoir, which seldom exceeded 150,000 gallons, and often not one-half of this, as the engine was only run tri-weekly. It was to terminate this most undesirable state of things, and to obtain a more copious and constant supply for fire purposes, and a softer and healthier water for steam and house use, that in 1850 an appeal was made to the citizens on public grounds and they were earnestly solicit- ed to take up new shares of the Water Company which were oflFered for sale. The money from this source was to be applied to the bringing of water from Little River at Scott's Mills, five miles distant from the city. The site at Scott's Mills was pur- chased, a small dam built, and a 12-inch main was laid. The same main is still perfect and works as well as ever. The Early Fire Protection. 16 In 1855 the stock and works of th* w-* o transfermJ f^ tK«r- ."/°'^''« ot the Water Company were •heoni Zl ■ '™' "'"'''• ""-"■•"owed i„.„ the 24.teh Ifr L ^ r ""'*°' '"'PI«"i"8 " either of »a„id Lot rrcTz T """' *° '» *" -»• "•• "i'y Xhe^th,^ P^J.hlt'^ :"'"""" "" "O >2-inch ...in^ "ire« pipes then bring to the citv about Sfin nnn n per .»«r, .„„ .h, ,„pp, ;, % bAsS OOOta of ^^ of different size,, £„„ t|,e maiiu .,f «, I i "•""" ™' of pipe 16, 12, 10, 8 ud ei"l , \ ^^'•""'''""'■•of The ,™ .u^"^c ur.o ;■ ;rco:iroftr •' '™'^- » «»ffold in King Square In l«.iiT J^ „ "«° «»"« °" erected .t the iJa „lTi. «. "'"™ '*'" ''o-'er w„ e.rly day., ,i.h (^ antiqu. hLZ department in the volunteer. There „.„ T -j "" "^"'^ »■'• entirely .^ntedeerJXeLX" °"°' '"' "'°" '''""'' "- 'ed, .. ti^e^XtrirJZtfT' *"' """' *' • «"• ™» ---— * .rtu,d^:To--:rx:: 16 The Early Fire Protection. but would run for bin own, ho aa to lie first at the blaze and win the prize. Or when two of the engineH had liurried to tlje Hcene of the fire, and perhaps reached the nearest hydrant together, a liattle royal would ensue in which the heavy wrenches were freely used, while to the dismay of the fire insurance agent tlie fire would bo spreading merrily. Pumping on these hand fire engines was compulsory — all bystanders were lioble to be called on, and refusal to comply meant imprisonment and fine. There was great rivalry amongst these volunteer companies, and on one occasion a Protestant company turned on No. 4, the Roman Catholic company, and a desperate fight ensued, in which No, 4 was routed and their engine taken from them. The engine was then taken to the top of King 8f i-eet, and allowed to drive down the steep hill into the water. The hand fire engines were gradually superseded after 1863. In the early part of this year steam fire engines were purchased, and these were first used at a fire on the twelfth of March, 1863, We find in the year 1867 that the fire department consisted of tlie following : Three steam fire engines ond a large number of hand engines, with an ample supply of hose, ladders, buckets, etc. ; and paid firemen in the place of the volunteers who had disbanded a short time previous to this. The water pipes ot this date had been laid through all the principal streets. There were also corporation ordinances rela- tive to the proper security of flues and stoves, and limits in the principal business parts of the city where no frame buildings were allowed to be erected. The old rates charged seem to have been as follows : Frame stores, from 1 J% to 2% Frame dwellings, detached, 1% Brick buildings were charged, j%, stocks f % Prior to the first regular tariff of 1866, the rates were : On detached brick stores, 8% Stores in brick blocks, 8% to J% On detached frame stores, 1 J% to 1 J% Detached brick dwellings, . 4% to |% Detached frame dwellings, 1% to 1^% and upwards Steam saw mills, 5%, 6% and 7% Water power saw mills 2|% to 3% Cotton and woollen mills, . 3% to 3J% Soap and candle factories, 3i% to 4% Boot and shoe, sewing machine and other factories, li% to 3i% The Early Fire Protection. 17 Thrro 3-ear iK)IieieH at two yoarH' rat«« ,.„ i n- -IK.IS, ..to., were issue.; fronf a.l 78:3 7 "*^''' "'"""'"«' '«77. After tl.at until 1800 ' "'"' "^^ '^ ^''^ ""^ «' .^ithou«H stin i^uedT::,.? „ :; r ;«;7:; ^" ^^« ^^^^^ «fi»eral use in the city. ^ ^ '*'®^ *=*™« '"to In 1H66 the fii-st tariff was isHuivJ T» mtf, .„d ,|„, „„,„„, I « u!,^ !^ """. °' ■''« ■ "" nerie^ c^ch buHd „'. Zd "^Hf T'' '»"'"« ""'»"-. -"■ *«. .Ilowing .he .«.„. .„ .J. ZZ If™/'' r"""""*' ' he oouid out „r the iri,„red ""'' «" "k" The companies, and the a^enfl ^"^^^wnters was formed. ^™^ .. .«; h, .;:: r„;* "K"- •- »-» «• Thomas, Agent of the Central. -r^r.' j-rt !l°T?- - si- „,.. -»<■ In .S73, the .„t ...„,. .mrr.;eMe:" 16 Tht Early Fin Protection. the whole city. New tariffn have since been publiuhetl ax the city grew in extent. From thiu date thq inHurance huHinesH in St. John haH gradu- ally been increasing. Tlie smaller companieH Heem to li''-«'. -der 1. What it is. o. Its advantages as an illuminant. 4. Its disadvantages. I- — Acetylene Gas 20 Acetylene Gas. It is a low or heavy hydrocarbon, and is easily liquified at 100 atmospheres' pressure, or under 50 atmospheres' pressure at the freezing point of water. (1 atmosphere =15 lbs. pressure to the square inch.) Its formula is C* H*, and according to a pamphlet issued by the " Insurance Press," of New York, the gas is very unstable and liable to dissociation of its elements. The main constituent of acetylene is calcium carbide. Calcium carbide is a hard, porous, greyish black material, composed of powdered coke and lime dust heated together in an electric furnace. This substance is not aflfected by heat or acids. The important point to be noted in connection with calcium carbide is, that it is impossible to ignite it or to generate acety- lene gas from it except it is brought in contact with moisture. This fact serves to explain the stringent regulations of the fire insurance associations in regard to limiting the supply of carbide to be kept in a building and that such supply is stored in air- tight metal cans in a perfectly dry place. The calcium carbide when acted upon by water, yields about five cubic feet of acety- lene gas to the pound, and a residue of slacked lime. Tile colour of the flame is white, slightly blue white, though not so much so as the "Welsbach light, and a candle, or electric light, or gas flame looks yellow and reddish beside it. The gas was first brought to public notice, commercially, by Professor Willson's work a few years ago. He established a factory at Merriton, Ont., where he fused together Pocahontas coal dust and lime in an electrical furnace, and thus formed the compound calcium carbide. This can be made now for about $20 a ton, and when thrown into water it decomposes instantly, acetylene gas is liberated and slacked lime precipitated. The chemical process is as follows : When water and calcium carbide come into contact, a double decomposition is at once set up. The hydrogen of the water combining with the carbon of the calcium carbide, forms acety- lene; while the oxygen of the water coalesces with the basic calcium to convert it into calcium hydrate or slacked lime. Thus Acetylene Gas. carbon otW^ciS ""'''"''r '°™'°« " S"-"™ Mr.. «o ..„, z:7tcz :; :r:* tr: ^"'°""' the form of slackpd l,rr,o ^ • . "® -^isiduum in explosive when mixed wJfh „• • 'gn»"on. The gas is explosive force is more intense thrnnl ^'^' u """'"^^ ^'^ «-at as gun cotton. C^n and eoT' ""' ^'""^^ ^^ fixtures with air, ..nge 'froTsVL Ts'/ '".' tt/^P^"-- respectively. /° '^ ^^^' *n tu^ ■ apparatus the duction of gas for consumption, and to cease generation when the consumption is suspended. This type may be either wet or dry The non-automatic or continuous device is one in which acetv lene may be produced continuously by replenishiL thf T of calcium carbide and storintr tZ "^^^'^'"'^""8 ^^^ «»PPJy holder, in which ca.se the rSer '" " ' ^"'^""'^^ "' '^^ and distributer ^ "" ''"''' ^' * P''^««"'« '"^g^Iator one nightwice. z^ z:z::\::i:^^'- - 01 Jse^ rstuot r^ri *'^ ^t *^^ ^^-^-^^ -^ ^^ iows, VIZ. . Immersion, Displacement, Dropping. Immersion. gas p.-e8snre»ithin,l,! ^ reduotion or increaM of Displacement 24 Acetylene Gas. from the generating chamber, but when this pressure becomes reduced by consumption of gas the water rises until it again reaches the carbide, and the process repeats itself in this manner. ' , Dropping. Small and fixed quantities of the calcium carbide are auto- matically dropped into an excess of water ; the dropping of the charge being regulated by the decrease of gas pressure due to consumption. The Characteristics of the Wet Type. Each of the wet type processes has the valuable feature of an excess of water in the generator. This excess serves to absorb the heat generated by decomposition, and insures the complete liberation of the gas, and the proper slacking of the lime. The residuum is thereby formed as a liquid, which may readily be drawn off, or discharged, without admitting air to the generating chamber. But it is evident in regard to the immersion and displacement devices, that neither is truly automatic in the discontinuation of the production of gas after consumption should have ceased. The remainder of the charge of carbide will be gradually decomposed by the water retained in it, and by moisture arising from the contiguous body of water in the generatinj; chamber. Hence, a slow but constant evolution of gas will go on, until all the carbide has been decomposed. This fact renders necessary gas-holders suflSciently large to retain all the gas which may be liberated, or else the pressure due to the increase of gas may be powerful enough to overcome the water seal, and permit the escape of gas to the atmosphere. The third, or dropping device, is more automatic in its produc- tion of gas than either of the others. For, with a gas-holder designed to hold only the quantity of gas generated from each of the small and segregated charges, there can be no over production of gas, and therefore no pressure exerted to break the Acetylene Gas. Th,. delivery chamber m.y be ,„ l«™«"> ■"« -ver time, a. I„„s for ^.17^/11° *" f'r '' ""' '"•» «™ and therefore, intti ~ ■ T " * "'"■•°"- » ''" "P^n. city gas. On the theTr ;, . "^ ^ """"'"* " '''"S»~"» « Ac«y,e„ewr„:tetw;i' * ''"'"'"'^'» -* S-ter. ken«!„e, and not beTnJ . H ' v, . T °"'°"'"' " «»«>«■■« "» blood, a, i, the case with o Jn^.^ "1 "^ ""^ "*"' »' «» Acetylene gas is clear inci colourless Tf na« k j . oo«^by it. '-«ypenet™tin,::nr,re:htrX' we are accustomed to look uponrthTl ^''' ^^''^ ents of coal gas but whl T u ^"P^'-tant compon- been producedlom Innhin? b V ' f"'"* ""«' ^^^ ^'^^^ oeher organic matte: uSX^l^^^^^^^^^^^^ -«» or n>akes"t;oVolit:rr""'t"'^'^^^ illuminants ^ ^^'"'"" ^'"^^'^ -^^^lene and othe; ^^^^^Z^:^:^^^ f-en canCe po.er of The cost of coal gas is a^ut 2^.^. *" '"""" °^ ''°*' go*- -.a„,„h,e4.i«:tt::f.re^'-s*'- I. High candle power. ' ' 3 llT'Y •=°"^"«««" fe^ and inoccuous. 3. Temperature of the flame a« low as poJwe. 28 Acetylene Oas. 1. Q. The desirable qualifications of an illuminating gas are : that it shall — Produce a desirable flame, as outlined above. That it shall be cheaper per candle power of light than any existing illuminating gas. 3. That it can be easily made and transported. 4. That it shall be safe, and not be explosive when mixed with air, nor be poisonous when inhalec into the lungs. Then does acetylene fulfil these requirements ? Let the facts in the case answer for themselves. Acetylene gas is a so-called fixed gas ; i.e. a single gas, while coal gas is a mixture of several gases, viz. : Hydrogen, 50%; methane, 33%; carbon monoxide, 13%; heavy hydro-carbons, 4%; and enriched water gas, as now generally used and delivered by the city gjs companies, contains hydrogen, 57% ; methane, 23%; carbon monoxide, 19%; heavy hydro-carbons, 14%; nitrogen, 3%; carbon dioxide, 3%; and oxygen, 1%. As the poisonous constituent of illuminating gas is carbon monoxide, we note that the enriched water gas is more poisonous than ordinary coal gas. Acetylene in this respect is not as dangerous as ordinary coal gas, as it is not poisonous to the same extent, if at all, but it has an unpleas- ant feature, in that it possesses a disagreeable smell, and nauseating effect upon the human body. This odour is, however, due to impurities resulting from the process of manufacture, as chemically pure acetylene gas has not an unpleasant odour. It has besides the advantage over coal gas of awaking the sleeper, by upsetting bis stomach and inducing vomiting. Acetylene has about thirteen times the c. p. of coal gas. It requires a special gas burner, one with a much smaller aperture, and which hence burns less. A correct acetylene gas burner consumes one cubic foot an hour, and yields as much light as three standard coal gas burners burning each eight cubic feet an hour. Acetylene does not vitiate the atmosphere of a room as much as a coal gas flame, inasmuch as for the same candle power product, acetylene produces two parts of carbon dioxide, while coal gas produces thirteen. Furthermore it consumes less oxygen in this process, and hence vitiates the air less in both respects. The temperature of the acetylene gas flame is much less than that of the coal gas flame, and it will heat a room much Jess in consequence. The gas is not easy to light, and will not as easily produce a fire by leakage, or the promiscuous use of matches, as will coal gas, and the fire risk should not hence be any greater, if as great, although the explosibil- ity is greater, and this may of course cause a fire at the same time." (The ordinary gas pipes of a building can be used for acetylene gas). Acetylene Gas. 29 bhe sleeper, by IV. —Its Disadvantages. as llLwi::'""'''" ""' "^'^'^"^ ''' ™^^ ^ ^"«fly —n-d The intense heat and pressu,^ generated, when a volume of pr^sure tending to the dissociation of the elements of th« hl-^ted acetylene and thus producing explosion and ignit n Its specific gravity or densitv is Qi \^- 'f "'"»"• beinrr fti°/ „ !^ •. ; /° ^^' '^® maximum of violence being 8i/ a„d ^^^ ,^p,^^.^^ ^^^^^^ .^ ^^ When produced from impure carbide if ;« lloKi * Summary. eha?;rrafdTlr 'T1 "^ '''' '"^ clearly demonstrate carbide and acetv^^^^^^^^^ 7"'^ T "'^"°* ^" ^^^ -'^m day pracS as tti u ■ """'^^*'""^ "*^>« ^ ""cur in every y practice, as the machine is now permitted to be installed Bo^rd::rt::u':i:S^^^^^^^ of the buidt, a^d ?^^^^^^^ 30 Acetylene Oa». do the least damage, until a few years of experience have brought out more fully the dangers and their preventives as well as the excellencies of the new illuminant. At the same time, as will be noticed by the permits quoted below, permission is given in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia under certain conditions to locate the apparatus in the building insured. V. — The Board of Underwritbhs' Rules Relating -yj the Installation of Acetylene Gas in New Bbcnsvick AND Nova Scotia. The following regulations have been adopted by the New Brunswick Board of Fire Underwriters. The assured must comply with these requirements when installing the machine, and the machine used must be approved by the Board. PERMIT FOR USE OF ACETVi.'^.NE GAS (When apparatus is in the building insured or in any building adjoining and communicating therewith.) Permission is hereby granted for the use of acetylene gas, ou the premises described in this policy, said gas being generated by an approved standard machine, called the manufactured by IT IS SPECIALLY WARRANTED BY THE ASSURED (a) That the apparatus is located in a dry room, without artificial light or fire-heat, and having good ventilation to the outer air nine feet above street level. (b) That the apparatus shall be maintained in good order, and that the necessary care to ensure its safe and proper working shall always be exercised. (c) That the generators shall be charged and the refuse removed there- from by daylight only, and that the refuse shall be deposited outside at a safe distance from the building. (d) That no carbide shall be kept in the building, except in the generator room, and then only in air-tight metal cases, each case to contain only one charge, and the total quantity to be limited to onti week's supply, and in no case to exceed 100 pounds. The Nova Scotia Board requirements are the same as those for New Brunswick. Acetylene Gas. ame as those Pennission Jr horoby irranted fnr n. , promUo« doHcribed in thlToltv [h! T "^^''^^J'^''^ «<« on the •..proved standard .nach ^eT fed he" '" ""'"f ^^"°™'^'^ "^ «" and located outside eith«r in manufactured by ing. with firat-cl^;:; 17„: non eon^munic^ting brick or «to„'e build- not le«, than fifteen Zl ^'"^ °^ '''^'' oo.^truction detached It is SPKCIALLY WARKANTED by the AS«n».„. *l. . of .he New E„,,.„,ir™:e!rc;T' "' °^'""' *° ™'- ACETYLENE GAS MACHINES. , . APPARATUS. discretion of Liff ZtialnTrv i""' - " "''^ ^ ^™"^^ '" *»>« inside the building undT "cial 2 ^ Junsd.ction to install machines insure stlbilit^^d duSuty'*^'' ""'^ '" " '"*""^' ''"^ °* "**«"*» *<» assurance of a sufficient quant^ni"^"^^' t^f^efore there should hem called upon for a much longer rJrj«!i 7*??®. ^^'^olishments burners am fV 32 Acetylene Oas. 4. Apparatus not re» ««"«> A'lr.tari'nSL,'' " "'»*'^ "»' '" -•«' .-e, „e, b. """"•' '''''""^---^at^^e^trererei^/^r™ 34 Acetylene Gas. 20. The supply of water to the generator for generating purposes shall not be taken from the water seal of any gas-holder constructed on the gasometer principle. Note. — This provides for the retention of the proper level of water in the generator. 21. The apparatus sjiall be capable of withstanding fire from outside causes without falling apart or allowing the escape of gas in volume. Note. — This prevents the use of joints in the apparatus relying entirely upon solder. 22. Gauge glasses, the breakage of which would allow escape of gas, shall not be permitted. 23. Where purifiers are installed, they must conform to the general rules for the construction of other apparatus and allow the free passage of gas. 24. The use of mercury seals is prohibited. Note. —Mercury has been found unreliable as a seal in acetylene apparatus. 25. Construction must be such that liquid seals shall not become thickened by the deposit of lime or other foreign matter. 26. Apparatus must be constructed so that accidental syphoning of the water is impossible. 27. Flexible tubing, swing joints, packed unions, springs, chains, pulleys, stuffing boxes, and lead or fusible piping must not be used on apparatus, except where the failure of the part will not vitally affect the working or the safety of the machine. 28. There shall be plainly marked on each machine the maximum number of lights it is designed to supply and the amount of carbide necessary for a single charge. To be approved, acetylene generators must conform to the foregoing standard, and plans and specifications in detail of such apparatus must be submitted to the insurance organization having jurisdiction over the territory in which such apparatus is to be installed, for approval by an inspector duly authorized by the Association, with whom a copy of such plans and specifications must be filed. If the plans are approved, a special examination of the generating apparatus will be made at the expense of the applicant, and if it is found to be in compliance with the standard, a certificate of approval will be issued. CALCIUM CARBIDE. 1. In no case shall calcium carbide be stored in bulk. 2. Calcium carbide must be packed in screwed-top, water-tight metal packages, having all seams lock-jointed and soldered. They shall contain not over one hundred and twenty-five pounds of carbide, and Acetylene Gas. r level of water in tal syphoning of INDORSEMENT FOE USE OF ACETYLENE GAS In consideration of the following warrantip« n„ *k permission is hereby granted to generate an/ -^''''' °^ '^^ ^«"^«er comes in contact with the water "^ °^ '^'^''^''^^ >^hen it carX rllvTr ^ ^"''' ''^^ *^""^'^^"- -«' «" -iduum has been ^ Wa,.r tanks and water seals must always be kept filled with clean waprusXrvidaTthrroisir^ "™"^^- ^^« -. - ^ W use a lighted match, lam, candle.- or any open light near the 36 Kerosene and other Oils. KEROSENE AND OTHER OILS. Kerosene, according to Hine's Instruction Book on fire insur- ance, is the prominent incendiary of the present hour. There are statistics or tables, made up in the States, and known as the "Chronicle Fire Tables," prepared from reports of thousands and thousands of fires: these all being classified, according to the different risks, and the percentage of each cause for each different risk given : and from these tables, we find that in dwellings and tenements, lamp accidents and explos- ions are responsible for 13^% of the numerous fires reported; in retail groceries, nearly 25%; in hardware stores, 10%; and country and general merchandise stores, 19%. It is evident, therefore, that there must be an element of great hazard about kerosene oil, to cause this large percentage of fires. And we find that the special hazard of kerosene is this: Kerosene, coal oil, or earth oil, no matter how pure, when exposed to heat, from fire or the rays of the sun, exhales a certain amount of a light carbonated-hydrogen gas, and this gas is very explosive. Any agitation or shaking of the vessel containing these oils, or motion of the oil itself, as when running, will generate this gas in quantities. It will exhale even when undisturbed; the dropping of a lamp near a leaky barrel of coal oil, has been known to cause an explosion of this gas. It is indeed a notorious fact that numer- ous accidents, by explosion, have occurred from drawing kerosene and its products in the vicinity of open lights. This gas a-jcounts for the explosion of lamps, filled while they are burning, or when but half full of oil ; the vacancy above the oil being filled with gas, generated by the heat of the flame. A certain proportion of the danger is taken away, if oil of a proper standard be used. In the United States no kerosene oil is allowed to be sold which flashes under 110°. By the flashing test we mean the following : and this test can be tried in any building where oil is kept for illuminating purposes. Place a few spoonfuls of the oil to be tested in a tin dish, and float the dish on a vessel of warm water. Heat the Kerosene and other Oils. 37 dropping of a Jter slowly and put a themometer in it. A3 the temperature of the water nses, hold a lighted match over the oil, and note the thermometer when the vapour from the oil begins to flal and burn around the match. If it flashes below 1 nn" u below ion" fu^ ,-, • ^i u nasnes below 100 , or burns below 1.0 , the oil zs poor and should be refused unconditionally. Some of the dangerous practices prevailing amon- people who Filling lamps when lighted. hv th- .• *' •'''^ ^'''^^'' per day is sacrificed by this practice, to say nothing of the insurance lo'ss ) Blowing out lamps without turning them down low or m sending the flame down into the vapour beneath Cleaning and filling lamps at night. Leaving oil where it can be reached and upset by children or wasted, and worse than wasted by careless servants ' Drawing oil by artificial light. 2. Clean and fill lamps by daylight only. 4. ^ever fill lamps while burning 5. If necessary to fill a lamp by artificial light, place the li^ht at least ten feet away from the lamp being filled. * 6. Keep the oil away from childi^n and careless servants see that 'theT-"?,"" ' u"'''*' "" ^""^^ ^^«- -«<>dwork, chimn;. " '* ''"' *'^^^y ^'^^^^ •'•-^ «P-e above the 38 Kerosene and other Oils. As a consequence of the absence of legislation on this import- ant subject the Standard Oil Company have manufactured and shipped to England for sale, a grade of oil with a flash test of about 73°, and which they could not sell in the United States. A law ia now under consideration, however, to make the test 100°, but even this is almost too low. In coal oil, or kerosene stoves, many improvements have been made, which reduce their danger to that of an overgrown kerosene lamp with two or more large wicks, unprotected by a chimney. To say that they are without danger is to take a verv superficial view of the matter; but they are so much safer than gasoline, which was formerly used, that insurance companies regard them with favour, in consideration of their hazardous predecessors. There are other liquids used for producing gas known as gasoline, naptha, benzine, liquid gas, auroral oil, and by various other names. They are, without exception, highly volatile, and of necessity inflammable, producing explosive vapour, and there- fore extremely dangerous. If they were not they would not make gas. In no circumstances should these liquids be stored or handled in or near premises that are insured. In no case should a receptacle or reservoir of gasoline be permitted in insured premises, whether in connection with a gas machine or otherwise. NEW ENGLAND INSURANCE EXCHANGE. Members' Ciecular, Series XVIII, No. 2. BoZSfn^'jKfi^'"" S^°"n« ^nd other highly inflammable oils, is nob 80 much in the lamps or other devices for which they mav be used as in these oils being on the premises. ^ ^ ' At ordinary temperatures, gasoline continually gives off an inflam- mS:roras^"a'po^u;:^'* ^°"^ '^'^^^"^^ ^^°™ '* ^'" ^^-^^ ^^^-g' '"« n,v^L'^ ^*'? *'i''* ""J® P'"* °^ gasoline will impregnate 200 cubic feet of air and make it explosive, and It depends upon the proportions of ah^and vapour whether ,t becomes a burning gas o^a destructive explosive. The special cautions given in regard to gasoline are : Beware of any leaks in cans. Remember always the dangerous character of this oil. nrSn^li ^?P* ^ fu ^^^ "^"^o""^ of »■ ^rnp while the lamp is burning, orif any light 18 in the room. ^ ""imug, Carelessness may hazard life as well aa property." Kerosene and other Oils. 39 articles as coa, TnaphZT^ ''"7" ^^ "^ ^' ^^^ filvcerine anri n.l. ""P*^*^*' benzine, gasoline, benzole, nitro- n^aterials, enlend J "' a L^. Tf,"'^ "^*' *'"« '^-g^™- con^^unity is the s J ^r"' *'' "^"^^'^ '' ^^^^ *^'« ELECTRiaTY. obrio„,. '"™-"<"'- So the .dvantoge of good wiring i, el." iS;!^'^; i^heti °° '^■° °' '«-'■-« « " "^o - s.r, to re'uU * " '""""'""y "■>»»■ «~ » »taost .^ts^c::Lr:r:rtrrjrir.-- m . »«ture of w.ter «d sulphuric ZT "^ ""'"^ 40 Electricity, But while a knowledge of the principles of the battery and galvanic cur^nts appears to be quite general, the pSs of Th,s latter method ,s employed almost exclusively for electric he S . 'T""' '*"' '' "^ ' considerable extent supp ant " the batterj^ for telegraphic purposes PP'anting lawTof"'! *^'''?'' ^"'^ "^ '"^ ^''' ^ '^"^^ explanation of the Magnetism. The field magnets of dynamos and electric motors the ITi ;r;:er^n^;tr-^- - -- -^--- Witt rirJetT' '""''' "'" '^^ '''""^"^^ «^ - - -n^-ct The soft iron core of the electro magnet becomes magnetic the mom nt a current of electricity is passed through the co sm ir^fior ^"^""^^'"^^^ ''' ^- ^^« — ^•^-rlt Now all types of magnets, including conductors carrying, elec tnca currents, are enveloped by a magnetic field or l%tH someumes called "magnetic atmosphere.'' This is 1 "fil" the dynamo, and this field exhibits well defined lines known as magnet, hnes of force- these lines flowing in a curve or swir from the + (positive) to the - (negative) poles. If I Electricity, t^s^S^z;^ 41 >^ '^!/<-::^'i^J^^^-?-->:^^\pi ' Fia. 1 — Magnetism. BY Magnetism. th..o.g„ u. line. „t w, .reirctcLpuwrL^h": '" "r »«ond .i„ b, i„,„^ .„\J ™^; ~, *"™ ™P"'- per tundameiitel principle „„„„ „|,4 Jll ,™. "■™ " 'he are designed. l^"" ""'"'"" Vnamo electric generators •hirmt::"" T^r "° *"*"°' *» «™" ««"-'»' »« .. ...net. t.. cLf„;:rn::rsrir.::s: '.°;:::::\re\r;:;i';erirr.e''""-"-' 'he ».,. „, ,:f :::rL:„:'r::,;r rr :? r "'- and south at thp oH,»r a , °^ ''"^ extremity two masses ot iron facing one another, ill 42 ■Electricity/, and so fashioned or bored out as to allow a ring or cylinder of soft iron to rotate between them. This cylinder or ring of iron 18 also wound with insulated wire, two or more ends of which are brought out in a line with the spindle on which it rotates, and fastened down to as many insulated sections of brass cylinder placed around the circumference of the spindle. Two metallic springs connected to binding screws, which form the "terminals" of the machine, serve to collect the electrical wave set up by the rotation of the coiled cylinder (or "armature") before the poles of the electro magnet. The cut will give a clear idea of the essential portions of a dynamo , Fig. 2 — Dynamo. E is the mass of wrought iron wound with insulated wire and known as the field magnet. N and S are cast iron prolongations of the same and are usually bolted to the field magnet; when current is passing, these become powerfully magnetic. A is the rotating iron ring or cylinder, known as the armature, which 18 also wound with insulated wire B, the ends of which are brought out and connected to the insulated brass segments, known as the commutator C. Upon this commutator press the two springs D and D', known as the brushes, which serve to collect. the electricity set up by the rotation of the armature. Electricity. 43 These brushes are in electrical connection with the two terminals of tht, machine F F, whence the electric current is transmitted whern required; the terminals being also connected with the wire encircling the field magnet E. No«v on causing the armature to rotate, by connecting up the pulley at the back of the shaft (not shown in cut) with any source of power, a very small current is set up m the wires of the armature, due to the weak magnetism of the iron mass of the field magnet. As this current, or a por- tion of it, is caused to circulate around this iron mass through the coils of the wire surrounding the field magnet, this latter becomes more powerfully magnetic, and being more magnetically active sets up a more powerful electrical disturbance in the armature. This increased electrical activity in the armature increases the ma-netism of this field magnet, as before, and this again re-acts on the armature; and these cumulative efiects rapidly increase until a limit is reached, dependent partly on the speed of rotation, partly on the magnetic saturation of the iron of which the dynamo is built up, and partly on the amount of resistance in the circuit. If too much current is generated by the dynamo there is, of course, the danger of the wires heating and burning off their insulation, wih consequent fire danger. The floor around a dynamo is usually, more or less, covered with oil and the burn- ing insulation of the wires dropping on this might start a fire. This is the danger of running a dynamo over-load, as it is called, and should be guarded against. The Electric Motor. In the electric motor we have the converse of the dynamo, in other words a dynamo, driven by a steam engine or other power 18 a converter of mechanical force into electrical energy. If the steam be shut off from the engine and a current of electricity from another source be sent through the armature of the dynamo the latter becomes a motor and will in turn drive the engine or any other machinery bolted to it. The dynamo then, as a motor, becomes a converter of electrical into mechanical energy. 44 Electricity. We have seen that the armature of a clynanio, or motor, is made up of a number of coils or loops of wire wound parallel to its shaft. We have also learned that conductors, when carrying currents, are enveloped by a magnetic field or swirl. We have also shown that the magnetic lines of force pass from the north to the south pole of magnets, and consequently in a dynamo or motor they would pass through the armature which is located between the poles. Suppose then we send a current through one loop of the armature. As we have already explained this loop would be enveloped by magnetic lines of force as soon as the current goes through it. These lines of force are repelled by the lines of force passing between the north and south poles of the magnet, and this has the effect of forcing the loop out of the field and consequently causing the armoture to turn. This par- tial turning of the armature has caused the commutator termi- nals of this particular loop to break contact with the brushes, cutting off the supply of current to the loop making it inoper- ative at the instant the commutator terminals leave the brushes. A second pair of terminals then come in contact, its loop is acted upon as described, and the rotative action of the armature re- ceives another impulse and so on. In practice the armature is made up of a large number of these loops which are so connected with the commutator bars as to form one continuous coil. This is the fundamental principle of the motor. Volts, Amperes, and Ohms. As the foot, pound, minute, and gallon serve as arbitrary- units of measure, of work, of time, and of substance, so do the volt, ampere, ohm, and watt serve as arbitrary units of measure of electrical pressure, quantity, resistance, and work or power. Here we may enunciate a few principles. Water naturally flows from a higher to a lower level. This difference of level we call head. The greater the difference between two levels the greater will be the head or pressure and the greater the rate or Electricity. 46 velocity of the flow. In other words the rate of flow through a pipe will increase as we increase the head or pressure of the source of supply. We know too that the pressure of water or gas ia reduced by the friction caused by passing through the pipes, but the pipe does not absorb any portion of the gas or water. So if friction causes loss the loss suffered must be in work or pressure exerted in forcing the gas and water through the pipes. The longer the pipe the greater will be the friction or resistance and the greater the loss in pressure and consequent reduction in rate of flow. It is then clear that if we wish to lengthen a gas or water main, and still keep the rate of flow at its normal sUte, one or two alternatives must be adopted ; viz., an increase of pressure, or a larger size of pipe. Therefore a-^ a difference of level or head is required to cause a flow of water so do we require a difference of electrical potential or pressure to cause a flow of electric currents, and as water is retarded by the resisUnce of the pipes so is the flow of electricity by the resist nee of the conductor or wire through which it passes. We may carry this analogy between water and electricity still further. As in a water service, the longer the pipe the greater the pressure required, so in electric wiring, the longer the wire and the further the current has to travel the greater the pressure needed to drive a certain current through it and the greater will be the resistance. Again : in a water service the smaller the pipe the greater the resistance and the smaller the flow, so in electric wires the smaller the size of the wire the greater the resistance and the less current it will carry without dangerous heating. For we may say here and it must be re- membered that if it is attempted to send a heavy current of elec- tricity over a small wire, the resistance offered by the wire and the friction of the current passing through it would cause the wire to heat, burning off the insulation and thus starting a fire. So in electricity the smaller the wire the greater the resistance and the less current it will carry safely. Or as the same princi- ple is laid down in Ohm's law : The resistance of a wire is exact- ly proportioned to its length when its diameter remains constant. 46 Electricity, r I ' Iji. Again : the resistance of a wire of a given length increases as . H Heofonal area, or diameter, or weight per foof decrea^ s an, ts..s.Htance debases in an inverse ratio as its sectional a^a i wo double the resistance. Therefore the quantity of current passing through a wire is governed by the resistance of the w^ and he electro motive force (abbreviated to E. M. F ) or pres' sure_ Huivalent to head of water) under which the current I The unit of electro motive force or pressure is called a volt. The unit of current strength or quantity is called an ampere, and the unit of resistance is called an ohm volfT f^ '^''""" "^ '^''' '^''' "^ ^h o'her is this. The volt ,8 the pressure that will deliver one ampere of current through one ohm of resistance. Similarly the ampere is he amount of current that one volt will force through one ohm o^ limit the amount of current passing through it to one ampere at a pressure of one volt i^io u.i/ Ohm's law then, upon which the foregoing units a«, based, is that he current m amperes is equal to the E. M. 1\ or pressure m volts divided by the .distance of the circuit in ohms.rr" 18 expressed by the equation c = -^. r c = current in amperes. e = E. M. F. in volts, r = resistance of the circuit in ohms. Therefore, r = -?^-, and e = c x r. agat'to'^thr'T °'^!:*'"^" ''" perfectly clear we may refer' again to the analogy between a water service and electricity. The terms can be explained thus: The volt in electricity equab oflow of the current, and the ohm equals the resistance of L We will now apply Ohm's law so that we may see how it works out in practice. Electricity. 47 The EdiHon incandescent current can be estimated about as follows : On the 110 volt system a 16 candle power lamp will take i ampere. On the 52 volt system a 16 candle power lamp requ>res 1 ampere. This can be readily understood in this way • If we have a volume of water doing a certain amount of work at a pressure of 50 lbs. and wo cut down the {.rossure to 25 lbs. It will take twice as much volume or flow of water to do the same amount of work. Suppose then we take an ordinary incandescent lamp which we find is marked 110 volts and 16 candle power, by which we understand that 110 volts pressure is necessary to force sufficient current through the lamp filament to bring it up to 16 candle power. We also find by indicator measurement that the lamp requires one-half, or to be exact .45 of an ampere of current. The formula for the resistance ia f = -^ ••• r = ?^# = 244.4 ohms as the resistance of the lamp, not in this case the resistance of the circuit. Or again; suppose we have a circuit, the resistance of which we know to be 8 ohms, anf! wish to deliver 25 amperes of current through it. What pressure or E. M. F. is required 1 e = X r .-. e = 8 X 25 = 200 volts. That is to say a pressure of 200 volts is required to drive a current of 25 ampe.es through a conductor of 8 ohms resistance. Should the circuit be reduced one-half in length, or the conductor doubled in weight, its resistance would be reduced one-half, in which case only 100 volts would be necessary to obtain '.'S amperes of current. Electrical Horse Power. A mechanical horse power = 33,000 lbs. raised to a height of 1 foot in a minute. The electrical unit of power, not pressure, is called a watt and — ^iy of a horse power, or 44.3 foot lbs.' I I 48 Electricity. t-ampere, an per minute. A watt is a vo ampere. Forexample: one liu volt lamp x by the current .45 of an ampere = 49.5 watts. Then, as we have seen 746 watts = one horse power, one horse power would supply 15 lamps of 16 candle power @ 1 10 volts. That is |f<|, = 15. Or if we purchase a dynamo, which we find is rated at 110 volts and 400 amperes = 44,000 watts, which taking the above example of 16 candle power lamps and .45 of an ampere current for each and dividing 44.000 by 49.5 we find that a dynamo of this capacity would supply 888 lamps of 16 candle power. Now 44,000 watts divided by 746 watts (1 horse power) = 58.98 electrical horse power of the dynamo. But as it is impossible to convert one form of power into an- other, as mechanical force into electrical energy, without loss, the actual horse power developed to supply the 44,000 watts, would be the 58.98 electrical horse power + the i;sses in th^ dynamo and engine, due to friction and conversion. Estimating the fraction of loss at 20% the mechanical or indicated horse power required for the above would be 58.98 + 20°/ or 70 77 horse power. ^°' By indicated horse power is meant the indicated horse power developed in the cylinder of the engine, which is the point from which we must figure the cost of power. The 11.79 horse power represents the loss of power in over- coming friction and the conversion of mechanical force into elec- trical energ)'. Electrical Heat. rail^rt^lf '" 7^ "«*"^«"y be asked : If the electric current thlkl H ^T T ^"^*"^-«-* 1--P to a white heat, sets the kettle boiling on the electric stove, heats polishing, and sold- ering irons, and other electrical heating devices, why does it not heat the conducting wii-es through which the current is supplied, and thus disintegrate the insulation ? Electricity. 49 In answer to this wo first define oui- terms. Electric heat is simply an efi-ect produced by excessive friction between the electric current and its conducting wire. In over coming the resistance of an electrical conductor we suffer a loss of electric energy, and this loss is converted into heat; the amount depending upon the degree of friction or resistance If the conductor is large enough to carry a given amount of current with practically no loss the resistance of the wire is relatively nothing and no heat is evolved, or if there is a slight heating it will be dissipated as rapidly as it is developed. If wo increase the amount of current to the extent of taxing the capacity of the wire the resistance of the wire becomes relatively too high and the energy used in overcoming this resistance is converted into heat. The more the conductor is taxed the greater the loss of energy and consequent increase in heat. This then is an important point for insurance men and inspec- tors to examine closely; viz., that the wire used is of the proper size for the current it is carrying. Many fires-have been caused by the overheating of the electric wires. But we will take this up further on. In the case of the incandescent lamp the current goes through a conductor proportioned to its strength. It enters the filament of the amp and the resistance becomes greater, as the filament IS smaller than the wire. This resistance raises the wire to a white heat. Similany if a sudden overcharge of current strikes any conductor it will raise its temperature. Wires have been known to become red, or even white hot, burning their insulat- ing covering away and setting fire to everything combustible ^.lth which they came in contact. Three or four fires took place at the electrical exhibition at Paris, in 1871, from this cause To continue : We know that the current passes through the wires going out from the north polo and returning to the south pole^and as ,t returns it cannot be consumed. It is only the wu °' P'f'"'" ^^^^ '^ consumed in forcing the electric cur- rent through the resistance of the lamps and conductoi-s 50 Electricity. ll Electbical Dhtbibution, We will now assume we have a dynamo, designed to generate a current of 50 amperes, which will supply about 100 lamps of 16 candle power each, and we wish to supply current for 20 lamps requiring 10 amperes. The lamps are connected between two conducting wires and these conducting wires are not con- nected at their extremities. Hence, if all the lamps are turned off, our circuit is incomplete, and there will be no current on the mains. When we turn on a lamp we connect the two main wires through the filament of the lamp; this, of course, com- pletes the circuit, and just sufficient current will now flow over the mains to supply that one lamp. If we turn on a second lamp we have two paths for the current and twice the amount of current will be automatically supplied, and so on. Returning to our problem, we select a wire of just sufficient size or capacity to carry the 10 amperes at a small percentage of loss. This small percentage of loss of electrical energy is con- verted into heat in the wire and is, we will assume, just sufficient to raise the temperature of the wire a few degrees above that of the surrounding air. If under these conditions we double the number of lamps the loss of energy, due to crowding the conduct- or, will be practically doubled and the temperature of the wire will be greatly increased. The reason of this is that for every lamp that is added one-half an ampere more of current comes on the main wire. So that if with 20 lamps we have a current of 10 amperes, with 40 lamps, or double the number, we would be sending a current of 20 amperes through a wire, which, as we stated above, would only take 10 amperes. The wire, therefore, being too small to carry the current causes a high resistance which heats the wires to red or even white heat, with the conse- quent imminent danger of fire. We may continue to add lamps until the loss of energy in the conductors exceeds the energy used by the lamps. When this condition is reached the resist- ance of the combined lamps will be less than that of the conduct- ors and their combined current capacity will exceed that of the Electricity. 51 conductors while the temperature of the latter will exceed that of the lamps ; and the result will be a call on the insurance com- panies to make good the damage. Mence the conducting wires must always have a capacity considerably in excess of that of the combined devices which the mains are to supply with current. Electric Tbansmissiow. In transmitting lectricity we are transmitting watts of elec trie power ; that is volts x amperes = watts. We transmit to a motor 100 volts x 100 amperes = 10 000 watts, or 1,000 volts x 10 amperes = 10,000 watts, and as' the size of tl u ,."0 is determined by the number of amperes it has to carry n « rlear that the motor run at 1,000 volts and taking but 10 anjperes would require a service wire but one-tenth as large as that required for the 100 volt motor. The higher the pressure the more dangerous is the current, and therefore Edison, when he designed his incandescent light system for interior illumination, realizing that the lamps, switches and other devices would be placed within the reach of children and domestics, fixed upon a pressure which experiment and experience had demonstrated to be absolutely harmless to the human system. This low pressure system of distribution requires the use of heavy copper conductors and is practically limited to a radius of one and one-half to two miles from the power house. The reason of this is that the heavy wires used would make it very expensive and principally that the low pressure (110 volts) is not sufficient to drive the current through the high resistance of a long circuit. The application of this system, therefore, to the lighting of the streets and suburbs of a large city would be commercially prohibitive. In electric railway work, where the motors and currents are placed beyond the reach of the public, a pressure of 500 volts is employed. This is a most disagreeable pressure to handle but not fatal to human life through any possible accidental contact. 52 Electricity. No doubt the reader will recall one or more instances of horses having h. .n killed by railway 500 volt currents, but this is ex- plained by the fact that the resistance of the horse's body with Its four iron shod feet and any portion of its body which may come in contact with the wire is so much lower than the human body that 500 volts pressure is 'sufficient to drive the necessary quantity of current through the horse's body to produce fatal results. Suppose the resistance of the human body to be 10 000 ohms and that of the horse but 1,000 ohms; the latter, accordin.. to Ohn. s law, will receive ten times as many amperes, the voltage in both cases being equal. Amperes or quantity of current is necessary to kill, but when the current lacks sufficient pressure to force the necessary quantity through the resistance of the body It cannot be fatal. When it is necessary to distribute electric currents over dis- tances of ten, fifteen and twenty miles, as in lighting streets with arc lamps, pressures of from 5,000 to 6,000 volts are employed These high pressures are deadly and their use is only admissible when placed beyond the public reach and under the control of expert electricians. The system particularly referred to is known as the series or high tension arc lighting system. In this system the lamps are connected in series along the circuit, that IS the amperes have to pass through one before they reach the next, and this system differs from the incandescent system re- ferred to before, where the lamps are connected in multiple and each lamp forms an independent path for the current; in that in the arc system, the amperes remain constant, independent of the number of lamps, the voltage varying as the number of lamps m series; while in the other the pressure or volta-e re- mains constant, the amperes varying with the number of lamps connected. ^ The dynamo for tKis arc light system is designed to generate a constant current of 10 amperes, and is capable of automatically generating a pressure equal to that required by the number of lamps in circuit. Each arc lamp of 2,000 candle power requires about 10 amperes and 50 volts. As the dynamo can only gener- ate a current of 10 amperes it is clear that the current must be Electricity. 53 pla n that >f each lamp requires a pressure of 50 volts the dynamo will have to generate 100 volts to force the 10 amperes through he second lamp 150 volts for the third, and 500 Tolts to force the 10 amperes through the tenth lamp. If we have a circu ri^of 7: ^^"'^""-"'^ *hen require to generate a cur- rent ot lO amperes at a pressure of 2,500 volts. List of Conductors and Insulators. Th!!r Tlr'"^ '7u"' "^ ^"^"' ^" '^'" ''^'^ «f conductivity. Those at the top of the list, the metals especially, offer ve.y littfe resistance to the passage of electricity and are therefore'cZd c nductors. As we descend the list the bodies increase in resist ance becoming worse conductors and better insulators. Those at the bottom offer extremely great resistance to the flow of electricity and are therefore called insulators. Good conductors : Metals. Charcoal and coke. Carbon. Plumbago. Acid solutions. Sea water. Saline solutions. Metallic ores. Living vegetable substances. Moist earth. Fair conductors. Semi-conductors. Water. The body. Flame. Linen. Cotton. Dry Wood. Marble. 54 1. Slate. 2. Oils. 3. Porcelain. 4. Dry leather. 5. Dry paper. 6. Silk. 7. India rubber. Electricity. Insulators. 8. Guttapercha. 9. Ebonite. 10. Mica. 11. Jet. 12. Sealing wax. 18. Glass. 13. Sulphur. 14. Resins. 15. Amber. 16. Paraffinewax. 17. Shellac. 19. Dry air. We will now give a short definition and explanation of the various terms, instruments and devices used in electricity and electric wiring. We have also included a few instructions and regulations relating to some of the more important devices. No. 1 Ampere. The unit of current strength or volumr of flow. It is the flow of electricity produced by the pressure of one volt at i. resistance of one ohm. A volt divided by an ohm = an ampere. Arc and Arcing. An arc is the stream of hot gases and particles of carbon visi- ble between the carbons of an arc lamp. There are other arcs, however, formed as follows : When the flow of electricity reaches the end of a wire, and if the connecting point is but a short dis- tance away, the current will seek to jump the intervening space. This can be seen at any time in a power station when a heavy current is disconnected by a circuit breaker or hand switch. As the connections are pulled out there will be a spark of flame and a snap as the circuit is broken, and if the break were made slow- ly, instead of sharply, the arc would be of much greater length. Arcing then is dangerous, ft-om a fire standpoint, if there be any mflammable material in the vicinity. For this reason the insur- ance rules call for all apparatus in which an arc may occur in its working to be enclosed in a non-combustible case or supported on bases of non-combustible, non-absorptive insulating material. Electricity. 55 Armature. An armature in a dynamo consists of a number of coils or loops of wire in which the electric currents are induced when the ai-mature is rotated between the poles of the dynamo The armature cuts the lines of magnetic force, produced by the north and south poles of the magnets, and this cutting induces a current in the coils of the armature. BuUSHES. The brush is a collection of metal sheets or wires which press against the commutator of a dynamo to collect the electricity or of a motor to supply it with current. Carbon brushes are com- ing into use now, especially in railroad work. Circuit. A system of conductors through which electricity passes. Commutator. That part of a dynamo which collects the current from the armature and transfers it to the brushes. From the brushes the current is led off to the external circuit. |:»i I IJ Conduit. The object of a tube or conduit is to facilitate the insertion or extraction of the conductors, to protect them from mechanical injury and as far as possible from moisture. Tubes or conduits are to be considered merely as raceways, and are not to be relied on for insulation between wire and wire or between the wire and the ground. Current. The flow of electricity in a conductor, analogous to the flow of water m a pipe. A continuous current is one that does not change its direction, while an alternating current is one that periodically reverses. 56 Electricity. Fio. 3 — CutOuts. Cut Outs; viz., Circuit Breakers and Fuses. These are devices known as circuit breakers and fuses A circuit breaker is a connection made in the wire so that the circuit can be broken, automatically or otherwise. The auto- matic circuit breaker is gauged to break connection at a certain pressure. The fuses are little pieces of lead which are graded to melt at a certain heat, thus destroying the circuit. For instance It we take a wire, the safe carrying capacity of which is ten amperes and we place in it a fuse which will melt at the heat caused by passing twelve amperes through.it, we allow a little over the safe carrying capacity of the n.ain wire so that the fuse will not blow or melt for mei-e light fluctuations of the current It now any heavy current wire gets afoul of our fused wire forming a short circuit, the heavy current will melt the fuse and break the cii-cuit. These fuses are the best possible protection against too heavy a current, and they are therefore located on the wires immediately after they enter the building. The safest way w to have one on each wire, or a double pole fuse as it is These automatic cut outs, such as circuit breaker^ and fuses, should be pla d on all service wires as near as possible to the point where they enter the building on the inside of the walls, and arrange.., to cut off the entire current from the building. The cut out or circuit breaker should always be the first thing that the sfervice wires are connected to after entering the build- ing, the switch next and the other fixtures or devices in their order. This arrangement is made so that the cut out or circuit breaker will protect all wiring in the building, and the opening Electricity. 57 of the switch will disconnect all the wiring. Automatic cut outs should not be placed in the immediate vicinity of easily ignitable stuflF, or where exposed to inflammable gases, or dust or to flymgs of combustible material, as the arcing produced when they break the circuit might cause a fire or explosion. Where they are exposed to dampness they should be enclosed in a waterproof box or mount«d on porcelain knobs. All cut outs and circuit breakers should be supported on bases of non-com- bustible, non-absorptive insulating material. Cut outs should be provided with covers, when not arranged in approved cabi- nets, so as to obviate any danger of the melted fuse metol com- ing in contact with any ignitable substance. All cut outs and circuit breakers should be plainly marked, where it will always be visible, with the name of the maker and the current and voltage for which the device is designed. Cut outs or circuit breakers should be placed at every point where a change is made in the size of the wire, unless such a device in the larger wire will protect the smaller. They should never be placed in cano- pies or shells of fixtures, but should be so placed that no set of incandescent lamps, whether grouped on one fixture or several fixtures or pendants requiring a current of more than six amperes, should be dependent upon one cut out. Fig. 4 — Rosettes. Fused rosettes, when used with flexible cord pendants, are considered as equal to a cut out. 58 Electricity. Fused rosettes are the round porcelain devices from which in- candescent lights are hung. A reference to the cut will illus- trate their working. FopES. Fuses for cut outs should not liav.. a capacity to exceed the carrying capacity of the wire, and where circuit breakers are used they should not be set more than 30% above the allowable carrying capacity of the wire unless a fusible cut out is also installed in the circuit. Automatic circuit breakers open at exactly the current they are set for and instantly, therefore it is necessary to get them considerably above the ordinary amount of current required to keep them from constantly opening on slight fluctuations. When this is the ca.se a double pole fusible cut out should be added to protect the wire from a long, steady current which might be maintained just below the opening point of the circuit breaker. The fuse requires a little time to heat and would not therefore blow out with a momentary rise of current which might open the circuit breaker if set as low as necessary to protect the wire, which may be of a size only large enough for the figured amount of current under ordinary conditions of operation. If, however, as in the case of motor wiring the size of wire is 60% above the figured size for the motor's average current (as it should be), then the introduction of a fusible cut out in addition to the circuit breaker is unnecessary. Fuses should be stamped with about 80% of the current they can carry indefinitely, thus allowing about 25% overload before the fuse melts. Fuses have been known to blow out simply from the heat due to poor contact when nowhere near their current carrying capacity had been reached. Carelessness, in the matter of installing fuses, should be avoided. They should be so put up and protected that nothing will tend to rupture them except an excessive flow of current. Insurance men should re- member that no fuse of the larger size ever blew out without causing a greater or less fire danger. Central stations or large Electricity, 59 iHolated plants, subject to greatly varying loads, should have their hnes and generators protected by both fuses and magnetic circuit breakers, as a double protection against rises of current The length of fuses and distance between terminals are im- portant points to be considered in the proper installation of these electrical "safety-valves." No fuse block should have its terminal screws nearer together than one inch on 50 or 100 volt circuits, and one inch additional space should always be allowed between terminals for every 100 volts in excoss of this allow- ance. For example: 200 volt circuits should have their fuse terminals two inches apart, .300 volts three inches, and 500 volts five inches. This rule will prevent the burning of the terminals on all occasions of rupture from maximun. current, and this maximum current means a "short circuit." Good contact is absolutely essential in the installation and mainteimnce of fuses See that the copper tips to all fuses are well soldered to the fuse wire, and furthermore see that the binding screw or nut is firmly set up against the copper tip when the fuse is placed in circuit- a 100 ampere fuse can be readily blown by 25 amperes if the above precautions are not carried out. Poor contact in every ca.se can cause a heating beyond the carrying capacity of the largest fuses. On the other hand much damage can be done by using too short fuses and too large terminals, as the radiation of heat from the short piece of fuse wire to the heavy metal term- inals and set screws or nuts can very easily raise the current carrying capacity of a fuse designed to carry 50 amperes to 100 amperes or even more. Cut out cabinets should be so constructed and cut outs so arranged as to obviate any danger of the melted fuse metal coming m conUct with any substance which might be ignited thereby. Economy Coils Or compensator coils for arc lamps should be mounted on glass or porcelain, allowing an air space of at least one inch between frame and support, and in general to be treated as sources of heat. eo Electricity, Electric Potential. Pressure = Potential. A term used to indicate a condition to do work. The accum ulated presHure of electricity in a cloud or Leyden jar is called static potential. A difference of potential between two bodies 18 necessary to produce a flow of current. When a pressure or electro motive force exists between the positive and negative, or + and - poles of a battery, there is said to be a difference of potential. A low potential is 300 volts or less. A high poten- tial IS over 300 volts. The E. M. F. or electro motor force, difference of potential or simply potential, are all used synonymously in electricity to denote the pressure. Ground. A ground or grounded, as used in electrical phraseology means that somewhere in the circuit the electricity .« escaping into the ground. It is the same as a leak in a water pipe We may bnefly state about electricity that according to well known principles it will flow to a body having more electricity from one having less. In a circuit, then, the electricity is always striving to escape to the earth, failing this it will go back to the dynamo by the shortest possible road. Hanobr Boards. These are the boards or supports from which arc lights are hung. They should be so constructed that all lamps and current carrying devices thereon will be exposed to view, and the hanger board should be thoroughly insulated on a non-combustible, non- absorptive insulating substance, such as porcelain. All switches attached to the hanger board should be so con- structed that they will be automatic in their action, cutting off both poles to the lamp, not stopping between points when start- ed, and preventing an arc between the points in all circum- stances. Induction and Induction Coil. Induction. -A current is said to be induced in a conductor when It is caused by the conductor cutting lines of magnetic Electricity, 61 force. A fluctuuting current in a conductor will tend to in- duce a fluctuating current in another running pa, allel to it. A Htafc charge of elcH.iricity is induced in neighboring bodies by the presence of an electrified b.^ly the electric wiring from the gas piping that there wiU be no possibility of any ground connection being formed by means of the gas pipes. Kilowatt (See alio Watt). A kilowatt = 1,000 watts, or 746 horse power. Fig. 5 — Multiple Series. This term can be beat explained by the illustration. It means a number of series lamps in multiple, and the danger is that should one or two of the series get out of order the current is 62 Electricity. all sent through the remaining one, with consequent fire danger from the overheating of the wii-es. Ohm. The unit of electrical resistailce. That resistance of a conduct- or which will limit a flow of current to one ampere at a pressure of one volt. Parallel Series, or one form op Incandescent Lighting. Dynamo. Wire. Lampsi i O O Wire. Fio. 6 — Parallel Series. I I Parallel series is the term used to denote the system wherein the lamps are connected across the wires, and each lamp forms a separate path for the current. In this case the number of amperes varies automatically as lamps are turned on or ofiF and the voltage remains constant. Primaries. Primary ^vires are the wires leading from the centre of distri- bution, i. e. from the dynamo to the transformer. When connecting transformers to 1,000 volt mains a double pole cut out is placed in the p-imary circuit. For 2,000 volt circuits a single pole cut out should be placed in each side of the line, thus avoiding any posKi'.;e short circuit due to an arc being established across the contacts of the double pole cut out. This, owing to the great difference of potential between opposite poles, is liable to occur when the fuses "blow." Primary wires should be kept at lea.; ten inches apart, and at that distance from all conducting material. Electricity. 63 ] Pio. 7 — Rheostat. Rheostat, Resistance Box, Field Regulator, Starting Box. These terms all refer to the same machine. Resistance box is the best name as it partly explains the device. As will be seen by the illustration, this is a box or apparatus for regulating the flow of current. Its principle is simply the checking or regulating of the current by throwing into it or taking out, as required, a certain resistance. The resistance is made through a number of coils of wire, and by means of a lever or handle the current flows through them all, or only part, as more or less flow of electricity ia required. Resistance boxes must be equipped with metal or other non- combustible frames. The word frame means the entire case and surroundings of the rheostat and not alone to the upholding sup- ports. Rheostats must be placed on the switch board in power stations, and for small plants they must be well insulated from wood or other combustible material. As a large amount of heat is evolved in these boxes it will be at once seen why the above instructions are given. Good ventilation of the resistance box is also essential so that the heat may be quickly dissipated. Secondary Wir/'s. These are the wires which leave the transformer and run through the building. 64 Electricity. circuit o^ --^o iO Lamps. Clronlt. Fig. 8 — Series Circuits. Seribs Circuits, or Usual Form op Arc Lighting. Series circuits are those where the lamps are all on one wire and the current is forced through one after another. The volt- age therefore has to be increased to drive the necessary number of amperes through the lamps as added. I o Fio. 9— Sbribs Multiple. !'» Electricity. 66 Series Multiple. ; A reference to the illustration will show this 8yst«m. It is a number of multiple or parallel lamps arranged in series. And the danger is in one side of the series being broken or getting out of order and thus throwing the maximum of current on the remaining connection. Short Circuit. If the words short cut were used instead of the above term it would almost save an explanation. As we have endeavoured to explain, in the defining of a ground, electricity strives to reach the earth in every possible way. Failing this, its main desire is to get back to the dynamo. If it succeeds in either o^ these aims and finds a convenient path to the earth or to the dynamo a short circuit or short cut has been effected. Let us illustrate : Suppose an incandescent light is carelessly hung on a nail, the nail driven in wood. After a time the insu- lation of the wire wears off and it effects contact with the nail. Instantly a short circuit or a ground is formed. The electricity will go down the nail into the wood, the latter being a semi- conductor, and thence to the ground. If the current is strong enough it will heat the nail and perhaps cause a fire. This explains why the insurance rules will not allow staples to be used as supports of wires, and in fact why the standard rule is given : "Wiring to be perfectly safe should touch nothing but glass or porcelain." Again, take concealed wiring. Suppose when the wires are being drawn through or are being fished for, in order to pull them through the concealed space, that a part of the insulation is rubbed off the wire. Then if a nail or any conducting mater- ial should get across the wire a short circuit is formed at once and a fire is the probable result. Or if a screw or a nail in any of the electrical work, such as rosettes or fuses, should work loose and should manage to connect the two wires the electricity would find a short cut or short circuit back to the dynamo. I 66 Electricity . Switches. A switch is a device similar to a circuit breaker, only with the diflP' rence that the circuit breaker is designed as a protection and usually works automatically, while the switch is used for disconnecting the wires when desired. Switches for currents of over 25 amperes should be equipped with lugs firmly screwed or bolted to the switch, and in o which the conducting wires should be soldered. For the smaller sized switches simple screws can be employed provided they are heavy enough to stand considerable hard usage. Holes for inserting screws for supporting the switch should not be placed between contacts of opposite polarity. All crossbars less than three inches in length shoyld be made of insulating material. Bars of three inches and over, which are made of metal to insure greater mechanical strength, should be sufficiently separated from the jaws of the switch to prevent arcs following from the contacts to the bar on the opening of the switch in any circumstances. Metal bars should preferably be covered with insulating material. All switches designed for use in breaking circuits of over 100 amperes at more than 200 volts should be equipped with auxil- iary spring brakes, arranged to prevent arcing at the switch blades. Switches should be placed on all service wires, either overhead or underground, in a readily accessible place a' nepr as possible to the point where the wires enter the building, and arranged to cut off the entire current. ^9 Electricity 67 Fio. 11 — Knife Switches. Knife switches should always be installed so that the handle will be up when the circuit is closed, in order that gravity will tend to open rather than close the switch. They should never be single pole, except when the current they control is carrying not more than six 1 6 candle power lamps, or their equivalent. Double pole (or double wire, one on each wire,) switches are always preferable to single pole, as they absolutely disconnect the part of the circuit which they control. Flush switches are switches flush with the wall. Where gangs of flush switches are used, whether with conduit systems or not, the switches should be enclosed in boxes con- structed of or lined with fire-resisting material. When two or more switches are placed under one plate the box should have a separate compartment for each switch. No push-buttons for bells, gas-lighting circuits or such devices should be placed in the same wall-plate with switches controlling electric light or power wiring. Fig. 12 — Snap Swii'ch, Snap switches work by a spring which, when released or fastened back, completes the circuit. Like knife switches, they should always be mounted on non-combustible, non-absorptive insulating bases, such as slate or porcelain, and should have I 68 Electr'iity. carrying capacity to preverit undue heating. When use,! fo- service switches they should indicate at sight whether the cur; -nt be on or off. Indic-iting switches should b<; used for all ^r',,•,i, to prevent mistakes and possible accidents. The faoh that lights do not burn, or the motor docs not run, is not necessarily a sure sign that the current is off. Ereiy switch, );ke every piece of electrical apparatus, should be plainly marked where it is always visible with the maker's name, and the current, and .-oltag", for which it is designed. On constat t, potent.ai sys terns " thesi, awitehes should operat. successfully at 50% over load m rai.peres, wtth 25V. pv,.,,s3ive vr^itage, under the most severe coi.ditions they are i.S iy tc meet with in pnwjtice. They should have a firm contact, ahonl.-: m.*ke and break readily, and not stop when motion ha^ oi.,- boto ir^jwrted to the handle. When this style of switch 18 visea tor < nnsfc,,nt current systems they should close the main oii;o .it and disconnect the branch wires when turi^ed off: thoy should be so constructed that they will be auv(i.,atic m action, not stepping between points when started, and sht.uld prevent an arc between the points in all circumstances. They shouid also indicate at sight whether the current is on or v.ff and they should also have carrying capacity sufficient to prevent heating. The following table shows minimum break distances and separation of nearest metal parts of opposite polarity for different voltages and different currents. The values given are correct for switches to be used on direct current systems, and can therefore be safely followed in devices designed for alternating currents • 300 VolU or less. 10 amperes or less. 10 to 35 amperes. 35 to 100 " 100 to 1,000 amperes. 300 to eoo Volte. 10 amperes or less. 10 to 35 amperes. 35 to 100 " Separation of nearest metal parts of opposite polarity. Hin. If in. 2^ in. 2i to 3 in. 3iin. 4 in. 4Jin. Mintmnm break distance. li in. Hin. 2 in. 2i to 2i in. 3 in. 3i in. 4 in. Electricity, 69 Telephone Wire Protector. This is a device used on telephone wires to protect them against too heavy currents. A heavy current disconnects the wire. Transformer. The transformer, or converter, is a device for changing a heavy voltage system of say 1,000 volts or more to a low voltage system of 100 volts or less, or to change a low voltage system to a high one. They work both ways. They must not be attached to buildings, but should be located on the nearest pole. They must be placed in metallic or other non-combustible cases. Volt. The volt we have already explained! It is the tmit of electro motive force (e. m. f.) or pressure. The power or intensity of one Daniell cell is equal to one volt. Ohms x amperes = volts. Watt. The unit of electrical power,— a volt x an ampere; 746 watts = one horse power. About 56 watts are required for one 16 candle power lamp. End of Glossary of Terms. INSIDE WIRING. Approved rubber-covered wire. The following wires, have been subjected to the required wire test by the Electrical Bureau of the National Board of Fire Underwriters of the United Stotes, and are approved for inside wiring by insurance inspectors. Name of Wire and Manufacturer. ^^^^l Simplex Electrical Co., Boston, Mass. Amencanite American Electrical Workf;, Providence, R. I. ^'*°°P' Bishop Gutta Percha Co., New York. Z,:\ Canadian General Electric Co., Toronto, Ont. r;**""*' Eastern Electric Cable Co., Boston, Mass. ^"™*'^' Simplex Electrical Co., Boston, Mass. 70 Electricity. ^''®^®''* Crefeld Electrical Works, Boston, Mass. ^''®*"'®"*' John A. Roeblings Sons Co., Trenton, N. J. *^'"°"'"' Washburn & Mcen, Worcester, Mass. Double Rubber Core General Electric Co., Schenectady, N. Y Double Rubber (Red Core), General Electric Co., Schenectady, N. Y. ^^°^ Washburn & Moen, Worcester, Mass. Grimshaw (White Core),. ..N. Y. Ipsulated Wire Co., New York. Habirshaw (Blue Core),.... India Rubber and Gutta Percha Ins. Co Yonkers, N. Y. ' Do. (White Core),.. India Rubber and Gutta Percha Ins. Co., Yonkers, N. Y. Do. (Red Core) India Rubber and Gutta Percha Ins. Co., Yonkers, N. Y. ^«"<* W. R. Brixey, New York. ^- ■'• ^ Natural India Rubber Co., Bristol, R. I. 0^°"'te Okonite Co., Ltd., New York. ^i^r^ore, Natural India Rubber Co., Bristol, R. I, ^*™"'*®' IndianaRub.and Ins.WireCo., Jonesboro,Ind. ^^""^'^ P'iillip8ln8ulatedWireCo.,Pawtucket,R.I. Raven (Black Core) N. Y. Insulated Wire Co., New York. Do. (White Core), N. Y. Insulated Wire Co., New York Requa (White Core), Safety Ins. Wire and Cable Co., New York. Safety (Black Core) Safety Ins. Wire and Cable Co., New York Simplex (Caoutchouc) Simplex Electrical Co., Boston, Mass. Sterlmg, Standard Undergrou.id Cable Company, Pittsburg, Pa. ^ '^'P'^^V Standard Underground Cable Company. Pittsburg, Pa. A rule for safe wiring is the following : Wiring, to be done correctly, should touch nothing but glass or porcelain. One of the greatest dangers from electric lighting is the liability of the wires to heat. They will become red or even white hot, burning their insulating covering away and setting fire to everything combustible with which they come in contact. They will heat where anything causes a retardation of the current in them, or when any excess of electricity beyond their capacity to hold is poured into them. An important rule is that all wiring through walls, partitions or floors should be enclosed in glass or porcelain tubes. Each tube should be long enough to allow a projection of a quarter of an inch at both ends. Electricity. 71 Where wires ci-oss each other, tubes or pieces of porcelain should be placed between, to prevent the possibility of contact. Binding wires should have the same insulation as the wire it binds. Telegraph and telephone wires ought never to be placed on the same cross arm with light or power wires, or trouble will arise from induction, or an accidental contact between the two kinds of wires might result in starting a fire in the building to which the telephone wire is connected. All wiring should be kept free from contact with gas, water, or other metallic piping, or any other conductors or conducting material, which they may cross, by some continuous and firmly fixed non-conductor, creat- ing a separation of at least one inch, and in wet places should be arranged so that an air space will be left between conductors and pipes in crossing, and the former must be run in such a way that they cannot come in contoct with the pipe accidentally. Wires should be run over rather than under pipes upon which moisture is likely to gather, or which by leaking might cause trouble on a circuit. Flexible cord should not be used in show windows, as a defective piece might cause a short circuit, and set fire to flimsy material or decorations. Many fires have been caused by the use of flexible cord in show windows, where handkerchiefs, decorations, etc., have been pinned to the cord. When the current is turned on, short circuits are caused by the pins, and a fire is the result. ' Important Rule. Lighting and power from railway wires must not be permitted under any pretence in the same circuit with trolley wires with a ground return; nor shall the same dynamo be used for both purposes, except in strett railway cars, electric car houses and their power stations. No smaller size than No. 14 B. and S. gauge wire should ever be used for any lighting or power work ; for though it may be largo enough for the electric current, yet its mechanical weak- ness renders it liable to be stretched or broken in the ordinary 72 Fhctririty. i course of usa,^. VVij, t .^l ould never be laid in or come in contact witl) j'lnster, cement, or any finish, and Hhould never be fastened by maples, even temporarily, l)ut should always be supportnd on porcelain cleats, which will separate the wires at least half an inch from the surface wired over and keep the wires not less than two and a half inches »i..»it. This style of wiring is intended for low voltage systems (300 volts or less), and where it is ail open work rubber covered wire is not neces- sary, as weatherproof wire may be used. Wires should not be fished or looped for any great distance, and only in places where thfi insurance inspector can satisfy himself that it is all in order; as this style of work is always more or less uncertain and should be looked into carefully. Twin wires, or two wires, both in -ulated, but under one cover, should never be used, except in conduits or where dexible con- ductors art! necessary. They are always unsafe for light or power circuits, on account of the sin .t distance between them. All wiring on side walls should be protected from mechanica) injury. This can be done by boxing the wires, leaving an air space of oil inch around the conductors. When wires are run immediately under roofs or in proximity to water tanks or pipes they will be considered as exposed to moisture. The rules for moisture-exposed conductors are as follows : Special wiring for damp places, such as breweries, packing houises, stables, dve houses, paper ■ ■ pulp mills, or buildings specially liable t oistur or acid other fuies which might injure the wires or their insulation, except where used for pendants, should always be done with approved rubber covered wire, and :^'idly upp rted on pon 'lain or gli! insulators which separate the ^vlres at least oue inch from the surface wired over and keep them apart at least six inches. The wires in such damp places should contain no joints or splices, as it is almost impossible to tape a sp' -so » to prevent acid fumes from getting at the copper surfa^ ? iwitches, key soi vets or fusible cut-outs will be allowetart fires, and should not be allowed to touch inflammable material. When in series circuits incandescent lamps should be wired with the same precautions as for series arc lighting, and each lamp should be provided with an automatic cut out. The lamp should be suspended from an approved hanger board by means of a rigid tube, to prevent the wire coming in contact with nearby objects, and also to prevent the possibility of breaking the wires from constant swinging. No electro-magnetic device for switches, and no system of multiple series or series multiple lighting, in this class of work should be used. In no circumstances should incandesc.mt lamps m series circuits be attached to gas fixtures, as the high voltage necessarily employed in this class of lighting should be kept as far as possible from gas piping, which is so thoroughly grounded or at least very likely to be. When incandescent lamps are used for decorative purposes, as in the use of miniature colored lamps, and it is necessary to run two or more in series, permission, in writing, should always be secured from the Board of Under- writers having jurisdiction. li i' ■Electricity. Arc Lamps must he carefully isolated from inflammaWe material. Must be provided at all times with a glass globe, surrounding the arc, securely fastened upon a closed base. No broken or cracked globes to be used. Must be provided with an approved hand switch: also an automate switch that will shunt the current around the carbons should they fail to feed properly. Must be provided with reli ble stops to prevent carbons from laiimg out m case the clamps become loose. Must be carefully insulated from the circuit in all their exposed parts. Where readily inflammable material is in the vicinity of the lamps they should be provided with a wire netting, havin. a mesh not exceeding one and one-quarter inches around tne globe ana an approved spark arrester above, to prevent escape of •sparks, melted copper, or carbon. Plain carbons, not copper plated, are better for lamps in such places. Whore hanger boards are not used, lamps are to be hung from msulated supports other than their conductors. Weatherproof Wires. -When inside wiring is done so that It IS entirely exposed to view throughout the whole of the intenor circuits, and not liable to be exposed to dampness, a wire with an insulating covering that will not support combus- tion, will resist abrasion (the insulation being at least one- sixteenth of an inch thick and thoroughly impregnated with a moisture repellant), .ill be approved, excepting under special conditions, as in chemical factories, and any place whern the wires and insulation are liable to suffer from the fumes of chemicals, etc. The insurance inspector may then ask for some extra covering which will, in his opinion, withstand such attacks. Stranded Wires in every case should be soldered together before being clamped under binding screws, and when they have a conductivity greater than a No. 10 B. and S. copper wire they should be soldered into lugs. Stranded wires, if not thus stif- fened before being clamped under binding posts, are liable to be .-;w' 78 Electricity. Itlh' pressed out or easily worked loose, making a poor contact which causes heating, a possibility of arcing, or a complete burn out or fusing of the wire at this point. Fixture Work, — In all cases where conductors are concealed within or attached to gas fixtures, the latter must be insulated from the gas pipe system of the building by means of approved insulating joints placed as close as possible to the ceiling. Insulating joints with soft rubber in their construction will not be approved. It is recommended that the gas outlet pipe be protected above the insulating joint by a non-combustible, non- absorptive, insulating tube having a flange at the lower end, where it comes in contact with the insulating joint, and that, where outlet tubes are used, they be of sufficient length to ex- tend below the joint, and that they be so secured that they will not be pushed back when the canopy is put in place. Where iron ceilings are used care must be taken to see that the canopy is thoroughly and permanently insulated from the ceiling. Insulating joints to be approved must be entirely made of material that will resist the action of illuminating gases, and will not give way or soften under the heat of an ordinary gas flame. They shall be so arranged that a depasit of moisture will not destroy the insulating effect, and shall have an insulating resistance of 250,000 ohms between the gas pipe attachments, and be sufficiently strong to resist the strain they will be liable to in attachment. Supply conductors, and especially the splices to fixture wires, must be kept clear of the grounded part of gas pipes, and where shells are used the latter must be constructed in a manner afford- ing sufficient area to allow this requirement. When fixtures are wired outside, the conductors must be so secured as not to be cut or abraded by the pressure of the fasten- ings or motion of the fixture. All conductors for fixture work must have a waterproof insu- lation that is durable and not easily abraded, and must not in any case be smaller than No. 1 8 Brown and Sharpe. All burs or fins must be removed before the conductors are drawn into a fixture. Electricity. 79 The tendency of condensation within the pipes should be guarded against by sealing the upper end of the fixture. No combination fixture, in which the conductors are concealed in a spa«e less than one-quarter inch between the inside pipe and the outside casing will be approved. Each fixture must be tested for contacts between conductors and fixtures for short circuits and for ground connections before the fixture is connected to its supply conductors. Ceiling blocks of fixtures should be made of insulating mater- ial; if not the wires in passing through the plate must be sur- rounded with hard rubber tubing. Arc Lights on Low Potential Cikcuits must be connected with main conductors only through a double pole cut out and a double pole switch, which shall plainly indicate whether "on" or " off." Must only be furnished with such resistances or regulators as are enclosed in non-combustible material, such resistances being treated as stoves. Incandescent lamps must not be used for resistance devices. Must be supplied wiMi globes and protected as in the case of arc lights on high potential circuits. How to Find the Size of Wire Required. —The next point we shall take up is one of the most important in electric light- ing; viz., to see that t' ize of wire used is sufficiently large to carry the current withv^uo undue heating. The way this is done is by the application of Ohm's law, in which by knowing two of the quantities concerned the other can always be found. For example : Suppose it is necessary to sup- ply current for 20 incandescent lamps at a distance of 500 feet. They are to be run on an 110 volt circuit, allowing 5 volts drop of potential in the wires that go to the group of lamps. The voltage of the circuit does not enter the problem except as it indirectly regulates the amount of current that is required for each lamp; 110 volts requires about .6 of an ampere. iM 80 Electricity. The method of solving the problem of finding the size of the wire to be employed is as follows : There are 20 lamps each requiring .6 of an ampere, therefore the total current to be sent over the line is 12 amperes. The total length of wire to the lamps and back is 1,000 feet. The conditions are then that the drop of potential for 1,000 feet on wire carrying 12 amperes is to be 5 volts. Since c X r = e this gives a difference of potential between the ends of the wire r = e -=- c or substituting the values of c and e which have just been found r = /^ = .417 ohms which is the resistance of the 1,000 feet of wire which will transmit 12 amperes with the given drop of potential. If we turn now to the table below, which shows the current a wire will carry without undue heating, we find that the size of wire, the resistance of which per 1,000 feet comes closest to the resistance of .417 above, is a No. 6 B. and S. gauge. And this size should consequently be used in making such an installation. In the same way the size of wire for any other wiring problem can be found. In such cases there is the allowable drop of potential and the current that must be transmitted; from the two can be found the permissible resistance of the wire, and then by reference to the wire tables the corresponding size of wire needed. Suppose there are forty 50 volt lamps, which require about an ampere each at a distance of 100 feet with a drop of only one volt. A similar computation to the last gives r =r. ,i^ — .025 of an ohm. This is for 100 feet distance from the source of "elec- tricity, the total length of wire being therefore 200 feet. The resistance of the proper wire then, per 1,000 feet, must be .125 of an ohm. Looking this up, as before, we find the nearest size of wire to be No. 1 B. and S., which is therefore the size of wire to use. Electricity. 81 CARRYING CAPACITIES AND DIMENSIONS OP WIRES For Open and Concealed Work, as adopted by the Fire Underwriters of the United States. I" Ms s . oSfifl 18 17 16 16 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 6 4 3 2 1 00 000 0000 s g u E 5 40 45 61 57 64 72 81 91 102 114 128 144 162 182 204 229 258 289 826 365 410 400 a Si 1,624 2,048 2,583 3,257 4,106 5,178 6,530 8,234 10,380 13,090 16,510 20,820 26,250 33,100 41,740 52,630 66,370 83,690 105,600 133,100 167,800 211,600 H 6 ^ 6 6 8 10 16 19 23 27 32 39 46 56 65 77 92 110 131 156 186 220 262 312 ■IS u OS 3 4 6 8 12 14 17 21 26 29 33 39 45 63 63 75 88 105 125 150 181 218 6.3880 5.0600 4.0176 3.1860 2.5266 2.0037 1.5890 1.2602 .99948 .79242 .62849 .49845 .39528 .31346 .24858 .19714 .15633 .12398 .09827 .07797 .06134 .04904 4.92 6.20 7.82 9.86 12.44 16.68 19.77 24.93 31.44 39.65 49.99 63.03 79.49 100.23 126.40 159.38 200.98 253.43 319.74 402.97 608.12 640.73 18 21 26 31 38 43 48 61 80 97 116 118 166 196 228 266 296 329 421 528 643 815 Having now explained the fundamental principles of elec- tricity, and laid down the definitions of the terms used, we come next to the dynamo or motor and the points in regard to which the insurance inspector should give attention. It must be re- membered, however, that these instructions in regard to dynamos are gathered from the rules relating to central stations, and the inspector will therefore have to use his judgment when inspect- mg smaller plants. ^ The principal points f.ie ths following : Oily waste must be kepfc in metal cans. The dynamo must b.. u. :., dry cool place with plenty of air armir^ it and on an ir.ulated base. It should be kept clean and should have a rubber covenng over it when not in operation If fM 82 Electricity. The danger of water on a dynamo is this : The armature, as we have shown, is made up of insulated sections or coils. If then water, which is a semi-conductor, is allowed on the arpia- ture it forms a connection between these insulated parts, taking the current from the commutator and brushes and sending it around the armature. It thus burns out the insulation of these sections with, of course, more or less fire risk, and renders the dynamo useless until a new armature is put in. This is what is meant by the buraing out of a dynamo. The dynamo should not be placed in a room where any hazard- ous process is carried on, nor where exposed to inflammable gases or flyings of combustible material. The name of the maker and the capacity in volts and amperes should be shown on all machines. Conductors to outside lines must be in plain sight, or easily accessible. They must be run on non-combustible insulators of glass or porcelain, and separated from floors, walls, or partitions through which they pass by non- combustible insulating tubes of glass or porcelain. These wires must be kept apart so that they cannot possibly come together, and they must be covered with a non-inflammable insulating material sufficient to prevent acci- dental contact. They must "have ample carrying capacity to prevent heating. Switchboards must be kept in a dry place, away from any moisture and so as to obviate all danger of communicating fire ; eighteen inches or two feet from floor and ceiling. There must be no concealed space for storage of oily waste or rubbish behind them and they must be accessible from all sides or against a brick or stone wall when the wiring is entirely on the face. The switch board should be made of non-combustible material or hard wood in skeleton form filled. Every instrument, switch or apparatus of any kind on the switchboard must have its own non-combustible insulating baae. Resistance boxes and equalizers should be on metal or non- combustible frames. Frame, as used here, means the whole case and surroundings. Resistance boxes should be placed on the switchboard, or if not, one foot from combustible material or Electricity. 83 separated therefrom by non-inflammable non-absorptive insulat- ing material. Lightning arresters should be attached to each side of every over head circuit and mounted on non-combustible bases They should be in plain sight on the switchboard or in some accessible place away from combustible material. Lightning arresters should be connected with two earths by separate metallic strips or wires. These strips or wires should be of a conductivity of a not less than a No. 6 B. and S. wire. Strips must be in a straight line from the arresters to the earth connections. They should not contain an arc after discharge and should have no moving parts. Testing. — Series and alternating circuits should be tested every two hours. All systems of 300 volts or less must have an indicating or detecting device readily attachable to afford means of testing. All data must be kept for inspectors. Motors should not run in series multiple or muH.iple series and they must be wired with the same precaution as a current of the same volume and potential for lighting. The motor and the resistance box must U protected by a double pole cut out or circuit breaker, and controlled by a double pole switch, indicating whether the current is on or off, except when one-quarter horse power or less is used on low 'tension circuits a single pole switch will be accepted. The motor should be thoroughly insulated and mounted on filled dry wood, raised at least eight inches above the floor. It should also be provided with pans to prevent oil soaking into the floor. The motor should be kept clean and provided with a water- proof cover or an approved case for use when not running In regard to the resistance box the same rules apply as for the resistance box of a dynamo. Incandescent Lighting. We may recapitulate shortly the principal points in regard to the inspection of incandescent systems, to aid the insurance agent or inspector when going through the risk. ;l I 84 ■Electricity. The transformer should be located away from the building. J ITT? '"^\*''^°"«»> -hich the wires enter the build- ng should slant upwards, the outside end being the lower and the wires should have drip loops before they enter hl'u^s These insulating tubes should be of porcelain be a'^ZT'rl!? '" r'^^-'""^ -q"-e that there should thVh u K^^^ '° *^' ''''''' conductors where they enter the budding by which the cun.,nt may be entirely cut off This switch should be double pole. , exZld'T"'"""" ''''"''* ^ "'''"^•^'"^ *^ *^«'^- *»^« --ing is article and T'"'" T "''""'"' " '^•"^^ '^^^ <^-" - tliis re^rld "" """ ''""•' ^' proportioned to the cur- tinfbLl"" utl"' ''"'''"^ '^""""^^ ^"°''«' "*"«• Partitions, or WW f '^ . Z'"*'''''^ '^^''^^^ ^-^ P°^^«'-" t"b««. and all wmng should be done through double porcelain cleUs. such asT ''"'' be kept free from any conducting material, uch as gas or water pipes. They should run over pipes when there is any danger of moisture. They should not be laid in plaster cement or any similar finish, and they should never be fastened with staples. . Fuses should be placed in the wires as near the switch (if hou dlT^ " T'^^'' '"' '' *^«^« ^« °° '^''^"^ the fuses should be close to the point where the wires enter the building The mechanical execution of all electrical apparatus, such as fn.es, rosettes, switches, cut outs, circuit breakers, et ., should l^ neatly and carefully done. Everything should be n;at and paniirr"^-^ " "^"^ ^"^^'^^^' ^^ ^^-^°- '^ -3' inJ"!f'fitr^"^ '"'^ "'"' '"°°^"^' «°»"««ti"g. soldering, and tap- should bf ^t-ng'y insisted upon. Tn cross wiring the wire^ should be separated by glass or porcelain. All binding wire must have an insulation equal to the wire it binds. II , ♦ ' "Iricity. 85 Thb Inspection of Arc Lightinq. Primary wires from roof structures, and outriggers or buildings, leading to lights below and when run along the face of buildings must be of specially insulated wire. They should be insu- lated from the building and fastened firmly to gas insulators. When the wiring is in proximity to windows, doors or porticos It must be encased in glass or hard rubber tubing. Running wire on the face of buildings should be avoided as much as possible, and all wiring for constant series arc lighting should be with approved rubber covered wire. The wires must be covered to and through ihe walls of the building with extra waterproof insulation. There should be a drip loop on the outer side. The hole through the wall should be bushed with a waterproof and non-combustible insulating tube slanting upwards, the outer end the lower, and the tube sealed with tape, the tape thoroughly painted and securing the tube to the wire. The importance of these regulations will be realized when it is remembered that many fires are caused by the wires where they enter the building. The wires swing, perhaps, and chafe, wear- ing off the insulation, and a ground, or arc, or short circuit forms, thus causing a fire. The circuit should be arranged to enter and leave the building through an approved double contact service switch, on a non- combustible, non-absorptive insulating base, and capable of clos- ing the main circuit and disconnecting the interior wires when turned off. This switch should be automatic in action, not stopping between points when started and no arcing between points. It should indicate whether the current is on or off Arc light wiring should never be concealed. It should always be supported on porcelain or glass insulators, and separated one mch from surface wired over — the wires eight inches apart. The wires must be protected when crossing floor, timbers and on side walls from mechanical injury, and when passing through floors, partitions, walls or timbers, by glass or porcelain tubes. All joints must be soldered. i 86 ■Electricity, cur^n? ^*'^\'""«* ^ «° constructed that all wires and cur^nt earryng devaces chem^n shall be exposed to view and thoroughly .„Hu,ated by being counted on a non-combustible. hanger boards must be so constructed that they will be automatic in the.r action, cutting off both poles, not stopping between points, and preventing an arc in all circumstances When there are no hanger boards, lamps are to be hung from insulating supports other than their conductors anitri^T.'^""'^*^ carefully insulated and should have an switeh for the carbons so that they will feed properly. The stops for holding the carbons should always be in pJiice ene^unf ^'.'''"Jk ^ ''^^'' ""^^ °^ «'"^« -'^ securely fast- ened upon a closed l^e. No broken or cracked globes allowed. coated! '"" ^ ' ^^"'^ ""''^°' ^'' ^'''^'- '^-^ -PPe"- Wires should be double fused where they enter the building. it ^^ "^ '''"■' '''""''^ ^*^' '^' '^^"^ ^"«»^^''«° «« the wi^ Arc w-r.. .houid never be on the same cross arm as telephone or telegrapli wiym. "^icpmnie SCMMART, The principal causes of fires in electrical wiring ai-e the follow- '"§1 VIZ. : 1. Poor insulation and too strong current. 2. Grounds and short circuits. 3. Sparks from arc lights. 4. Incandescent lamps too near inflammable material. 5. Arcs and arcing. 6. Faulty joints. 7. Badly spaced wires. Electricity. 87 Cautions. See that theiv is no danger of a ground from wiring makinL' connet ion with gas or water pipes. That there are no short circuits, or danger of arcing from loose fi'-rews or looseness in connections in any of the electrical fluings. InsiHt on fuses at the point of entrance. It must be reme.ib^red that the nearer the cei, distribu- tion the greater the current, and consequently tl. ^reater the danger. The following table, which however is merely illustrative, will serve to explain this : E. M. F. or Volta. Length of Wire. 50 100 feet. «0 50 feet. 50 25 feet. Reaistanoe in Ohms. 20 10 5 Current in Amperes. ^ 2.5 S 10 So that a circuit of 25 feet of wire will have a current of 10 amperes as against one of 100 feet having 2.5, the other quanti- ties being equal. It should also be remembered that rubber, unless rendered waterproof, will deteriorate and in time form a good conduct y 150mm >IPPLIED A IIVM^E . Inc .aar 1653 East Main street ^^■^ Rochester, NY 14609 USA ^£=-^ Phorw: 716/482-0300 ^:='.S==S Fax: 716/268-5989 O 1993. Apphtd IfTMgt, Inc.. AN Righit RM«n«d ^>' i\^ <^ ^^^ <^\ "^ 4^ 88 Coal Oat. COAL GAS. OoH. a8 furnishwJ by the gas companies, ih a comparatively safe illuminant; and in spite of its deadly nature, when inhaled, and the poisonous propertiijs of some of its components, it is much to be preferred, from an insurance standpoint, to kerosene. Only a few cautions appear to Iw necessary. The first is in regard to joint«fJ gas burners. These are frequently turned against the woodwork adjoining and thus cause numerous fires. They should be provided with guards to prevent the possibility of such a contingency. The second caution is never to approiwh a"^ disordered gas meter with a lighte<] candle or open light of any kind. It is better to send for some one from the gas works and to endure a little mconvenience and delay, rather than endanger life and projierty. A gas flame should never bo within thirty-six inches of any over heml woodwork. The universal schedule charges five cents additional to the rate for a swinging gas bracket unprovided with stops or within thirty-six inches of woodwork over head, and one cent for each additional one. CHIMNEYS. Tho great importance of this feature of a building is too often overlooked. Yet the fires occurring from this cause are ahnost numberless. In nearly all the classes of risks we have gone over defecti' i flues have been mentioned as causing fires, and the percentage i* losses due to this feature, especially in the common subjects of insurance, has b««en very high. We quote a few of tlieso figures which will show clearly the magnitude of the danger in a defective chimney. The percentages of fii-es caused by defective flues in the fol- lowing risks arf> : ^"y"""* 46 percent. College buildings, 34 n Court houses, oft *« Country and general merchandise stores, 26 «• Dwellings and tenements, 20 '• Public halls, 21 " Hotels, 4y ti Jnils, <2jj It School houses, g^ i« Dwellings and tenements and their contents are, by far, the most common classes of property insured. The percentage then of 29 per cent, of all the fires in this class being due to defe-itive flues shows clearly that there must be something wrong with the construction of the ordinary chimney in dwellings, or else that proper care is not taken in having the chimney periodically inspected and repaired as found necessary. In chimneys where the fuel is wood there is the danger that the ci-eosote thus formed will eat out the lime ot the mortar, leaving only sand, and even if the chimney is plastered the same result will occur. m 1! W ChirnfujfB. CliimncyH burning wocmI are gomi for al»(,ut five yeari*; afu-r that th«'y iKH-orno (lang«>ix)UH. Tile or glawHl tile ehimneyM are dangerous from ihp fact that tliey absorb nioiHture and are apt to freeze ancl Kplit, thus open- ing cracks for HparicN. TlIK ClIAROES FOR I)KKK(mVit ClIIMSRYS. In one rating sehwJulc for a frame building we find the follow- ing charges in regrni to chimneys : Renting on nttic floor beam or roof joist, charge for eoch, .#0.2.''i TeiTB cotta, oemont, tile, or inadequate 'or service requirf**. cliiirge for each, _ gQ Not built from ^-round, cbnrge for each, lo Iron inflido, charge for each, gy The universal schedule charges are as follows, viz. • Brick Buii.dinr. If not built from ground but resting on beams or biaeketK. charge for each, M.05 NoTK. - There should be not less than six coursas of brick at the bottom, or three courses with u flag stone. If made than eight inches thick- "one brick chimneys," uniesfi loiter are line«r«l. which the first 8pa.k- driven through the crackwi flue hy any gu«t of wind -may generate. An aggravation of this style of archi- lecture .» where the pipe, innteatl of entering the Ixittom of the flue pa8«e« through the ceiling into the garret, and then,, unth an ,lbou,, enUr, Us «*. Thin arrangement i« ho ohjectionahle as almost hopelessly to condemn any risk in the eyes of a prudent underwriter. Another desperate feature is where these flues are partially supported as they pass the roof. If the bottom settles a crack occurs just underneath the sheathing, in the worst possible place for flames or sparks to pass out If flues must be built fr,.m the upper stories, they should 1» in sight their whole length; they should have a firm and adequate support, and »,e built from a stone or iron slab, having a hole where the pipe may pass directly into the Ixjttom, and the whole pipe should be in sight. They should 1« free where they pass the ,^f, and rise high enough to discharge sparks clear of the shingles. A very good method is to sUrt them a few inches below the ceiling, and support them by iron stmps or stirrups. Another, is to build them fron. a post resting on the ground. These keep the point of ccmnection between flue and pipe always in sight, which is a very important consideration. But even the best arrangement for entering the flue perpmdicn- larly is dangerous when the chimney takes fire, as the burning soot may fall out at the bottom and fire the building The only safe foundation for a chimney of any sort is terra Jirma. Kitchen chimneys especially should always be built solidly from the ground. Cement chimneys will not stand the weather, and should be prohibited on insured property. Pipe holes in chimneys or flues not in use must l,e securely covered with metal caps. Wooden fire boards, in front of unused fire places and grates, especially if there are fires above or below in the same chinmey are very dangerous and have bt*n held by some companies to render a nsk uninsurable. Chimneys. A SaFR ClIIMIfRY. We havo dmwn up t\te foIlowinK i^Kulatioiw in regard to chimnevH, «,«1 have iiatl them exainiruNi by c.inix.tent architecU an.l huiUhm. If these leRulationH are ntrietly a«Ihereorted on owt iron column ; large furnace and l^iler flues of eight inch brick work ; regular grate and other small flues of four inch brick work. (The four inch chimney would be safe with the one inch air space all an»und it, and the eight inch back and iamb> to fire places.) 2. Wooe h,«l in which to erect a furnace; when the s,«ce .s cramM. either in height or a«.a, an imperfect and unsafe lieater is the necessary result. Flues for smoke or hot air should be several inches from wood and one register-the main one if practicable - should l,e so consructe^l that u cannot be shut at any time. Ilegisters should always be laid in soapstone. Much careless mechanism is indulged in the erection of "heat- e« ; they should be put up only by cai^ful and experienced men. Plenty of head roon. must l« secuml so as to relieve the fr.' .'",7"; ''" ^''''" ^""»^'-- '^''« <-■«''' '»''• chamber . feeder should always be of brick or metal and nev^ of toooa Reverse currents of air, sometimes c^ted by unusual winds blowing through open doors or windows, while certain registers are open and others shut, will set wood on fire in a very few moments. ^ There is also another consideration in regard to the cold air chamber bemg of non-combustible material. A metallic cold air box or duct of tm or galvanic iron, is essential for health as well as for safety from fire. A wooden 1k,x soon opens joints or cracks from shnnking, taking the foul air of the cellar from damp coal, decaying vegetables, etc.. and foreing it throughout OALHOUSIE LAW SCHOOC LIBRARY 96 FHmaret. tho living an,l .k^pi,,^ ,,h„„h of tho Unune hy tho op«.mtio„ .,f t ... furnace If pmfH,riy ownorn could b», made to rmli«. tl.in all cold Rir boxes would lie of metal. Portable heaters must Ik, kept at leant two feet fmm partitions and ceilmK, a.id then it will Ix, well to a.1.1 the protection of Hheet iron or zinc. These heaters should stan.l on the ground, but If they are placed on wtxvlen floors they must b, on large -tones or courses of bricks well laid in mortar. The stone or bricks to extend at least two feet in front of the ash pan Smoke pij«,s of furnaces should go direct into chimneys but if they p,ws through floo.>,. walls or partitions they must Ik, case,.«,„«, th,.,, the c-ihtiK or Ix-am. shouLJ b,. ,.rutoc.t,Hl in tho mm anner m in the brick furnace iw nientionttl alnive. 4. The smoke pi,H. HhouW U, made of at least No. 20 sheet imn, «n,| „f « nize |.ro,H,rti„„ttte to the furnace, an.l pnivichnl with a key or clamper t<. che,k the draft. The nai.! pipe „,UHt •« pioperly joine of the ceilinK Mow the re^JHter to the m«|mton« in the flo<.r, till. outNiiJe <.f wiil h|mm;p to »» covereaco of three incht^ Imtween the regiiiter-box and cawing. UeginterH of fifteen hy twenty-five and more Hhouhl have a H|«ce of three and a half incheH. All horizontal i-egiHterH hIiouIiI have a diapliragm of win* cloth no placed &H to prijvent any duHt, NweepingH or other comhurtiblo from entering the hot air tubon. All the openings through the bam) or skirting Khould have a stone frame, or double tin filled with plaster of paris one inch in thickness, through ail the wood work. In the same circular the following rules are laid down for steam and hot water pipes : No high pressure steam pipe should be laid or placed in con- tact with any wood between floors and ceilings or in plastered walls or partitions. When such steam pipes are use property and entail severe losses upon the commonwealth ; for property destroyed by fire is not restored to the state by pay- ment of indemnity to the individual. The inference from this state of facts again is, that careless- ness—interested carelessness — is very often the cause of Josse-s by fire, and the question suggests itself as to whether the distinc- tion between one who allows his property to burn because he is insured, and lie who fires it to obtain the insurance, is not rather in degree than in kind. How shall this moral hazard be met and rated is a query more easily put than readily solved. Some say raise the rates, but premiums may be raised to such an extent as to be beyond the reach of honest men, yet still nob be too high for knaves who will pay any premium upon property they propose to burn. Others again place their faith in limiting the lines. This may operate in individual cases, where the parties are known ; but if known unfavourably or not known at all they were better left alone ; and in the event of doubt give the company the benefit of such doubt, and let the applicant seek elsewhere for his insurance. The insurance agent should guard against moral hazard above everything else, and if any toint of it be developed in the course of examination of the risk, refuse the line unconditionally. The Moral Hazard. lOB This danger to the companies is most difficult to discover, because it is hidden from view in the breast of the intending incendiary, who may be of accepted respectability and standing. In a matter of this kind there is great need to exercise judgment and firmness. The agent cannot without offence proclaim his motive for declining the risk, but if any reason whatever appears why the insurance money might be better to the applicant than the property, or if threats, litigation, disputes or an emlwrrassed business appear, refuse the line. A good rule for insurance agents is never to toke a risk under the pressure of importunity, against the verdict of their judgment and with a lingering feel- ing of uneasiness about something that may afterwards lead them to wish it had not been aocepttjd. But the matter of moral hazard is not so intricate that there are no guides to a successful solution of the problem. In regard to the moral hazard of a man there are certain questions, well known amongst insurance men, which, when answered, will greatly aid the agent in his decision to accept or decline the line offered. The character and standing of the applicant furnish the index to these questions. If he is honourable, systematic and business like he will be less likely to have enemies, either within or without, than a dishon- est, careless or litigious person. Let the agent then inform himself as to the following points, after which, if they are satisfactorily answered, he may accept the risk with a sense at least of having done his duty : 1. Is the party unpopular, grasping, overhearing, litigious, tricky, dishonest? 2. Is he losing money 1 Is he embarrassed and desperate ? 3. Has he never insured before, but suddenly become con- vinced of its importance ? 4. Has he been threatened ; or is he a man hated and feared in the neighborhood and abounding in enemies ? 5. Has he a bad lease ? 106 The Moral Hazard. M 6. Is the property in dispute or litigation ? Is it unprfxluctFve and unprofitable? Is it a stock of remnants or a branch store — an unsalable, unfashionable, depreciaten thun enUblinhed we would recoiii.Tiend thou iw m a cheap and •eemingly effective protec- tion a^ainHt Are. They cost fifteen dollani e,, li, or ortlered by the dozen ten per cent, off; m that the cost of HupplyinR a buihijiig witli enough to materially add to its prot««ction would be light. Wo think alno that the Underwriteni' BoarflH nhould allow a certain nnluction in rate M-hen these machines are kept on tho premiHCH. We give in full the report of the committee of the National Fire Protection Awiociation on Carbonic Acid Ga« Extinguishers : STANDARD FOR CARBONIC ACID GAS FIRE EXTINOUISHER FOR OTHER THAN FIRE DEPARTMENT USE. Construction. 1. Shell to be made of hard copjwr or brass heavy enough to withsUnd a hydrostatic pressure of three hundred and fifty jjounds per square inch. Each extiiig'iisher to be tested and so labeled. 2. The interior of the shell to be coated with le«.,;cemet»t of the acid bottle. 7. All metal portions of cage to oe coated with lead or -.onic niuitai metal not subject to corrosion by the chemicals conUined in ^i gsiiorated in the extinguisher when in use. 8. Acid bottle to be preferably of commercial size, which can be read- ily replaced, and unless hermetically sealed, of such capacity that the . rid required for one charge will not more than halt fill it. \^ Cht-micnl Fitv Extiiujui*h^». lis 9. Outlet to bo within one inch of top of extlnt;uiaher, ytw, \(\n\ with a ithort niotiil |)i|io to which rubber hixte ciui li« attached ; to be sctfened with co|>|)er or briuiH netting protected agaiiijit corrotion by IomI or ■imilnr metal. H>. There Hhall be no valve in the outlet. II. Horto to bo of best <|u«Iity three ply rubber teated to four hundred IHiundt |ier w|uare inch, and so atUche«l to outlet pipe that it can be readily lomoved and replaced when neceiwary, ili. Nozzle to be of lend or similar metal not subject to corroiiion, having an outlet not ItoM than ono eighth inch and not more than three- nixteonthB inch diameter. ClIRMICAL ChaRIIE. 13. Acid (sulphuric) and chemical (bicarbonate of soda) to be in auoh projiortions that a pressure of three hundnxl and twenty five imunds at a temiwrature of one hundred and twenty degrees when in o|)orRtioii cannot be exceeded, and also that licjuid discharge KI.NKLGRS. WAtor IlKla. ^ >< H M No. .1. >< H H J, End Central Fked to Automatic Sprinkleus. No. 4. End Side Feed to Automatic Sprinklers. (Unapproved). m 126 Automatic Sprinklers No. 6. ^ ^ ^ ^ X— I X X X X X * ^ X X X— J— -X X X X X X X X X X— jl— X X X X X ^ "^ ^ X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X Across Centre Feed to Automatic Sprinklers. No. 6. ^ ^ ^ X X X X X X X- 1 "" "^ ^ X X X X X X X- "" "" ^ X X X X X X X— ^ "" "^ X X X X X X X- ^ '^ ^ X X X— X X X X- ■ — ■■ — ^ — = — ^ — ■■ ^ Across End Feed. Long Lines. (Unappn oved). ^^ A belt, stair, or elevator tower, having floor openings without shut-offs, ' IS to be treated as one room and pipe sizes arranged accordingly. Sprinklers to be on a separate riser with independ- ent shut-off and drip valves. The circulation of water in sprinkler pipes is very objection- able, owing to greatly increased corrosion, deposit of sediment and condensation drip from pipes; for this reason the sprinkler pipes must not bo used in any way for domestic service. Automatic Spi-inklers. 127 X X X X X Spacing op Sprinklers. ' There is no average rule for the spacing of sprinklers, as the spacing is entirely different under joisted and smooth ceiling construction. We may, however, lay down a few general rules which will serve as a guide. Under smooth ceilings, such as plaster, wood sheathing or plank and timber "mill" construction (floors laid on timbers placed from eight to ten feet apart, from centres), the sprinklers must not exceed a distance of ten feet apart in either direction, that is the distance between the heads on the line or the distance between the lines of pipes. Under joist construction sprinklers must not be more than ten feet apart when the pipes are run in the same direction as the joists, or more than eight feet apart when the pipe lines are laid across joists. The distance between the pipe lines, usually, not to ex- ceed ten feet. The staggering of sprinklers is a positive requirement when they are used under open joist construction. This staggering, as it is called, consists in placing them exactly opposite a point, half way between the sprinklers on the adjacent lines, and can best be shown by the following sketch : Staggeeed Spacing of Sprinklers. A B X X X X X X X X X X X A C X X X X X X X X X X X A B X -1- X X X X X X X X X X (The perpendicular lines represent Joists, and the heavy horizontal lines Timbers). 128 Automatic Sprinklers. "?? A X X X = X X X B X X X X X X A X X r" X rr X X r X C X X X X X X X (The perpendicular lines repre.ent JoI.U.and the heary horizontal line. Timber.). Lines A — Sprinklers are placed according to standard, four feet from walls and eight feet apart. Lines B and C show two methods for staggering sprinklers. Line B, end sprinklers, are two feet from wall and six feet from next sprinkler on the line. ^ Line C, end sprinklers, are four feet from the wall and four feet from next sprinkler on the line. Either arrangement is acceptable. Size of Pipes. In no case shall the number of sprinklers, on a given sized pipe, exceed the following ; sue of Pipe. Maximum Number J j„jjjj of Sprinkler. Allowed. , ,, 1 sprinkler 2 •' n " 4 .. »i " 8 .. 16 «• 2i " J2 " 3 '• .48 " 4* u • 78 .. 6 .. "0 •• 6 » *«> " 200 •• X i __ Automatic Sprinklers. 129 This i. the New E,,gla„d Htandarcl, and Hystems thus installed have had a wonderful record in the extinKuishn.ont of fires. When spnnk-ierH have not worked, the failure in the n.ajority of Unces has heen due to defective wat^r supply and causes ot'her the pipes" ''""''"'''^ "^ •*" '"''' '" *''« »'^« «f Some authorities are of the opinion that an arrangement of P.p.ng different from the above could be installed at about the same cost and bo at least e.jually efficient and logical. It would do away w.th five and six inch pipes within a mill, and th^ «av,ng would balance the adde.l expense of increasing the smalle mzed p>pes. These changes would result in an e.,uipment, whic" at any po.nt m a room, either centre, end or side, would allow a much more uniform discharge of water through a nun.ber of sXtr ^"' '"''^ ''^' "" '" ^^''"^^^ ^'^ *^« p--' It would seem needless to devise a system with a view of supplying two hundred heads at one time or even one hundred Water supphes. capable of furnishing the quantity of water rtS^Tailable^ ''"''"''' '' ''' '^^^ ""-^^ "^ "«' - The main point about ^ sprinkler system is to have the first f.w spnnklers opened as effective as possible, and the way to accomplish this ,s to increase the size of the smaller pipes Not more than six sprinklers to be placed on one branch line ot pipe, except ,n compliance with the table given below ^A branch line, we may state, is the extreme length of pipe on a sprinkler system in any direction). P pe on a bnng all sprinklers near the larger sized supply pipes, thus avoid- ing the excessive friction loss in long lengths of small sized pipes. Size of Pipe. Maximnm Nnmber J inch o' Sprinkler* Allowed. I It 1 sprinkler , , O K 4. tl 130 Automatic Sprinklers. 'i Ik J*'".f 6 sprinklers ^ 8 " ^* " ' 16 " 3i< 28 " Dry Pipe System. Where buildings or portions of same are so constructed, or where the nature of the occupancy is such that the premises cannot be sufficiently warm to prevent the water in the sprinkler pipes from freezing, the ordinary wet pipe systems cannot be used, and a valve (called a dry valve) is introduced in oi-der to keep the water out of the pipes. The sprinkler pipes are then filled with air under pressure. The reduction of this pressure, owing to the opening of a sprinkler, allows the water pressure to automatically open the dry valve, when the water fills the system and is distributed from the open sprinkler. The ordinary working air pressure in dry pipe systems should not be less than twenty pounds, and for pressure above this it should be about one-third as great a pressure as that of the water supply, under or restrained by the dry pipe valve. A dry pipe system, however, is not recommended when a wet pipe system can be used. In addition to the possibilities of failure in a wet pipe system, such as the failure of sprinklers, or of the water supply, or the stopping of the pipes by a closed valve: there is also in the dry pipe system another element of uncertainty in the use of a dry valve. Besides this there is of course some delay in the distribution of the water. The use of an approved dry valve is far preferable to shutting off the water entirely during cold weather. In New England the latter practice is not sanctioned. The sprinklers must be located in an upright position and especial care taken to arrange all sprinkler pipes and fittings that they may be thoroughly drained. In this connection it must be remembered that a dry pipe system cannot be drained completely at once. Employees in charge of sprinklers must drain the dr^ system daily until completely emptied. h^. Automatic Sprinklers. 131 The pipes must be supported in a substantial manner by wrought or cast iron hangers. Hoop iron, chains, or supports of combustible material are not allowed. Water Supply for Sprinklers. Two independent water supplies are absolutely essential for the best equipment. At least one of the supplies must be auto- matic and one should be capable of furnishing water under heavy pressure. The following are considered adequate and are accept ed by insurance exchanges and boards : Public water works system, duplex steam pump, private reser- voir, or stand pipe, elevated gravity tank, air pressure tank rotary pump. Tlie choice of water supply to be determined b^ the underwriters having jurisdiction. Two supplies are essential more than two are often desirable. The primary supply should furnish water under heavy pressure, so that the first sprinklers opened may be thoroughly effective. A desirable combination for a country risk is a pressure tank, gravity tank and pump. For city risks, pressure tank and public water works. Approved Automatic Sprinklers. "Grinnell" (old and new pattern) "Hill." "Kane." "Neracher." Head to be placed upright The ton of snrJnt " Mackey " (1 889 or " non-corrosive head ") Nel^Yo'Sc'""'"'"''' ^"*""'"° ^P""'^^^^ Company. Syracuse, "Newton," R. W. Newton, Providence, R. I 132 Automatic Sprinklers. " Esty," Esty Sprinkler Company, Laconia, N. H. As it is not a simple matter to install properly a sprinkler system, we strongly recommend to any who contemplate avail- ing themselves of this additional safeguard against fire that they give the contract to those experienced in the work and not to a local piper, plumber or irresponsible steam fitter. The latter course is liable to make the cost unduly high, owing to mistakes which will have to be corrected, and will probably leave the equipment an eyesore and source of anxiety to the owner and a subject of criticism by inspectors. X. — Basement and Sub-Cellar Sprinklers. In consideration of the fact that fires are most likely to start in basements and sub-cellars, where rubbish accumulates, and also that fires in these places are often difficult for the firemen to reach, it would be a great improvement to many risks to have such places thoroughly equipped with a system of automatic sprinklers. This would not be nearly so expensive as piping all the premises, and would at the same time be a valuable addition to the fire preventive facilities of the building. But it is best, of course, if possible, to have the sprinkler system installed throughout. XI. — Thermostats. In addition to the sprinkler system many risks in the United States are now furnished with automatic fire alarms, known as thermostats. This system consists of electric wiring on the ceil- ings of all rooms. A circuit closer, known as the thermostat, is placed in the system at frequent intervals, generally not exceed- ing fifteen feet. The heat of a fire operates the thermostat, which makes a connection in the wire and rings an alarm by means oi the electric current. These thermostats are usually located wherever automatic sprinklers are placed, and also in detached sheds, porches, etc. With a few changes and improvements made in this system there is no reason why it should not be superior to the watchman and clock for a majority of risks. biim Thermoatata. 133 Thermostats can either be installed as a separate system or in combination with the sprinkler equipment. If the latter is usod the White combination thermostat ar.d Grinnell automatic sprink- ler is considered o d of the best. Lastly, in closing this article on sprinklers, and in reply to the contention that they are usually ineflFective on account of failure of the water supply, or from the pipes, and sprinklers clogging, or from various other causes, we quote the following from the hand book of the Underwriters' Bureau of New England : " According to data supplied it appears that out of a total of 1,271 fires 95.76 per cent, were reported as well controlled by sprinklers, 3.30 per cent, resulted in serious loss, owing to defec- tive i ipments or damage from exposures, and .94 per cent, are not classified, owing to insufficient information." Or, instead of general statements and figures, to give a specific instance, out of many available, we might quote the following from a report "on light wells and other vertical hazards as found in department stores," written by E. W. Crosby, manager of the Underwriters' Bureau of New England : "We have knowledge of over twenty fires in department stores, controlled by automatic sprinklers. These have almost invariably occurred in the night, and many of them in places remote from vertical openings, as in brick waste paper bins, boiler rooms, etc. One fire, however, is noteworthy in this con- nection ; viz., that of Bloomingdale Brothers, New York, occur- ring at one o'clock in the morning, December 17, 1898, and war- rants extended comment. The section in which the fire started is nearly all taken up by a large light well forty by thirty-five feet, extending from the first floor to the roof and with a heavy glass skylight at the top. The entire premises are equipped with a system of Grinnell gla^^s disc sprinklers supplied by five pressure tenks, containing fifteen thousand gallons of water when two-thirds full and under seventy pounds pressure at tanks, giving about ninety-five to one hun- dred and fifteen pounds at sprinklers in the building in which fire occurred. There were also six gravity tanks of about fifty thousand gallons total capacity. This exceptionally powerful 134 Automatic Sprinklers. (l-l! water supply had been installed a few months previously under specifications of the New York Board of Fire Underwriters. In the centre of the light well, referred to, a platform about eight feet square and ten feet high had been built on the first floor, and on this stood a Christmas tree, forty to fifty feet high, decorated with the customary trinkets, etc., while from the tree to the iron columns at the different floors extended streamers of evergreen. It was inferred, from the marks of the smoke, that the fire started somewhere between the first and second floors, and opened two sprinklers on the first floor, four on the second, ten on the third and one out of twelve at the top of the light well, or seventeen in all. The -.prinklera checked the fire and the department extinguished it. Now we would call attention to the following facts : The fire spread rapidly, due to the Christmas tree, its decorations and the large open draught space. There was little open stock on the three floors in the vicinity of the well to which fire could communicate; galleries being used for passageways, having cur- tain walls on three sides and restaurant on part of fourth side. Therefore, as the tree and its decorations constituted the only fire and were quickly consumed, the sprinklers had an excellent opportunity. The heat in rising spread into the diflFerent flats, opening on successive floors two, four and ten heads. Under the skylight there were eleven high test 286° R sprinklers, and by mistake one ordinary 160° F. sprinkler. Only the latter opened. The glass on the skylight was not cracked and little of the paint on the interior of the well was blistered. These conditions, spreading fire and smoke at once to three different floors, would have endangered hundreds of lives had the fire occurred twelve hours earlier, and this is the thought of chief importance. But the fire annihilating energy of automatic sprinklers, under seventy-five to one hundred pounds pressure sustained, no matter whether one or many heads be open, should be witnessed to be appreciated. In the well equipped sprinkler system in large department stores is the greatest power for extinguishing fires; for when the Watchman and Clock. 135 smoke 18 thick and men stand back, when the hose jet pierces the window only to be scattered by tlie first obstruction, the sprinklers, far within the building, are quietly surrounding the firo and holding it in check." We think these facts fully answer any arguments adverse to sprinkler equipment as a fire preventive. XII. — Watchman and Clock. A watchman and watch clock are valuable additions to a risk. If the night watchman is trustworthy and does not neglect his duty this precaution ensures a careful guardianship of valuable property during the dark hours. The rules given for watchman's service are as follows : An approved clock to be provided, and stations so located as to necessitate the watchman visiting all sections of the premises. The rounds should be made at least once an hour during the night, dating from the time the mill shuts down until it starts again next morning. Recorded rounds should be made at least once every other hour during the day when the plant is not in operation, as upon Sundays and holidays. The value of this protection, as recognized by insurance men, may be estimated from the fact that the building schedule of the Universal Rating Schedule of the United States allows five per cent, of the rate off for a watchman, and a deduction of ten per cent, of the rate for a watchman and watch clock, or electric detector. We may mention, for the benefit of those who are not familiar with watch clocks, that they are devices for ensuring that the watchman visits each section of the premises at the required hours, and also for registering the time at which he passes through. It is in effect a check on the watchman's movements. XIII. — Thb making accessible or doing away with Roop Spaces, Blind Attics, and Cock Lofts. The objection to roof spaces, blind attics, and cock lofts is that a fire once getting into such places is not easily discovered and is seldom extinguished. '■It- S 136 Roof Spaces, Blind Attics, Etc. These places are usually very difficult to get at in order to extinguish a fire, once started there. There may or may not be a small man-hole leading into it, and perhaps a ladder, or more than likely the ladder is gone. In all probability the only way to reach a fire in a place of this nature is to erect the ladder and make a hole in the roof or side of the building, then play through this with the hose. Of course this admits the air, giving more impetus to the fire within, and the opening must be made large, so that the firemen can use the nozzle effectually and reach the right place. While all this is being done the fire gains headway rapidly. Again in a roof space a fire can obtain a good start because there is no means of detecting it at once. The chimney may sag or settle, and open cracks through which sparks may issue, or a fire may start in any way, but all this is unknown to the occupants below until the crackling and roaring of the flames, or the smoke filling the house announces the danger ; usually too late to prevent heavy loss. If, however, these places were done away with the damage to the chimney or the commencement of a fire could be seen at once. Nor are the dangers of its isolation and inaccessibility, or its veiling of fires the only objection to this form of construction. The roof space is cut olT from the rest of the building, dust accumulates (and dry dust in quantities is dangerous) the chimneys, and perhaps some hot air, hot water, or steam pipes run through it, heating and drying the atmosphere, making the dust dry and inflamma- ble, and not only the dust but all the woodwork. Added to the dust are rats and mice. These creatures often build their nests, preferably in a warm place, near a hot pipe or by a chimney. They use all manner of rubbish — string, straw, wool; nests have been seen near a hot pipe with matches worked in them, threatening fire at any time ; the creatures use anything almost, and it might happen that all the elements of spontaneous com- bustion are ready in the nest, and these would be aided by the heat of the pipe or chimney. The objection to these places is further increased if the elevator shaft, or ventilating or other shafts, or staircase openings com- municate with them, making air drafts, and aiding the spread of Hoof Spaces, Mind Attica, Etc. 137 the flames. In these circumstances a fire in the lower stories of a building would rapidly gain the most inaccessible portion. Or, on the other hand, a fire starting in the roof space can cjuickly cause fire in the lower stories by burning embers dropping down these shafts. This fault can be corrected at a small expense, either by breaking the connection, if an elevator shaft or stair- way opening, by means of closing hatches, or, if a ventilating shaft, by leading it to the air through some other place. The best roof is a flat metal one without any roof space, blind attic, or cock loft. We would rc.ommend for all new buildings that there be no spaces of this kind allowed, and for all buildings which already possess these objectionable features that they Ije done away with, if possible, and at least that no elevator shaft, ventilating or other shafts, or stairway openings be allowed to communicate with them unless proper cut ofis are provided, and lastly, if nothing else is done, that these places are made readily accessible, in case of fire, by means of trap doois and ladders. XIV —Elevators in Fire Proof or Fire Resisting Shafts, AND with Self-Closing, Fire Resisting Hatchways — Light Wells and other Vertical Hazards. There is nothing so weakens the fire resisting properties of a building as unprotected openings "from cellar to roof, such as unenclosed stairways, open elevator shafts, well holes, hatchways, wooden chutes, dumb waiters, ventilating shafts and belt holes! They ensure the rapid progress oi fire throughout the structure, on the same principle that a stove pipe promotes combustion in a stove, and there is no excuse for such faults in mercantile buildings. Even when enclosed in ordinary lath and plaster partitions, with wooden doors at each floor, combustion may be • retarded sufficiently to enable the fire department to arrive in time to save the building. Every minute gained in retarding its progress, after a fire starts, increases the probability of its ex- tinction. From this point of view it is a grave question, if the protection of these communications from floor to floor be not more important than the structural composition of the floors themselves. 138 Elevators, Hatchways, Etc. It is possible to protect an elevator slmft, even after the erec- tion of a building, by metallic lath and plaster. In the works of authorities on fire insurance we find many recommendations in relation to these important features — from a fire insurance standpoint — of building construction. Slaivt ttiolottcl pr«v«nt jlvai II 146 Spontaneous Combustion. If a roll of greasy rags or cotton waste be allowed to stand oxidation begins ; the temperature of the heap rises until finally the pile bursts into flame. This is spontaneous combustion, and hundreds of fires involving loss of life and many thousands of dollars worth of property have started in this simple way. But oily waste is far from being the only substance liable to spontaneous con^bustion. Fine dry dust of almost any kind will explode from this same cause, and many a paper mill has been burned from the fact that the rafters and beams have gradually become covered with a fine dry dust or powder. Frequently flour mills share this same fate and accumulations of dry flour or dust have to be guarded pgainsf most carefully. It is a very easy matter to test this property of powdered sub- stances, for if we pour the dry pollen of a flower over a flame there is an immediate explosion, while even iron filings will burn like gunpowder. Ordinary charcoal does not undeigo combustion in air, under a temperature of one thousand degi. os, b'lt in some states it is liable spontaneously to acquire a temperature whitii may lead to unexpected combustion. Thus lampblack, impregnated with oils, which contain a large proportion of hydrogen, gradually becomes warm and inflames spontaneously. According to M. Aubert, Chevallier, and other French observ- ers, recently made, charcoal in a state of fine division is liable to be spontaneously ignited without the agency of oil. There have been many instances of the spontaneous ignition of coals, contain- ing iron pyrites, when moistened with watei-. The pyiitt.!, which most readily give rise to spontaneous combustion are those in which the proto-sulphide is a-jsociated with the bi-sulphide of iron. Sulphur has no tendency to spontaneous combustion, but Dr. Taylor in his " Principles and Practice of Medical Jurispru- dence " refers to an instance that came to his own knowledge, in which there was reason to believe that the vapour of bi-sulphide of carbon in an India rubber factory was ignited by solar heat traversing glass. Phosphorus, when in a dry state, has a great tendency to ignite spontaneously, and it has been observed to melt and take fire (when touched) in a room in which the tem- perature was under seventy degrees. p. - ■ •> Spontaneous Combustion. 147 From these cases, occurring in the mineral kingdom, we pass to the consideration of spontaneous combustion in organic sub- stances. Passing over the accidents that may result from the admixtures of strong nitric or sulphuric acid with wool, straw or certain essential oils, and which if they occur are immediate and obvious, we have to consider the cases in which without contact with any energetical chemical compounds, certain substances such as hay, cotton, and woody fibre generally, including tow, flax, hemp, jute, rags, leaves, spent tan, paper waste, cocoanut' fibre, straw in manure '.eaps, etc., when stacked in large quanti- ties, m a damp place, undergo a process of heating from simple oxidation {erenmcaasis) or fermentation, and after a time may pass into a state of spontaneous combustion. There is undoubt- ed evidence that hay and cotton in a damp state will occasion- ally take fire without any external source of ignition. Cotton impregnated with oil, when collected in a large quantity IS especially liable to ignite spontaneously; and the accumulation of cotton waste, used in wiping lamps and the oiled surfaces of machinery, '.as more than once given rise to accidents, and led to unfounded charges of incendiarism. Livery stables are there- fore liable to burn from spontaneous combustion, on account of the greasy rags used in the oiling of harness. Dr. Taylor relates a case in which a fire took place in a shop, by reason of a quantity of oil having been spilled on dry sawdust. According to Chevallier vegetables boiled in oil furnish a residue which is liable to spontaneous ignition, and the same chemist observes that all kinds of woollen articles, imbued with oil and collected in a heap, and hemp, tow, and flax when similar- ly treated, may ignite spontaneously. Dr. Taylor also states, that although there are no cases record- ed It IS nevertheless probable, that jute, cocoanut fibre, and linen and cotton rags imbued with oil, might undergo this change. But it is still an open question whether such organic nitroge- neous matters, as damp grain or seeds of any kind, ever undergo spontaneous combustion. A good regulation for greasy rags and dirty waste or other like sources of spontaneous combustion is, that iron pails be pro- Ml |j II 148 Spontaneous Combustion. vided to put such latent incendiaries in, and that these pails be emptied and cleansed daily. " Greasy rags," says Griswold, " iron borings in which oil has been dropped, oiled clothing, cotton waste, woollen waste, newly varnished harness, fine coal in quantities, and powdered charcoal, will all ignite spontaneously in certain circumstances." Sawdust spittoons, or sawdust on the floors, are prolific causes of fire. White sand is not only safe but cleaner. Cigarette or cigar stumps, thrown into sawdust spittoons, cause numerous fires. Sawdust, when saturated with oily substances, is liable to burn spontaneously. The danger is not merely while on the floor but is especially great after it has been swept up and placed in a barrel, or where it can overheat in the cellar. There is also a great hazard in shoddy stu£ ; old cloth, old carpets, old rope and all other similar stuff", may have all the elements of spontaneous combustion, as they are usually filled with grit, oil, and such ingredients that go to make up the num- erous fires in risks where these things are handled, and the causes of which are invariably reported as unknown, but which are un- doubtedly occasioned by spontaneous combustion. The Monitor quotes a list of fires, caused by spontaneous com- bustion in the following substances, viz. : Coal. Heap of rubbish. Barrel of rubbish and oil-soaked rags used in polishing brass fixtures. Paper and rags. A pile of old rubbish in a carpenter and paint shop. Rubbish in an attic. A lot of material in a picture-frame establishment. Basement filled with boxes, barrels, etc. Waste i; picker room of a textile mill. Old wa.*M in an engine room. Oily wu to in a store room. In the material in a paint factory. Waste and varnishes. Wool bags in the drying room of a woollen mill. Cotton in drying room. A fertiUzer estabUshment. Spontaneovs Combustion. 149 According to the Chronicle Tables the following risks are especially liable to spontaneous combustion, and should be care- fully inspected to guard against loss from this cause : Agricultural implement factories, 18i iier oAnt Agricultural implement and seed stores, . . ".' ' ' 16 ^^'^u*'"'' . Bookbinding and blank book factories " ""'20 " Button factories ' " 18 " Carriage and waggon factories, ........... 001 .. Coal and wood yards ^g? „ Coffee, chocolate, and spice mills, i<>i u Cotton goods factories .'." pi .1 Cotton warehouses and storehouses, ...'....'.', I6 «■ Drug and chemical works, 20 " Drug and chemical stores (retail) 20 '• Dyeing,bleaching,andcloth.fini8hinge8tablishment,17 t ertilizer and phosphate works, 07a « Flour, grist and oatmeal mills, " '. 15 <• Furniture and undertakers' stores, 17^ < Paint, varnish, and oil stores, ...... . . . . '. ." ." ." . . . " " 37 u Painters, glaziers, and paper hangers' shops' . . '39 '< Photograph galleries, " ,5 „ Paper and pulp mills, !...!..!. 29 " Picture and mirror-frame factories, 2Q " Printing and lithographing establishments, .... . .oq ii Kailroad car and repair shops and roundhouses. ''2 " Railroad stables, ' ' ^ „ Rubber factories (vulcanized goods, etc.) 41 <• Tanneries, ' J^ „ Warehouses and storehouses (wa8'te,'rag,' pai^r! ete.) ' 64 » Warehouses and storehouses (paint,oil, and varnish) 06 " Warehouses and storehouses (general), 21* " White lead, paint, and varnish factories, .......'.'!. 16J «» Wharves, „q ^^ Wood turning and carving shops " Tr << Woollen mills, :....V.. 04 " Worsted and yarn mills, ■■•......... ......26 «' I The following substances, separately or in conjunction with others as stated, or when stacked in large quantities in a damp state are liable to spontaneous combustion ; Cotton especially so, when stacked in large Cotton and cotton waste, quantities in a damp state. Coal, especially fine coal. Cocoanut fibre when stacked in large quantities in a damp state. > if t i if ii ' i tii IP 160 Spontaneous Combustion. I Pi)wdered charcoal. Pine dry dust of almost any kind. Flax in large quantities in a damp state. Flax in a heap and imbued with oiL Wet hay. Hemp in large quantities in a damp state, and hemp in a heap imbued with oil. Iron borings in which oil has boon droi>i)ed. Jute in large quantities in a (Iniiip state. Lampblack and oil. Leaves in large quantities in a damp state. Newly varnished harness. Old cloth, old carpets, old rope. .Such stuff being filled with giit, oil, and such ingredients, doubtless, contains all the elements necessary for spontaneous combustion. Oily waste. Oiled clothing. Paper waste in large quantities in a damp state. Phosphorus. Greasy rags. Rags in quantities in a damp state. Piles of rubbish. Sawdust saturated with oily substances. Spent tan in large quantities in a damp state. Straw in manure heaps in a damp state. Tow in large quantities in a damp state. Tow in a heap and imbued with oil. Vegetables boiled in oil furnish a residue which is liable to spontaneous combustion. Woollen waste. Woody fibre generally, in large quantities in a damp state. All kinds of woollen articles collected in a heap and imbued with oil. Griswold lays down the following rulings in regard to sponta- neous combustion. Bt Proper Vice. Proper vice is presumed to proceed from the thing itself when it is of a nature to spoil or perish. Thus deteriorations, dimu- nitions and losses that happen through the proper vice of the thing shall not fall upon the insurer. r 1 h c ai ai tl al pl w m Spontaneous Combutition. 161 :nibued rit, oil, ary for EUieous oil. )onta' when Hmu- i the Underwriters undertake to make indemnity only for damage arising from external accidents, not from that occasioned by the inherent qualities or natural defects of the thing insured; hence, as a general principle, insurers are not liable for the loss of a thing which is consumed by reason of its own qualities, such as spontaneous combustion without external causes, but they are liable for the consequent loss of other subjects covered by the policy. It has been held that if hemp put on l)oard a vessel in a state liable to eflfervesce, did effervesce and generate fire the insured cannot recover for loss on the hemp, though a policy on the vessel would be liable. Also : If a hay rick take fire from heat or fermentation, it is not a loss, except as to adjoining bodies which may be ignited by it. But not if wot on being stacked. If lime, accidentally submitted to the action of water, take fire it is not a loss by fire as to itself, but it is if, in slaking, it com- municates fire to adjoining bodies. But on the other hand it has been held that an insurance against fire, effected upon a quantity of coal, covers also the risk from spontaneous combus- ^'on of such coal caused by contact with water in the hold of the vessel ; water being the exciting cause, and one of the perils in- sured against. So with lime put on board dry, and from leakage or other cause generates fire, it would be a loss from fire. In this connection we have thought it well to give also the relative flashing points and inflammability of dangerous liquids. This list was recently published in the Gewerbehlatt, Wurtem- burg, and was compiled by Dr. F. Gantter, of Heilbronn, a chemist of some note : "These data were ascertained by careful experiments for the benefit and aid of Gernaan insurance companies in fixing tariffs of rates for fire insur- ance. As the technical work of German chemists is usually thorough, the information may be considered reliable. We gi\o here the table — altering Centigrade to Fahrenheit —and simply state that ethyl-ether is placed first, as most dangerous, and called 100, or highest risk, along with two other liquids; and every five degrees C. (or nine degrees F.), marks one degree of less relative danger as per third column. I' 1'^ i li! 162 Spontaneous Combustion. "So ethyl-ether, the highest jeoiwrdy. flashes at four degrees below zero F., while naphthaline, the least jeopardy shown, flashes at 392° above Mro F. There ar^ twenty.four degrees of jeopardy among the twenty- six liquids. ' Ethyl-ether (commercial) Carbon di-sulphide. .....!!..!. Petroleum-ether (sp. gr., .70) Benzole from coal tar (strengthj 90 porceiit.) Benzole from coal tar (strength, 50 percent.) Methyl-alcohol Toluol (pure) ', ........... Ethyl-alcohol, 95 per cent ..!..!.!! Ethyl-alcohol, 60 per cent Ethyl-alcohol, 45 per cent .. Petroleum (test) !!....!!!! Xylol — from coal tar .*!]!'.!.".'! Oil of turpentine i .".'.'.'.'.'..." ! Cumol, from coal tar !'.!!!' Anhydrous vinegar Amyl-alcohol (fusel oil). ...... ..^.\^^^. ...'..', Solar oil ] _ Tar oil (medium frac. distill.) Aniline (pure) Di-methyl-aniline Aniline for red , ," Toluidin (ordinary) "!....!!!! Nitro- benzole !!!!!.'.' Xylidin .■"............! Paraffine oil Naphthaline Plaahlng Point of Vapor of Llouid, —4.0 —4.0 —4,0 6.0 23.0 32.0 44.6 57.2 «0.8 68.0 77.0 8(1 I) 95..' 102.1 111.2 114.S 140.0 145.4 168.8 168.8 185.0 185.0 194.0 206.6 224.6 392.0 Inflamma- tion Point of Liquid, f ■ —4.0 —4.0 -4.0 5.0 23.0 »2.0 69.8-71.6 59.0 80.6 87.8 109.4 116.6 111.2 132.8 167.0 116.6 176.0 181.4 217.4 194.0 221.0 224.6 217.4 249.8 302.0 440.6 Relative Degree of Danger. 100.0 100.0 100.0 99.0 97.0 96.0 94. > 93.4 92.8 92.0 91.0 90.0 89.0 88.2 87.2 86.8 ;;!0 83.1 80.8 'iO.8 79.0 ;9.o 78.0 76.6 74,6 56.6 In concluding this article, and aa bearing directly on the igni- tion and non-ignition of oils on wool, cotton and jute, we have reproduced the following from a book on Spontaneous Combus- tion by C. J, Hexamer, C. E. : •• We have seen that the spontaneous combustion of oily rags or waste is caused by a rapid absorption of oxygen from the air, and that oils which have a great avidity for oxygen are the chief causes. By a number of experiments, it has been shown that when vegetable or animal oils contain one-third or over mine.al oil, they will not ignite waste impregnated with them, spontaneously. The excellent experiment of Dr. James Young showed that in a chamber in which the temperature varied from 130° to 170° F, Spontaneous Combugtion. 153 Boned linseed oil on cotton ignited in j^ houw. urd '. M * ;; Colai " II * Olive " .1 * ;* Se.il oil and mineral oil, e(,ual i^rts on cotton,' would" not ignite. 100.0 100.0 100.0 99.0 97.0 96.0 94.5 93.4 92.8 92.0 91.0 90.0 89.0 88.2 87.2 86.8 :\'.o 83.4 80.8 'i0.8 79.0 'i9.0 78.0 76.6 74.6 56.6 TKMi-KRATUKR OF CHAMBER FROM 180' F. TO 200' F. Colza oil on WDol ignited in., . n i. Olive oil on cotton ".[ .^ V"' Olive oil on wool " » •> Seal oil oil wool " ,.,'.' - ,, Whale oil on jute '• ......'.,[ « ,4 Whale oil on cotton ' ..,!.,.!!, [^ ." o ,, Cottonseed oil on wool • '..'.'.... 54 u ho^arrcha3:"^"°^'«"'^ '' '^^^"^^-^""^ ^°-«' "P-"- - the Olive oil and mineral oil, equal parts, on cotton. Colza oil and twenty per cent, mineral oil on wool. Seal and mineral oil, equal parts, on wool. Whale and mineral oil, equal parts, on jute. Cottonseed oil and twenty per cent, mineral oil on wool. J. j"coleman"°*'"^ '"^'^ '''"'''"^ ^^^ '^''"'*' °^ ""* experiments of Cotton waste saturated with whale oil Cotton waste saturated with olive oil Olive oil and 20 per cent, mineral oil Mmeral and olive oil, equal parts, no change after lapse of twenty-six hours; after twelve hours, temperature 95° C Wool waste and seal oil ......! Wool waste and whale oil. ............... Wool waste and cottonseed oil . . . ... . . . .' ....', ^Vool waste and olive oil !!...!. Wool waste and refined rape oil .....!.', .' Wool waste and crude rape oil Wool waste and cottonseed lil with 20 per cent, mineral oil ; seal and mineral oil, equal parts • olive and mineral oil, equal jwrts, unaltered after lapse of twenty-six hours Jute waste with whale oil .'.'.'.'' Jute waste with whale oil and mineral oil, equal parts, unchanged after twenty-six hours Entered into Conibuatlou After 3 hours 4 " 8 •' At a Tem- perature of 165° C. 177° C. 177° C. 3 194° C. 3 188° C. 5 178° C. 7 177° C. 6 177° C. 8 163° C. 180° C. li AGENTS AND SUB-AGENTS. The relations of agents and sub-agents to their prii, ipals are not, perhaps, as well understood as they should be, and we have, therefore, considered it advisable to enumerate a few of the more important points in connection with their appointment, their powers, and their duti s. Appointmbnt. An agent may be appointed — by writing, orally, or by impli- cation from the course of business. Where there is a written appointment his powers are limited by that. In determining his authority otherwise, regard should be had to the manner in which he is held out by the company; the usual mode of doing business ; the scope of his employment; the character of the authority known to have been granted ; and the particular circumstances of the parties or of the transaction. Classes. General agents. Special agents. Sub-agents. An agent authorized to issue and renew policies, and to transact business in a particular locality is a general agent. A special agent is one to whom the company has entrusted the important duties of inspecting risks and adjusting losses. As a general rule local agents are to submit to the authority of special agents and adjusters. Sub-agents are those whose duties are confined to soliciting risks, taking applications for insurance, receiving and remitting premiums to the general agent, and all such minor acts, without the power to make a complete contract i in 'I 156 Agents and Sub-Agents. Liability of Principal fob Acts of Agents. m The principal is liable for such acts, including frauds, as are committed in the course of the agent's service or employment, and for the principal's benefit, though no express command or privity of the principal be proved. Although the principal may not have authorized the particular act, yet if he has put the agent in his place to do that class of acts he must be answerable for his conduct. When the agent is appointed for the performance of certain specific duties the principal will not be bound where the agent passes beyond the limits, i. e., the apparent limits of his powers; but he cannot escape liability by secret restrictions while con- tinuing to hold out. the agent as having full power to make contracts. The powers of a general agent are co-extensive, prima facie, with the business entrusted to him, and persons dealing with him, while they are put on inquiry as to the extent of his powers are not bound by secret instructions not communicated to them. Where an agent, in violation of his authority, issued a policy covering property outside his territory, the assured being ignt rant of the limit imposed, it was held that the company might ratify or disallow the policy ; but the disavowal, to be effective, must be prompt, and notice thereof given at once to assured. It has been laid down in the United States that foreign companies are justly held bound by all the acts of their geneial agents representing them in that country. The opinion of an agent as to the legal effect of the language of the contract does not create obligations or change those already existing. But the agent would be liable to the assured for any wilful misrepresentation or deceit irrespective of whether the principal as rendered liable or not. A company is not liable to the assured for false representations by the agent as to the validity of the policy, the assured being induced thereby to settle a loss for less than his claim, but the agent is liable. Agents and Sub-Agents. 157 A contract varying a policy must, in order to become the act of the company, be executed in accordance with its conditions, and those who trust to verbal contracts with an agent do so at their peril. If the manner in which all changes in the contract are to be effected is notiBed, as is customary, in the policy, the assured must be taken to know ihe agent's power in this respect. Those who deal with a sub-agent, where the circumstances of his employment indicate limited powers, are bound to know the extent of those powers. It would be a dangerous doctrine if one who was appointed merely to solicit insurance could bind his principal further. Knowledge of agent is imputed to the principal subject to the following : With respect to knowledge acquired before the rela- tion commenced it is necessary that such knowledge should be remembered by and actually present in the mind of the agent in order to charge th. principal as well as so material as to make It a duty that it should be communicated, there being at the same time no reason why the agent should refrain from doing so. ® Knowledge obtained while acting in confidential relations with third parties: — An agent is not bound to communicate this, and it cannot be imputed to the principal. Knowledge by the agent will not affect the principal when the agent is acting in collusion with the assured, or is meditating a fraud on the principal. Notice given to, or knowledge acquired by the agent after the work for which he was employed has been terminated, or with respect to matters outside the sphere of such agent's action, will not affect the principal ; e. g. notice to a soliciting agent after the issue of the policy. Knowledge by an agent to bind the company must have been communicated to the agent as such and mere rumour, street talk, etc., will not fix the principal with notice. In ail cases it is necessary to establish in evidence the fact of the agency before evidence imputing knowledge can be given. Where the agent has inspected the premises he fixes his com- pany with notice of whatever was apparent. 168 Agents and Sub-Agenta, II Duties and Liabilities op Agent to Principal. Agents are bound to know the law ; to execute the orders of their principals whenever for a valuable consideration they have undertaken to perform them, without negligence or delay ; and any failure to carry out their duty will render them liable to the company ; e. g., a failure to cancel a policy at once when so ordered. The agent is required to exercise the same degree of care and skill as men in the insurance business usually possess, to keep his principal informed of his doings, and to give reasonable notice of whatever it is important he should know. An agent cannot underwrite a policy on his own property which will bind the company. The method in which he should proceed is to send in an application to the company and charge as if for business of a third party. He cannot consent for the company to an assignment of his own policy. Premiums. A general agent may receive premiums in any usual mode and arrange for them as customary. He may take a ouequo, or the note of the assured for the premium, or give credit, he himself becoming responsible. Where he gives grace for premiums over- due the company will be bound, and even if that act was outside the scope of his powers, if the company receive his account with the entry of acceptance of overdue premiums without any objec- tion his act will be ratified. His fidelity to his principal must never be subordinated to his own interest ; he is held to the utmost good faith and for any violation of duty, negligence, or omission to act he will be per- sonally liable. Delegation op Power. In some books it is laid down that an agent cannot delegate his authority to another ; but the rule is an inconvenient one and many exceptions have been engrafted on it. A^ ts of mater- K. Agents and Sub-Agents. 159 ial importance, no doubt, cannot be delegated ; thus, con it- signing policies, signing interim receipts, etc., but "an agent must necessarily perform a great number of acts through persona to whom he delegates his authority." In a Nev York case, Earl C.J. said : " An insurance agent can authorize his clerk to contract for risks, to deliver policies, to collect premiums, and to take payment of them in cash or securities, or to give credit, and the company will be bound, the maxim delegatus non, etc' not applying to such cases." If an agent fails to pay over money within a reasonable time, and it is thereby lost, he will be liable to his principal for his neglect. An agent who has paid a premium at the request of the assured may maintain an action to recover the sum so paid, and no assignment from the company is necessary. Sob-Agents Are agents of general agents. They are empowered to take risks, to secure applications which are to be forwarded to the general agent and to receive and receipt for premiums. Sub-agents cannot bind the company to issue a policy. If the general agent receive and accept an application forwarded by a sub-agent then the company is bound but not before. Sub-agents have no power to sign interim receipts or to alter the contract of insurance in any way. The condition in policies of insurance that if the agent or sub-agent answers the questions in or fills up the blanks of an application form, he shall be considered the agent of the assured and not of the company, has been universally disapproved. A judge in a New York case sarcastically observed : " Calling snow hot does rot make it even warm." But where the stipulation is contained in the application it is brought home to the assured, and he must be considered as having contracted on that under- standing. The case is then much stronger against him. s n ■1 J:l 'I if %■ tV -^ ISO Agents and Sub-Agents. Revocation op Authority. By notice gi/en to the agent j beforo which time his sets will bind the company, he and those defiling with him being s;i?norant of the revocation. By the insolvency or bankruptcy of tho company. By lapse of the period foi which the agent was appointeJ. By the death of ont of the partners of a firrr which had been made an agent, or of one of two or more joint agent.3. PAROL AGREEMENTS. We will first define under this heading the legal meaning of . parol, verbal, and oral. Parol means by worda — including oral and written — without seal. Verbal means expressed in words — written or spoken. Oral means by word of mouth — spoken, not written. Verbal and oral contracts are simple contracts not of record. Written contracts. — Evidenced by writing. The only difference between verbal and written contracts is in the mode of proofs. The principles governing parol agreements may be stated as follows (the distinction between an agreement before and after the issuing of a policy should be carefully noted) : If made by an agent it must be within his authority in order to bind his principal. An offer to insure does not constitute or create a contract, and may be withdrawn at any time before acceptance. An agreement to insure, made by one having an insurable interest in the subject at risk with an agent having requisite authority to bind his principal, will be legally binding upon the insurance company, in the absence of any statute law requiring such con- tracts to be evidenced by writing. But an acceptance of the offer as made, without any change, must be signified. Payment of premium may be made at the time of entering into the agree- ment, or upon the subsequent delivery of the policy. It is important to remember that such an agreement must embrace all the requisit€s of an ordinary ins'irance such as the insurable interest, the amount covered, the subject at risk, the peril insured against, the rate and amount of premium, the dates 162 Parol Agreementa. of commencement and termination of risk, unless, as in ware- house insurance at short terms, the time is to be left "open" or " undeclared " ; and where the agent may represent several com- panies, the name of the office in which the risk is to be placed.. All these points are essential, and an omission of any of them will render the agreement nugatory. Such an agreement, unless otherwise specified, io in fact a con- tract for a policy made according to the form in ordinary use by the agent's company. A court of equity may compel the delivery of a policy agreed and contracted for, either before or after a loss. The same court may enforce the payment of the loss, under such a contract before the delivery of the policy. When the policy has been accepted, any subsequent parol agreement by the agent to change or alter any of the conditions of the contract is, until endorsed upon the policy, of no force, as in accordance with the conditions thereof; which conditions must control all agreements, verbal or written, connected with the policy, subsequent as well as prior to acceptance by the insured. Verbal or oral agreements, to insure upon certain terms and conditions, prior to the issue and acceptance of the policy are held to be waived unless inserted therein. "A contract cannot exist partly in writing and partly by parol." A STATUTORY FORM OF POLICY For all Canada, and the Advantages of same. The conditions of the fire insurance policy were first used as found necessary in the simple early contracts. These were added to as occasion arose, and the underwriters required further protection to guard against different contingen- cies and different kinds of fraud ; to which latter, perhaps, the early forms of policy were an invitation. The insurance policy is a conditional contract and has been aptly designated as a "perpetual experiment," "entirely on speculation," where the underwriter is completely at the mercy of the insured, being necessarily ignorant, beyond the facts that enquiry may elicit, as to the circumstances attending the risk, hence open to fraud by designing parties who may misrepresent material facts connected with the subject of the proposed insur- ance. Hence the various specific conditions, printed or written, attached to the policy result from the peculiar nature of the con- tract. They are simple general stipulations, for the protection of the underwriter against fraud, which the insured, by the acceptance of the policy, agrees to observe during its currency. They have been found essential to the business, have arisen out of and grown up with the business, and are inseparable from it, and are now engrafted into the policy as a part of the system. When we consider that every company doing a fire business has probably a different experience to report of the same field of operations, — one having made money and another having lost heavily, or one finding fraud jjrevalent and another a certain freedom from it, etc. ; and when we consider too the varied H Si ill !i: 164 A Statutory Form of Policy. experience of a i.ouiJa. y Iv. .a^ agencies u!l o\er the world, and having to , but from a further evil, directly agains. jblic fetj' ami 'Ifare, th. t first induced the legislatures to intervene between the companies and their clients. It is a well-known fact that the conditions of policies are com- plicated a 1 leng*^ J, ..id difiicult fo the ordinary ' lind to grasp. Further, that very law people attempt to study out what the companies require from them as their pn\ t of the '.nsurauce con- tract. Some companies in the Sta' , takir _, advantage of this latter fact, started out on a career (/t jce aid fraud, recei\ ig appli- cations and premiums, while b^ cheii v-jnditions they could hard- A Statuto., Form of Policy. 160 ly be held liable for any Iosh. This took place in New Hampshire, and we ([uoto some statementH from the pen of Chief .luBtice Doe of that Htate, which will sliow the evil which the legislature lie- lieved to exist, and which it cut up by the roots by the enact- ment of certain laws regulating the conditions of fire policies : " The purpose of these fraudulent companies was accomplished by applications and policies drawn up, not only in fine type al- most injurious to the eyo to read, but containing a numlwr of conditions, stipulations, covenants and warranties, so involved in a mass of detail and verbiage, and so complicated in their nature that no ordinary man could understand the document to which hf! was persuaded by zealous f^^ iting agents to set his name ; and even an astute and able lawyer would have difficulty in find- ing out what was the intent of the insurance company which used this dark and inexjijicable riddle as its conditions. So who'i a loss occurred the assured first found out that lie had applied for the policy, when in reality he had been most earnestly solicited to take out one. Next he w as informed that he had not only obtained the policy upon his own application, but had obuined it by a series of representations (of wliich he had not the slightest conception), and had solemnly bound him- .clf by a general assortment of coven tnts and warranties (of. which he was unconscious), the number of which was equalled only ' heir variety and the variety of which was equalled only by tht. apposed capacity to defeat every claim that could be made upon the company for the perforri ance of its part of the contract. He was further inftrmed that he had succeeded in his appli- cation by the falsehood and fraud of his representations, the omission and misstatement .i lacts, which he had expre co- venanted truthfully to disclose. After this he was measureably prepared for the next regular ■ arge of having burned his pro- perty. These policies were kept abreast of the times by the i'sertion of new conditions and stipulations, relieving the v< upany from liability, as the court decisions in regard to certain points ren- dered them necessary. •11 166 A Statutory Form 0/ Policy. The increasing number of stipulations and covenants, secreted in the usual manner, not lieing understood by the premium pay- er until his property was burned, people were as easily l)eguiled into one edition d mothor until at last they were made to form- ally contract witii a phantom that carried on businex.t to the limited extent of absorbing cash received by certain persons who were not its agents. When it was believed that things had come to this pass, the legir-'ature thought it time to regulate the business in such a way that it should have some title to the name of insurance and some appearance of fair dealing; and to this end the act of 1855 was passed." But besides the elimination of any such danger, as that which we have just outlined, there are many other reasons why a standard form of policy for ali Canada should be adopted. The committee of the National Board of Fire Underwriters, in submitting their form, say of it : " The form recommended is that in almost universal use, and has the merit of being also in the form of a legal contract. While the great benefit, accruing to both companies and their dealers, from uniformity of policies cannot be questioned, the .prevention of disputes after losses have occurred, and the full protection afforded must of themselves be the best commendation that can be offered in favoui of a uniform policy." In the first place, then, a uniform policy would be a great ben- efit to the insurance companies and their agents. It would do away with each company's own peculiar wording and would facilitate adjustments. It would be a preventive of disputes after loss, while the conditions, having been drawn up and sanc- tioned by legislative enactment, would be well-known and under- stood. And a decision in one case would serve for all the companies (the conditions being the same), and would thus save litigation. A uniform policy would simplify adjustments ; the contract being the same in each case there would be nothing to do but find out the loss, and pay according to the policy. A Stattdory Farm of Policy. 167 The form itnelf would probably be a fair one. It would be a form drawn up by the lepreHentativeH of the [Hjople, decided on after judicial delibjration and discussion. The forms adopted by the stattw of New York and Massachu- setts show a fair and impartial spirit and an evident desire to deal justly between the companies and their customei-s. If the legislature did its duty the form would protect equally the companies and the assured. Nearly all the statutory forms now ir- operation allow the companies to vary the conditions, if thest- variations are printed in a conspicuous place and in different colored ink, or in such a way as to show plainly that they are additions or variations of tlio oi'dinary contract. By this means the companies can still protect themselves on points, perhaps not touched on by the statutory form, but which the companies consider essential to the contract. Under a statutory form the assured need not read through his policy in search of special and technical conditions against him. He knows that the main provisions of the contract are definitely settled by the law of the land, and if he does not like the extra conditions imposed by the variations, he can probably find a company which has accepted the statutory form without any amendment. We may close this article with a few remarks from Griswold, writing on the standard policy : " Within the past few years a number of the states, both eastern and western, have adopted what is called a 'standard policy,' the use of which is made obligatory upon all companies opera- ting in those several jurisdictions. Massachusetts was one of the first to lead off and was subse- quently followed by New York, since which time some eight other states have legalized these policies, most of them taking the New York form for a basis." (In Canada, Ontario and Nova Scotia have statutory policies ; Nova Scotia having adopted the Ontario form with minor variitions). "The result of this change h»^ been a great simplification of hitherto disputed points, thus gi\ ing the companies a much better ;l I 168 A Statutory Form 0/ Policy. standing in the courts than under the old voluntary form where all ambiguities were ruled against them. Under the standard form both insurers and insured stand upon the same ground, and the doctrine of waiver can now scarcely find a foothold in the statutes. Since so many stat«s require its use the companies are using it in other states where not required, thus obviating the great objection first held against standard policies that the com- panies were compelled to make use of two kinds of policies in adjoining states. The underlying principles of standard conditions are about the same as heretofore ; but they are made obligatory, hence uniform among the offices, and will do away with many lawsuits against the companies which will have the policy contract behind them. To what extent the introduction of statute law into the policy form may influence future litigation remains to be seen. The point had not con)e up at the date of this writing, but it is an interesting and important fact that the language of the ' standard policy ' is not the language of the company issuing it but the language of the legislature of the state which enforces it." nil; A PLEA For a Uniform Basis of Taxation of Fire Insurance Companies. The subject of taxation is so vast and there are so many ZT 7 "" '"' ''^°"" •" ^^'^*'- *« '^^^ import! Jtter Our Idea in this present article is rather to show the pecuhar ties, often injustice and inequality, of the present meth^^s and to suggest a plan which perhaps may be some improvement on the existing anomalies. Let us take up then the present system of taxation on fire in- surance compan.s, as practised in the Maritime Provinces. First of all, however, before a company can obtain a license to do business in Canada, it must make a deposit of one hundred thousand dollars with the Dominion Government In New Brunswick, the companies are taxed in St John citv and county on their profits, that is allowing for all deducdonJ Thte" r T"''' ^'^"-"^*--. -P--S and re-insuranc ' There is also a charge for the maintenance of the Salvage Corp " pT::^;' oTr^'^^^^'^'^ '^:^^ " tax, based on IceS percentage of the gross premium income without reference to licenselef 7 '" T'l ''"' " ' P^^^'"^''^^ ^^ -"-^-8 of a been e fee of one hundred dollars and a tax based on income on y taking off cancellations and reinsurances, with no al loCc' for losses and expenses, so that a company may pay out alPi s preniiums m New Brunswick for losses and stilf have to con tribute one hundred dollars to the Provincial Governm^rand ZZ:2 '"""■" ^"'^^'"^ ^' '^^^ determined In this ^.ay too, companies are taxed twice on their St. John city and county and Fredericton and Woodstock premiums ^ 170 A Uniform Basis of Taxation. I r' In Nova Scotia we find irregularity and confusion. Some towns tax the companios, some do not. Home exact a license fee, but the majority levy taxes on the following iniquitous basis : The income of a company in the town is demanded, allowance being made, however, for losses, cancellations, and re-insuranccs. This net income is then multiplied by five, and a certain per- centage of the exaggerated amount thus obtained is required yearly from the companies. The city of Halifax levies a straight license fee of two hundred dollars yearly. In Prince Edward Island a license fee of one hundred dollars is levied by the Provincial Government, and the same sum is collected at Charlottctown. These then are the systems now in force, presenting peculiar and unjust features and irregularities, troublesome in their oper- ation and burdensome in their effect, necessitating higher lates to meet the added expense they impose. Turning now from the local aspect, and looking to the United States, we find an infinitely worse state of affairs ; "In some few states," writes Griswold, "deposits, licenses, taxes and fees, have been assessed upon insurance companies until they are almost prohibitory. In addition to state deposits, varying anywhere from ten to fifty thousand dollars for each agency company — state, county and municipal licenses, ranging from twenty-five dollars to fifteen hundred dollars each, are simultaneously in many instances re- quired from each company ; while special municipal licenses for the benefit of particular objects, as a medical college at Mobile, two hundred and fifty dollars, fire departments two per cent, on each company's receipts — as if insurance companies instead of the uninsured property were solely benefited thereby, and for almost every other conceivable purpose for which a permanent source of revenue might be needed. Nor is this all. Agency in- surance companies are further subjected to annual state, county and municipal taxes, varying from one to five per cent, upon the gross receipts of each, and this simultaneously. And to secure the payment of these exorbitant assessments agents are in some localities compelled to give bonds, in amounts from five hundred A Uniform Basis of Taxation. 171 dollasto two thousand dollars - under penalties for failure to comply ..th any of these provisions in the forn. of fines, vaLi.g from five hundred dollars to three thousand dollars ^ Fortunately these prohibitory assessments are confined to a comparatively small number of states. In others the assessment^ . --o-P-t-ely light." And the writer concludes, that n vTew L ,tl:^^'=;'.-P--' - commensurate increase must be mldl to the rates of insurance. In the Universal Schedule we find the following • actluosTonf ''■ """' "'°" ^ '^^ P^^ ^^"^ P-fi^ «^- the actual cost of insuring property, and contemplates no tax, other than a fair one of two per cent, upon the net results to 1 com pany after deducting losses and expenses Of course if a further tax is imposed, the expense to the com- to al tt f """ '^""P'^"^^^ ^^ -t object to paying the sfa ' '"'"?"' '^^ °" '""^ ^'""^'^ «^ 'heir business in the s ate, or upon the excess of their received premiums over paid losses and expenses. It is difficult for them to see why they should be called on to pay a tax on the gross premLIof any state where the amount paid by them to L citL" ^ the hape of fire losses and commissions to agents who are esid n Uizens, may consume all or more than the premiums received In such a case they are taxed for the doubtful privilege of leav- ing more money in the state than they take out of it." Charles Sumner spoke truly when he said "a tax upon insurance is a tax upon a tax, and therefore a barbarism." fintc'^ C h'"'"? '" :'''"'' ^•^"'^^^''"^ '" «•■« departments we find a C. Hme. o' ., Insurance Monitor, writing as follows : There IS more .. injustice to insurers, unde. a more plausi- ble guise, in this species of tribute than in almost any other ex torted from them. The plea that insurers are more intr" ted than others and should pay by direct contribution is practically untrue. A good department reduces the rates of insurance" d n this way the underwriters pay their share. There would be he same propriety in assessing insurers for the fire walls or slate roofs of citizens, upon the plea of preventing conflagration t 172 A Uniform Basis of Taxation. which underwriters might be interested. In one sense a depart- ment is not a benefit to underwriters ; as when it reduces the rates of insurance, or so increases the sense of security in a com- munity as to induce many to insure less and some to insure nothing. And yet we believe in a good fire department, but as we pay our share in reduced rates we must be chary of donations. The hardship of which insurers have a right to complain is this, that when by reduced rates or diminished business they have already paid indirectly to a department, they should be constantly called on for direct contribution to its support. The department belongs to the town, is gotten up by the town, and is for the town, and should be supported by the town, and it will be so supported ; there is no real necessity for applying to insur- ance companies." Such being the views of leading insurance men let us now ex- amine more carefully into the present systems, by the aid of the principles of political economy. The taxation of the fire insurance companies in the Maritime Provinces is based on two systems; viz., an income tax and a license fee. Of course it can be at once understood that any tax on insurance companies is an indirect tax ; that is a tax levied on one person and paid by another, as distinguished from a direct tax, which is paid by the person upon whom it is levied. The beer duty likewise is an indirect tax, for while it is in the first instance paid by the brewer, yet the tax really comes out of the pockets of the consumers of beer, because the price they are com- pelled to pay is increased by an amount which must at least be equivalent to the tax imposed. With the insurance companies the same is true. If the item of taxation is heavy the rates must be high to meet it. As an illustration of how the tax on an insurance company is paid by the people we may take the town of Woodstock, where it was decided to tax the insurance companies, and as a conse- quence the rates were raised to meet the added expense. The incidence of the tax, as it is called, denoting the real from the nominal payer, in relation to the insurance tax falls on the people who insure ; not on the companies. m a J5 i.i A Uniform Basis of Taxation. 173 But It may be urged, as an objection to this, that when the New Brunswick provincial tax was imposed on the insurance compames no raase took place in the rates. This is quite true, bu at the same time it must not be forgotten that had not this added expense been imposed some reduction might have been adopted, which the tax rendered out of the question JJJT '' "T ^ "'" *" considering this question to lay down the second canon of taxation, as formulated by Adam Smith, and which is perhaps the most important of [he four canons he has given us. The second canon then states : "The tax which each individual is bound to pay ought to be payment, the quantity to be paid, ought all to be clear and plain to the contributor and to every other person . . The cer ta.n^ of what each individual ought to pay, i. in' taxation a" matter of so great importance that a very considerable degree of mequahty, as appears I believe from the experience of all nations IS not near so great an evil as a very small degree of uncertainty " Now we do not l>elieve with some that insurance companL hould not be taxed. That they should contribute in some way to the province or state in which they carry on business is, we hmk perfectly fair. The question is in what manner hey hould do so, and to what extent. A tax on insurance compan les has this to recommend it, that the incidence of that tax falls principally, not so much on the poor where too many taxes weigh heavily, but on the wealthy, on capitalists, on owners of large plants and establishments, who have much to insure. Granting then that the tax is fair, all that the companies require is that it should be reasonable, and as the second canon states, certain and not arbitrary, the tin.e and the manner of payment clear to the contributor and to every other person. We submit that the present levying of taxation on insurance companies m the Maritime Provinces has none of these features. In the first place it is not reasonable; the different systems in vogue, the double U.ctiou in some towns by a provincial and municipal tax, tl,. :n,a,:ir.us multiplying of the insurance i^- lV4 A Uniform Basis of Taxation. turns for taxation purposes, and the different times of levying, all take away its claim to this feature. Again : the amount is not certain but arbitrary. Could any act have been more arbitrary than the suddenly imposed New Brunswick Taxation Act on banks and insurance companies ? A company may aid many enterprises by insuring the projec- tors ; it may do a general business and thus roll up a large pre- mium income ; but at the same time this income may be paid out twice over in losses and expenses, yet the tax in New Brunswick, not fixed sis a license fee but becoming heavier as the business increases, still has to be paid. This is indeed an argument against an income tax ; the amount is not certain but continually varying. On the other hand it may be said that the income tax makes some attempt at equality of taxation, but to quote the second canon again — a degree of certainty is worth many degrees of equality. As to the time and manner of payment being clear, these features from the very nature of the present mode of in- dependent taxation by provinces, cities, and municipalities, are impossible. And so it happens that nearly every month in the year shows an item of taxation in some part of the three provinces. Another argument against an income tax is that it gives an opportunity to dishonest agents or managers to avoid the tax. The income of an insurance company in a certain field is not known; it has to be supplied by the officers of the company. Morality is unfortunately too often based on conventionality, and many, who pass for honest men, do not hesitate to cheat a gov ernment, although in the private transactions of life they would shrink from doing anything in the least degree dishonourable. In this way then an income tax operates with a certain degree of unfairness, because some managers or agents have a chance of evading the tax, whereas others have not. If we turn now to the system of license fees, we find in it more of the general requisites of the second canon of taxation : "The tax which each individual is bound to pay ought to be cer- tain and not arbitrary. The time of payment, the manner of payment, the quantity to be paid, ought all to be clear and plain A Uniform Basis of Taxation. 175 to the contributor and to every other person." And again • "A very considerable degree of inequality is not near so great an «vil as a very small degree of uncertainty." But even a .system of license fees by each town now imposing a tax, although much simpler and more workable than the pre- sent mixed mode, is nevertheless not a very distinct advance. The amount instead of varying, would at once become fixed and there would be an immense saving of labour. It is evident, however, that the final solution of the question is not in a license fee at e^ch town or city. This is but a step to a still further and simpler system. It will be at once said that a license fee would also have to be paid without abatement of any kind, whether the company made a profit or a loss, while according to our own showing the present system in some cases allows for losses. The advantages of a license fee in the certainty of the amount to be paid, and the saving of labor, would more than compen- sate the companies any additional expense attached to if but the license fee could be so regulated by a plan of taxation, which we shall formulate further on, that this argument falls to the ground. In addition to the considerations that a license fee is certain and also the great saving of labor, there is an argument mis favour which we believe has not been generally considered. It is said, as a principal defence of an income tax, that a license fee bears unjustly upon the companies having the smaller incomes and that where all have different ability to pay the license fee nevertheless taxes all alike. Let us examine tJhis a Suppose then there are two fire insurance companies doing business in New Brunswick. One is managed on a restricted pohcy, aiming at a large profit on a comparatively small business. This company writes freely on the good brick and frame dwell- ings and churches and stores, well protected by the fire depart- ment in towns. It leaves alone all farm risks perhaps, and nearly all specials, such as mills and factories, unless exceptionally good in construction and surroundings. It guarantees indemnity to no new enterprises until they are well established, and proved 176 A Uniform Basis of Taxation. r profitable risks approximately free from hazard. It aims at the cream of the business. On such a company an income tax is light, because its income is comparatively small, and the only way to reach it is by a license fee. The other company does what is known as a general business. It takes farms and unprotected property generally in the coun- try. It writes freely, nearly all manufacturing riskti. It guar- antees indemnity to the projectors of new enterprises. It is in its way a great help to commerce and industry, as by the protec- tion it affords, men venture to engage in new industries and hitherto untried manufactories. In this way its premium income is large, and the income tax is a heavy burden. Added to this is the fact that its ratio of profit, though in some years it may be large, is on the average not above what the ordinary business man considers fair. Under the income tax system then the companies doing the general business virtually pay the taxes for the restricted com- panies. In this way the active and enterprising agent, who does a large business, brings more expense on his company, in the way of taxes, than the slothful agent who, either by his own lack of energy or by the restriction of his company, does a smaller business, though the amount of net profit in the latter case may be much more than in the former. And the deduction from this argument is that the license fee is the fairer plan, for if the company does a small business it is either the fault of the agent or of the restricted policy of under- writing which the company pursues. Another argument, one which we have already mentioned, in favour of a license fee is that it is a great saving of extra labour. There are no long forms to be filled in, involving close research through a year's operations. The amount is certain, it is known to be due at a certain date, and when the time comes it has to be paid. There is no opportunity for dishonest managers and agents to avoid it ; the amount is fixed. As Fawcett states, there is no system of taxation which is not open to some objections, but the license fee system in regard to insurance companies appears to be free from many of the objec- tions urged against other taxes. A Uniform Bmx of Taxation. 177 Now a suggestion as to how this license fee should be imposed 80 as to yield approximately the same revenue with a minimum or trouble. The plan of taxation is this: Instead of the indiscriminate, unsystematic taxation as now levied by province, city and muni- cipality, let there be one fairly, heavy license fee for each Pro- vince payable yearly or half yearly to the Provincial Government, and all other taxes abolished. The amount of this fee could be ascertained by taking the total amount which the companies now pay in various taxes in each province for a number of years, so as to allow for the losses and taking an average, regulate the license fee to give approxi- mately this sum. If this should be done the rates in Woodstock could at once be lowered to their former level, and the rates in Fredericton and St. John city and county reduced in proportion o the amount of the tax taken off. The system is simple and the result is the same. The amount St. John, Woodstock, and Fredericton, or any other places imposing the tax, lose in revenue the inhabitants make up by the reduced cost of insurance Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island could be treated in the same way As a matter of fact this system is in force in Pnnce Edward Island, with the difference only that instead of the Provincial Government taking the total tax half is payable to the city of Charlottetown, and consequently the insurance rates m that place are graded so much higher. It may be urged against a license fee of this nature that it would somewhat relieve the rich, by reason of the reduced rates of insurance in cities formerly imposing the tax, and that the poorer classes would not benefit by the reduction in rates. To this we would reply that insurance is actually more of a necessity to the poor than to the rich, for the reason that a fire often leaves the former entirely destitute, while the latter have generally other t-esources Besides, the city affected in its revenue by the with- drawal of the insurance tax could make up the amount by a tax which would not affect the lower classes. Or again : the Pro- vincial Government, being in receipt of an increased revenue, could remit or lower some form of taxation now imposed There appears to us no reason why this system of one Provin- cial license fee should not prove practicable. 1^ i| t il DIGEST OF MARITIME PROVINCES FIRE INSURANCE CASES. INDEX OF TITLES. Action. Agent. Application. Apportionment op Loss. Arbitration. Assignment op Policy. Assignment op Property. Cancellation. Certificate op Magistrate. Contract. Damages. Evidence. Foreign Company. Fraud, Gunpowder and Explosives. Increase of Risk. Insurahi, vterk.st. Leased (iHouNo, Limitation op Actions. Loss. Mortgage. Notice op Loss. Occupation op Premises. Other Insurance. Ownership. Pleading. Policy. Proof op Loss. Salvage. Waiver, Warranties. Will. ^11 ABBREVIATIONS. All. ■ Can. Han. N. B iT, S. iV. S. Old. P.d- P. E Pug. R.& R.d: R. E. -Allen's Supreme Court of New Brunswick Reports — Supreme Court of Canada Reports, — Hannay's Supreme Court of New Brunswick Reports — New Brunswick Supreme Court Reports. — Nova Scotia Supreme Court Reports ^•—^f^^^^^^^'^^f^ Nova Scotia Decisions. -Oldright's Nova Scotia Reports. A— Pugsley & Burbidge's New Brunswick Reports. /. — Prince Edward Island Reports. — Pugsley's New Brunswick Reports. C. — Russell k Chesley's Nova Scotia Reports, G.~ Russell & Geldert's Nova Scotia Reports. D. — Russell's Equity Decisions (Nova Scotia) IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 tii 1^ tit 5h tit !£& 1.1 IM lit u U£ 11-25 HI 1.4 I 75 2.2 2.0 1.8 1.6 150mm '^ ^ ^ /APPLIED A IIVMGE . Inc JS^ 1653 East Main (jet J^g l; Rochester, NY 14609 USA j^sr^ Phone: 716/462-0300 .i^S'.^S Fax: 716/268-5989 e 1993. A(!plM lm«g«. Inc . Al( Rights RCMtvtd ^ ^^ ^\ •^ \ ^ C» v\ ■»<<•"• "*- tf 1 80 Digest of Maritime Provinces Fire Insuraitee Cases. Action. (i). Covenant — Form of indornement — The agent of a company indonwHl and Migned the words "thin iuMuraiice is hereby continues! in the name of H. F." on a policy covering goods which had lieen purchase third ;>ar<.i/ — Wliere a policy t'«.iit«inefi a clause " lo«s, if any, payable to the onier of B, if claimed within Hixty clays after proof, his interest therein being as niortKagee," B may furnish pn-liminary proofs a»(l brin« an amnion in his own name. Jirtuh v. Juna Iim. Co. 1 01orate Aea/ — In order to prove that a person acting as the agent of a foreign insurance com- pany by issuing policies in their name and receiving prem- iums is their accredited agent, it is not necessary to shew Ins appointment under the corporate seal. Robertson v. The Provincial Mutual and General Ins. Co. 3 All. 379. (i\). Stndenee — Admission of ~ Agent of comoany received proofs and requested time. Afterwards by letter he stated he had e.xamined claim, that it appeared satisfactory and agreed to pay. By another letter he acknowledgeotweea the two parties, T went into passes«ion, renewed the policy in plaintiff's name and charged them witli the premium, but made the loss payable 184 Digest of Maritime Pravincts Fire Imurance Cases. (0- (ii). AHHiirnment of Policy — (Continued). to iiiiiiwlf. Ho afterwarrlH assigrKHj to truRt«e!i for his crtMlitofH' benefit and wa« doclaml inwlvmit. Helerial Ins. Co. 26 Can. 580 (iii). Mongage-^' Change of title "-A chattel mortgage is ^ "change of t.tle" anlifati(»n.s wm- made tlnou^h brokerH. Jlold, that a iKility was issu«'d whon aj,'ent forwanlod it to broker for delivery. Notice of prior inHurance to a broker is not notice to tito coinjMiny. Mc. Lacldan v. .Etna Ins. Co. 4 All. 173. (iii). Contract, ivfiere tnade — Illi;jality — A policy issued in New York and delivered by a broker to his agent in Ht. John, and by him delivered to defendants who gave a pivmium note, is not complete until actually delivered and is illegal under Act 19 Vict., c. 45, prohibiting a foreign insurance com- pany from doing business in the province without first filing a certificate in the provincial secretary's otiice. Allison v, Kobimon. 2 Pug. 103. (iv) A., holding himself out as the agent in St. John of a com- pany with head office in New York, forwarde*! applications for insurance to a broker in Boston who prwureil the jMjIicy, the premiums being charged against him. He then for- wardetl the policy to A., who delivered it to the assured, taking a note to himself and sending the broker his own note for nine-tenths of the amount. Held that this was illegal under 19 Vict. c. 45, and was not distinguishable from Allison v. Robinson. Jones v. Taylor, re Oulton. 2 Pug. 391. Fraud. (v). Entire contract — Fraud as to part — A policy covering several buildings and merchandise in one of them and hav- ing a condition that in case of any fraud or false swearing Digest tf Maritime Previntes Fire hiuraiKe Cases. 18U tli«' cliiiiimiit xhould forfeit till cliiiniH under the iM.lit-y, ix nil i-ntire cniUiati, ati»lt under the policy Hhould be forfJite*!.' (.'it,noH v. The Xorth liritUK and MercaiUile Jtu. Co. 3 Pug. 83. (ii). Otwr-ivi/M«H — Plaintiffs valuwl property (purehiiKiMl hy them from a l>ankiupt estate for >?3,500) at 815,000, and HUted in application that their criterion of value was cost of rehuildin«. Evidence was given of different viiluafionH ranging from 812,000 to «20,000. Held, that there was no breach of condition a.s to fraudul»nt over-valuation. McGxbbon v. Imperial Fire Iru. Co. 2 R. Jt G. 6. (iii). Over-valuation — Under a provision that assured shall for- feit all remedies if guilty of "any wilful misstatement with intent to deceive the company as to the amount of loss," an over-valuation of part of the property in the statement of loss so great as to convince the Court that it was fraudulent, will preclude recovery. J/r^eorf v. UUizens Ina. Co. 1 R «kG. 21. (iv). Over-valuation — fi/norance —J ary having found that as- sured made incorrect representations through ignorance, held that this answer negatived fraud. Cann v. Imperial Fire Ins. Co. 1 R. & C. 240. (v). Overvaluation — Yertlict set aside, although the jury have negatived fraud where the Court, on a survey of the whole evidence, thought the claim fraudulent. Lmifflei/ v. JWow(Ier and Exploiilveii. (i). L'numal ,/tmutUy ~- When the (juantity of Kun|»owder kept WHK only Huih nn amount at in iiHiial in a Koneral Mtk in country Htoren, f.,r irmuratice on which the ap|>liiation waH nuMle. and the Ionh wm not cauHtnl by the gunpowder, there it no hreath of condition an U> MU)raKe. Hammond v. Uit\. zevM Inn. r„. ',»0 N. B. 371. (ii). Jlemovnl fn-J,^^ fire — On prenruH-g again»t inMurefft will — To a plea that plaintiff had more than twcnty-flvo poundH of Kuni)ow«ler on the premiwH there was a nplication that the KunjHiwder wan put there without plaintiffs privity; that he had tried to pro<;urt» a conveyance to remove it without Huccew ; that at the time of the fire it wan removed and thrown in the harbor and no Ionh was occaHioned by it. Hel(J bad on demurrer. Fanlknfr v. Central Fire Int. Co. 1 Kerr 279. Increase of Risk. (iii). Third jHirly cavfing — Inermum of riak — Corutruetion of rorulition — A condition in a fire policy stating that it should be void "if the risk is increased or changed by any means whatever" without the written permission of the insurei-s, does not apply unless the risk was increased by the act of the plaintiff or by his direcuon. Vopp v. The Olaagow and London Ins. Co. 30 N. B. 197. Insurable Interest. (iv). Deed, unregittered ~ Subieqiient deed — Previous to the effecting of insurance on a leasehold building the lease was iwsigned to A by deed duly registered. B, who was in pos- session and who had effected insurance as owner, claimed title by a previous unregistered deed. Held, that the title was in A and that B had no insurable interest. Crockford V. The London and Liverpool Ins. Co. 6. All. 152. (v). Iiuolvent — A debtor having executed an assignment under the Insolvent Act 1869, but not in duplicate nor registered, Dii^fit of Maritime Prtpimti Firt htnrantt C*iti. 191 InNurnliln Inter^'itt — (Cont/nufJ). •n.l Mtill raiiKiitiiiiK in fKwiw.HHi..n, liiiM huoIi an inKurahIP in- UTHHt an will enable iiini U. rocover undir a fire pf.licy. Vixrlty V. Aijrirulhtml Am. Co. 3 Pug. 476. (I). i/orl;fa!,« Ahmlnfe I'-'^'l — Agre^mxnt for nrnnreynw^ — An HgnH'nu.nt to riHX)nv..y profwity on the inpayment <.f a nam of money, ma«lo with the vendor, wh.. han Kiveii an alwoluto .i«Mj, iH in .-mH-l a n.ortK«Kf., a,,,] ,|,„ v,.,„|»r |,aa an inMurahie intorent. AV//y v. The LiverfH^U an.l Lufulon an>l Globe Int. Co. H. T. 1871. St«^v. Dig. .-JH ,.,!. 422. (ii). Wi,{ow—l^,».h,hl~A widow who has oontinuwl in {«». w'Hmon of and |>aid the ground r.-nt for property of which her hu>4hand wiw lennee Uoh an insurable inten-st. Lin;,Uv V. r/w Qneen hut. Co. 1 Han. 2H0. (Hi). /.i>»/orrt fee as tenant by the courtesy initiate ; and where A insured property and then gave a deee given notice of and con- sented to. Bwhop V. Norwich Union Firn Ina. Co. 25 N S. 492. (i). Chamje of risk — Use o{ property, described in application as a spool factory, in manufacturing excelsior is a breach of warranty under a condition relating to hazardous businesses and a change material to tlie risk. Sovereign Fire Ina Co. V. Moir. 14 Can. 612. (ii). Season of year — The fact that a mill could not be worked till due season and that there was a temporary suspension of work owing to a dam being carried away, building of new one and postponement of work till increase of water in autumn does not render policy void for misrepresentation or concealment touching the risk, the statement in application being that the building was occupied as a water power saw mill and that insurance was to be on it and machinery in use therein. McGibbon v. Imperial Fire Ina. Co 2 R & G. 6. I Other Insurance. (iii). ^;)/?orp v. The Olaagow and London Ina Co. 30 N. B. 197. (iii). Plea — Withholding material facta — A plea stating that the plaintiff had withheld the fact that there was a judgment against him is bad in not alleging that said fact was mater- ial. Long V. Phoenix Ina. Co. 34 N. B. 223. (iv.) Declaration — Condition precedent— Videlicet — In a de- claration on a policy the respective tinies of the performance of acts in compliance with the conditions of policy being laid under a videlicet, the performance of these acts whether in due season or not is a matter of evidence. Ketchum v, 7%e Protection Ina. Co. 1 All. 136. (v). Replication — Waiver — Departure — A replication which seeks to vary a policy by a verbal agreement of waiver of a condition and by which it does not appear that there was any consideration for the alleged waiver nor that such waiver was subsequent to the date of the policy, is bad. Nickerson v. Commercial Union Aaa. Co. 33 N. B. 250, PoUcy. (vi). Deacription of property plan — Plana varying from body of application — A policy on goods described them as contained 203 J>igest of Maritimt Provinces Fire Insurance Cases. Policy — (Con«nue(i). in a huildiriK -hewn on a plan on the back of application an "Feedhouse " attached to as^uied's .Iwolling. The building marked "Feedhouse" did not in any way correHpond with the description in the policy, but another buiLling n.arko«l " Woodhouse," and containing the goods, answered the de- scription. Held, that the case was a proper one for the application of the maxim "/aim demomtratio non nocet," and that the part of the description which was false should be rejecte^l, and the policy held to attach to the goods in the building where they really were. Connely v. The Guar- dian A88. Co. 20 Can. 208. (i). Comt.'uction- Month -Month in a policy of insurance means calendar month, a policy being a mercantile instru- ment. Pomares v. Provincial Ina. Co. Stev. Dig.. 3rd ed 432. * (ii). Construction- Bre^h of warranty in an application as to value does not prevent a i-ecovery where another condition permits recovery of such proportion of the actual value as the amount insured bears to tlie value given in the applica- tion. Doull V. Fire Ins. Co. 6 R. i G. 511. (iii). Co»M proof of loss nor to the steps to he taken by aa- -ured after the fire but to conditions involved in the crea- '?-!! of the contract. Where the policy was burnt and letter ?s . '. t.i , cor-rivny showed a waiver, the correspondence was Digest if Maritime Prtvim,, fire Insutance Ctiei. 205 Waiver (Continued). corjHii(M)f8. Held, no waiver of defects in the pi-oofs of Iohh. Howard v. Lanciukxre Ina. Co. 6 11. & G. 172. Alliimed 11 Can. 92, on other grounds. (ii). ProofH of lota — Afjent or ad^uater — Compliance with a condition cannot be waived by acts of an agent or of an adjuster or other officer where the policy re<]uires a waiver to be in writing signed by the company's Montreal manager. Atlaa Aaa. Co. v. Brotomll. 29 Can. 537. Revg. 31 N. S. 348. See also Weatern Aaa. Co. v. Doidl. 12 Can. 446. (Hi). Proofanfloaa — Acta of artjiuler — A person not an officer of the company appointed to adjust loss and report thereon is not un agent of the company to waive compliance with conditions as to proofs of loss. Even if he ha