LUMBERING IN PINE REGION OF CALIFORNIA. 
93 
the value. The lumber on hand in the yard at the time of assessment 
is valued in about the same way. Assessments are made in xipril, 
however, when the lumber stock is generally at its lowest ebb. 
INSURANCE. 
Lumber operators should carry both fire and liability insurance. 
Practically all except the small mills carry fire insurance. Most of 
these carry their own risk because they can not comply with the 
requirements of fire insurance companies without making an impos- 
sible increase in their investment. 
Steam sawmills and lumber in yards at steam sawmills may be 
insured up to about 90 per cent of the actual value. To get a rate 
for a mill the procedure is to take the standard rate and make certain 
specified additions to it and deductions from it for designated de- 
fects in the plant or for designated protective measures. The 
standard rate for pine sawmills in California is $3 per $100 of insured 
value. An addition of $1 is made if box factory, planing mill, or 
boilers are located in the same or immediately adjacent buildings. 
On the other hand a deduction of from 50 cents to $1 is made for a 
good fire-protection system. As a rule the rate for normally well 
equipped and protected mills with power plant in a detached masonry 
or corrugated iron building is about $3 per hundred. For small 
mills in the woods which are safe enough to insure, the rate is about 
$5 per hundred. For especially well built mills with automatic fire 
sprinkler systems the rate may be as low as $2 per hundred. These 
are the rates established by the Board of Fire Underwriters of the 
Pacific Coast. 
The standard rates upon lumber piled in mill yards exposed to no 
unusual danger are as follows: 
Distance from mill. 
Rate per 
hundred. 
250 feet 
$2.00 
2.25 
2.50 
3.00 
3.50 
200 feet 
150 feet 
100 feet ... 
No clear space 
All employees of lumbering companies come under the provisions 
of the California Workmen's Compensation Act, which provides 
certain compulsory payments in the case of injury or death of an 
employee. Operators usually do not wish to assume this risk and 
prefer to carry liability insurance. This insurance may be placed 
with any insurance company, provided claims are paid as directed 
by the State Industrial Accident Commission; or the employer may 
insure under the State Compensation Insurance Fund. The rates 
