American fire marks : The Insurance Company of North America Collection-Permanently exhibited on the twelth floor of the Head Office 1600 Arch Street in Philadelphia
"Each of the other fire insurance companies had, of course, its own fire brigade and its own Fire Mark. As a result, when an alarm was raised, all the brigades responded on the double-quick. On arriving at the scene of the fire, they looked for the Fire Mark. Whereupon all except the one brigade whose emblem appeared on the house either turned tail and went back to bed or, more frequently, remained nonchalantly in the background to cheer and jeer the firemen of the rival 'office'." [from the text]
