The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1885-08-01 00:00:00

"FRIENDLY" SOCIETIES.

HAPPILY there a-e among the great army of
he Wilers a large number of persons who,
• cording tc, their statim in life, are of provi-
ut taLt,es and habits. Coma what may,
is their continued endeavour to prepare
r a "rainy day," as far as 'their Means sjll

low. In a heavy proportion of families of
.0' working classes—those- in • which the
. -end of the household earns his livelihood
y some unskilled labonr—Avages are only
moderate ; and if many children make their
appearance, it becomes impossible, however

:ireful husband and wife may be, to spare
- more than a trifle week by week to meet con-
tingencies of sickness, death, or other !nig-
for tune. But almost every family, no matter
how poor, does something, however slight,
in the direction of making provision for the
day of trouble. The "funeral brief," the
sick 'and burial club, the insurance and
friendly society, someone or other of the in-
numerable combinations which exist for col-
lecting the weekly contributions of the poor,
' thus becomes the recipient of the small sums
money*raped together by pinching and
care to keep the wolf away. In the aggre-
gate many hundreds of thousands of pounds
are thus annually amassed by societies good,
bad, and indifferent, and not a little of the
gross sum, sad to say, is in the end devoted
to purposes far other than those to which
the struggling subscribers intended. Not
infrequently when the dark day of sickness
or death comes the poor family has its
troubles multiplied and intensified by find-
ing that the club upon which its hopes -and
confidence have natal is nothing more than
a hollow sham. Numerous cases of this dis-

tressing character have of late been disclosed

by applications for advice to the London
stipendiary magistrates, the applicants being
victims of the bogus burial "briefs" or sick
societies which unfortunately exist solely
for the parpose of preying upor the helpless';
and. evidence is not wanting that similar
fraudulent associations are carried on by un-
principled persons in various large towns up
and down in the kingdom. These societies
vary from the comparatively insignificant
penny a week benefit club, through the
various grade of sick and funeral funds at-
- tsched to trade associations, up to the more
or less ambitiously-advertised assurance and
provident schemes designed for carrying on

their operations among the industrial classes.

In every branch of these different combina-
tions there are societies which could make

out a good case for themselves—and far be
it from us to discredit in the slightest any
substantial society which it all assists the
. providently inclined in their laudable en.
doavours to prepare for times of trouble.
The evil of the matter is the difficulty which
the poor and ill-informed have in discrimin-
ating between a soundly constituted mutual
saving or assurance association, and one
which issues a prospectus of specious
promises destined never to be fulfilled. In

most instances the rotten socioty is only dis-

covered to be such when it is too late, and
its managers usually are wise enough in
their generat:on to keep beyond the reac'l
of the Public Prosecutor. We have a
ige;istrar of Friendly Societies, who period-
io%lly issues a report on the condition of all
the societies of which he takes cognisance.
Bttl; there are greit numbers of pettifogging

ocabinations of which officially he knows

nothing, and which do not, therefore, come
in for his public condemnation whoa their•
affairs are conducted in the most reprehen-

ibis manner. Even if the insolvent and
unsafe. so-called friendly societies were thus
branded by the ban of the Registrar, so long
as they were allowed to exist they would

continue to find victims among the poor,
for the badly informed are by nature too
trustful, and fall an easy prey to the wiles
of the collecting agent. No friendly society,
whether organised ostensibly as a sick.
death, out-of.employment, or old age relief
association, no savings bank, no assurance
company—in fact, no concern which works
with the provident investments of the people
for any purpose of thrift or foresight should
be permitted to carry on operations without
first being properly registered, and after-
wards receiving regular Government over-
sight and audit. The poor ought to be pro-
tected by the abolition of unsafe societies ;
regalar system. of inspection should afford a
guarantee of safety. Meantime, without un-
sound institutions still abounding, it is b
for tbe investors to have nothing to do with
any friendly society other than those of a
national character.

BoARD OF GUAUDUNIS.—Mr F. J. Ilsokew pie.
sided at the weekly meeting of this Board yes,er
any. There were also prcsrnt Wssis. fling
Grove, Burr, Thompson. R D iwes, Bry, •
Raybould, Billinghatn, rump, Pearson, Brook
k'orn s , Yardley, Enid Hilt.— r
Rhode/. Stringer,
maaterpf the house re erred that there had beet,
admitted during th- Si'? k 6, diechnreed 8, dead 1,
remaining 516 against 515.—Re ief, -Ki • ;
gsw.nford
£II4 33 64, Mourbridge 15s 74, Ilale*ovren
it 24 95 64. Non-residents £1 198 81. t 'al £lOl
against 499 Os 91;1.—1n accordance with the
notice given lag vreek, gr. Brooks moved that the
**solution piassid on the 15,h day ot May ASking for
lin order icor triennial elections be rescinied —Mr.
Rill seconded the motion.-31r. Rollinion moved
11114 Mr. Buie° wended, as an amendment, that
the resolution be not rescinded, and that tre
gPiniee et the ratepayers on the question be tegf
en tbe question in accordance with the order of th
Lees! Gevwnmeat Borad.—Eight members voten
ül tag reaciltition. end eight for the" atnendMeot
Mr. liillingkat2
sing r.eutral.—The numbers being
#-E3l 117de tAaletasti d r • •
so tned to wive a casting vot,
se th matter had bun
discussed '4l mid he di not
diumittir should be re-opened,
whiv. jtgues, of nail town, pupil of Mr. .7. E;
rcottelphy, Wed Successful in pt,seing the Tan •
CO::EP az.sraination for pithnoforte playing, tu,,i
hirki at Bircinghstn. July lath.
AYE ROIL .f 341 PILLS is wonsatod to cure
`4"-diroakitrges from do Trifler,' Organs, in .iths.„ sex
raztuirad or ecnstitoti;ora.:. Gravel end Paying in the back
iii IL ber.es. 4s fd azeh, by all Chemists sod Patent
NW:44U ;01 seal to an address; for 113 Starn..B by
ELSLAYS Dia Lisoomir Minelials aoartras' Dime
Oeutows, Litocolo, Insobrode Agooto &ileum & 134 u
Sad libigbeiessiekseies. Med