The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1887-03-19 00:00:00

C'ke 3tourbriby better

SATURDAY, MARCH 19, 1887.

A SHATTERED TRUST.

THE exposure of the unsound working of a
"friendly " society, in which nearly 20,000
families were not so long ago interested,
made in a Parliamentary paper published
the other day, once again calls attention to
the serious subject of the provisions made by
the poor against the expenses attendant
upon sicknees and death. If the official
actuary's report to the Chief Registrar of
Friendly Societies gives a faithful picture of
the past management of the institution in
question, then those who have relied on the
representations of its agents will find to their
sorrow that what they trusted in to tide
them over the times of trouble which are
inevitable is nothing more than a mocking
failure. The actuary's statement of affairs
will not have been lightly penned, without
book to go by, for,he has investigated the
matter by direction of his chief on the peti-
tion of a number of alarmed members. But
how far he grounds his somewhat scathing
report upon ex pane s:atements, and how far
the evidence he has handled .would be ad-
missible in law, it is, of course, difficult now
to determine; and as the whole matter is
most likely ere long to come into court, it is
perhaps as well not to attempt to prejudge
or in any way prejudice the case by detailed
comment. Suffice it to state that here we
have a case of the so-called friendly society,
which has operated largely among the work.
ing-classes, collecting their subscriptions
according to a scale that seemed sufficiently
acceptable to command business, and which
necleAook in return to afford relief in sick-
newt drel,,berea-vement. It is now, we are
told, altogether unable to fulfil its obliga-
tions, and in consequence the subscribers
are being bitterly brought to see that the
trust of years is shattered, their savings for
"rainy day," often spared from a scanty
income with pain and privation, all wasted
and gone. Here is the outcome; the cause,
so says the actuary, is gross mismanagement,
or worse. Yet the society had a reputation
sufficiently good to secure the confidence
not only of the poor who became members,
bat also of clergymen and others, who re-
commended it as a vehicle whereby struggl-
ing workers could travel gently through
seasons of trouble, if they would only, by
thrifty foresight, secure their passage before-
hand. Seeing that thus their betters have -
been misled, one can scarcely condemn the
poor people whose ignorance and misplaced
confidence have caused them to experience
such a cruel and, in many cases, irretrievable
loss. Was not the society "registered ac-
cording to Act of Parliament ?" The right
to affix this apparent outward sign of sound-
nesa is usually sufficient to assure those who
are not expert enough in accountancy and
the economy of finance to gauge whether a
scciety's constitution is such as to make it
able to faithfully discharge its undertakings.
They rely on the statutory registration as a
protectio a against fraud. What they do not
understand they trust; for has not Parlia-
ment certified the society with its sanction,
and does not the Legislature look after its
working? Now that friendly society mem-
b.;rs see that, registration notwithw anding,
such institutions are liable to crumble into
hopeless ruin, people are not unnaturally
asking what is the precise value of the im-
plied Government oversight. It seems that
the Registrar may occasionally return an
unsatisfactory balance sheet for revision, but
it requires the initiative of dissatisfied mem-
bers to bring about—alas ! too late—such an
overhauling of accounts as will disclose the
true state of society's affairs. Fraudulent
collusion can apparently pass off "cooked
returns of proceedin,.,gs, so as to evade detec-
tion until the society's fabric is sapped to its
foundation by dishonest officials. Now, this
siprecisely where, we hold, the flaw comes
r. Such a man as the qualified actuary
attache:l to the Registrar-General of
Vriendly Societic-41 111 cc ought to conduct a
per:odic:ll and iatle.,,endent audit of the
I ooks of every iustitution of this sort, for
10 the protection of the members. A small
levy per member might rot unjustly be
made, to cover the cost of the investigation,
and tUe money wou d i.e well spent by those
laying so ninth at stake. The audit should
be searching and thorough ; so much so as
to render the discovery of fraud or gross mis-
management absolutely certair. These
regulations would have real value, as givirg
a guarantee ef solvency. Lord Greville and
others have striven to make it law that nu
friendly society should shelter itself under
Governmental wing by icing rL.gisteted, un-
less an a.:=edited actuary as first certified
its table or coutributi,ins as sufficient to
4:.eure the benefits promised. Ftiendly
•leicty influence has beaten their well-meant
oiorts so far and defeated pa,,•liaincritary
action to that end, hat pubic feeling should
certainly create rvu's::,.w at St. Stephen's
ere long in the interest o the confiding poor
ft is be,ide bur object here and now to show
giat many iaclusfrial societies with lure
ramifications which are not unlikely to fulfil
their every obligation are after all providing
'Joey costly assurance to participants. The
collection of contributions of very small
amounts, and the "running after" which
great many pooe people require to keep
them "in compliance, ' are operations
which, however well and honestly mana.7ed
they may be, involve corsiderable expense.
\V:. are not now grumbling because to save a
L—•• t: dark day of death or the
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