The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-11-13 00:00:00

'LIVERPOOL, TTTURSDAY.

by the agent, Mr. ROBERT WEBSTER, to the
medical examiner, Mr. SBAIN
MERCHANT'S AND TRADESMAN'S MUTUAL LITE ASSifRANCE
OFFICE.
21, ScNith Castle-street, Liverpool, August 14,1854.
My Dear Sir,—Let me have the enclosed early on
Thurs 'ay. Mr. Laurie is a remarkably healthy-looking
man, and there is no more Consumption about him than
me; bat, from the fact of two brothers dying or. chest
disease, the directors in London bogie at it. I enclose you
the proposal with my report, and will thank you to make
your report a little stronger ; which you can conscientiously
do by adding that " I do," as a very good life, all his
organs and constitution being perfectly sound, or words to
that effect.—Ever yours sincerely, ROBERT WEBSTER.
Dr, Shain, 4, Monument-place.

This was certainly a very good way of overcom-
ing the diffitiulties Mr. WEBSTER anticipated from
a " bogling" board ne direetorsi' btit we can
scarcely believe that a jury of twelVCrosonable
men would have read such-an epistle without
giving utterance to some slight surprise at its
Contents. MT. WEBSTER admitted that he had
interlined the proposal, " at the request of the
" Insured," with the words which, in the opinion
of his directors, constituted "a gross fraud," and
vitiated the claim of Mr.' LAURIE'S representative ;
but there was no weight given on iho trial to the
fact that Mr. WEBSTER had endeavoured, though
in vain, to get the Company's medical officer to
make his report " a little stronger." There was
no evidence produced to support Mr. WEBSTER'S
allegatioa, that he had interlined Mr.' LAURIE'S'
proposal in his, Mr. WEBSTER'S, own-handwriting,
"at the request of the insured." The words
introduced into the proposal in the Agent's hand

writing made that document " a little stronger,"
and with Mr. WEBSTER'S letter to Mr. SHAIN of
record, the public will scarcely know what to
think. Mr. SHAIN alludes to this part of the
transaction with some warmth :—" Now, the
" author of this letter—an insurance agent, who
" represents a public company—asks me, as a
" medical man, to make my report a little
"'stronger.' If I had complied with this novel
" behest, the reader can easily understand what a
very useful and valuable medical officer I should
" have been to Mr. ROBERT WEBSTER, if not to the
" Merchant's and Tradesman's Mutual Life As-.
surance Office. But I did not make my report
" a little stronger.' I knew nothing whatever of
" Mr. THOMAS LAURIE or his family until I went to
" examine him at the desire of the agent for the
.4 Industrial and General Insurance Company—
`' Mr. THOMAS PATERSON. For this Society I have
" examined nearly 1,000 lives, and I never had to
" make my reports a little stronger for their
" business-like office ; for their agent took care to

enquire fully into the lives before the proposals

" were accepted, and they have never been known
"to dispute a policy after death." The assurance
public will participate /largely in the indignation
expressed by Mr. SHAIN at such a novel sug•
gestion, and indorse freely the principle that
were lives duly enquired into before proposals
are accepted, no policy should be suffered to be
disputed after death.
Mr. SHAIN enters further, however, into this
branch of the subject, and shows the danger to
the insured from disputable. policies :—" The
" Merchant's and Tradesman's Company never, I
" reiterate, questioned the life of the insured ;
" and why should they have jbeen suffered to
" defeat the claims of his representatives, because
" a member of the iniured's family was ill, when
" their agent wrote all in good health ?' Mr.
" LAURIE did not insure the lives of his family,
" The Company were satisfied with the proposer's
" life, for they have never once raised an objection
" to it, and I think every dispassionate reader of
" these pages will say the money secured on Mr
" LAURIE'S life ought to have been paid. Of
" Mr. ROBERT WEBSTER I would merely say—

" That paltry patcher is a bold translator,
Whose awl bores at the words, but not the matter."
" After having said so much in favour of Mr.
" LAtiam's_life, he could not attack the policy on
" the ground of deception with respect to the
" insured. He must needs employ his own words,
" introduced into the pr.oposal in his own hand-
"writing, respecting the proposer's family." We
regret the author's modesty has deprived Mr. WEB
sTER of the benefit of the whole of the verse from
which he has borrowed his quotation ; but we will

supply it :
Pessimns est cerdo, qni transtulit ordine calvo,
Non res sed voces percutiendo leves,
Mt hic translator corii peramabilis actor,
Qaiythmo pollens sit rationesatur."
We never knew a man who could make a more
legitimate use of his awl and leather in stitching
rhyme and reason together, such as they are in
this case. But what is to become of the life insur-
ance policy holders of the United Kingdom if it
should be found
.out, after the death of the insured,
that the proposals or contracts on which they are
relying have been interlined at the request of the
proposers when alive ? and that the medica
reports which accompany_these proposals have
been made " a little stronger" at the request of
very zealous insurance agents? Had Mr. SHAIN
yielded to the request of Mr. ROBERT WEBSTER, no
amount of public execration would have been too
great for him. As a Juan of honour, Mr. SHAIN
resisted that request;
_and he is, therefore,
entitled to all praise. The Merchants' and Trades-
man's Company are, no doubt, perfectly satisfied
with the part Mr. WEBSTER has played, and believe
that all he alleges is quite true. The Liverpool
public will also read Mr. SHAIN'S pamphlet, and
form an equally conclusive opinion from the facts
it reveals, with regard to the propriety of insuring
in those offices whose policies, when. once issued,
are placed beyond the reach of costly litigation by
being indisputable. We want no more glaring and
convincing proof that the principle of a disputabi-
lity is the only one by which both the insurer and
insured can be secured than the matters of
fact disclosed by Mr. SHAIN in the case of LAURIE
versus the Merchant's and Tradesman's Mutual
Life Assurance Company.

MONETARY AND COMMERCIAL,

LIVERPOOL, WEDNESDAY EVENING.
The sales of cotton to-day were 6,000 bales, 500
being for export. There was no change in prices,
and the market closed firmly at previous quota-
fions.
The Liverpool share market opened with a very
firm feeling to day, afterwards advanced, hut
towards the afternoon there was a slight reaction, the
market closing quiet at the following quotations :--
Aberdeen, 121 122. Chester and• Birkenhead, 151
16. Caledonian, 28* 281. Chester and Holy-
head, 171 18k. Eastern Counties, S 15-16 9.
East Lancashire, 208204. Great Northern, 237,-
238. Ditto A Shares, 10 101.: Great Western,
64 641. Lancashire and Yorkshire Stock, 931
931 Liverpool, Crosby, and Sbuthport, 18 181.
London and North "Western Stdck, - 1021 1021:
Manchester,: Sheffield, and Lincoln, 331 331,
Midland Stock; 781 781. North British, 91 91,
North Staf'f'ordshire, 51 591. South Eastern,
20 9-16 20 11-16, York, Newcastle, and Berwick, 20
201. York and North Midland, 28* 291. Leeds
Capital Stock, 171 18.-1. Buffalo and Lake
Huron, -a.Bp. Dutch Rhenish, -4 -hp. Great
Western of Canada, 24 241. Ditto; New
Shares, 2 21p. Great Luxembourg, 111, ild
The following were the "continuations" paid :—.
Caledonian, 2s. 9d. ; Eastern Counties,- ls• Od. ;
Lancashire and Yorkshire Stock, 1 ; London and
North Western Stock, 7.16, 1, 7-16 8 ; Manchester,
Sheffield, and Lincoln, is 64.1, 2s, b,.Midland Stock,
5-16, w ; South Eastern, 2s 9d, 3s ; York, Newcastle,
and Berwick, 2s. Dutch Rhenish, 1-16 ; Great
Western of Canada, 2.5; Ditto New Shares, Ild.
There was no important change in the Money
Market to-day. in Lombard street, the quotations
are stiff,
.and the same difficulty continues to be
experienced in obtaining cash. It is, however,
very satisfactory, that the demand is steady, and
not characterised by sudden contraction or relaxa-
tion. Commercial men, manufacturers, and the
trading community generally, are believed to be
acting cautiously, but complaints are increasing of
the dulness of business and diminished profits
which are caused by the high rates current for dis-
count accommodation. There- is no-speculative
demand of any consequence, - for Consols. The
Market was rather weak to-day, and the quotations,
show a , slight decline from those current
in the earlier part of the day. For money the
opening price was 921, advanced to and declined
afterwards, closing at 921 to y. For the account
the•opening price was 94 then 3, and closed at
928 4 Exchequer bills were current at 3 dis. to 2
prem., a slightly better price than that of yesterday.
The dealings in the Three and a Quarter per Cents
were made at 91* f, and closed at 91* to 1.
The London Share Market was dull, and prices
have given way, closing steady at the following
quotatations :—Caledonian, 561 7; Edinburgh and
Glasgow, 54 56; Eastern Counties, 91 e ; East Lan-
cashire, 821 31; Great Northern, 92* 11: ditto A,
81 83 ; Great Western, 641, 4; Lancashire and
Yorkshire, 93 931 ; Leeds Northern, 171 181; L9ll-
- and North Western, 1021 1; London and
South Western, 104 1041; Manchester, Sheffield,
and. Lincoln, 331 34; Midland Stock, 78;-2; North
British, 301 ; South Eastern and Dover, 69 1;
York Newcastle, and Berwick; 801 11; York and
North Midland, 58 59. • • -
It is stated in some of the most recent private
letters from Paris that the interest taken by the
Meisrs. Pereire in the great Russian railway
project is a personal one, and that the Credit
Mobilier Society is not directly, involved in the
undertaking. If this be so,. however, most persons
will regard the arrangement as little more than a
blind, inasmuch as the Messrs. Pereire are the
principal managers of the society, and, as a matter
of course, exercise great control over the employ-
ment-of its funds. -It seems to be admitted on all
hands that this leviathan scheme must be ad-
journed until the existing derangement of the
money market shall have passed away.
The letters by the Brazilian Mail were delivered

this morning. From Pernambuco, to the 20th Oct ,
we learn that subsequent to the arrival of the boat
from Europe on the lat, prices advanced 100 to 150
per arroba, which rates were still maintained ; the
receipts within thirty days had been 3,301 bags.
The stocks on hand on the 18th October this year
was 5,607 bags, against 4,739 bags in 1855, 2,414
bags in 1851, 6,738 bags in 1853, and 6,602 bags in
1852, being about 1,000 bags lower this year than
in the years 1852 and 1853. Owing to the disparity
Of prices between Pernambuco and the outports,
the arrivals were becoming much heavier, the dif-
ference being in favour of Pernambuco rates,
nine to ten per cent. Sales of Paraiba Cotton, to
the extent of 5,000 bags, had been made during
the month at 65400 to 68550 for cash and credit,
and of Maccio 2,-000 bags at 66050 to 68100 per
arroba, and all free on board. The arrivals of
Sugar were on the increase, and prices of browns
had dropped from 28750 to 28580 and 28600
Whites had maintained themselves, and almost
all that arrived was being purchased by refiners,
at from 48200 to ssooo per-arroba to the matutos.
There had been a fair business done in Exchange,
fully 75,0001. to 80,0001. at 271 to.27id. Bank rates
of discount were 7 to 8 -per cent., according to date
of bills. At Rio Janeiro discounts were freely
obtained early in September, at 8 to 81 More
enquiry prevailed after the • 20th, when 81 to 9
per cent; were the general quotations. The
transactions in Exchange amounted to 700,0001.,
at unaltered rates—viz., 27g.
An auction of the foreign redeemable debt of
Spain is to take place at Madrid on tha 29th inst ,
for which purpose 374,000 reales have been assigned
by the government Tenders are to be received in
London until the 20th.

The half-yearly dividend will be deducted from
the current quotation of the Three per Cent.
Rentes in Paris on the 7th December.
The 40,2001. in bar gold, brought by the steamer
Ericsson from New York, was in hand yesterday,
and was all purchased for exportation to the
Continent. In consequence of the recent sup-
plies, we do not hear of any withdrawls of gold
from the Bank yesterday.
The Tyne has taken out 76,8741. in specie,
nearly all in gold. Of this remittance 13,721/. was
for Buenos Ayres, 23,7631. for Monte Video, and
36,9401. for Rio Janeiro. This vessel has also taken
out 20,0001. in French, and 11,3001.• in English
jewellery. The sum brought in by the Avon,
from the Brazils, is only one or two thousand
pounds.
Telegraphic advices from St. Petersburg, state
that the frost continues, There is,- consequently,
reason to apprehend that there will be a number of
ships frozen in, And some amount of produce de
tained. The price of tallow, however, has not
experienced any further advance.
It is said that the Riga Railway Company have
been offered a concession upon less inadequate
terms than those accepted for the general group by
the Credit Mobilier. Instead of 6 per cent. being
granted, however, as was originally promulgated,
it is thought that the limit, exAusive of sinking
fund. will not much exceed prospect which
would render the fleating of the shares doubtful.
Possibly further negotiations may take place to
obtain a different result. . ,
The continental advices describe a slight dimi-
nution of pressure in several of the money markets,
but no improvement in the value of securities,
which, owing to the action of the banks in calling
in their loans, continue generally to be pressed for

sale.
It is stated that the directors of the Royal British
Bank, after full delibertion, have resolved not to
Appeal against the decieion of the Commissioners
in Bankruptcy confirming their adjudication.

We learn, says the Zeit of Berlin, that Prince Frederick
William of Prussia, will make a short stay in Paris on his
retarn from England.
'A letter from Berlin of the 7th says :—aThe royal shoot-
ing parties at Letzlingen are over, and the court has this
day returned to Sans Souci. The sport has been very
brilliant. On the first day 3 stags, 212 deer, and 44 wild
boars were killed. In addition to the princes of the royal
family, the Duke of Mecklenburg *Schweren, the Puke of
Bruns sick, Prince Augustus of Wurtemberg, Prince William
of Hesse, the Princes Radziwill, and other distinguished
personages were present. Daring the King's absence,
the Queen has
,gone to :Dresden. to congratulate person.
ally the Archduke and Archduchess Charles Louis on their
marriage."

A course of lectures is being preached in SE Martin's
Church, on Sunday evening, which we believe is intended
as a reply to the late work on " Inspiration," by the Rev.
Mr. Macnaught.