The Sun.
London, England, 1863-04-30 00:00:00

Briton Medical and General Life

Association.

ANNUAL ME E ITING-TO-DAY.

The ninth ordinary annual meeting of the shareholder
of this association was held to-day, at the chief office, 42:
Strand, for the purpose of receiving the directors' repo)
for the past year, for electing directors and auditors, th
declaration of a dividend, and transacting the ordinal',
business of the association.
Dr. G. H. Barlow, the chairman of the board of director!

presided.
The directors' annual report, read by the Secretary (MI
Messent, Esq.), was as follows
" The directors experience unqualified satisfaction it
meeting the shareholders and members of the association
and laying before them the following statement respectiul
its progress and position :
"In the past year the directors have received 2,811
proposals for assuring £663,238. Of these 174 for assurini
£49,048, have been declined, 563 proposals for assuring
£9 ,735 have not been carried out, while 197 were uncle,
consideration at the close of the year. The remainder havl
been completed, and 2,023 policies issued, assuring the sum
of £459,640, and producing in annual premiums the sun
of £15,275 13s. 6d. ; being an increase of over 50 per cent
on the returns of the previous twelve months.
"Nine annuities have been granted, for which the ass°.
ciation has received £1,177 98.
" The following table exhibits the progress of the ass°.
ciation during the last five years :
No. of Amount No. of Amount Annual
proposals. proposed, policies, assured. premiumee
1858..1,976 £395,815 1,342 £262,815 .. £8,328 14 11l
1859.. 2, 370 .. 430,265 .. 1,751 .. 314,240 .. 9,751 16 7
1860..2,405 .. 466,788 .. 1,805 .. 346,160 .. 10,023 12 6
1861..2,512 .. 482,960 .. 1,839 .. 349,990 .. 10,084 15 3
1862..2,810 .. 653,238 .. 2,023 .. 459,A0 15,275 13 6
" The claims have been 97 in number, and amount (lees
£5OO reassured) to £26,373 Ils. 7d., which sum includes 12
claims for £2,375, admitted but not due at the close of the
accounts.
" The balance sheet and cash account, which are sub-
mitted herewith, show the total income for the year to have
been £90,780 13s. After the payment of claims, annuities,
dividends, re-assurances, and all other outgoings, the
balance on the year's transactions in favour of the associa-
tion is £40,469 10s. 4d. This sum has been duly carried to
the Assurance Reserve Fund, which now amounts to
£146,520 2s. Ild,
" A dividend at the rate of £6 per cent, per annum, free
of income-tax, is recommended.
" The directors who retire by rotation, in accordance wit')
the deeds of settlement, are Dr. G. H. Barlow, Mr. George
Chapman, and Mr. Wilson Ancell, who being eligible, offer
themselves for re-election,
" During the past year the amalgamation between the
"New Equitable" and the "Briton" has been finally 'com-
pleted, and the united companies, with the special perdiis"
eion of the Board of Trade, have adopted as a title the
" Briton Medical and General Life Association ;" thii°
name representing tee two interests upon which the bud'
ness of the institution mainly depends.
" Tha directors have also entered into arrangements
whereby they have acquired the assets and life business of
the Unity General Assurance Association. From the large
additional connection thus secured much advantage is au"
ticipated. This arrangement having been made late in the
year, there has not been time to show the entire results of
the transaction iu the present balance sheet, but the dire'
tors have every reason to be gratified with them so far as
they have already been developed.
"This being the period appointed by the deed of settle-
ment for the valuation of the assets and liabilities of the
Association, with a view to the declaration of a bonus, the
directors have instructed their consulting actuary, Arthur
Scratchley, Esq., M.A., to make the necessary investige•
tions. The extensive transactions of the company render
this operation one of considerable magnitude and diffieuitY,
and it has consequently been found impossible to conclude
it in time to embody the results in this report. Tne diree"
tors, however, confidently anticipate a moat favourable co'
olusion to the labours of their actuary.
" The directors feel great pleasure in welcoming the
shareholders and members to the new offices of the mewls'
tion. The former premises were found too small to accour
modate the staff required to carry on the extended °pers..
tions of the company ; and the directors, after due esneidr
tion, deemed it advisable co embrace the opportunity whiell
offered of securing a long lease of the noble and comp's'
dious building in which the business of the association it/
now conducted.

" The two great features of the Briton Medical sad
General Life Association are, that it asserts more cote'
pletely than any other office the important
principle °i
doing justice to the medical profession, whose services to the
cause of life assurance are pre-eminent; and that it intro:
duced into the practice pf life assurance the novel 00
equitable plan of making ordinary life policies payable
during the life, time of the assured. Wherever this plan h"-
been known, it has been approved, and the directors be
lieve it will be found peculiarly applicable to the persoem
assurances of medical, and all other professional men, or °',
those whose incomes in any way depend upon the exerOi°
of their mental or physical powers.
"In reviewing generally the progress of the assooiatio*
the directors feel they may justly and fairly congratulate the
proprietors on the position it has attained.
" The present income of the association may be estimated
at over XllO,OOO per annum,

" The funds in hand amount to £lBO,OOO,
" The new business is progressing at the rate of nearly
£16,000 per annum.

" The association has over 2,000 active agents residing°
the United Kingiona and abroad, who are daily contribut-
ing to its prosperity.
" From the foregoing it will be seen that the future Prf
p ects of the association are most encouraging, and that,
success the dir durs anticipated has beau to a large extefr,
achieved. The directors, however, invite the earnest 7,
Operation and assistance of the numerous friends of the
ciety still further to advance its interests, and more stead
fastly to promote those great and just principles
whiff
was founded to establish."
The CHAIRMAN, in moving the reception and adoption of
the report, congratulated the meeting on the very grit
succ ss that has attended the operations of the Association
34
during the past year. The revenue had largely incress
curing that period, and one of the most gratifying
features in the report, which they had just lie ail
read, he considered to be the fact that, after paying
claims, the directors had been enabled to add nearly bed
their annual income to the reserve fund. (Hear, heat's
The annual premiums had increased 50 per cent. comp
with last year, and he was sure they•would all feel setisp
with another announcement, namely, that the direet°ro
were enabled to declare a dividend at the rate 0f)
6 per cent, free of income tax. (Hear, Ilef'j;
The large fund the association had is hand was the v
and moat substantial guarantee to the public for its safety
0(
and security, and with continued exertion on the 04
their friends text, he felt he should live to congratul.
te
them on an increase of their success. (Cheers.)
The motion for the adoption of the report was carried
unanimously.
The retiring directors having been re-elected, vote
thanks to the chairman terminated the proceedings.

MANCHESTER EMIGRANTS' AID COMMITTr,'le°,
A general meeting of the Emigrants' Aid C:fillt
mittee for the Cotton districts was held at the To°lll--ittee
Manchester, yesterday, when the Executive CouP'ut to
reported that since the last meeting 122 persona Bbo
emigrate to New Zealand had been assisted in Prcie,o
their outfit, at a total cost of £l3O. The cororaiiitrenett
cided to accept a proposal made by Mr. J. G. P.-to ala
Commissioner for Victoria, to find assisted passages t i
colony of Victoria for upwards of 300 persona, rno 0/$
whom have been already selected. This will illve-i-E1
noon
E outlayx
aTbEyfiNrtsehieTt
ocEoomFk
impßiltEatceieeNoLf
AXlvil,Blo:Taut eyl eeatis t . fter
on the premises bteerlodnalgifiltllt:
Mr. W. W. Pettitt, dealer in china and glass, situate fog
rear of No. 13, Lambeth-walk, nearly facing 13ttle asp
Ragged Schools. The disaster commenced from O°P-0:1
known cause, in a timber building 70 feet long, listooor
stores adjoining another range of wooden buildings, feet
leg to Mr. Lee, butcher, and which extended 6°tilot
length, and with such fury did the fire progress
ottaelg'
the course of a few minutes the flames commenced r foal°
ing the stables belonging to Mr. Blair, a greengroce_iy
same thoroughfare. The engines soon arrived, bat 'tint
flagration was not extinguished until a serious ta32°
mischief was done.
ss„i• Csll4
THE FRENCH INSTITUTE —Mr. Art.-- chooeo
Fe I low ot Trill ity Cotlege,Ca m bridge, has beer 0068;
corresponding member of the Institute of France 03tive,
th
pertinent of astronomy. The name of M. Otto Sti but Oh
distinguished as' ronomer, was under considerations much
Cayley's Cayley's claims were deemed superior,- a filet whr VoY,I
enhances the ,alue of the honour conferred. 104
was Senior Wrangler and Senior Smith's P, izerna;cestig:l
an is well known in the s, ientific world fromlli!,
too lytic
tions in the higher branches of pure analysis Lula
igbt
astronomy.
e
GALE AT LIVERPOOL.—Between - rt. u-sdai /3
„ale of
and yesterday morning there was a strobg.fo,
wind at Liverpool and its neighbourhood• The Leerily;
Sarah Palmer, Captain Reid, from Calcutta I°' 000 to
went ashore yesterday morning off Tuscan. The 6-0 said
r, obvle
Rattler went to her assistance. One beat's re e's
ico
be missing. On Tuesday evening the Arrle orir, drs°oo
William Tapscatt, in the river, bound for New y
on Pluckington Bank and remains. She had
ab
Pct Ore:
emigrants on board. is 424 Pc
•
i from Hamburg the price of gold lite
boot
and the short exchange on London is 13:4 ile,•lrefure,
tandard gold at the English Mirt price is,_l_burg_iiio AS
6-10ths per cent. dearer in London than in Ham for n or!
The course of exchange at New York onninue preeTry °fib
60 days' sight is 167 to 1684 per cent., a
a tes there"
gold is about 55i per cent. At these ra _
Olitho importation of gold trona the United Statew