The Sun.
London, England, 1869-08-30 00:00:00

THE ALBERT LIFE ASSURANCE

COMPANY.

Ameeting of the shareholders in this company was
Seld at the offices, Waterloo-place, on• Saturdays Mr. Neale,
► director, presided. There were present several other
directors, the chief officers and the provisional liquidators,
and Mr. Lewis, the solicitor, who has been called in by
she company.
By some present it was deemed desirable to have a
shareholder who was not on the directorate in the chair,
but that was abandoned.
Mr. EASAM (secretary) read the circular convening the
meeting, which was for the purpose of assenting to a
motion for the company to be registered a company under
the Act of 1862.
The CHAIRMAN briefly recommended the adoption of
the proposition, and said that a voluntary winding-up
would be far preferable, and more to the itterests of the
elareholders, than a compulsory winding-up. Mr.
Neale stated that one of the official liquidators had pre-
pared a statement of the company's affairs and position,
►nd this it was proposed to read ; but he left it to the
meeting to say whether this should be done prior to the
discussion, or vice versa.

After some discussion, the CuarnmAN moved, and
NORTIIMORE (a shareholder) seconded, a re,soltition, " Triat
this company be forthwith registered under the Companies
Act (1862)."

The CHAIRMAN, in answer to numerous interrogatories,
said that the passing of the resolution would not be taken
as concluding the business.
Mr. COTTERELL advocated a consideration of thegeneral
position of the company before passing the resolution.
He thought shareholders had a right to demand an ex-
planation of the directors—(hear, hear)—especially when
they looked at the position of the company. (flew., hear.)
Dr. 'Warm advocated the passing of the motion, so as
to save the funds of the company from being swallowed
rp--(hear, hear, and " No ")—in the Court of Chancery.
They all knew what that meant.
Mr. LEE asked some questions as to the will of Mr.
Kirby, the past managing director, but was met with the
cry of " That has nothing to do with the question." [At
this point there was great and protracted interruption,
Isfr. Tarring calling out that he wanted to know the posi-
tion of the company.]
The CHAIIIMAN, and after him Mr. Lewis, advocated
most strongly the passing of the motion, the latter observing
that it was necessary for the shareholders' own protection.
Ile learned gentlemen also stated that another meeting
would be called after the company had been registered.
The CHAIRMAN then put the resolution to the meeting,
which was carried nem. die.

Mr. S. LOWELL PRICI; then produced a statement of
the affairs of the company, which, he said, he had only
finished that mcrning. The statement was from ale
best sources that he had at his command. Ire also stated
that the officials and directors had rendered him all the
stssistance they could in the matter, but Mr. Kirby, his
to•provisional liquidator, had not seen the statement till
it was in type. The meeting Night, therefore, feel
tesured that the report was quite unprejudiced. The
sollowing are the principal points in the document :
" The company was established in 1353, under the title
of the Freemasons and General Life Assurance, Loan,

Annuity, and Reversionary Interest Company, and this
title was changed to the Albert Life Assurance Company
In 1849, and remained so till 1860, when it was amalga-
mated with the Medical, Invalid, and General Life
Assurance Society, and was afterwards named the, Albert
and Medical Life Assurance Company, and after that (in
3.a61) the company was called the Albert Medital and
Family Endowment Life Assurance Company, and so
continued till 1863, when it reassumed its present
title. The capital is £500,000, in 25,000 shares
of £OO each, all of which have been alloted.
Upon each of the shares £3 have been paid ; but often the
holders, at their desire, have paid more. The total amount
of capital now standing to the credit of the shareholders
is £178,011, leaving a sum of £321,989 yet to be called up.
Upon the formation of the company it was stipulated that
the shareholders should receive 5 per cent, interest,
that the whole of the profits upon the policies not entitled
to a share of the profits should be divided amoagst
the shareholders, and the profits on the policies
sued on the participating scale should be ap-
pointed between the holders of such policies; but
this was deemed impracticable, and had not been done
since 1862, from which time 80 per cent. of the profit has gone
to the policy-holder and 20 per cent to the shareholder.
The expenses of management in 1863 have been £53,194
Os. 11d. The part of the document that is probably the
most interesting is that referring to the amalgamations,
which are as follows :—The Beacon Life Assurance
Company, September 1856, £2,239 13s. Bd. ; The National
Guardian, February 1857, £16,315195. 11d. ; the London
and County, February 1857, £2Ol 7s. ; the Times Life
And Guarantee, March 1857, £21,250 14s. 11d. ; the
Bank of London and National Provincial Assurance
Association, September 1858, £91,611 18s. Id. ;
the Medical Invalid and General Life Ass:ix-a:lce
Company, September 1860, 277,735 I,ls. Scl. ; the
Vamily Endowment Life Assurance and Annuity
society, March EGI, £22,650; the Kent Mutual Assur-
ance Society (Registered'), July 1862, £15,523 13s. Gd. ;
',he Western Life Assurance Company, June 1865,
£25,616 ls. Bd. ; the Indian Laudable Assurance
Society, July 1865, £972. Total cost, £274,152 3e. Bd.
It has been impossible as yet to distinguish whether there
tins been profit or loss arising to the Albert from thes4
amalgamations. The balance of loss debited to Profit and
loss since 1855 in respect of assets is £94,397 125., and has
arisen almost wholly upon those taken over from the
amalgamated companies. Besides liabilities under
:he policies, there are debts due to the company
amounting to about £20,000; of which £14,000.. is
due to the estate of the late Mr. George G. Kirby.
Mr. Kirby was the original projector of the company, and
the terms of his engagement were that he should be
appointed for life managing director, and that he should
receive £4OO per annum and 5 per cent. on all premiums
received ; that he should have a private residence over the
affices rent free, and be allowed to carry on his professional
business on his own account, and have the cunduct of the
legal birsiness of the company, and for which he
was to be allowed the usual professional charges.
When there was an amalgamation with the Medical
Invalid Office, in 1860, it was arranged tha:. Mr. Kirby
should take per cent. only upon its premiums, and allow
a yearly reduction from his commissions ci £5OO. The
accounts produced in the document were from January
1855 to the 31st December, 1868, which perio'd covers all
amalgamations, and shewed that from 1855 to 1:53 there
was a profit made of £27,808 14s. 3d. ; from 1859 to 1861,
a profit of £33,650 14s. Od. ; 1862 to 1806, a loss
DI £281,702 lls. 3d. ; 1867 to 1863, a loss of
£1,016,630 13s. 7d."

Referring to the expenses of management, a shareholder
Asked if that included the late manager's salary.

Mr. PRICE : No.

Upon the amalgamation clause Mr. PRICE en-
plained that the names of the other companies
amalgamated with the Albert had been made public in
the newspapers, and accounted for the difference between
the two lists from the fact that some of the companies
taken over by the Albert had already been amalgamated
Tith others. It was also stated that the amounts set
down as costs of amalgamation included costs of allow-
ances and compensations.
In reading the profit and loss account, Mr. Price ob-
Lerved that for 1867 and 1868 the great falling off was
partly attributable to the differences in the valuation of
the assets, and of a premium, income, and claims, which
%mounted for £56,973 of it. Formerly these valuations
were taken upon the footing of the gross premiums ; but
now they had been taken in the proper manner with a
deduction of per cent., which is technically termed
" loading," i.e., expenses.

Mr. TARRING was anxious to know whether an account
had been kept of the vast sums which had been paid to
negotiators, managers, secretaries, and others, upon taking
over other companies.

Mr. PRICE said he had got out a list of them so far as
the payments of the Albert were concerned; but of course
nothing as to what had been paid by the other companies
before amalgamating with the Albert.

Mr. TARRING wanted to knew if other companies had
not paid money which did not appear in the books.
Mr. PRICE said he did not know anything of the other
companies, but he had not found that any such thing had
Teen done in the twee of the Albert. The coat of £91,041
incurred in the amalgamation with the Bank of London
Company included claims on that company. Ile had a
ILA of the names of all the persons who had received corn.
pensation from the Albert.
Mr. LEE : Is it a fact that out of those sums Mr. Clench
received £B,OOO or £8,300, and Mr. Kay, the manager, the
:.'me sum?

Mr. PRICE : Yes, that is so.
Mr. LEE : And the directors had £2A each as their
share of—what shall I call it? (A voice: " Plunder.")
(Hear, hear, and laughter.)
Mr. PRICE said the statement was correct.

Mr. FIRMIN suggested that a copy of the amounts paid
as compensation should be made out Ly the accountant,
as the shareholders could then deal with them at the
proper time. With reference to "The Beacon" and "The
Times," Mr. Sheridan, M.P., had £3,000 as part of the
business.

Mr. PRICE : Yes. I have several items here (reading
a d )cement) " Mr. IT. B. Sheridan £2,800." Then they
gave him an annuity of .£6GS, which was afterwards bought
by the Albert Company for £8,723.
Mr, FIRMIN : Then in the purchase of the National
Guardian Mr. Sheridan had £2,000 on that transaction?
Mr. PRICE : Ho had,

Mr Vitoini nikod whothlr Hhtridan tltd Pqt
tic9itto o SQI-I°Y.OU_tbi, SBOIttI dike bitupg

and invalid Company and the Family Endowment Cone-
Play

PRICE thought it should- be remembered that the
hon. gentleman was- hot the only gentleman who was
fortunate enough to get these stuns.
A SHAREHOMER : Are there any members of Parlia-
ment?—(Several persons called out "Cave.")
Mr. FIRMIN: Then in the Medical and Invalid Mr.
Sheridan got £ll,OOO and Mr. Singer £15,000.—M.
PRICE : He did.

Mr. FIRMIN: And Mr. Sadler £2,ooo?—Mr. PRICE : I
don't find Mr. Sadler's name amongst the long list here.
Mr. FIRMIN (continuing) : And the directors of the
Medical and Invalid had £lOO each ?—Mr. Price : There
are a great many that had £l,lOO each.

In answer to further questions, it was stated that pay-
ments were made to Mr. Sheridan and Mr. Clench on
account of the transfer of the Kent Mutual Clompany.
Mr. FIRMIN: Then there is no doubt the money has
gone. (Hear, hear, and great applause.)
Mr. TARRING then complained that the documents
issued bore the signature of the secretary, and yet that
official was not present at the board meetings.
After some discussion, the SECRETARY said that he had
trot been present at the board meetings, except in the
absence of the managing director and manager, when he
had been asked to attend. He had not been allowed to
take the minutes. (Cries of "Shame, shame," and
"Explain.")
In answer to questions, the CHAIRMAN said he had
!nen a director since the junction with the Western, and
no new directors had joined since that time. The chair
was taken monthly by rotation.
Mr. LEE: At the death of the late manager was there
not a bargain entered into with the present manager that
he should succeed as manager in consideration of the claim
by his father not being pressed upon the company?
Kranv (the manager) replied : Not that I ever
beard of ; certainly not.
Mr. SLATER asked what investigation had been made
into the assets.

Mr. PRICE said he bad gone through all the securities,
but of course it was impossible for him to say whether
they were worth their nominal value. In some cases,
where he had doubts, he had estimated them accordingly.

Mr. SLATER: Could we realise the securities now?

Mr. PRICE: Yes; some of them, but others not. I
thin] ultimately you will get the amount I have put down
if you:keep the management in your own hands.
A SHAardioLDEB: Are we bound to pay up the
remaining portion of our shares?

The eff.unmAN : You are liable to have the remainder
called up.
Mr. TARRING proposed that Mr. Kirby, the present
manager and provisional liquidator, should be requested
to resign his office. A long and noisy discussion followed
this proposal, but ultimately it was withdrawn.
The next question was whether the meeting should be
adjourned or terminated that day, some of those present
stating that perhaps the directors would Lot call another
meeting.
Mr. LEWIS (solicitor) suggested that the chairman
should call a meeting in three weeks, and this was
agreed to.
The meeting expressed (though not formally) itself
satisfied with the scheme of reconstruction recently
published.
A vote of thanks to the chairman terminated the pro-
ceedings.

HOMICIDAL MANIA SELF-CONTROLLED.

There was a curious case of self-control exhibited in
Paris, at the Palace of Justice, the other day. A young
man, Aged 25, and'lof distinguished appearance, after
giving Eis address, and declaring himself schoolmaster in
a certain well-known college, begged that the Commissary
of the Palace would take him in charge, with a view to
Lis cocfinemcnt in the Asylum of St. Ann. He then
explained that he was not mad in every respect ; on the
contrary, he possessed the full use of his mind; only
while sleeping among the pupils confided to his charge he
was seized with the mcst destructive inclinations. Night
after night, in an agony of fear, he had struggled
with himself, and it was with the greatest difficulty
that so far he had succeeded in restraining his intense
desire to strangle one or two of the-little boys. Now all
his energies were exhaustell; he felt that this unknown
power would ultimately triumph over him ; and rather
than commit the crime he placed himself in the hands of
the police. At that moment a boy accused of theft was
brought into the room. The eyes of the schoolmaster
Were immediately lit with a strange and had it not
been for the timely assistance of a brawny policeman, the
boy would have been throttled before the very eyes
of justice. The incident is in itself remarkable
as belonging to the saddest class of maladies which
afflict our race, spewing how at times they are
subject to au immense amount of self • trot.
The exercise of this seTeoutrol is very pathetic to

witness, and we are all familiar with it in that most

pitiable story of Charles Lamb's sister. We refer to it
now, however, because we have observed that this story
of the young man yielding himse:f up to justice has been
geized as a fact proving to demonstration Dr. Wigan's
singular theory as to the duality of the mind, arising from
a divided brain. These cerebral philosophers are the
greatest dogmatists in the world, and they leap
to the most positive conclusions on the most
slender array of facts. Is there not a conflict going
on in all minds every day? Does the existence of
this conflict imply two minds, and a divided brain to
represent the double mind? And what is there in
the struggle which went on in the schoolmaster's mind
that makes it different from the struggle which goes on in
every mind when temptation is to be encountered? We
find it so difficult to resist the temptation that we often
put it out of our power to yield to it by flying from it.
And there arc people who tell us that this shews duality
of mind ! According to the same reasoning, when a man
sees three courses before him, does not know which to
pursue, and has to go through a fierce conflict to decide„
it is a proof that he has a triple mind. And so we may
work on till we arrive at the old Jewish doctrine of a man\
being possessed by seven devils all at once.—Daqy Noce.

Mr. Charles Reade will describe the great boat-
race of Friday last for the benefit of the gallant Harvard
crew in the columns of the New York Tribune.

MEN OF TUE PAST GENERATION.—The death of
two old soldiers is reported from France—one a man over
100, the other, Colonel Kurowski, of the Polish Lancers,
who has just ended his days in Paris, aged 105. Ile was,
consequently, born five years before Madame MZ:re, as she
was afterwards called, produced the little Napoleon on the
hearthrug at Ajaccio.

MULBERRY STAINS.—Mr. George F. Wilson,
member of the Fruit Committee of the Royal Horticul-
tural Society, writes :—" At this season many newspaper.
readers are eating mulberries, pulling them from the tree,
and in so doing purpling their fingers. It is not, I believe,
generally known that the juice of the unripe fruit in the
pale red stage at once effectually removes the stain."
EXTRA-JUDICIAL DELIVERANCES.—At the Liver-
pool Assizes, in a breach of promise case, Justice
Hannen made two curious remarks. The question was
discussed whether the plaintiff had not had rather a
lucky escape from a man who proved so inconstant, and
his lordship remarked that " What the woman loses is the
man as he ought to be." At a later stage there was some
discussion as to the advisability of a match between a
man of forty-nine and a girl of twenty, when his lordship
said, " A man is as old as he feels ; a woman as old as she
looks."

A DREAD OF THE TREADMILL.—At the Middle-
sex Sessions, on Saturday, George Jones,'smart-looking,
was convicted of felony. The court inquired if he was
known. Warder Reeves, of the House of Correction,
Coldbath-fields, proved two previous convictions against
prisoner. During the time he was serving one of these
periods, he strenuously refused to serve on the treadwheel,
and when before the police-murt magistrates at Marl.
borough-street, he said if he got twenty years' penal servi-
tude lie would not work the wheel. Ho was sentenced to
imprisonment and hard labour for nine calendar months.
As prisoner was leaving the dock he was understood to say
that he did not care how they " cut his back about," but
he wouldn't work the wheel.

FATAL BOAT ACCIDENT.—On Sunday a boat
accident happened near the mouth of Faversham Creek,
by which two men were drowned and the life of a third
jeopardised. Edward Burford, Thomas Barnes, and John
Tester, labourers, went in a boat to the Isle of Sheppy,
and returned about noon. It was an ordinary rowing
boat, thirteen or fourteen feet long, fitted with a small
sail. On entering the mouth of the creek it was neces-
sary to shift the sail, and during the performance of this
operation the boat capsized. The accident was seen from
a coastguard station not far distant, and the men there at
once put out to render assistance. They found Tester
clinging to the boat, and succeeded in rescuing him, but
Burford :Ina Eames had disappeared.

THE INTOLERANCE OF FP,EU THOUGIIT. It is
not believers alone who are intoleran!-. Freethinkers can
be bigoted in their own way, and there is just reported
from Paris a very pretty little story in illustration of this.
A freethinker died, and was buried the other day. At
the pave a friend of the family stood forward and pro-
nounced a few kindly words over his remains. This
created great disgust and excitement among the fraternity
of Freethinkers to whom the departed belonged. "It is
too bad," they said, "that a man like that should be
allowed to speak at the grave of such a man." "Good
heaven I what has he done? what's wrong ?" "What
has he done !" replied the Freethinkers ; " why, he has
been =cried 1 911ucbl!: