The Sun.
London, England, 1850-05-10 00:00:00

LONDO N,

FRIDAY EVENING, MAY 10, lB5O.

NATIONAL LOAN FUND LIFE

ASSURANCE SOCIETY.

The annual general meeting of the proprietors cif
the National Loan Fund Life Assurance Society was
held on Wednesday, at the London Tavern ; T. Lamie
Murray, KAI., Chairman of the Board of Directors,
in the chair. Amongst the proprietors present we
observed E. S. Symee, J. Thompson, John Elliotson,
M.D., Augustus Vigne, Clement Tabor, Captain
Maher, M. Young, J. Herapath, Richard Symes,
James Irvine, W. R. Jameson, Henry M. Billington,
George W. Bartley, Thomas West, Samuel Walker,
Charles Bennett, Esqs., and others.

The advertisement convening the meeting having
been read by Mr. WooIlion:sr, the actuary,
The CHAIRMAN said—Gentlemen, the first business
to be disposed of is the reading of the report which
the directors have prepared for the proprietors on this
occasion. They have embodied in this report all the
accounts which will be published, namely, an account
of profit and loss, together with an account of the
assets of the company. I will new call upon Mr,
Woolhouse to read the report.

THE TENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS
OF THE NATIONAL LOAN FUND LIFE ASSUR-
ANCE SOCIETY TO THE PROPRIETORS.
" The directors have much satisfaction in meeting the
proprietors on the occasion of the tenth annual meeting
of the society.
"On no former occasion since the institution of the
society has its business presented so remarkable a pro-
gress, or the confidence of the public been so decidedly
expressed.
" Although the society may be considered as of recent
institution, as compared to many others of so much older
date, yet the advance it has made in the last few years
eatitles it to the second or third rank in respect to the
rapid increase of its business and the prospects and ad-
vantages it holds out to assurers who embark in it the
future foi tunes of their families.

" Since the last meeting the cholera has passed over
the surface of this and many other countries, sending
many to a premature grave.
"In common with many similar institutions this
society has suffered by this aw fel visitation, but not to
such an extent as in any way to disturb the calculations
upon which life assurance is based.
" The casualties, however, occasioned by this distem-
per having occurred for the most part towards the close
of our financial year, they will only in part appear in
the accounts of the present one, the mortality in which
is extremely light, exhibiting an amount of but 9,536/.
in claims paid, instead of 21,875/. expected, and showing
a balance of decrement within the year of 12,336/. in
favour of the society.
"The claims paid by the society since its origin to the
lit of December, 1849, amount to 101,1391., the expect-
ancy being 121,5111., which leaves a balance in its favour
on the whole period 20,3721.
"Upon former occasions the proprietors present have
been content with the reading of the accounts. These
have not been hitherto published. The directors, how-
ever, deem it advisable, in order to justify the confidence
of the assurers, to embody in the present report,
intended for publication, the auditor's account of profit
and loss of the year, and the assets of the society, which
are as follows:
PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT, IST DECEMBER, 1849.
Dr.
To Claims paid ..
Claims extinguished by Pur-
chase .
Bonus in cash paid to Policy-
holders

£11,974 18 0
Annuities Paid ..... ......... 3,713 13 2
Interest paid to Shareholders 2,031 17 7

17,720 8 9

Commission
Medical Fees .................. 1,037 9 5

5,085 9 9

London Charges ......... ..... 3,528 1 8
Branch Charges .............. . 3,750 5 8

7,278 7 4

LTraawyeEllxinpgenEsexspenses .........
374136 169
30

1,060 5 8

Advertisements ............... 1,910 19
Printing
Stationery ll9 11
Exchange l7 18

2,543 9 8

£33,688 0 9
Balance Profit and Lois

£112,863 2 11

By Assurance Fund (New Pre-
miums)
Ditto (Renewals)
Extra Premiums . 146 14 1
------ 57,559 15 6

Immediate Annuity Fuad 876 3 6
Deferred Annuity Fund 1,350 0 7
Endowment Fund ... ...

Interest, Scc. ........ ....... ..
Profit and Loss

2,236 2 7
3,993 2 6
49,769 2 4

£112,863 2 11

ASSETS, IsT DECEMBER, 1549.

Investments—
Houses in London and Dublin
for Premiums, Furniture at '
Head Offices, and Branch
Furniture ........ £2,380 16 11
Loans and Mortgages ...... 27,091 12 10
Loans on Policies and Small
Loans ........ .... .
Consols, Stocks, and Bonds 15,807 9 2
Reversions 52115 4
Agents' Balances
Policy Stamps

Shares repurchased
Conversion of Shares.— ........
Expenses of establishing gociety 6,595 8 5
Cash
118,695 10 1

"The directors are sensible that the stability and pro-
sperity of an office depend in a great measure upon the
annual increase in the number of insurers and the
amount of new premiums, as it must be evident, where
such an inerease cannot be obtained the expenses must
eat into the income of the old business.
" To attain this end has been the constant effort of the
directors, and they are happy to report that this has
been reached to a greater extent in the present than in
any former year, the number of policies issued being
1,033, and the new premiums carried to account 18,2681.
Os. 9d. As compared to 1846, the increase in policies
over that year is 496; over 1847, 401; and over 1848, 502.
" The Transatlantic business of the society, under
the careful and efficient management of our superintend-
ing board in New York, combined with the energy of
our general agent, continues, both in its extent and free-
dom from all excess in mortality over expectancy, to give
general satisfaction.
•' The directors seeing the extent of our business in
the British North American colonies have deemed it
advisable to constitute another centre of superintend
ence under a local board and general agent at Montreal.
4. The agencies of the society have been considerably
extended since last year, both in this country and abroad.
.6 The directors have been much engaged with the
formation of an agency in France, where hitherto life
assurance appears so comparatively little known. The
.prospectsccordoifng to this
theagency are promising.
stipulations in the deed of settlement
the actuary has made the annual valuations of the busi-
ness of the society. The result of this investigation,
after leaving a balance of assets equal to 66 per cent. of
eh tier eur 95' which, with the reserve in the valuation.
a ss. 6d. for future profits to the policy-
holderstl not included in the present division, and enabler
directors to divide among those entitled to the pre-
sent distribution a cask bonus of 15 per cent. and a re-
versionary bonus varying from 20 to 56 percent. on the
premtum
• s, and to the proprietors a bonus of 4 per
cent. for the past year in addition to the regular in-
terest of 5 per cent. already received by them, and which
will be paid With the half-yearly dividend in July next.
" The following table prepared by the actuary ex-
hibits examples of the amount of the nine last bonuses
to which the holders of policies of upwards of four years'
' have become entitled, with the option of tanding . or by
re-
ceiving the same in cash,. addition to their policies,
or in permanent reduction of annual premiums:
E YANPLES OF BONUSES ALREADY DECLARED AND
OPTIONS.

. I (Bonus in Perm*. bum the
addition Bonus vent Re-' Assured
ia ducti
km E E Pre- I takes ito Sum „,__s_. ea of may Bor-
mium. out. in !Assured. ‘-'l4ln-, Annual row on
(1'
' 1 ---
____, - ---- ___
Premium. Policy.
--
1
e. d 4 g• d. £ s. d.
r 1837 292 6 9 1,39 16 91 22 13 1 642 15 6
3833 !267 11 4 126 17 2 19 19 7.593 6 1
1839 1241 16 6 113 17 7 17 8 S 543 17 9
-4' .4 Annul 'Policy'
193 12 6
6 93 16 g 14 0 10 494 8 10
60 140007448 8 d4..{
9 5 10 13 8 11 445 0 0
8 7 $ .
I 1842 102 16 , 16 411 8 3 395 11 1
1843 115 10 10 ,6 10 10 8 1 10 346 2 3
{
1844 77 19
5
1845 23815 10
2 11 294 13 4
66 l5 0 44 10 0 410 1 247 4 1
1840841
1,9
12

" Th 1
is the el
Esq., al
expires,
themsel

ilgignieblEsq., whose period of' office
to be re-elected, and offer
e business to be transactgd il the present meeting
lection of two directors in lieu of John Raman,
~n
butd Augustus a
reNe"
Ives accordingly
so for the election of an auditor in place of Pro-
Wheatstone, F.R.S., whose period of office ex-
but who is eligible to be re-elected, and diets
P accordingly.
" By order of the Court of Directors,
ii T. LANIE MURRAY, Chair/ISM

" All
L'essor '

pires, 1
himsel:

.
" May 8, 1850."
The CHAIRMAN said the next business, gentle-
men, is to read the items in the auditor's report, but
as they have been embodiedin the directors' report,
it will, perhaps, only be necessary to read the au-
ditor's certificate. The next busmen will be to
read the actuary's valuation of the business of the
lir
ine:v,e beforethat
society upon which the profits are declared.
it be adopted
The actuary's valuation was then read.
p 0
rltlh
toe Ct
hnemvaorat
vote—before
I put this re-
and printed for circulation, if any gentleman wishes
to ask any question, I shall be most happy to hear
him—(Hear, hear)—either now or. after I hive made
the observations which I shall feel it my duty to
address to you on the subject.—Glear.)
—(,gentlemen,
-eoreent
Mr. Fox would take advantage of this offer to put a
question on the subject of their Transatlantic lousiness.
He wished to inquire in what situation the society
would be placed in the event of our going to logger-
heads with America—in the event of a war taking
place between this country and America ?

The CHAIRMAN—I apprehend, sir, the society
would be placed in no difficulty whatever. We
should still continue to receive our premiums.
Mr. Fox—Of course you have made arrangements
for that ?

The CIIAIRMAN—We should continue to receive,
I imagine, our remittances from America as on
former occasions, for if the parties insured did not
pay their premiums, of course the liability cf the
society would be at an end. (Hear, hear.)
Now, gentlemen, this is the first occasion
upon which the directors have thought it
advisable, though not in conformity with a parti-
cular resolution passed at the first meeting of the
society, to publish their accounts; but it being now
the fashion for shareholders and those interested in

societies like this to see what is really at the bottom
of them, the directors, after taking that resolu-
tion into the fullest consideration, hare thought it

right not to ask the meeting to delay the publication
of the accounts till next year, but to publish them on
this occasion.—(hear, hear.) Although we may
have disobeyed that resolution passed at the first
meeting, I think this meeting will, nevertheless, give
us a vote of thanks for what we have done.—(Hear.)

We have fairly and honestly published the whole
transactions of the year, as they will go forth to the
public, as they will be placed in the hands
of all the proprietors, and as they will be
printed for general distribution.—(Hear, hear.) The
public will thus see how far this society is deserving
of the credit it has taken to itself in the report.—
(Hear.) I believe I may say the progress of this
society within the last twelve months, indeed, within
the last four years, has been such as will entitle it to
rank second, if not first, with others, as far as
its progress is concerned.—(Hear, hear.) We have
received in one year of new business, of new custom,
of new confidence on the part of the public, the
large amount of 18,000/.—(Cheers.) No less than
18,2691. has been the increase of the year, re-
sulting from 1,033 policies, an amount of business which
I believe only one other office in England, in Great
Britain, has ever done anything like it.—(Hear.) The
income of the society is now somewhere between 60,0001.
and 70,0001.—it is upwards of 60,0001. We have
made a new valuation of our business, and I will endea-

your to show you, gentlemen, what effect that increase
of business has had upon it.—(Hear.) Well, then,
the present liability of the society on all its policies is
1,781,580/. That is a large amount, and it affords some
idea of what will be the fortunes of the after gene-

rations of those who are now interested in it.

—(Hear, hear.) Last year, I took the liberty of
stating to you some averages relating to insurances,
amongst which was the average age at which insurers
entered institutions like this. The average age of
entry is about forty ; last year the average age of all
our insurers was forty-six, showing an advance from
forty to forty-six; but the effect of the new business
upon the present year has been to bring the
averages back from 46 to 44-45, instead of in-
creasing the ages to 47, as the then insurers are all
one year older. In the present year, then, the ave-
rage age of our insurers is but 45, making an
advance, if I may use the expression, backwards—
(A laugb)—and the average age cf our insurers
younger.—(Hear, hear.) The object of pointing this
out to you is to show you the immense difference
that this makes in our valuation.—(Hear, hear.) In
older offices the average age is perhaps 56 to 60,
consequently, it requires a larger amount of assets
in hand to meet decrements. In the old offices the

ages have advanced one year, while ours have got
younger. The result is, that in our calculations every
previous insurer is benefited by the large amount of
new business, the expectation of life being greater.
In our valuation we have not included the sum set
apart for future profits. We have reserved a sum of
82,0001. for this purpose, over and above the profits
which are at present divided. As regards the out-

goings of the society on the year, if we look at
the question of deaths, we shall see that notwith-
standing the cholera they have been extremely light.
—(Hear.) The amount for the purchase of claims,
claims paid, bonuses to policy-holders, claims extin-
uished, in fact all claims upon the society, is
about 11,9741.—(Hear, hear.) As regards expenses,
of the London office, it would perhaps be a source of
satisfaction to the meeting to hear what these ex-
penses consisted ef.—(Hear, hear.) The London
charges, then, amount to 3,5281. ; that includes the
entire expenses incurred in the London house for direc-
tors, chairman, secretary's department, and, in fact,
every department relating to the London office, includ-
ing charges for stamps and various other things.—
(Cheers.) I think the meeting will consider those
expenses not very extravagant, particularly when I
mention that out of that sum there have been paid the
court of directors, myself as chairman, and the pre-
sent office of secretary, whose duties are attached
to my department, the day committee, and
medical attendance for the examination of proposals,
amounting in the whole, between the Ist of Dec.,
1848, and the Ist of Dec., 1849, a period of twelve
months, to only I,B44l.—(Cheers.) There are other
charges here which I should mention to you; there is,
for instance, 1,910/. charged for advertisements. That
is a large sum, but it has not been expended for the
advertisements of the last year, since some advertise-
ment accounts which have been sent in during the
year for former periods come into this item, and,
therefore, in this item a reduction of nearly 1,5001.
may be effected.—(Hear, hear.) The law expenses
have been high this year, besides which there are
the general and some travelling expenses which will
not be continued. On these items there will be a
saving of 1,000/.—(Hear.) The American expenses
amount to 3,7501., that is, fur American and
other agencies, and as regards this item I confess to
you freely that I do not see my way clear to any
great reduction.—(Hear.) Perhaps, however, there
may be a reduction of something like 7001. or 800/.,
but even that I cannot promise with any degree of
certainty.—(Hear.) The meeting would perhaps be
rather curious as to what had been the annual expenses
for the whole of the thirteen years during which the
society had been established.--(Hear, hear.) Ex'
elusive, then, of what relates to preliminary expenses,
and exclusive of commission and medical fees, the
whole expense of the society has been about
6,0001. a year from the very commencement, includ-
ing advertisements and every kind of expenses
of establishing the American agencies, which,
as I mentioned at our last meeting, has been very

costly.—(Cheers.) Now, as regards the preliminary
expenses, there is in the assets now put before you the
sum of 6,595/. Bs. 5d., they were originally 21,000/.,
and this year the amount written off will be about a
half of the former sum—(Hear, hear)—while next
year it will be entirely extinguished—(Hear, hear)—
at least, in saying that I of course assume that we shall
do as much business next year as we are doing now,
and if that turns out to be so, that item will be en-
tirely written of, or, at all events, the trifle remaining
will be very inconsiderable.—(Hear, hear.) Now,
gentlemen, another subject upon which I wish also to
be quite candid with you is the subject
of investments. You are doubtless aware that
since this society has been established we have made
investments in various things, and I am free to confess
that we have not been entirely immaculate, nor has
our judgment been so perfect as might otherwise
have been had we exercised a little more caution.—

(Hear, hear.) However, we have examined our assets
as they now stand, and upon which our calculations
are based, and we firmly believe, and I say so in the
presence of other gentlemen who are directors,
that the loss upon these assets will not
amount to more than 1,0001.—(Loud cheers.)
I am really very sorry to say that the society met
with an unfortunate investment with regard to some
French property. That was not entered upon as a
speculation, but it being at that time intended to form
a branch in France, and to be kept as a se-
curity to the French people to insure in our
society. The entire sum which we hold on
that French security is about 10,0001. ; we
have written off about 7,5001., so that it has
not turned out so ruinous as was at first appre-
hended. Though I am disposed to say peccavi with
respect to this transaction, I may mention that the
sum which we have written off, from time to time, is
about 13,2591. in 13 years, which makes about a
thousand a year lost by investments. These losses
were made at the first start of this society, but
we have been prudent ever since. That is the
real state of the case. I do not wish invidiously.to
name other societies, but there are other companies
that had suffered from equally unfortunate invest-
ments. I know of one which has lost 30,0001. from
the failure of a bank, and another is likely to sustain
a loss of 20,0001. from a bank whose affairs were in a
very bad state. The loss sustained again re-
centlys
sumtate between
I an not t as
men-
tioning these matters as private scandal ; I merely
amounted to a
a society of this kind, and especially at an early stage
of its progress, when we wanted experience, to avoid
publicly7o,oool. provincialkann do
wclon2nl.ol:oaonlg.tl. was impossible in
losses, and we confess them to you, and confess them
at a time when the society is so well able to sustain
it.—(Hear, hear.) I believe that is all I have
to say on that subject. As regards the American
business, though there is great rivalry among those
institutions on the other side of the Atlantic, our
affairs are in a satisfactory state, and we are not
doing any dangerous business. It had been said that
the circumstance of rivalry there would render our
success problematical, but I think the contrary,
for that rivalry tends to draw public attention to
the advantag- s of life assurance on the other side of
the Atlantic, which would not be sufficiently
aw akened if only one society carried on its operations
there. After nearly six years' operations there our
annual income is upwards of 30,0001., indeed it
approaches 40,0001. Mr. Woolhouse has always
encouraged me with the assurance that
American life was equal to English life ;
I don't say in the swampy districts of the
Union, but generally. In the same way we have gone
to France ; we have spent some money in doing it,

but we have got one hundred policies within the vear
in France, and the agency is promising. f may
add that Mr. Frederick Starr, till' brother of our
general agent in the New York, has been
appointed to preside over an establishment. which
we have recently formed at :Montreal, and the
improvement in our business there is very great in-
deed.—(Hear, hear.) We have got a board of di-
rectors at :I‘.:c..w York which will rank in point of
respectability and talent with the first merchants in
London, considering their relative position.—(Hear,
hear.) It is extremely well conducted, and
their expenses do not amount to 300/. a year '
in doing a business of 30,0001. Mr. Fox, a great ship-
owner in America, who had been of great advantage
to us in the establishment of our institution there, I
regret to say, has died, and I gratefully pay a passing
tribute to his memory for the great services he
rendered us. I mentioned hst year that we had
promoted a fire-insurance company in connexion
with the society. Since then great progress has been
made. The necessary number of shares are taken to
obtain a complete registration, and enable the office
to go into operation in June next. We have formed
it on such a plan as to make a kind of sister institu-
tion. The expenses will be in a great measure di-
vided amongst each, but no other partnership will
exist. We have obtained for this office very powerful
support, and we expect to realise a good income from
the very commencement.—(Hear.)
The resolution was then put, acd carried unani-
mously.
The CIIAIRMAN then moved that Mr. John
Rawson and Mr. Augustus Vigne, whose period of
office as directors had expired, but who were eligible
to be re-elected, offered themselves accordingly to be
re-elected.

Carried unanimously.
The CHAIRMAN also moved that Professor Wheat-
stone, F.R.S., whose period of office as auditor ex-
pired, and who was eligible to be re-elected, be re-

elected accordingly.
A PROPRIETOR asked what was the qualification for
an auditor ?

The CHAIRMAN replied that a holder of ten shares
was eligible. The valuations were made by Mr.
Woolhouse, their actuary, whose name was a sufficient
guarantee to the world.—(Hear, hear.) Professor
Wheatstone merely audited the accounts, balances, and
assets, and when the balances were properly struck,
the assets were carried up to the actuary, to calculate
the profits to be divided.—(Hear, hear.)
The motion for the re-election of the auditors was
then agreed to.
Mr. JAMESON, of Edinburgh, in rising to move a
vote of thanks and confidence in the Chairman and

directors, did not think he would be justified in

trespassing long upon the attention of the meeting,
after the satisfactory exposition of their affairs they
had just beard from the chair; but perhaps the meet-
ing would indulge him for a few moments while
he expressed his own gratification at the
extraordinary progress which this society had
made.—(Hear, hear.) He was exceedingly [glad
to find that they had such a great Transatlantic con-
nexion, and he really did think they must borrow
from the vocabulary of the Anglo-Saxon in America
the only phrase sufficient to explain the progress and
success of the society. The phrase he proposed to
borrow would be sufficiently comprehended and un
derstood by the meeting, he had no doubt. The
words "go ahead "—(A laugh)—were the most ap-
plicable to the society, for certainly it appeared from
the statement of their excellent Chairma❑ that they
had been "going ahead" pretty considerably —(Hear.)
They had now only arrived at their tenth yearly meet-
ing,and yet they were now counting profits by decimals,
while if they went on progressing as they were now
doing he was sure the amount of business next year
would exceed all their fondest expectations.—(Hear,
near.) The commencement of a business like the cul-
tivation cf waste land always involved the expendi-
ture of a large amount cf capital in the first instance,
and it was rarely that any retur❑ was obtained until
after the lapse of some ten years. In the case of this
society, however, that rule had not held good, for not
only had they got rid of the preliminary expenditure
which had been occasioned by breaking ground in Eng-
land, Ireland, and Scotland, but they had succeeded in
establishing agencies with their brothers across the
Atlantic, and their friends, if he might so call them,
on the other side of the Channel, and yet had
already found profits accumulate.—(Cheers.) The
period had indeed arrived when they were realising
the profit of their enterprise, and it certainly was a
source of great satisfaction to him, as he had no
doubt it was to the meeting, to think that their ex-
penses and losses had been so trifling compared with
the benefits the society afforded to the public, which
in the past year had been enormous and astonishing.
—(Hear, hear.) A question had been put as to
the effect of a war on the French and American
investments. The only mischief that war could do
would be the possibility of its giving rise to
revolutions or insurrections that might take off the
heads of some of their policy-holders.—(Laughter.)
That would be a serious thing for them, but,
nevertheless, it was some consolation to know that
the rather awkward practice of cutting off heads was
not so prevalent in France now as, unfortunately, it
was formerly.
The CHAIRMAN—We should not be liable even in
that event. _ _

Mr. JAMESON rather thought they would.

The CHAIRMAN—No, no.-
Mr. JAmEsort was very much mistaken indeed,
then, if they would not, for death by the hand of the
executioner no more vitiated a policy in their society
than did suicide, when it turned out on inquiry that
suicide was only another name for a diseased mind.
Mr. GODDARD —That was settled at the last meet-
ing, I think.
The CHAIRMAN—Yes.

Mr. JAuEsori continued—lf neither the French nor
the Americans would injure them in that way they
had no power to injure them in any other way.—
(Cries of " Hear, hear.") But the progress that
was making both in France and in America
in life assurance was particularly gratifying
in a general point of view, since it would serve to
cement nations together.—(Hear, hear.) No nation
ever went to war without heartily regretting it after
the war was over ; and it was no little gratification
to him to think that the progress of the principles
established by this society would have the effect of
preventing a recurrence of some of those most stupid
blunders which men have committed and called by the
name of war—(llear.) For these reasons he was entitled
to congratulate the directors, the public, the world
at large, upon the great progress which the society
bad made, and to call upon the shareholders—who
although they had all the power, certainly were not the
most deeply interested in the society—to return thanks
for the exertions which had secured this astonishing
success.—(Hear.) The people most interested in
the society were those who looked to it as a provi-
sion for those dear to them when they were removed
from the scene of their earthly struggles.—(Hear,
hear.) When they talked of that class they spoke of
thousands, when they talked about their capital they
spoke of a million rapidly rising into two, and he
called upon the meeting in their behalf to thank the
directors for their able services, who, trusting for
reward to the high con,cientious feeling of serving the
institution almost gratis, were pursuing what he
could not help stigmatising as a Quixotic course
of parsimony as far as regarded themselves.—(lar,
hear.) He trusted, however, that nothing t whichthem
might be said by the few that were against
would induce the directors to impair their own
efficiency by any fanciful principles of parsimony.,ess
Efficiency was the true essential in the progress of
so-
cieties like this, and he therefore warned the
and
directors
pound
against being betrayed into the p_
) letiwyas bad to witness
foolish system.—(Hear,
heaerns. ent, still worse ineffi-
extravagance in any
ciency, and while they economised in their income
they should not allow that economy to degene-
rate into parsimony, or it would be at the expense
of impairing the advancement ©f this great national
institution.—(Cheers.) Other societies had bor-
rowed—he would not say stolen—from them the
principles upon which this society was founded, and
though
they had thus trenched upon their mo-
nopoly, he, for one, did not repent it. The prin-
ciples could not become too universal, and encou-
ragement ought to be given to them wherever they
were found, as it would be the means of raising life
assurance to the position of a science. Indeed, he
believed it had already taken that rank, and it was
still destined to confer a great and lasting benefit
upon society wherever society existed.—(Hear,
hear.) He had now to move that the thanks of the
meeting be presented to their very efficient board of
directors, and to their able Chairman, who had, as
was prophesied last year, been handling both whip
and reins with a strong hand, so as to make his agents
move steadily and vigorously in harness, and who had
told the meeting, very properly, no doubt, that all
the circumstances and situation of their society ought
to be made unreservedly known to the public. They
had no secrets to keep back from the world.—
(Hear, hear.) The whole state and condition
of the society would pass through the ordinary
channels of information to the world, and whentih e
public saw how candid the society was with there,
how few were its losses, how satisfactory
profits, and how gratifying its result', nt-h_Etweeiplrecutl)._lic
could not fail to repose in it the utmost co
(Hear, hear.) The public, he was convinced, would
a,sist and support it in every possibiteyi were entitledanner, and by
this time next year, he trusted, as they
to trust, the directors would be enabled toi the
announce
a still further increase and improvei uent
pro-
gress of its affairs.—(Cheers.)
Mr. GODDARD was anxious to second the resolution
which had been so ably and eloquently proposed bythe gentleman
who had just sat down, more especially
as, at the last meetii,
littleer he asked some
with questions,the and
was thought to be .inclined to cavil
statements of the dirc,etor:, though he could assure
both the meeting and the board that all he had in

view was the continued well-being of the society:—
(Hear, hear) He was amply rewarded for the line
conduct he had laid down for himself in finding
that he had been instrumental in eliciting the
satisfactory report which they had received.
Men of his profession hail a habit, and it was by no
means a bad habit, of looking to the bottom of things.
They invariable probed a wound to the bottom, be-
cause when they got there and ascertained its depth
it was the sooner healed. Wherever that course was
not pursued, N,dherever there was a grating over, if he
ought use the expression, wherever there was mys-
tery, confusion, or concealment, suspicion was cer-
tain to be excited.—(Cries of " Hear, hear.")
That was his view and notion of things, while the
same rules that he applied to himself as an individual,
were equally applicable to a society like this.—
(Hear, hear.) This society addressed itself to the
masses, as wall as to the higher classes ; and they
might depend upon it, that system which satisfied
the multitude would prove to be the most successful,
the most profitable in the end.—(Hear, hear.) So
the people of Brighton had found that the flocking of
the middle classes to that delightful watering place
was far more beneficial to them than was the support
of the aristocracy, as it was twenty years ago.— (Hear.)
He had been often asked what was the annual income
of their society, and in what property their funds
were invested ; but not being able to answer those
questions, the parties who interrogated him jumped to
the conclusion that there was something wrong about
the society. After the lucid and interesting statement
he had heard from the Chairman, and the satisfactory
state of the report, he should be able to supply posi-
tive information to persons who might question hint
with respect to the state and prospects of the society.
He would only ask, in conclusion, if it was possible
to make the policies indisputable from a given time,
so that when a man possessed a policy he had as
good a security as if it rested on a freehold?
The resolution was then put by Mr. JAMESON, and
carried nem. eon.

The CHAIRMAN, in returning thanks, said he and
his brother directors had often felt the proud satis-
faction to receive a vote of thanks at the close of their
annual meetings. He felt satisfied and proud that
the meeting had been content with the statement that
had been put before them ; and now that their
stewardship had been exposed, he felt a great
degree of satisfaction that it met with not
a single dissentient voice. He had a very deep pe-
cuniary stake in the society, and a very deep moral
stake in it also. Another of the directors had up-
wards of 5,0001. in it—(Hear, hear)—and their
immediate friends and relations had a stake in it to
a considerable extent, and therefore the directors
were proprietors who were deeply interested in the
success of the society. As regarded the indis-
putableness of the policies, it was a proper ques-
tion, but like everything else that had a risk
attached to it, the proposition was liable to objection ;
all he could say was that from his experience he had
nut been favourable to it. They had very nearly
been cheated in Canada to the extent of 5,0001. by
the death of a man's wife who was insured, and who
actually died within a day of the time when
the payment became due ; but owing to the astute-
ness of the Hon. Mr. Starr, the general agent in the
United States, this intended fraud was detected, and
this society and several other London institutions
saved the sum of 15,0001. He might mention en
passant that these distinguished services had not
met any reward from those companies who had
been saved by his exertions. Of course it was
the determination cf the husband that she
should die.—(Hear, hear.) Another case happened at
Bristol in the case of a policy for 3,000/., where
a man poisoned his wife and then poisoned him-
self during the investigation. Those were not
tavoumble data on which policies could be made in-
disputable. He meant, however, to turn his attention
to the subject shortly, with the view of seeing how
far it might be done in some particular cases. Ile
returned them his cordial thanks. He hoped their
exertions next year would be equal to the past. They
had already received 309 proposals within this cur-
rent year, which was about as much business as
many other offices did in a whole year.
The meeting then separated.