The native Virginian. [volume] (Orange Court House, Va.) 1867-187?, 1868-07-31
LETTER FRoM GEN. D, H, MAURY.

Dear Sir Few of oUr readers are
aware OF the vast proportions which the
great charity, Life Insurance, has as
sumed in the United States.
The amount of money paid to the
widows and orphans of poliey-holdersi
in the companies of New York city, du-
ring last year, was nearly SS,000,000,
The aggregate amount for which all
the companies in the United States have
become liable to the families of policy
holders las been estimated at 8 500, 900
900
Before the war all this financial inter-
est was exclusively in the Northern
aud Eastern States.
The Southern people understood but
little about the praeti al value of life
insurance to those who insured, aud
nothing Of the management and maui
putation of the vast machinery, which
for forty years has been building up the
gigantic fortunes of the Northern cap
italists, who have held exclusive con-
troll over these prosperous corporations.
The annual amount ofc Ish Transferred
in premiums by our people to the North
the year the war broke out was more
than S5,000,000, and their own official re-
ports state that all these vast sums, it
cannot be shown that one dollar was
invested i'll Southern enterprise, or
for the benefit of Southern Institutions
or loaned to Il Southern nan.
When the war broke out Northern
life insurance companies which for more
than quarter OF century had been
receiving millions of dollars in prem
iums from Southern men for policies Oh
life assurances appropriated these pre-
| NUNS and cancelled their policies i
One company cancelled $6.000,000.
In proof of this statement, L quote
from the official report of the commits
sioners of the State of Massachusetts
upon this subject. -
among the blessings which their re-
bellious masters threw away, because
more than their equal share Of liberty
was not good enough for them, was a
pretty large interest in our Northern
Mutual Life Companies. Il icy have
none of then own. Our companies
were no losers by this on the other
Rand not few of them proiited by the
forteiting OF Southern policies to an
amount far greater than sufficient to
cover the subsequent ,ear risk Of its me NJ
| berS. p"
In other words, they boast that the
money they stole from Southern men
| WITS aPRliNu w DdN bllC DObCicS vi Iltc
| Northern men killed while invading the
| South.
| No sooner was the war ended than
Yankee insurance companies reopened
business all over the South, and at this
moment our people are again sending
millions of their hard earnings to in
fate the wealth of the n rthern CAPT.
talists, who own N orthern companies;
to furnish the "sinews of war; :" to pay
for negro garrisons ,freedmen's bureaus
and the thousands OF yankee officials
internal revenue collectors, and the
like, who now goadus to desperation.
Southern gentleman have, however,
taSen measures to abate this evil. and
While enabling our people to avail them
selves of the wisest and surest provis-
ION which human ingenuity has ever
devised tor the maintenance of our fam
lilies and the payment OF our debts after
we shall have passed away also to Sc
| cure to our OWN exhausted country the
| benefit of all the funds controlled by
the institutions they have organized.
One of the ablest writers on insurance
has said ain selecting company in
which You will insure, do not look at
the promised dividends or large accu-
mutations, nor at the age of the compa-
ny. The administration of the coinpa-
ny should at first be considered. You
are electing trustees to hold and accu.
mulate the fund which yon propose to
provide for your family when you are
taken away from them. Look first
then at the board of directors. If this
board contains men who are honored
and trusted in the community where
they are best known, you can safely
commit the future provision for your
family to their hands, ~. -.-.-
will, then, the people of the South
continue to place this solemn trust in
to the hands of the men of the North.
whom they know to be untrue, or will
they transfer it into the custody of
Southern gentlemen | advise them
not only to give their future insurance
business to Southern companies, but to
withdraw as fast as possible, from Nor
thcrn companies all policies they have
acquired, and take out instead, policies
i'll Southern Companies.
DABNEY II. MAURY.
Jefferson, June %, 1865. ct.