Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1869-10-25

d 1910.
omission, or defeCtof any kind. One
huge volume is shown containing :
record of applications for policies by
persons apparently in good health
which have been approved by pllysi
clans, but rejected by the rigid rules
of the society. The number of these
? cases is very great; only those being
placed in this book which have been
approved by agents and Others, and
coming before the officers and direc-
tons for final action, are rejected. Oi
the many thousands rejected by medi-
II cal examiners, no record is Kept.
I We are not unprepared, after this, tO
learn that the mortality among those
assured in the Equitable is very
small-much less in reality than i
called for by actual tables. Another
important fact in this connection is
the large average amount of its poll
cies,. which is greater than in any
other company in the world, and
which has an important and not very
remote bearing upon the low rate Of
mortality.
But what becomes OF the millions of
money which this great financial
agent accumulates? How Is it man
aged, and how invested? The care Of
such resources is a sacred trust, which
demands the exercise of the greatest
financial ability and integrity. Sci
ence has determined how much mon
ey is required for company safely to
carry its risks. To render insurance
absolutely secure, this money must be
securely invested, and some compe-
tent authority must exist TO ascertain
and give publicity to this fact. Such
/ authority is provided by the laws Of
the States OF New York and Massa-
chusetts, IN the "Superintendants of
/ Insurance, y who annually examine
| into the affairs of every company
/ transacting business Ia these States,
make "a mathematical calculation of
the value Of their policies and the
condition OF their finances, and wind
up the affairs Ofany company wanting
in any particular, and transfer its bus
ineS5 to some sound Institution before
real damage is accomplished. The di-
rectOrs Of the Equitable were not sat
isfied with the external safeguards of
official control, and is internal man.
agement has been invested with an
admirable system of checks. It's
funds are first under the direct care
and supervision of finance COM
mittee, consisting of six of the direct
Ors, besides the President and Vice
President. This committee now con-
sists of the following WellknoWn bus
iness men: Robert Lenox Kennedy,
President National Bank of Conn
merce, New York, chairman; John
AuehinelOss, of John and Hugh
AuehinclOSs; VIM. G.. Lambert, of
George c. Richardson 4 Co.; Hon.
Dudley s. Gregory, Jersey City, n.
j.; William 7. BlOdgett, New York;
George ID. Morgan, j6 Exchange place, j
New York,
Theirduties are byno means merely
nominal. Regular meetings of the
committee are held every two weeks,
or OfteneT, and no investments, loans,
changes in investments, or other
transactions relating TO the finances of
the company, are made without first
passing under their scrutiny and APP
prQyal, and a detailed report of their
action is read four times each year to
the full board of directors for its rati-
fication. All applications for loans
upon real estate are required to be
made in writing, and placed upon
record. The value of property is ap- |
praised by experts, and the result is
submitted to the Finance Committee, |
who also satisfy themselves of the /
value; yet the largest part of such |
are rejected.
Every security held by the company I
is registered, and its abstraction or
would involve no loss 4
yet in addition to these
precautions, the bylaws of the society
at the end Of every year, the
appointment by the board Of directors
OF fiscal committee, to which no
member OF the finance committee may I
belong, and whose duty il is to exam
inc the assets of the society and report
to the board Of directors. They ex-
anime every security, open every
bond and mortgage, investigate every
loan, and ascertain by absolute per
sOnal scrutiny that there is on hand
every dollar Of money which the books
Of the company call for. The follow
ing gentlemen served last on this
committee: Samuel W. TOrTey, New
Jersey; John J. Donaldson, President
National Bank of North America;
Hon. Bennington +. Randolph, New
Jersey; Thomas A. Cummins, late of
Seaman q Co.
But might there not be error or fraud
il the keeping of the books and ac-
counts themselves, which finance and
fiscal committees would be powless
to prevent? To provide against this
the bylaws require that there shall
be a Committee on Accounts, which
shall meet at least once a month and
examine every charge, every receipt,
or other voucher, and every credit,
and go through all accounts in detail.
This committee consists of Hon. B.
F. Randolph, Of Jersey City, chair
man; AlansOn Trask, of A. 4 A. q.
Trask; john Z. Moore, 33l Broadway,
Y. y; Samuel ". TOrrey, New Jer-
sey; John Sloane, Of W. x j. Sloane
The possibility of loss by fraud or
by the payment Of claims neither le-
gally nor equitably binding upon the
company has been prevented by the
of another important
Cu Insurance, whose duty it
is to examine ali losses before they are
paid. There are many cases where
losses have been paid, which were
based upon no strictly legal claim, but
which honor and good faith required
to be met. Such cases were disposed
Of upon the principle Of equity, and
with full consideration of the claims
and interests Of living policy-hOlders.
The Insurance Committee consists of
the following named gentlemen: Pc
ter McMartIh, los Fifth avenue, chair
man; Thomas L. Smith, of Smith,
I1ehTs 9 Sheffield : Daniel d. Lord,
Of LOrd, Day a. Lord; John Slade, of
John Slade 4 Co.; Edward W. Lam
bert, NJ. D, $50 Sixth avenue. 4
A society conducted upon such q
system as the Equitable, justifles the !
assertion Of DE Morgan, that there
IS nothing In the commercial world
which approaches even remotely the
security of a well-established and
Drudently-mauaged life assurance so