The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1873-01-29
THE MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY.


sitioa Of the other life companies; and now to
allay apprehensions Of Its policy holders with re-
gerd to the fidelity Of the ofcers 10 has taken the
initSatory steps for the rehearsal Of performance
neithor new nsr patent to shat company.
It is customary therein to have an annual audit
made by committee OF trustees. and this year
committee Of four gentlemen, from among those
termed by President Winston "outsiders,n have
been invited to unite with the four trustees in
making this audit and to exsmine into the adatrs
OF the company, and their report to be duly pub
lished for your edi1cation and trsnqufIization.
II We may Judge rom past experiences there III
little to hope for In the way OF reform nom any
Committee Of Trustees; and II it Il true-as am
informed-that Mr.. John Wadsworsh Is one OF the
present committee, we can readily conjecture
what his report will be. He was OF the trustees
who investigated the changes made agatnss Presi-
dent Winston. in February, 1865, by Mr.. Isaac
Green Pearson, ana after stating over his own sig.
nature that clerk, 'by direction OF President
WINSTON" had prepared Q false statement for the
finance committee to conceal the illegal loan Of
$4,000 to Seymour L. Hustled and that the charge
Of Mr.. Pearson that President Winston had
secretly used q large amOuns OF the c0mpany's
money In paying drafts Of State agents, and had
concealed such use by representing the money to
be cash In cashiers drawer" was admitted to be
nothing could be found to condemn and much to
praise" in such conduct OF President Winston.
Neither does the result of the examination by
the special committee OF trustees In 1859 give us
any better assurance OF benefit from the present
investigation. That committee failed to correct
abuses then existing and still continuing, deemed
It unnecessary to inquire into charges OF wrong
doing and wlhtewashed the officers in most ar
tistc manner
aminations are seldom other than solemn farce
When Fisk and Gould were charged with grave
acts Of mafeasance they asked for a searching
examination" BY committee OF Erie directors,
who In April, 1871, reported that after thoroughly
"csnhdenco was undimnshed" and they had
found nothing wrong Viewed in the light OF pres
sent information; OF what value was their exami-
When Tweed, Connolly and Company were &C
cused Of grave offences they invited committee
OF most eStimable gentlemen to examine the city
finances. None can doubt the integrity and sim
cerity Of these gentlemen, yet how completely
which have since become 80 notoriousl cite
these instances not to charge that wrongsOf pro-
PortionsIs ,n magnitude exist in the Mutual LIE
such attempted Investigations have been. And
without any purpose to disparage the character,
capacity or Integrity OF the gentlemen tout
siders" who may Dc prevailed upon to unite in the
present examination. hazard the assertion that
ture OF things IL must be So They are strangers to
the aflairs OF the company and cannot know where
70 Sos sc Ss Of now 70 the
too well know how to cover up and conceal. My own
experience In examining into Its affairs disclosed
how difficult 1t was to get hold OF the right end OF
their tangled threads; how skilml they are In that
manipulation which Mr.. Trustee Brown testified Was
ment of the company;" how fluent they can be
upon all things deemed meritorous; how hating
ana ss6as ~ and hove as
ne distinctions to the integrity Of their acts
and seduce to that easy acceptance OF exculpating
than to the heads or the Boston examiners OF 1870
But let us suppose these gentlemen ''0utsiders'
TO the ora rey vain BE-
courteousy received, well entertained in the hospt
able lunch room, shown through each department,
introduced to it, chief officers, and told Of the
admirable system of accounting;', shown the
great clock, and assured that the Mutual now
more above the sEquitable;' and finally they
repair to the elegant apartment In which the
by the imperial photographs OF the past and pres
ent trustees, they seat themselves around the
spacious table and commence the labors Of the
'JOlnt Committee" The gentlemen outsiders"
will he waited upon with civilty bordering on
seryility. and abundance OF explanation, sought
which they are engaged. Ii 1 mistake not they
will soon abandon the attempt to master, within
distractions OF the Actuarial Department. and will
conclude to take its statements on faith But
they win carefully count sh al nonda the public o &C.
cages; test the accuracy Of the statements
Of leash in bank and trust companies &c, DC.
Everything intended to be there has, OF course,
been found clerical errors have been discovered
in any Of the statements carefully prepared IN an
ticipation Of this searching examination" and
they have reached the met resutn iully Impressed
with the magnitude OF the company, and assured Of
its entire solvency And now, methinks see ap-
Judge Henry +. Davis-trustee and counsel OF the
company by Mr.. Robert Sewel-
counsel inspector or elections and general utility
man" OF the company. The genial Judge cordially
shakes hands all arOund-shakes twice with the
gentlemen acknowledgements his great Joy
that they have taken 80 much interest In 'our Al.
fairs !" and then he asks
"And now, gentlemen, what will you have next,
assure you that we desire this examination to be
thorough and exhaustive-dOn't we, Mr.. SewellY
most estimabe President and accomplished Vice
President IN whom gives me the greatest greatest
have the most unbounded confdence--haven't
they, Mr.. Wadsworths You, Of course, know that
our President Is connected with the Bible Society,
fact-that he Is 80 widely and favorably known for
hts charity and benevolence that am sure the evil
hts abe
fully satisfied you that the charges against him are
the ofspring Of malignity, and utterly unworthy Of
Well what win the gentlemen considers" ask
fora They have sincere desire to do their duty
done. Let US suppose the examination to have
been made few years ago, and tnat these gentle
men "OutSl0erS' deemed IL proper 10 mako CRIT
icai examination Of the expenses Of the company.
Running over the items their eye rests upon this
one:-
.'Onice rent OF agency, $2,2s0."
This is very natural item OF expense for an insuf
ance company. But can any one suppose that the
gentlemen "Outsiders" would suspect that that
item was In reality money used at Albany for pur-
poses which required concealment, and which in-
PEELED Mr.. Actuary Romans to refuse his certificate
Of audit, even at the imperative command oil Presl-
dent Winston-"Now, order you to audit thatac-
count II you will not do It l will md some one
else that will''-and which refusal to certify
to o falsehood finally cost the Actuary his
position, the trustees eiecting between the
imperious President and the upright Actuaryf
or do You believe that these gentlemen "out-
sidersn would have suspected that there were
items In the account OF "raxes, for 1868 and 1869,
also spent at Albany and elsewhere, in that ques-
ti0nable manner which required the Assembly
Committee Of last year, when speaking OF the acts
OF the Mutual Lie and other implicated companies,