New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1878-01-26
THE CHARTER OAK.

Insurance Commission to the Legislature auds
nothing Of Importance to the history OF the Charer
Oak Life as given already iii this correspondence.
II confirms what gave as an opinion I'D my hie.
letter that of the $780, 900 capital provided Tor III
the charter, only 500 OOO OF 10 per cent was ever
paid in, the balance being represented by notes u
the amount of S1sO,O0O. which were paid by
special dividend in 1868 out of the undivided earn
ipes of former years. From that time till 1874 these
respectable stockholders openly paid themselves the
DER cent permitted by. the charter OIL the capital
stock of 5000 600 which was in effect 80 per cent
on their investment, and absorbed rs much OF Tue
remaining profits they could IN extra dlvidehds
distributed Oh the sly and other indirect ana cir
cuitous WAYS This part of the history OF this I'M
fortun corporation has not been brought out Sd
prominently in the investigation and IN the plplc
discussion in the press as the ia'el poi
tons, in which Messrs. Furber and Wiggin
figure as wreckers. and the Jewell management
appears in desperate effort TO rescue the concern.
| I note If ma a somewhat remarkable fact, that the
efforts of Governor Jewell and the Board OF Drec-
tors associated with him, to save something ior Tue
policy-holders out of the wreck, aud preserve IL
| possble. the reputation of Hartford. have Dech
| more criticised and censured than any OF the per-
| for,nouces of the Walklcy-Whte management, or
| even the Furber-W Iggin crowd. have endeavored
in this correspondence to trace the history OF the
| company from the beginning, In such manner as
| not To weary the reader with details, but to bring
ont the salient features in the management, and the
successive steps by which it was brought to
! ITS present condition. That / have commented
very freely upon some Hartford people as charged
by The Courunf is in some true, but do
not really see how | could have done otherwise
without concealing of the most important
facts in the Hartford people controlled this
institution for many years; they organized 1t; they
divided its profits: they brought it TO the desperate
straits in which Furbcr and Wiggin found it, and of
which they took advantage The whole blame OF
this criminal mismanagcment does not belong to
Furber and Wiggin, by any means. The men no
had squeezed the corporation for years, and at last
handed over its anatomy TO Furbcr Tor dissection
and bone-boiling must bear some,i and, rs think,
the larger share Of the responsibility and the blame
II may seem strange to The Cogrdnt that any Hart
ford people should he criticised called in question
in connection with the early management of the
company. but to people outside it seems much
more unaccountnble that so much of hullabaloo
should be raised over the wrcckers, and so little
said about the seainanship that drove the craft
ashore.
have observed hcfe much more of disposition
10 cricise the course Of Governor jewell than to
condemn the acts of his predecessors. There has
been in some quarters persistent effort to make u
appear that he went into the company as specuia-
ton purely and that he is no less culpabie IN tins
regard than Furbcr aud the rest. have hereto
fore stated that =, far is this from the truth that he
has always stood ready from the moment OF his con
tract with Furber for tbs stock to give it up
to any one who would undertake To save
the company. This | have sand upon the
strength of Governor Jewclrs assertion. Ii
has been intimated however. that this will
lngness to transfer the stock did not appear until
lac had learned 80 much of the condition Of the CON-
pany ~ to satisfy him that nothing could be made
on If 1T. am just now IN possession oi additional
information upon This point, winch goes To coTfObo-
rate ,ybo, have before said Shortly afr the ap
pearancc of TnE TEIBI NIX article ia which the plan
of merging the stock of the mixed companies and
making them purely mutual, was proposed, the Hon
Iynde Harrison. Speaker of the last House
of REPRESENTATIVES.. who is policy-holier
/ IN the company. in an interview with Gov
crnor Jewell suggested the adoption of this
course Governor Jewell replied at that
he would gladly consent TO IT, if IT were possible, but
that il conld not be done without legislative inter
vcntion In alteration of the charter, which WAS then
impossible. the Legislature not being in session.
MI Harrison suggested that Governor Hubbard he
asked Ia call extra session OF the Legislature Tor
that purpose, aud this agreed TO. Governor
Hubbard rs ! am informed. was approached upon
the subject, bat declined 10 take the re-
sponsibihty of couycniug the Legislature for
the purpose named. There i bill now
pending in the Legislature providing for
Just such ner1ing " TIE stock and n reorganlza
ton on the mutual plan. The only opposition Ia II
/ that have observed /. III the columns Of The t0a-
ydgf and Timc, which, s.uguary enough. after
having all along urged that this course be taken
have now begun 10 doubt whether It can or ought 20
be- done They are beginning 10 think that what
ever is left of the assets belongs to the p0lcy-hod
cfs aud should be divided nj at once
The advocates of the proposed change also
believe that the property belongs To the
poiicv-holders and that il will be for their
interest to have the company reorsaulzed so that
they can manage II themselves rather than incur
the sacrifice and loss that mast result from mmedi
ate quidation In the event of such reorganiza-
ton it is proper 10 say thu Governor Jewell. not
being policy holder anl having been enIoned from
Incoming one conld not continue ia office. The
change ca a mutual company leaves him out entire
w. That fact. | should suppose, would relieve the
minds of those who have been fearful that he
might make some capital out of IT. There
i still some controversy rs 10 whether
Mr. Burr Of The Times did actually see
and approve the original contract between the
Walklry people and furber The Post publishes
extracts from The Times Of about that date winch
speak in tho highest terms of fnroer ana Nlgsin
but that. of course. proves nothing. Mr. Barr
him,clf SAYS he did not approve the contract
though the Insurance Commissioner aiiirms with
canal ycu.ss that he did. did not know there
WAS any dispute a. to the fact when l first
referred 10 IT. ! subsequently inferred that there
WAS from the fact that The Tin,fS remarked with
sweeping courtesy that my statements were false
regret that my remark that Mr.. Burr meant TO be
a gentleman and to iell the truth should he con-