The Benton weekly record., 1881-08-04
zEAEEsEA&4E INSURANCE
prcmiums Gstsisi oa Ezatrfanony-E4oys
ii ygoraEs-EETects IN Ss.c Rural
Districts

dcatll-bed insurance, and there is likely tc
he as much criticism oft. In some counties
the Judges refuse to grant charters to the
marriage insurance companies, but The
parties who are refused apply in neigh.
boring Jurisdiction and are successful
They readily procure a charter or license
10 go into the business Of guaranteeing
single young men and women one thous-
and dollars more or less, when they mar
~.
Soliciting agents find it very plain sail
ing in the country districts, and do CON
siderable business among young women
By assuring them that young men seeking
wives invariably select young woman
who has had sufficient business tact and
Judgment about her to get herself insured
in time. The consequence is that the
y0ung women pay over their hard earned
dollars and then rcVel in the hope that
very soon a young man will come along
hunting wife; that he will select her Z:
that She will get fl ,000 soon after her
wedding day from the company and that
the little fortune will be so very handy to
have i'll the house to buy a parlor and bed
room set, carpets, a horse, few COWS and
many odds and ends to start married life
with.
These concerns more properly, should
bc called guarantee companies. They
only do business with unmarried peopIe.
No capital is required to start a company
more than il necessary to pay for a char
ter, furnish an Office, pay for the printing
Of lot of blanks, circulars, and letter
heads, and start out a lot OF agents. 4
few hundred dollars is sufficient. Agents
se0ur the country, scatter the splendidly
Worded circulars broadcast, and in a few
months, 200 young people have joined
Glass 4. and paid 81 each to become par
ticipating members. Some companies do
not charge as much. Out Of this 81 900
paid in, the agents receive their very large
percentage for commissions, say $1,000,
and the balance goes to the directors.
Whenever any one member Of Glass A is
Of marriage, duly witnessed by the local
agent, and the company at once proceeds
to collect 81 from each of the 900 other
members Of that class, They promptly
respond, and the directors, after deduct
ing 20 per cent. OF the $999 SO collected,
send the balance to the member who is
married. The company is expected to do
this if it is governed by honest principles
of business. Hence the directors receive
nearly 5000 from every member who mar
ries, as their charge for collecting the
assessments. Some companies with less
brass charge but 10 per cent for collect
ing assessments, and return about 5000 to
the beneficiary I'Ile better kind Of com.
pany charges but per cent. The person
marrying drops out Of the class, and as
fast AS marriages occur, new members are
substituted to keep the class Of 900 full.
Some successful companies have three full
classes going. Children Is years Of age
are received rs members and assessed so
much The younger the person is, the
less the rate, and the older the higher.
The officials pretend to have q system,
based upon careful calculation, as 70 mar
rage probabilities, just the same as the
old line life companies have as to death
probabilities.
Hence it will be seen that a young Wom-
All engaged to be married q year from date
may join u company, pay her initiation fee,
run the chances Of half a dozen assess
ments, and when she is married she will
receive, il she's fairly dealt with, about
5000. If her intended is smart, he, too,
will Join Il company, and lie, too, will re-
ceive 5000 sixty or ninety days after suff1-
cicnt proofs have been received Of his mar
riage.
Thus far the experiences Of some young
men and young women III the marriage
insurance business is very interesting. A
Schuyll1ill county young lady left her
home because SHE coi;ia not bear TO he ridi-
culed about her misfortune with her ~
tended. She thought she was TO be mar
rled last month, but the young man ran
away and left her. Now she has neither
the 5000 that she would have received nor
IL husband. The details Of her bad luck
leaked out, and she went 20 Philadelphla
to escape the taunts and iibes Of her ruder
aoQuaintances.
Across in the next county, Lchigh, two
young people were married. They BE-
longed to different companies. IL less than
thirty days they fought and separated, but
the proofs of their marriage had been sent
i'll toethe home office, and in due course OF
time each received the amount OF money
due, and they are now separately enjoying
it The young woman is off on trip g
Europe, and the young man started mar
nessmaking shop. There are many VINO
now charge that the young woman Just
married to get her money, and never -
tended to live as wife to that man Some
say that she boasted of the trick she was
going to play to get money to see Paris.
A young woman Of Lehigh county was
compelled to withdraw from her class
membership because, she said, she had ~
assessments in two months, and to pay VI
for each was a tax heavier than she couls
bear. "Why, it seems to me, ! saia she
tsthat All tha members OF our class were