The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1881-07-26
Marriage Insurance.

Marriage Insurance.
The marriage insurance companies
seem to be doing a thriving bushes.
in the interior Of the state, notwith-
standing Judge Henderson can find
no law authorizing their incorporation.
A Harrisburg company claims to have
put upon its books within the last six
months three millions in marriage
policies, and hopes to make it ten be-
fore the year is out. \ Lebanon
operator has hunted up all the engaged
and good looking girls in that county
and has persuaded most. IT not AL, of
them to take policies in his company.
Judge Henderson of Lebanon county
objects to these companies on the
ground of their ''inutiii,v." The In
surance World Claims that marriage
is not a legitimate subject for in>ur-
ance, As it does not depend upon '."n-
tingencies beyond the con,ro If the
individual. To this view sc are cor
fident MANY individuals wall .:enur.
Marriage has been often corll"rc,. 10
a lottery, in which the blanks r,,:pa,-
mate over the prizes. H unrcr :..n,y
is necessary element in insurance we
can conceive of no more III subject for
it than this very one OF marriage. The
:ens of thousands of bachelors and
spinsters in the country anil 'he prob
ably still greater number living in
dissatisfied wedlock prove this IN
pleasant fact. No man. however
much matrimOnially ire ined. can
foresee that his Overtures will be ac-
cepted. Perhaps his excessive ,nod-
esty will prevent him from ever
definitely broaching the subject which
Hest nearest his heart, and Will. he
dallies and despOnds another nhn"e
confident wOOer carries oh the prize.
Either case illustrates the :.ncc:'ain-
ties Of marriage and tie error. Gus
conclusions of the Insurance Wrrld.
For the weaker sex the case !. still
worse. They may be never 50 wiling.
yet old age Overtakes them ..,l;,,.. the
coming man arrives. Why % ,wo
women, whether grinding y, ti:. mil!
or smiling in the parlo-. "ne should
be taken and the other left i .,ne nf
the mysteries of Providence i,:s..ru,-
able to mOrtals. There may ne nl,nv
fatal objections to marriage Insurance.
but the want of uncertainty is surely
not one Of them. Where it is first
doubtful whether q man will be- able
to get married, and again doubtful
whether he will be able to stay mar
ried, there is certainly fruitful! field
for speculation.
Judge Mitchell evidently took this
view of the matter when OH Saturday
he granted a charter to the Pcnnsyi-
vania Marriage Beneficial ASSOCIATION,
thereby giving the marriage. insurance
business a foOthold in Phila.le phia.
We have not yet seen The charter Of
this company, but if its scope is linn
tied to merely furnishing imlecun:ous
brides and grooms with wedding por-
tons there is still 3 field open for
much more comprehensive insurance.
Poverty is but one Of the contingent
cies Of wedlock and by 10 means the
gravest one. Death. ti'e and even
ill-health may be made the subject Of
insurance in appropriate companies
already provided, but company
which would insure against ill-temper
in the wife or dissipation in the hus-
band or undue interference on ,he
part Of the mother-in-law, or which
would guarantee not only definite
sum on marriage but a bona-fi,le offer
Of marriage or an acceptance as we'll,
would most undoubtedly he over
whelmed with applications. We are
not inordinately enamored with the
marriage insurance business, but what
ever other arguments NAV be urged
against these companies. it Is clear
that the objection that marriage is
not subject to uncertainties
is anything but well aken.-Phi'a,lel-
phia Times.