The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1889-11-14
RETAIL LIFE INSURANCE.
A BRANCH OF THE BUSINESS GROW
ING IN POPULARITY.

States.
The branch of life insurance known as
Industrial insurance is comparatively
new in this country, but it has already
assumed large proportions. One com
pany in this city has alone nearly 1,7OO,.
900 policies outstanding, the amounts
aggregating not far from 5000, 600, 900.
Industrial insurance is practically In
surance sold at retail; hence, of course,
the rate of premium is higher than in
the regular line. But as the premiums.
ranging from five to fifty cents, are pay.
able weekly, it enables persons of limited
means to provide themselves with insur-
ance, which otherwise they would be
unable to do. The necessity of regularly
laying aside the necessary sum to meet
the payments as called for, tends to in.
culcate habits of economy and thrift in a
class too largely improvident. On the
average the agent has to call for premi-
ums but once fortnight, as many of the
policy holders pay two or more weeks in
advance. The amount of insurance is
limited by different ages. Under 16 wears
payments of not over twenty cents pe1
week will be received; this can be in.
creased five cents per week for every
year till the 21st year, when the max
lmum amount Of insurance allowed
under this form of policy is reached, viz,
$3.50, at weekly premium of fifty cents
But the feature of the industrial bust.
ness that has excited the most comment
has been the insurance of children. On.
position has been excited in some quar-.
tiers against the system on the ground
that the insurance of children furnished
a temptation to infanticide. In the sew.
eral official investigations that have taken
place not only was this entirely dis.
proved, but it was shown that the per-
centage of mortality among insured chill
dren was less than the average. The
charge of inducing infanticide was first
preferred in England in 1851, and a par.
I1amentary committee after three wears
of investigation reported that no neces.
slty for legislation existed. Twenty
years later the agitation was revived.
when Thomas Bond Sprague, president
of the British Institute of Actuaries.
proved conclusively that these suspicious
were unfounded. In Liverpool instead
OF the mortality of insured children ex-
ceeding the general child mortality it
was greatly less, and the same held true
of other towns.
In report in 1876 of the Prudential.
of London, the largest industrial COM
pany in the world, it is stated that the
experience of the company for twenty.
five years completely negatives the idea
that malfeasance is practiced. The |
charge has no existence among even the |
squalid populations of London, Liver
pool and Birmingham. A committee of |
the Pennsylvania legislature unani- |
mously refused to report bill to restrict |
the lnsurlng of persons under 16 years of |
age.
Mr.. Il. G. Dewey, of the Prudential, of |
London, testified before a committee in
vestigating this subject in Great Britain.
that the company had upward of 5000.
OOO industrial policies in force, the aver
age duration of which exceeded six
years. Of these % per cent. were upon
the lives of children under 10 years of
age. Great precautions were taken
against sickly lives being insured. Sta
tlstlcs were given showing the extent of
the insurance of children. At the last
census there were $4,000 children
under 10 years of age in England and
Wales. Reducing this number % per
cent, about the basis adopted to decide
on school board accommodations, there
would remain a possible 5,000,O 900 of in
Surable children under 10 years of age,
Of these 4,000,000 or four out of five.
were insured in some form.
In the American industrial companies
are taken at any age after one
year. Under the age of IS no medical
examination is required, but the parents
must certify as to the good health of the
child and the agent must certify that he
saw the child in health. To avoid the
risk of infanticide, the business of repu.
table companies is carefully regulated.
They have adopted the policy of grant
ing and increasing insurance for a uni
form premium, so as the child advances
IN years up to Is the benefits increase
The maximum is thus reached about the
lime when the child of working people
becomes old enough to be himself wage
worker
Thus far uniform charge of five cents
per week on policy written in the yea1
preceding the child's second birthday,
utter three months and less than one yea1
lad elapsed SIS would be payable at
leath. After year SIT, after 2 years
20, after 3 years S35 and after II wears
when the child would be 10 years of age,
;115.
This is the maximum amount. at five
ents per week, and will continue at that
through life. It may be increased
by large payments, but
lnder the age of 6 years no higher pre-
MUM than ten cents will be taken nor
more than twenty cents under 10 years.
The two largest American companies pay
10 claim till the policy has run three
nonths, the others grant a fractional
the first quarter. All companies
INIT the amount of insurance a child cal
AIRY, and if policies are written in more
han one company, and the sums of all
ne premiums paid exceed the above linn
IS of single company, the policies are
old. At death proof of loss is required
rom physician giving full details of
lckness or else certificate from the
oroner. Death claims to the number of
.944 on children under the age of IN
Iere paid in the United States DURING
888. ~ ing
The business appears to be carefully
onducted and hedged round with essen
al restrictions ord cofoo-,,o,.I mn