Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-09-12
GAMBLING IN HUMAN LIVES.
som, Startling Revelations I'm I'm. land Con.
corning Insurance Frauds.

som, Startling Revelations I'm England Com
corning Insurance Frauds
lno revelations made in the course of an
action against an insurance company at the
present Manchester Gsslzes. says the Pei MAJ
b"dgef, have forced into the public notice as
hiceous a traffic IN human life as ever disgraced
a Civilized country. Gambling in lives has in
MANY Lancashire towns, but chiefly in Black
burn, long been lucrative occupation. The
insurance companies are hoodwinked and de-
frauGad, and the mise rable victims of the con-
splracy are, by means not actually criminal.
shuified out of life. Husbands iusl,re their
wives, wives their husbands, children their
parents.
Any one who is believed to be ..within meas
nrabie distance OF the grave is fair game for
the SPECTATOR. He scans his ncighbcr as a
'aiaer scans household of furniture. Lee
out the symptoms of CONSUMPTION or any oth.r
iatal disease appear and he makes inainuatins
ones lie 20 OF as course on the doomed
selected from the very dregs of humanity-the
uruhken, diseased ana feeble-MhJ for the
sake OF prospective drinks readily sign the
ut 0 paper. and thenccforwar,l have their
LatE to the grave smoothed and facilitated by
tuo creatures VINO iatten upon them.
ONE INSTANCE OF MANY.
The case heard at the Manchester assizes
differs in no essential respect from A hundred
others The victim in that case was a wretebcd
old hostier or hanger-on Of public house. He
had not q copper in the world TO call his own
but he had something much more valuable 10
othefs; lie had Inequiyocal symptoms of speedy
uecease Forthwith he was houored giih the
anxious attention Of the harpies Glowing Re-
ports were made TO the insurance COMPANIES OF
the prospects of reaching a patriarchal age
and In the end the poor old fellow, trembling
on the Drink OF eternity, bore the burden OF
twenty policies, with a total value OF Il, 100.
happily, one OF the insurance companies had
the courage TO ght the conspiracy by gisnut
Ing the Claim, and were victorious Ioa,.d
the barrister engaged for the plaintlf, w,e,, Inc
saw the sort OF case lie WAS put up TO cham
plon. honorably threw up his brief
Ibis case Is but type of hundreds ~
others which have made life insurance a term
OF eyll import IN the north OF England. In
Blachpurn common loitCrer about the
market place Is insured in various co,nn,pics
for nearly 5000. He il aware Of the fact that
death Will materially increase hls commercial
value, but SO long as his income of a few sLll-
llngs Is supplemented by fees for signing in
surance papers "he does not care how long
the thing goes on" This poor wretch il ~,
specially connected and once held q decent
position IN society, but a life OF dissipation
has brought him into the web Of the insilr.nc,
SPECTATOR, whence he will never oscar. save
In coffin. In another case man who sDends
large portion OF his time H. the work house l.
insured for 1850. and in a .hird a hayk.r al
bags of coal. who. living. Is worth hardly tle
ciotheS upon his back. Will as a corpse DC
valued at II, 800.
IGNORANCE AND CRIME.
Many OF the miserable beings thus traded
upon are totally unconscious or the enormous
sums winch are involved when they sign bi.
o paper tor a friend" and a.drink. In one
instance poor, sickly weaver. who is insured
IN one once alone FOR El.000, when asked
whether he knew the amount of his insurance
replied. We'll. nobbut q few pounds: twenty
or thirty happen" He admitted that he lod
never paid the premiums and that lac did not
know the person who had acted as referee
further investigation showed that The policy
MAD peeu enected by sn intermediary. who, IN
consideration OF portion Of the COMMISSION
had served to conceal the identity o. tho in
surer.
Gambling in lives. like gambling in stocks or
on the turf, not Iairequentiv involves loss 10
the gambler. Some OF the wrecks OF humanity
who the special objects Of the solicit:te of
the Spectator, display a most mneNpecea To-
nacity to their thread Of life. With one toct In
the grave they yet manage TO keep the other
cut Tor an unreasonable time. Even ;he con-
slant supply of neat brandy with which their
patrons indulge tbelh with the view of asgisti,,,
them more speedily to a better weird. is oftea
Intellectual. Nay. it seems Only 10 increase thc
vitality of the remaining leg. One typical case
VIII suffice as IN instance.
THE TYPICAL CASE.
certain feeble and apparently moribund
Old fellow has been the subject of very par
ticular attention from tie Specializing fra
ternity, who have insured him wholesale. His
signature to policies has been eagerly sought
after and he has reyelcd IN unlimited supplies
of spirits for years. He has, however proved
himself an unconmonly tough morsel for his
patrons. Racked by cough. afflicted by rhea-
naiism, he yet .'lags superi,uous on the stage"
and not feg policies upon his life have been
allowed to lapse One Spectator alone has
paid more than $40 above what he will receive
when the hardy old fellow inal adsum is ut
tered.
HOW THE FRAUDS ARE POSSIBLE.
Doubtless the wonder will be that these con-
spiracies against the insurance companies are
possible. The system, however, is very simple
The spectators in league with the more
interruptions insurance agents, from whom
they receive portion OF the commission the
companies allow on new policies. They act as
the agents touts. and after taking an inventory
of the vistiln's prospects Of a reasonably early
death induce him or her TO be insured.
This done, the rest is easy. for with the agent
cooperating with him the Spectator has little
difficulty in hoodwinking the company and
palming upon it q life which, were the true
facts made known, would be accepted on no
conditions whatever. Ii is only fair to say that
the majority OF the agents are honorable men
but the proportion OF INSCRIPTIONS agents who
lend themselves TO the ghoulish practices of the
spectators is alarmiagly large. The insurance
companies chiefly concerned are at last becom-
ing alive to the enormity OF tine conspiraciss
against them. and now that one of them has had
the courage TO expose the system aud has
scored an easy triumph, drastic measures NAV
be adopted to stop the aecursed traiic in
human life.
The governing committee Of the Boston STOCK
axchonoa has At -S<,-l~ - a.. n-.:---