Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-02-01
FRIENDSOF FIDELITY.
Manager Frank B. Fleming, Of the
Pittsburg Office, Promoted.
In CHARGE OF WESTERN AGENTS.
A Grand Banquet Given at the Hotel Du-
quesne Last Evening.
INTERESTING AND INSTRUCTIVE TALK

time been the Pittsburg manager of the FL
deity Mutual Life Association, of Phila-
delphia, has been promoted to the position
OF manager of Western agencies, with head
quarters at Chicago, and in honor of his ad-
vancement banqueted the new manager, A.
j. Heniptoge. his Office force and agents, at
the Hotel Duquesne, last evening.
The Pittsburg agency covers Western
Pennsylvania, and is the banner agency OF
the association. Ever since Mr.. Fleming
took charge the business has rapidly in
creased, and his successor starts out in such
way that it seems extremely likely to keep
its proud position.
The banqueters had a jolly good time, for
though they are sorry to lose Mr.. Fleming,
they are all glad of his advancement and
were not slow in their demonstrations of the
fact. The occasion was made all the more
pleasant and notable by the presence of
John A. Cass, of Philadelphia. General
Superintendent of Agencies. as representa-
tive of the company. The banquet was pre-
sided over by the Duauesne chef, George
Savo, who. by his affable manner and splen-
did arrangements, made the affair an ex-
tremely pleasant one.
MIR. Fleming's Interesting Address.
Mr.. Fleming presided, and was the first
speaker. Heexpressed his pleasure at meet
ing so many of his co-workers and others
prior to his transfer to another field. He
referred to the fact that while the Plttsburg
agency had been for the past six month the
banner agency of the Fidelity, the work had
been done by four or five active men, who,
in that time, had written about three
fourths of 81, 600, 900 of paid bust
ness. He attributed that success to
the fact that his assistants were properly
versed in the science of life insurance, being
familiar with their own system, as we'll as
all others, and so able to institute compar-
ison.
He believed that where comparison was
fairly made it would always be found to be
true that the Fidelity offered advantages to
the insured which could not be equaled by
any other company in America. He de-
clared that neither he nor his agents had
ever vet been defeated in a case of fair COM
petition for business, nor did they expect to
be, for the Fidelity's plan was sure to win if
properly stated.
Some Different Kinds of Insurance.
Mr.. Fleming went on to analyze an old
line premium, and showed that at the age of
As, when the average life of policy is but
about nine years. aud the yearly premium
for each 81 900 insurance is S37 81, the ex-
pense element alone is $40 So, while the
mortality element is but $40 55, and the
balance, or SIG 81, is the reserve or banking
element. He called special attention to the
fact that the expense element, or the money
used for the prosecution of the business, is
larger than the amount used for the pay
ment of death losses.
This he characterized as an injustice, and
declared that the Fidelity's plan was the
only just one, wherein the expense element
was limited to 81 per 81 900 at every age.
He then showed that if man lives to the
end of his expectancy, according to the
American experience table, it proved that
the company had taken no risk on his lite,
but that he had paid his own share for the
poorer risk who had died and had banked
with the company an amount of money,
which, at per cent compound interest,
would be equal to the face of the policy.
An Absolutely Uncalled for Charge.
This, the speaker characterized as
charge in every respect excessive, and alb
solutely uncalled for on the basis of past ex-
perience. As against this, he stated that
the Fidelity's rate at the same age was but
$25 II, of which only 81 could be used for
the expense OF management, while $12 So
was set apart for payment of claims, and a
reserve element of SS 79 is held to cover the
increasing cost of mortality due to
increasing years. On each element
OF the premium he insisted that
the Fidelity had: an advantage
over the older system. The expense charge
is more than so per cent less; the reserve
element about the same; while the mortality
element, which is the essential feature in an
insurance premium anyhow, was consider
ably larger. The reserve element of an old
line company he pronounced excessive and
unjust; it was collected on the idea that
every policy will become a claim at death,
or at maturity, whereas the sworn statement
of the company shows that less than 90 per
cent of the policies ever do become claims.
The Fidelity Guards Against Error.
The Fidelity guards against the error Of
the ordinary assessment company. That
error consists in not providing for the in
creased cost incident to increasing age.
Any company which does not collect more
than enough to pay its current claims, and
do not hold some reserve, paid in by each
as a sum which he must forfeit
i'll case he declined to pay other just claims
upon him, would surely come to grief, just
as nunureuS OF poor assessment com panleS
have already done. In short, the Fidelity
took into account all the probabilities or
chances in the business, and constructed its
premiums with these in mind.
Its rates were such that no company had
yet existed long enough to prove their in
adequacy, and there was no human proba-
bility that the Fidelity would ever be called
upon to levy an additional assessment,
though they reserved the right to do so, in
case of need, and In this way gave the very
strongest assurance of their ability to meet
any future experience which might come.
Opposes the Endowment Insurance.
In closing, Mr.. Fleming opposed the en-
dowment insurance on the ground that no
policy had ever paid any man as an invest
ment unless he died, and then he might
have had his insurance without paying the
excessive endowment prices. He expressed
the opinion that the district under his sue
cessor was bound to be the leading agency
in this country, and urged that every man
should give his best effort in this direction.
After the close of Mr.. Fleming's address
short speeches of complimentary charac-
ter were made by the new manager, A. j.
Emptage. John A. Cass, j. E. Stevenson,
Dr. William Mercur, DR.. William McCas-
lin. w. j. Armstrong, f. Wheaton, L.
Strayer, E. Derrick and others.
SECOND MIDWINTER EXCURSION To