, 1891-02-19
0 R LIFE INSURANCE
MANY COMPANIES ARE ORGANIZED
But FEW SURVIVE.


Are Deemed NeoessAry-rhe New York
GrOcers' observation-disclosures Stat
isties for Horsemen.
Probably no kind of property in this
town is so easy to invest in and 50 easy to
lose in as horses" said a former ohcero of a
live stock Insurance company that recently
vent to smash. Horse life insurance has
been disastrous TO every capitalist who has
touched it until within a short time, and,
after taking advantage Of experience gain
ed in both Europe and America, horse life
insurance is still an experiment. In Eu-
rope horse life Insurance has been tried for
more than 100 years, with a fair share OF
success to the investors in the enterprise.
In this country il has been conducted on
various plans, and many Of the schemes
have failed TO meet the end for which they
were designed. Though not over a dozen
years have elapsed since the lives Of horses
were insured on a large scale in New York
city there have been thirteen failures OF
Insurance companies. There are only two
horse life insurance companies, l believe,
having their main Offices in town. A live
stock insurance company In Buffalo has -
branch agency in town. but 1t does not do
q raft OF business. II is probably shy of
any but the choicest risks, such as family
carriage horses and well kept business
horses doing light drauRht service.
REASONS FOR FAILURES.
The reasons why there have been so
mani failures Of horse life insurance com
pAnies are undoubtedly because the com
pAnies tried to insure horses too cheaply,
and also because the companies officers
tried TO ape the human life insurance com
panies and impress the community by set
ting up business In big Offices. with plate
glass fronts aud gilt lettering, while big
salaries were paid TO agents and fat plums
fell 10 the lot Of the officers themselves.
There are now only two companies Of any
size that underwrite horses In town. and a
bitter rivalry exists between them. One
company is up town and the other down
town. The uptown office Is chartered
under the insurance laws of the state,
while the downtown company was organ
lied under chapter 267 OF the laws OF 1885,
providing for the creation OF mutual bene-
1T associations. Both arc mutual benefit
associations.
Bitter experience in the way OF heavy
losses in insuring horses has led to the
adoption OF a rigorous ruling out as mad
missible for insurance purposes q large
class OF horses. No company will insure
car horses, livery horses, c-ontractors'
horses, race horses or any fancy priced
horses. Other horses barred are runs
ways. blind horses. cribbers. horses with
heHves or blind staggcrs or mad staggers.
cab horses, omnibus horses and business
horses, Owners are required 70 declare
whether their horses have had pinkeye.
collie, heaves, lung fever, poll evil. distem-
per, mad staggers, bad sight, SPAWN. con
tracted hoofs or ringbone-
Each OF the Insurance companies has a
veterinary surgeon in its employ. who
hammers on the horses chests. looks into
their mouths and puts the animals through
as thorough a test OF their physical health
men undergo In a life insurance com
pany's medical examination. The price
for an examination is usually e.
Animals from one 70 twelve years are
insurable for terms OF three years, over
twelve years old only from year to year.
Insurance is confined practically to mules
aud carriage horses not worth over 800
and not less than 500. No insurance GER
tihcate can be had now, / believe. for more
than three-fourths the value OF the animal.
The downtown company, moreover, has a
big pasture containing fifteen acres or
more of good land not far from Williams
bridge where horses are sent to pasture In
summer Horses only get oats R-plenty
when they are suffering from oyerwork or
nervous prostratiou. The resort is free to
horses. With the consent of the
COMPANY one horse may be substituted for
- ~ KRANN AH-I - $3.50
ferred from one horse to another. Inspect
ors make regular round among the in
sured horses and report their condition at
the company's Office. that has been found
TO be a necessary course to pursue in order
INSCRIPTIONS owners may be pre-
vented from poisoning a horse when he
is in pool health, so that he may get
the horse Insurance. Owners Of horses
must notify the company II they change
their place of residence.
THE G~RoCERs' ORGANIZATION.
'Is It worth while to insure a horsef |
think 80 If you are lucky enough to own
an insurable horse. The way the com
panies are insuring you will have to pay
only l per cent. annually on the value OF
the horse for your insurance policy. a
curious experiment in horse insurance has
been tried for n year by the Retail Grocers'
union Of this town, an organization of
about 90 members. Inside Of tho union a
horse insurance fund was started In Feb
ruary, 1890, and X per cent. was collected
the amount for which each horse was
insured, while losses were sustained pro
rata by the members in the scheme. A
yearly examination fee of e. was charged,
81 TO be retained II the horse should not be
No horse was insured for over
IS per cent, OF its value.
Most horse owners are satisfied il they
insure their stables for a good sum, imag-
lining that most OF the danger to their stock
dying suddenly is in the direction of fire.
Some interesting statistics have been col
lected. Hear them and then decide for
yourself whether horses should be insured.
OF 7O4 insured horses that dice in five
years and were paid for by one OF the in
Surance comPgnie- lS3 died Of collie, n OF
Inflammation Of the bowels, "a OF kidney
trouble, 81 OF pneumonia, 81 OF suustroke,
10 Of pinksye, 81 Of lockjaw, % Of broken
legs, IL OF e~pizootic, 10 of heart disease, I
Of blind staggers, 9 killed by r~unaways, 4
were drowned, . were killed by lightning,
lbs died OF diseases, aud only $
were burned. Probably more than 49,
DOO. 600 is invested in New York state in
live stock on which no insurance Is carried
for loss by disease or accident other than
by fire, and the estimated loss will be 30
per cent. IL not more than that, In ten
years. There are twenty-three times
greater risk OF a horses dying of collie han
by fire, three times greater risk Of dying
from broken legs, five times greater risk
from lockjaw, nine times greater risk from
Of the bowels, and six times
greater risk from pneumonia. The risk
er than from death by fre,-Nev York
Sun
A CIouded Life.
Mrs. EliIers-Iour old friend has such
a sad face! Why IS it,
Mr.. Bliffer-Years ago he proposed to a
very beautiful girl, and
Mrs. Blifers-And she refused him.
Nj. Bliffers No: she married him