The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1893-08-01
NOT MERCHANDISE.
The Hole Through Which the
Insurance Companies
Slip.

A few weeks ago the board Of
aldermen passed a resolution asking
County Attorney Louis Hoffman to
look into the statutes regarding the
combination of insurance companies
TO maintain rates, in other words to
form and maintain a trust, and see if
there was any law to protect the peo-
pie against this gigantic monopoly.
The board desired that the law be in
voked for that protection.
The following letter to the board of
aldermen explains itself, and the
masses are at the mercy of the insu-
rance companies:
SEDALIA, No., July %, 1898.
To the honorable council Of the city Of Sc
daiia:
GENTLEMEN:-A copy of the resolution
passed by your honorable body July 9TH.
1898, calling nv attention to a combina-
ton alleged to exist among the insurance
companies doing business in this city aud
requesting me to take charge of said mat
ter and to inforce the provisions of an act
OF the General Assembly OF the state of
Missouri entitled AN act providing for
the punishment OF pools, trusts ETC." APP
proved April 2nd, 1891, was duly received
and | have given the same careful con-
sideration.
The act referred to in your resolution
prohibits any number of corporations or
individuals To form pool, trust or agree
ment ito regulate or fix the price OF any
article of merchandise or commodity"
The question then is, whether contract
of insurance is an article of merchandise
or commodity?
Bonvier, in his Law Dictionary saws by
the term Merchandise is understood to be
all those things which merchants sell. either
wholesale or retail as dry goods, hardware,
groceries, &c.
BUrrill in his Law Dictionary, SAYS of
merchandise articles of trade or traffic,
subjects OF commerce, things bought and
sold, &c Judge Story in ID Story's r,
1858, saws the term merchandise is usually
applied to specific articles having sensible
intrinsic value, bulk weight or measure in
themselves, and not merely evidences Of
value. and on this ground, bank bills and
insurance policies were not held to be
merchandise.
Worcester defines commodity" as goods,
wares and merchandise, and. saws that
commodity is term applied to
articles of the FIRST necessity or impor-
tance of the produce of the country, and
Rapalje and Lawrence in their law die
tionary saws commodities are goods, wares
and merchandise of any kind movables,
any personal things capable OF being
traded or sold, and the supreme court Of
the United States in Paul vs. Virginia 8,
Wallace los SAYS: Issuing a policy Of
Insurance Is not a transaction of commerce
The policies are simple contracts of in
demnity against loss by fire, entered into
between the corporations and the assured
for consideration paid by the latter.
These contracts are not articles of COM
merce in any proper meaning OF the
word they are not subjects Of trade and
barter offered in the market as something
having an existence and value independ-
ent OF the parties to them. They are not
commodities to be shipped or forwarded
from one state to another, and then put
up for sale, and in State VS.. Henke -
Mo. 2225-1, our own supreme court defined
as anything movable that
is bought and sold.' From the
foregoing | concluded that con-
tract Of insurance is not an article
of merchandise or commodity and that an
agreement among insurance companies to
fix the price Of premium to be paid for
insurance, is not within the statutes re-
ferred to in your resolution, and in this
opinion the attorney general OF our state
concurs rs YOU will see by his letter here
to attached. Yours very truly.
Lofts HOFFMAN,
Prosecuting Attorney for Pettis Co., Mo.
ATTORNEY GENERALS oPISION.
LEGAL DEPARTMENT OF MISSOURI, }
OFFICE OF ArrORNEY-GENERAL,
CRY OF JEFFERSON, July p, 1898.
Hon. Louis Hoffman, Ssdaiia, No.:
DEAR SIR:-ln reply to yours of the2lst
inst, l am OF the opinion that the agree
ment or combination OF a number OF fire
insurance agents to fix the rates of their
respective companies in certain locality
cannot by any reasonable Interpretation be
included within the restrictive provisions
of the act approved April 2, 1891, Laws
1891, p. 1S6. An insurance policy is not,
within the meaning of the act Just cited, or
the usual definition given to it by courts,
either IAN article" commodity" or
species of merchandise Insurance COM
panies were evidently not i'm the mind Of
the legislature when the act i'm question
was passed. Respectfully,
R.F. WALKER,
Attorney General.