The Washington times., 1894-05-19
ORDER OF TONTI ASSIGNS
Its Affairs in Hopeless and Irremedi-
able Insolvency.
STATEMENT OF ITS PRESIDENT
A Bill Filed in Court Showing That the
Company Has Been Badly and Recklesslv
Managed and Has in Many Instances se-
riously Violated Its Constitution and Laws.

PHILADELPHIA, May 1s.-The Order OF
Tonti made an assignment to the Land. Title
and Trust Company and Francis Shunck
Brown, the orders attorney, this afternoon.
The assets are estimated at 81 ,250 900.
full disclosure of the methods employed by
the order and its officers, which have resulted
in what looks to be a collapse Of the order, is
contained in the bill in equity filed in the
common pleas court to-day.
The complainants, who comprise many OF
the general officers Of the order, state that
they are all members in good standing, having
paid in sums ranging from $3.50 to $500, and
that they are holders OF relief fund certificates
of $1,000 each. To meet the liabilities ac-
crued and to accrue upon the certificates OF
membership issued the constitution and laws
of the order required the respondents to es-
tablish a relief fund, and for that purpose to
levy as sessments upon all members equally.
Notwithstanding this duty imposed upon
them, the bill says, they did not during the
earlier years OF the order levy such assess
ments as were necessary to create relief
fund sufficient TO meet the obligations OF the
order.
To show the hopeless insolvency OF the
order. the bill says that several hundred GER
tifeates providing for the payment of sums
ranging from $500 to 1000 have matured
since March q last, requiring in the aggre-
gate the payment OF upward OF S250.OOO and
these have not been paid, nor is there any
sufficient fund upon which the order can
draw.
During the next two years certificates will
mature requiring the payment of S8,00O,0OO,
showing an average monthly liability, in ad-
dition to that already charged against the
order of S333 1898. Besides this the order
is now under an average liability OF $3.50
per month for sick benefits. payable under its
certificates. There are now about IL, 900
members in good standing in the order, 5000
of whom are, according to the position as
sumed by the defendants, liable to the pay
ment of three assessments per month.
AT session of the supreme lodge in Brook
lyn on April % last the then supreme secre-
tary, d. II. Kenney, reported that the liabili-
ties during the next two wears from the ma
turing OF certificates would be about S6.000,
coo. After the adjournment of the supreme
lodge the books were audited, ard 1t was
discovered that kenney's estimate was 81
0o0, 900 short of the exact liabilities. and to
the extraordinary number OF 200 assessments
in single call ten more were added.
During nine years of the orders history,
order had collected from assessments levied
for the purpose of relief 500. .254.19. During
a large part of this period there has been a
membership approaching $4,000. from which
this fund was received. II will require dur
ing the next two years the collection of S.
000.000 from a membership OF 10000 and
now rapidly decreasing. and this sum, If COL
lected. will discharge the liabilities OF the
order for only two years.
The order is involved. the bill says, in hone
less and irremediable insolvency in conse-
quence OF the neglect and mismanagement OF
the officers and the violation of its constitu-
tion and laws.
Like the bill previously filed, this one prays
the court 20 grant an injunction restraining
the order from levying the debit assessment or
collecting any kinds of funds from the GER
tificate holders. and from disposing of or in
cumbering its asserts.
Supreme President CiaUsen. when seen at
his Office this afternoon regarding the assign
ment. said that when he was first elected to
the oificC, about tkrae weeks ago, he began an
Investigation OF the affairs of the order. Il
found" be said. that there was $4,000 OF
matured certificates Standing with others
rapidly approaching maturity. ami without
the necessary cash to pay them without draw
ing upon the reserve fund.
Looking ahead. l saw that in two years
we would be called upon TO pay out 1900, 900.
and that the very best we could possibly do
would be 10 have 5000 900 10 meet the de-
mand. The order has been falling of in
membership. and the dues dropped suddenly
from S150.000 10 Sf0s,000. We might have
run along ior five or six months. but at the
end of tnat time the crash was sure to come.
When / loarne, the financial standing Of the
order l decided that the very best thing to do
for the members was to make an assign
ment."