The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1895-03-16
"PAGAN COMPETITIONS
The Old Equitable Life.
yigor ously Repels the Assaults of a Jeal-
Gus Competitor.

yigor ously Repels the Assaults of a Jeal-
Gus Competitor.
(Bridgron News.)
Now that the final adjournment of
Congress has given to the country a
period of rest from raneorous political
debates, and a monotonous placldlty
had settled upon the reading public,
there has been precipitated upon the
public attention a most lively contro-
versy between two of the life insurance
companies doing business in Maine,
which is most keenly enjoyed by those
having access to all the correspondence.
The representative of the assailed COM
pany is our former toWnsman. +. ii.
Hazelton, Esq, the popular and efficient
Manager of the Equitable Life Assurance
Society; and this is the excuse of The
News for treating the subject at greater
length than is its custom as to matters
of general rather than local interest.
10 be as brief as may be, it appears
from a cursory glance at the volumin-
Gus correspondence, that during the
summer of 1894. the general agent of the
Northwestern Life Insurance Company
for Maine, made a wholly unprovoked
attack upon the Equitable Life As
surance Society of the United States, and
it's Maine management. Covering
period of six months, five different
eplstles were written, ostensibly private,
yet really printed and scattered broad
cast as advertising matter for his COM
pany. With nothing to lose and every
thing to gain in the precipitation of such
public controversy with a great Com
pany like the Equitable, the assault seems
to have been deliberately planned: the
mere shadow of an excuse being found in
an allegation that the general agent of
the Northwestern and Manager Hazelton
of the Equitable had in some way met
in competition as solicitors for the same
risk-the utter fallacy OF which is shown
by the later correspondence. But all
this is immaterial The fight is on and
it matters little how it was commenced.
Until now it has been entirely one-sided,
the Equitable people, like Brer Rabbit,
laying low" yet all the while listening
attentively, while its assailant continued
his most discourteous and ill-tempered
fusilade, after a style better befttiag the
prize ring.
, But further forbearance had ceased to
be virtue with the Equitable people,
and they this week very effectively
respond to the challenge in twenty-four
page pamphlet, to which is given the
very expressive title of Pagan Compe-
tition."
In dignified tone, as becomes the high
character of the Company for which le
speaks, Manager Hazelton very forcibly
brushes away the Misrepresentation Of
the Northwestern's spokesman, and by
an overwhelming array of facts and fig
ures, exhibits the proud record of the
f Equitable Company, SO successful yman-
AZ = i'll Maine, and whose phenomenal
gIo tn and extensive business dealings
with Maine people have given it de-
sersedly high reputation, at the same
time that it has excited the envy and
bitter jealousy of the unsuccessful rival
whom it has left so far in the rear.
The assault which is of personal
nature is easily disposed of by docu-
mentary evidence over the signature Of
a no less noted medical authority than
, DR.. Israel i. Dana, the Equitabie's chief
medical examiner for Maine Then
comes a most scathing and critical analy-
sis of the Northwestern's Investments III
Western Mortgag 95 per
cent. of it's entire Reserve-with the un-
savory showing of default in interest
earnings, and an arraignment of class
of securities severely let alone by prudent
fnanciers, and specially objected to by
the Maine and New Hampshire Bank Elk
aminers.
The Ecu tables able publication goes
very thoroughly into this subject, and
shows how futile are all expectations as
to notwithstanding from such securi-
ties. 1t also devotes considerable space to
the matter of contracts. form of policy,
etc, the exhibit being decidedly to the
advantage of the Equitable. And final
ly, as csowning proof of the claim of
superiority of the old Equitable Life
over the assailant Company, it proudly
exhibits the incomparabl bic record of its
Maine business for 1894 in contrast with
= that of the Northwestern Company. We
copy from Pagan Competitions"
Equitable increase in mum Der of poll
cies in force, 371 Northwestern increase
in number of policies in force, 76-excess
in Equitable policies, 295.
Equitable increase of Insurance in
force. 1886, 1885,. Northwestern increase of
insurance in force, $40, 295. -Equita ble's
excess in insurance in force 1896, 1884,"
Verify, as is very aptly observed in the
pamphlet, sat this rate it will take the
: Northwestern agent nearly five years to
accomplish what the Equitable did in
Maine alone in 1894"
But we cannot further pursue this su b.
ject. as the entire twenty-four pages of
Pagan Competition" is bristling with
fo. Il