The daily morning journal and courier., 1896-10-21
BROUGHT INTO COURT
FIGHT AGAINST THE STATE INSUR-
 ANCE DEPARTMENT

Wins-The Accused Fined $1OO and
 Costs-An Appeal Taken.
 Bridgeport, Oct 20.-The preliminary battle which the International Frater- nal Alliance, an insurance concern which claims to be g. fraternal organl- zation, with headquarters In Balti- more, Md, is making against the insur- ance department of the state, opened this morning in the city court before Judge Comley.
 That the state was determined to fight the matter to the end was seen by the array of counsel present. Judge Henry Stoddard of New Haven con- ducted the case and he was assisted by Attorney James T. Moran of Tyler, h. gersoll 6 Moran of New Haven, Will liam D. Whiting of New York, consult ing actuary for the insurance depart ment, and the prosecuting officers of the city court.
 The defendant company had engaged Lockwood & Beers to conduct it's case, Judge D. B. Lockwood and Attorney l Carl Foster appearing. General Or ganizer c. H. Unverzagt of Baltimo1 was present to assist counsel, or at least he would persist in assisting somewhat to the damage of his own l case.
 l The matter is brought into court | +,l,a of Q well, who has been acting as agent for 1 the company in this city. The charge made against MT. Hartwell is that he was engaged in acting as agent for company which was doing an ''old line" | and assessment business without the l proper license in violation of the law. l In the early part of this year the com pany obtained a license to do business as a fraternal organization, the fee for | which Is but nominal, while the sum | to be paid for business of the other 1 classes runs as high as $500 year. | Several months after the license was granted Insurance Commissioner Fred erick A. Betts of New Haven, learned that the company was not doing the business it claimed. He accordingly ' repealed their license.
 1 Commissioner Betts subsequently, learned that the company was doing business in different parts of the state through agents in New Haven and this city. He made efforts to catch them, | but was not successful in securing suf l ficient evidence to warrant attempting l a trial until MT. Hartwells case came | up
 The case in this city was worked up l by Assistant Prosecutor Frederick A. Bartlett and the warrant for the ar rest of Mir IIartwell was issued a week ago. The trial came over until to-day as counsel were not ready to proceed before.
 | Besides counsel named above there were also present in the court room l Commissioner Betts and two of his as sistants, who have worked on the case.
 The defence made by the company, through MT. Hartwell. is that 1t was fore its agent could not have violated the law. It was also claimed that a license had been granted by Commis- sioner Betts and then revoked in vio-
 lation of the law. It is on this point
 that the main legal battle will be | fought.
 The state presented evidence to show that the company was engaged in
 doing regular "old line" business and that the policy issued in this city, upon
 which the arrest was made, was what
 is known as "an old line policy" There were numerous objections
 lodged on both sides and some vigorous
 arguments were presented, particular
 ly by Judge Stoddard, who is an expert
 on insurance law The judge also had
 a rather interesting time with Organ izer Unverzagt while the latter was on
 the stand.
 Arguments were made late in the af.
 ternoon by Judge Stoddard and MT
 Moran for the insurance department
 and Judge Lockwood and Attorney Car
 Foster.
 Decision was then rendered by the , court in substance, as follows: I car decide this case just as we'll now as could twenty days from now, after
 looking over the evidence and the vol ume of insurance documents, policies etc. I have given the subject of fra ternal societies more or less attention
 hitherto and have made them a study
 for over twenty years. This company
 is not a fraternal society, under tn, act of 1885, of this state, but it cam.
 here under the guise of fraternal SO
 ciety and has issued life insuranc,
 policies I cannot censure the company
 too strongly for deceiving the public
 and find MT. Hartwell guilty. The in f surance commissioner, I know, has nt personal feeling against MT Hartwell , his only object being to protect tn, , interests of the public. have know1 E Mir HartweIl for a number of years and know that he is interested in fra I ternal societies in Bridgeport, and an
 only sorry that he is connected witl f this company and am satisfied that h.
 acted under instructions received iron
 the company and may not have ex
 ceeded his powers. I therefore, MT
 Clerk, order him to pay fine of BIO
 and costs.
 , The opposing counsel took an ap 3 peal.
 I MILFORD.