Arizona weekly journal-miner., 1897-11-24
AN EXPENSIVE INCIDENT.

AN EXPENSIVE INCIDENT.
 General R. Allyn Lewis yesterday received a picture which he prizes highly. It is a photograph of what is called a "S66,000,000 incident" taken from the steps of the new congressional library at Washing ton. In other words, it is picture of the Perkins convention. The group consists of l50 delegates, their wives and children, The con vention was held in New York in honor of tho return of George w. Perkins, third vice president of the New York Life Insurance Company, from business trip to Europe. Mr Perkins is in charge of the field force of the company. Preparations began to be made for 1t last summer and it was arranged that the dele gates should be men whose average writing per month during the first five months wsre from Sl,0OO to S32,0O0. They were to be divided into ten classes. The convention met in New York City early in Octo- Der. After the convention the party visited Old Point Comfort, and then to Washington, where the photograph was taken on October 15. General Lewis name appears in the third class of delegates.-Phenix Republican.
 The editor of the JOURNAL MINER being the holder of a small policy in the New York Life Insurance Company, was specially interested in reading the above item, and no doubt every policy holder in the company will read it with interest, in proportion to the amount of their policy and annual premium paid.
 As We understand this little ''S66,- 100000 incident" the policy holders of the above company foot the bills for it. It consisted of a junketing trip of certain agents of the com pany to New York, Old Point Com. fort, Washington and other places at the expense of the policy holders of the company, or, in other words, the company paid all expenses, and of course, the funds come from their patrons.
 It was only a few months since, that a similar junketing tour to Los Angeles was gotten up by the com pany for its agents, and on the same plans, their expenses there being all paid.
 The compsny's policy holders are scattered all over the United States, and while they are supposed to have a voice in the management of its affairs, they are manipulated in such a manner that very few individuals control it, and direct its affairs, and if providing junketing trips for its agents, who are paid big slices, in the way of commissions, from the annual premiums of policy holders, is of any benefit to the latter, as one of them, We would like to have it explained.
 As business proposition to in crease the membership and business, it would seem that a better way that than feting its agents would be to give increased inducements to its policy holders. This would make it much easier for the agents to secure business.
 The JOURNAL MINER knows an in surance agent in Arizona in who will this year write between $5OO,OOO and S1,OO0,OO0 for the com- pany he represents. Instead of send ing him on trip around the world, which he would be entitled to on the same basis of the New York Life Insurance Company's trip for from Sl,OO0 to S92,OOO per month, the company is strengthened just so much by the acquisition of this business, and policy holders of the company are individually benefited in proportion to the amount of their policies. The agent has received a good commission for his work, and when he takes a trip. which he pro- poses to do shortly, he will not ask his company to pay his expenses from that which legitimately belongs to its policy holders.