The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1897-04-30

fAzs = SzsS1 CONCENTRATIONS ~eEt - -
~aa 80 ssvursrsse rnass oe asz-aoue6 En-
sare1y. fer the r~feeafzTs & Deaths Proc
asssx a-e - : wIges desire 10 bezefsE -
her azassanas eeath Is gre9Esr ffz@1 =
the cthar eases TIE @hofe subject has
fseaa reorereA by sc attempt 70 r-ohasif
tae Insurance q children Ia FennsysFsFsia'
whsre thA prac:sce Pas prevailed tor some
tir.e
a fsw years zro EngIand zas raSen
stirred go bv the discovery that many
ehs1e-~- RAD been murdered for RE
rnozey fhesr death xouls brig Ether
the morality of iris country Is greater
or ire regulations ARE better. 4 The les
rfruany offered before the Pernsylyania
legislature nsay ~ acceptsa as represent
fnx ire United States generally The
most notable witness was ex-fsoT- Log.
row secretary Of the navy, whose reToFt
Wa aasuce6 "a favor - Insurance. he
sayx. s-sincs child insurance began IN
assaehusetts psuper funerals have d.
rasaished rearIy ore-half in number.
Abolish child insurance. and yon will
either 80 hack 20 an increase q paupsr
funerals OF putaa new drain on your char
IT'S fuF1ds. and pass the hat to rset the
expenses Tou viii stop the habit % saw
fng. which in Itself Is an education in
social economy among the poor which
should be encouraged The savings bangs
Do not meet This need q scent savings.
There is no competition betgeen the two
systems Each meets q different aeeeS-
sity. and instead 90 ore cutting into the
other. both have been Increasing their
business al the same time lie also
adds: The remarkable thing Il child in
surance IS that at the hearing not a case
OF suffering IS traced TO the system"
This opinion on the subject finds an in
tiorsement in Connecticut, where tire n
surance commissioner IA his report for
1875 said ne had felt f his duty to inquire
very particularly Into the probabilities q
child murder for insurance money. but
that although such charges were easy 10
make and difficult to prove. he had not
been able 70 establish enc sase Of even
reasonable suspicion. On the other hand,
be says. the testimony is; thar such IL
suranee makes the parents thrifty and
proyident and statistics show that the
rate Of mortality among insured children
is less than the rate among children gen
orally.
Massachusetts, has long had the system
under close control. and IL Is yerys gen
orally supported. In that state there are
about IL. 60 children under 10 years Of
age insured, the average amount paid on
infantile insurance being 81. and on chill
dren under 10 years OF age. SIS Even in
England. where the abuse Of the system
created such a sensation, the number OF
children sacrificed was trifing compared
to the a.f5o.6oo who were insured. The
number of children put out Of the way
BY lnhuman parents merely 70 save feed
ing them was considerably greater than,
the number killed for insurance. The In
vestIgation then started resulted in regu-
lations which have proved beneficial and
there has not been for the past few years
any complaint on that score.
The small amount fos premiums en-
sbles even very poor people to provide
decent funeral for any child they may
lose. But much greater benefit how
ever. IS the habit II establishes of pro-
yiding insurance at an early age. II ev-
cry child could he trained 10 consider an
insurance policy one of the first things
TO be provided, IT would promote thrift
AMI save families the modification and
frequently the misery Of being found en-
tirely unprepared when death enters the
household.