The Meridional. (Abbeville, La.) 1856-1906, 1897-01-09
Life Insurance.
ABBEyILLE, La, Jan. !, 1897.
MR. EDITOR:

NIR. EDITOR:
The Mutual Reserve Fund Life Associ-
alton OF New York, is now III YerfnlIl0n
parish offering life Insurance, pure and
simple, on the natural premium plan Tor
the protection of the home and the estate.
We did not come here to bring, light
against the old line companies, ana only
fight in self defence. On account or re-
cent libelious statements circulated by
an enemy, an agent of the Washington
Life Insurance Co., of New York, IN this
section, who seemed to anticipate my
coming to this parish, l will state IN ref
erence to the same as follows:
The Washington Life and It's manage
ment, though the smallest II most lnSlg-
nilcant of the old line companies is clean
in its dealings, and is managed by able
life insurance talent, who would sc0ifge
ms representative force of such mlsrepre-
sentative men as one Ernest SHARON VINO
has recently given currency to raise State-
ments relative to the Mutual Reserve and
its methods, if they knew OF his nefarlous
method of trying to gain business. Inc
Washington Life is an old company, or
ranized in January 1860 and commenced
business the following February. Its
history as an insurance company mas
been good, as far as the payhieLb OF LIS
death claims are concerned, Dut sEec9la-
lively, as the other old line cofnpameS,has
been a miserable failure. Their tendency
as Won will see from their report below
| as submitted to the insurance department
Of N. Y, under oath by themselves SHOWS
that they have had a downward tendency
for a number of years, looSlllg annually,
more business than they have gained.
| Expense of management and obtaining CT
| new business growing greater and diYi-
dends going down in proportion; Il not
mean by this publication TO reflect upon
the integrity and responsibility OF the
- 4 80 S,4y-, r4l,nvs lffa Nfipn
conducting d life Insurance business UNI
| der our laws, but to call the attention OF
| the insurine public to the fact that any
life insurance solicitor who will state
that any company doing business under
the strietSreguirements OF the law. IS not
responsible for it's contracts, Is q man
| that will lie about the goods he has for
sale. | would not trust that Kind OF a
man with the writing Of a contract that
involved the protection of my home.
The Mutual Reserve can swallow the
Washington Life q dozen times, and then
not feel very crowded Tor stGnlach room
1t seems to me that such small fry shonld
rather have a hankering to keep in shall
We are selling life insurance all wool
and a ward wide, leaving out the bank
ing feature, or more property named the
robbing feature as to cost, and We are al
WAYS ready to meet our adyeTsarles on
any part of the ground, and demonstrate
by their experience of many sad failures,
/ that we are about right.
In conclusion, / Will say that, we have
a bran new crisp thousand dollar bill for
any one that will show one JUST unpaid
claim in full among these who have died,
holding insurance with tho Mutual Re
we only require so days for the pay
ment of claims after proof papers have
been furnished. We have done q larger
business in Louisiana during the year
1895 than the entire business of the Wash
~ington Life all over the United States.
Our death losses paid in louisiana for the
wear 1895 are greater than the entITel losses
of the Washington Life since they have
been in Louisiana. This is pretty good
evidence that we are doing some business.
I am doubtful as to whether they have
paid any losses in the S~tate-didn't have
any losses to pay-which sounds like they
didn't have any business to amount to
anything.
Life insurance-pure and simple-is one
of Gods proyidenceS to enable a man or
woman TO create protection for those that
are dear TO them after the bread winner
has been removed. The level premium
people have proStituted tho original pur-
poses of life insurance by adding the
speculative feature which only benefits
the management of these companies.
Jacob T., Green, president of the C0nnec-
! Atgtkh III EtAatL LAgtFD w IseAAA Ale "
truth is, that no financial operation which
has to bear life insurance expenses can,
or ought to be called an investment, and
no man can justify his Judgment as an in
weston when he pays life insurance ex-
nepses for the accumulation of his money.
or for any other purpose than providing
his family the protection they need and
cannot get otherwise then through life
Insurance. 1t is a financial absardity.n
These old line companies may tell you
that we do not charge enough and there
fore cannot be safe. But, what about the
"Memorable thirty old lines that went
down with $500, 100000 of the peoples mon
ey with their high rates. NotWithstand-
ing their high charges they failed. and
the mourners so about the streets lament
ing that they ever became entangled in
the meshes of the Octopus. We c~hallenge
any old line agent or company to show
that the natural premium companies
have ever robbed, by mismanagement or
otherwise, the insuring public of half the
above sum. These people dare not stand
upon the rostrum by the side OF an honest
life insurance man and discuss the funda-
mental principles underlying life insur
ance, and let a decision be rendered by
the people or allow their records to be re.
viewed. We are always ready TO meet
them, and will pay every expense incr
dent to such discussion. The Mutual Re
, serve is here to stay, and proposes to stand
by it's patrons and make e feel good
for having p~atronlzed us.
HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF.
"a certain man named Demetrius,
; silversmith, which made silver shrineS
for Diana, brought no small gain unto
: the craftsmen; whom he called together
with the workmen of like occupation, an6
said, Sirs, We know that by this craft VT
| have u wealth.
Moreover We see and hear, that no
alone at Ephesus, but almost Throughout
g all Asia, this Paul hath persuaded ant
turned away much people, saying tina
there be no gods, which are made viii