Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-09-12
INSURANCE OF PRINCE OF WALES

w. E. Curtis, in the Chicago Record:
A big insurance man told me recently
in New York that the Prince of Wales
was the heaviest risk of any patron OF
the insurance business, and that his
death would cost English, German,
French and American companies not less
than $40, 000. 900.
N other person carries 20 per cent of
that insurance. he said. but compara-
lively little of it is for the benefit of
his family; perhaps not more than 81 .000,-
Coo. Some years ago large policies were
taken out by his creditors as security for
money loaned. If he should ever pay his
debts they YOU of course revert to him,
and might be carried for the benefit of
his family, but his premiums, like the
! premiums on all of the royal families of
Europe, are very high-much higher than
those paid by private individuals for the
same amount of insurance.
ut is a curious fact" continued my in
surance friend, who~spends a great deal
of his time in England, that 5 1000, 900 or
$4,000 900 of insurance, perhaps more than
that. has been placed on the life of the
Prince of Wales, as a speculation by
persons who do not know him and have
never had any relations with him what
ever. This woul not be possible under
the insurance laws of the United States,
but it is allowed by some of the English
companies. Over there any man can Sc
cure a policy on the life Of a neighbor,
provided he can persuade the neighbor to
submit to a medical examination or find
a company which has recently had him
examined. Thus when the Prince of
Wales undergoes an examination for in
surance lots of spectators apply to the
same company for policies or his life. or
get certified copies Of the report of the
medical examiner and use them with
! other cnmn9nipS II ic n1rp Snoo,,1o+iop
They pay a high premium, a margin, so
to speak, or, to put it in another way,
they book a wager with the insurance
companies, that the prince will die before
the total Of their premiums exceeds the
amount of the policy. Therefore, many
persons would be financially benefited il
Albert Edward would drop off suddenly
one of these fine days. The prince is per-
fectly aware of this fact. He knows very
well what advantages have been taken OF
his situation, but l do not suppose it
makes any difference with his habits"
Are kings generally insured ?" l asked.
Eyes, most of them, but they are not
regarded as a good risk, and companies
that carry the policies do not advertise
the fact any more than necessary. 1t
Injuries rather than benefits them. The
late Emperor Frederick, father of the
present kaiser, carried nearly S., 900, 900
of Insurance., which is about all the
money the empress has to live on, for her
pension from the government is small.
Frederick was considered a first-class
risk. He was a man of robust health,
splendid stature, with the training and
frugal habits of a soldier, and wal an
athlete; but all at once a cancer was dis
covered, which he doubtless inherited
from his grandmother, the beautiful
Queen Louisa. and he failed rapidly. The
present kaiser is not considered a good
)! risk. This is quite as much because of
his constitutional defects as for political
considerations, but for obvious reasons
no company would decline an application
from him for Insurance."