Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1900-01-24
The question Of Mutual Insurance
was next taken up and F. L. Durey
contributed the following:



Mutual insurance has been success
wherever it has gained foothold. In
this state it has passed from the exper-
mental stage, and occupies today a
place among the solid, permanent bust
ness interests of our commonwealth.
No state in the union has carried this
idea Of mutual helpfulness to SO high a
degree of perfection as has the state of
Iowa.
A farmers mutual company is for
protection, while the old line company
is for speculation. 1t will be observed
that the mutual companies are not Or
ganiZed to make money or pay salaries
to officers, commissions to agents, or
dividends to anybody. They are COM
panies that are organized for the pur-
pose of insuring the property of mem
beers at cost, with but small margin
for expenses. Those rendering service
to the association doing it for moder-
ate compensation which Is based upon
farm values for time and labor.
Some people have misgivings about
the safety of mutual insurance com
panies, and they are always more or
less uneasy while their property is in
sured in them. This is useless fear
when mutual company is managed by
honest and capable men. The COM
pany that is organized by farmers for
purely protective purpose and managed
strictly on the cooperative principle is
both safe and reliable. While of the
company that has been organized for
the purpose of giving its officers good
places at fat salaries, there is always
reason to be in doubt.
OF course, the management of old
line companies like good grade of
risks, but they put a lot of agents in
the field whose business it is to get the
commission paid on the premium re-
ceived, and they are not going to be so
choice in the kind of men they insure,
just so they are the kind who will in
sure.
With farmers mutual companies it is
different. The solicitor will look at
the character of the individual, and The
character of his property. He is inter
ested in getting safe risk, owned by
good, Honest man.
The moral hazard will be very light
if proper precaution is exercised to keep
the membership up to a high moral
standard. The mutuals are not as
liable to meet with heavy losses in
single fire as the old line companies, be-
cause they contine their business to rur
al risks where one fire can cause no ex-
tensive loss. Whereas, one fire in city
may destroy vast amount of property
for which single insurance company
is LIABLE
1t is as impossible for cooperative
mutual insurance to fail, as it IS for all
the property of the entire earth to burn
up at one time.
1t is practical impossibility for a
strictly cooperative company to break
so that any member will lose anything.
The question is sometimes asked, "Are
mutual insurance companies success
ful?" They certainly are, and the best
proof of it is the fact that they are 80
often counterfeited In this age of the
world people do not go to the trouble of
counterfeiting useless or unsuccessful
things. And this brings us to the sub
ject of the two kinds of mutuals
The Operative mutual which is all
right, and the counterfeit mutual, which |
is all wrong. 1t is very necessary to
the welfare Of the farmers, that they
be able to distinguish the right from