Arizona republican., 1902-11-16
PHoENIX. ARIZONA, NOV. 16. 1sO:
Compulsory insurance of Federal
 EmplOYes.

A Washington dispatch states that the United States civil service commits sion in a chapter of it's annual report, dealing with the question of superan- nuation and disability of employees in the government service, criticises the various remedies that have been sug- gested for these evils, and recommends action by congress looking to system of compulsory annuity insurance by deductions from the salaries of govern ment employees. The commission says:
 "The age at which persons become superannuated varies greatly, but IO years may be taken as the general age of the end of activity. Two investiga- tions made under authority of congress, one in 1893 and one in 1900, show that the extent of this evil at the present time has been considerably exaggerat- ed. In the eight executive departments at Washington in 1893 there were 22S persons of 70 years of age and over out of II ,657, or almost exactly per cent. In 1900 there were POP persons out of 10,967, or little over ? per cent, while the number of persons of so years and over had actually decreased during these seven years. An investigation conducted by the United States civil service retirement association in the spring of 1902 showed that there were only 312 persons over 70 years of age in the departments and federal offices at Washington out of 15,S66, or 1.97 per cent"
 The commission points out that the method of requiring annuity insurance ability occurring prior thereto, from all those who may enter the service thereafter, has many advantages over any other system for providing a fund for superannuation. By this plan the government would be relieved from the responsibility and from the importuni ties and lobbying which are likely to follow any system conducted directly by government agency. This system would also, by a law of natural selec- tion, encourage the appointment of such clerks and employees as are physically best qualified for their work and least likely to soon become disabled or super annuated, since such persons would have an advantage in the matter of premiums. The government might, however, it is suggested, profitably in tervene to secure the payment of premi- ums by deductions from salaries, and on the other hand to secure the pay ment of the annuities by requiring from the insurance companies the deposit of suitable securities, to be approved by the proper officers.
 The average cost of such annuities, the commission calculates, would not be very great. For example. a deferred annuity of s1,OOO. payable after 70 years of age, on male lives beginning at 2S the average age of entrance into the classified service through examination, year. Tosthese pure deferred annuities should be added insurance against dis ability, and also Cat the option of the employe) a life insurance, through the payment of additional rates The sal aries paid by the government in the lower grades of the service are general ly higher than those paid by private employers, so that it is not believed by the commission that the requirements of insurance would entail any unreas- enable hardship on the employees