Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-05-21
.0lRO1EC1 TIE People
State Virtually the Guaranty
of National Life and Trust
Company Bonds
NO DIRECT AUTHORITY OF LAW
The Contemplated Sale Will Not be
Completed Until Protection For Bond
Holders Has Been Arransed-Done
Only on General, Principle of the
State Auditors Responsibility.
Special to Times Republican.

Special to Times Republican.
Des Moines, May 21.--The sale Of the
business Of the National Life and Trus,
company, of this city, to the National
Life Insurance company. of Chicago
and the proposal to close out the busi-
ness of the Iowa company and abandon
entirely the field of gold bond busi-
ness which has constituted almost the
entire business of the company to be
abandoned has forced state officials
into Il critical examination of the sta
tutes of the state in relation to pro-
lection for customers under the Iowa
insurance laws. 1t is found that there
! is no direct statute giving the state
auditor power to prevent the sale OF
an Iowa company and removal of its
business from the state. The Iowa in
| surance laws have been the boast of
insurance people. but while they pro-
tect the policy holder so long as com
pnny remains In business and in the
/ state, it is found there are some big
/ holes in the law which the legislature
/ viii be asked to remedy. The officials
of the National Life Insurance company
We're called from Chicago to hold a con-
ference with State Auditor Carroll,
Gov. Cummins and Attorney General
Mullan and explain what assurance
they We're going to give as to the
fulfillment of the contracts of the Ma
tional Life and Trust with the holders
| of bonds. This was matter not con-
| sidered in the proposed sale of the bus
mess to the Iowa company. The state
officials insisted that before the sale
can be approved the company must ar
range to keep faith with those who
had purchased the investment bonds
of the company. The method of doing
business has been to set apart each
Years business in class by itself and
| the holders of bonds in these classes
wcu.A profit by the lapses of others
in the same class. Each bond is
stamped in gold letters Secured by
Deposit with State of Iowa." and vir-
tually the state has guaranteed the face
value of each one on maturity. The
company has been engaged some time
in inducing bond holders to change to
holders OF insurance policies and the
plan is for the officers of the Des
of bonds the next two years to get all
TO take out insurance policies. But SO
long as the bonds are out, the state
auditor insists that the securities shall
be held in his Office as a guaranty to
the customers. Until this is done the
sale will not be completed: but it is
- to-, u 1>o
practically without any direct authority
of law and merely on the general prin-
ciple that the state auditor must pro-
tect the people
The death of Moses A. McCoid. at
Fairfield removed another of the ex-
congressman of the state of gem
GRAFTON that has departed. Mr.. McCSid
represented the first district in con-
gress from 1881 to 1885 and was sue
ceeded by Ben Hall. McCoid last year
published n unique volume John Will
hanson of Hardscrabble," being the
story of the life of John Williamson,
a member of the Second Iowa infan-
try Into this story he wove the story
Of the regiment and gave a vast
amount of historical information, and
it was an altogether interesting vol
ume. Among those who served in con-
gress at the time Of the service of Nc
Cold or before and are still surviving
are Isaac Strubble, w. P. Hepburn,
John A. Kasson j. c. Cook, James
Wilson. L. H. Weller, w. G. Thomp-
son, Thomas Updegraff, E. H. Gillette,
j. b. Weaver Addison Oliver, Jack
son Orr w. G. Donnan, Frank Palmer.
William B. Allison and Gen. Grenville
M. Dodge.
The law committee of the State Ba:
association is at work on the report tc
be presented to the association meet
ing in July. The committee consists
of Judge L. G. Kline, Des Moines;
Judge Remley, Anamosa; Chas. A.
Clark, Cedar Rapids: Judge Wade,
Iowa City; j. o. Crosby Garnavillo;
Judge Henderson, Indianola; Judge
Burlington, and others, and is |
an especially able committee. Thus
far no meeting of the committee to
prepare a report has been held One |
of the topics again to be considered |!
will be that of compensation to at
in the prosecution of disbar-
feels that such suits should |
be paid for. The last legislature pro-
vided for the costs in such cases as in
cases, but did not provide for
attorney fees. The theory heretofore
has been that the members OF the
bar are the ones who are chiefly in
terested in purging their association of
members and that it should
be considered Il duty of every lawyer
to do all in his power to see that law
yers who do not act fairly are dis
barred. But many lawyers believe that
the taxpayers should pay for disbar-
nent proceedings as for criminal cases.
The supreme court today took up
The appeal cases from the 4th and 18th
northwestern and western |
iowa. Four applications for rehearing
Ire on file from the Fourth district
Gorham VS.. Sioux City Stock
Yards, Woodbury. county; Lesenich vs.
sellers, Woodbury.; Raymond VS..
Plymouth; and Connell VS..
ronnell, Sioux The Fifteenth district
las an unusually large number OF GRIM