The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1903-02-06
UNWILLING
OF A TABLET
The Sixtieth Anniversary Of Amer
ican Insurance Celebrated
on Monday.
IT'S GROWTH HAS BEEN RAPID

14O UNIV Ala 4AkAO OAA1N MA AZ
Canadian Society Pays Tribute to the
/ Memory of Morris Robinson, Found
er of Mutual Life Insurance Com
| pany of New York-Presfdent Rich
ard A. McCurdy, It's Active Head,
now Holds one of the Highest Posi-
tions in Financial World.
The unveiling by the Canadian So
ciety of New York, of tablet in mem
ory of Morris Robinson, who was a
Canadian of American parentage and
came to the United States early in the
nineteenth century to become a promi
nent New York financier, marks the
sixtieth anniversary of the establish
ment of branch of American finance
in which more money is invested, and
in which more people have an invest
ment, than any other modern enterprise
namely, life insurance.
Morris Robinson, was the president of
the first company started on this conti-
nent to conduct the business of life in
surance as it is understood to.day-The
Mutual Life Insurance Company of
New York. From a little bank in
Goshen, N. Y, he became cashier Of
the New York branch of the United
States Bank, which he left only when
that institution was discontinued, after
bitter political discussion, by President
Andrew jackson. While abroad later
as an expert in the interests of one of
the large New York banking houses, he
became interested in the crude form of
life insurance then practiced in England.
and when, after his return, he started a
movement to institute something of the
sort on this side of the ocean it was
mainly confidence in his Judgment that
brought him the support of the promi-
nent merchants of New York, who were
then its great moneyed men.
Mr.. Robinson's sagacity has been
justified by the development in sixty
years of the method of life insurance
which he originated from a business
that amounted in its first year to scarce
ly more than million aud half, with
an investment of less than $33, 00e, to
one that now exceeds nine billions of
insurance in force, and has assets, in
the form of money paid in premiums, of
more than two billions-a larger sum
than is invested in any other kind of
enterprise in the world and one that
equals the combined funds of the treas
uries of several of the richest nations on
the globe.
The growth OF modern insurance has
been more rapid and striking than that
of any other branch o. inance. In its
first year The Mutual nnder Mr.. Robin
sons management issued 470 policies of
81 640.718. and had assets of $32,31l,
with total income of $38,502. Now
there are more than one hundred com
panies chartered in the United States,
having, as has just been said, nine bill
lions of insurance in force and assets of
over two billions
J 1t is an interesting circumstance that
three of the policy holders in The Mutual
who took out insurance in it's first year
two of them before the end of the
first week its offices were open-are
still living All three, oddly enough,
live in the same State, New Jersey; still
more curiously, two of them are resi-
dents of the single town of Englewood.
OF these latter, Mr.. Charles H. Booth,
who is native of Stratford. Conn.,, and
who passed his ninety ninth birthday
last September, is probably the Oldest
man in the world who carries life in
surance. His fellow townsm en-. Mr..
William E. Shepard, has the Oldest
policy in existence, however, his con-
tract having been written, few hours
before Mr.. Booths on February 7, 1913.
The history of the pioneer company
practically tells the story of American
life insurance. 1t was not until 1S49
that it's assets, which are the cash paid
in by policy-holders on premiums,
reached 81 900 900, but the increase from
that time was rapid and on Its fortieth
anniversary the 10000, 900 point was
touched and more than 10000 policies
were in force. The present assets of
The Mutual pass $3.50, 100000
One hundred thousand dollar policies
are now not at all uncommon, and
several men have been insured for a
million One of these is George w
Vanderbilt, who pays The Mutual OF
New York an annual premium of $35,
900; and the same company has withir
two years settled million dollar policy
on the life of Mr.. Frank II. Peavey, o.
Minneapolis, whose annual paymen
was arranged at $48, $3.50.
The Mutual's board includes Cornelius
Vanderbilt. the great railroad magnate
William Rockefeller, of the STANDARD
Oil Company; Stuyvesant Fish, presi
dent of the Illinois Central; Effinghan
B. Morris, of Philadelphia: William
Babcock of San Francisco, and Justic
Peckham, of the United States Suprem
Court, all OF whom are unsalaried Off
cers-for The Mutual Company has N
! paid officials except those who mus
give all their time to its business. B.
universal admission, however, no maj
in the country has taken a higher posi-
} tion in his special department Of financ