Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-03-23
A Fight FOR TIE Law
The State Wishes to Preserve
Anti-Combine and Anti
Compact Statute
INSURANCE COMPANIES PROTEST
The Insurance Combine Has Attacked
the Iowa Law in the Same Way it
Did the Nebraska Law-lnsurance
Commissioners View contrasted Vita
That Of Auditor Carroll.
Special to Times-Republica,

Special to Times Republican
Des Moines, March 23.-The state Of
Iowa will make just as hard fight
as possible to save the anti-combine
and anti-compact law now on the sta
tute books as it is possible to make.
The law forbids agreements among in
missions or other essentials. 1t is sub
stantially the Nebraska law that was
declared invalid; in fact, the Nebraska
law was copied after the Iowa law
after the latter had been in force
year, and only slight changes We're
made in the wording The Nebraska
law was attacked in the federal court
and Judge Mcpherson declared it was
contrary to the constitution in that 1t
interfered with vested rights and with
business Now the insurance combine
has attacked the Iowa law in the same
way. Attorney General Mullan will pre-
pare the defense of the Iowa law, and
Iowa will have one advantage in that
the attorney general is in dead earnest
a fight just as hard as it is possible.
State Auditor Carroll also has the same
feelings in the matter. When the Ne
braska law was attacked in the courts
the insurance commissioner declared
frankly that the law had not been en-
forced and it was not his intention
to enforce it. But Auditor Carroll
takes a different view.
THE law will be enforced in Iowa"
he said II have not been in office
long enough to know much about the
operation of the law or to receive any
complaints Of its violation, but l shall
not take thesattitude that the law will
not be enforced. AS long as it is on
the books l shall do whatever can
Sar@sit lived up to-"
AS matter of fact there has never
haa = any enforcement of law because
there has never been any evidence laid
ibfore any proper official that there
was violation. Mr.. Merriam, While he
was state auditor, declared his belief
that the law was being violated, but
that he had not proof with which to
convict anyone. 1t came to his knowl-
edge that the companies were organiZ-
ing into combines all over the state, es-
pecially in the leading cities, but he was
unable to see any way in which the
penalties of the law could be applied
to prevent it.
But the insurance companies do not
want the law on the books, even If it
does not interfere seriously with the
making Of uniform rates An insurance
man explained it this way:
The law stands as a constant me-
mace to us. In most of the larger cit
les we are able to accomplish that
which the law sought to prevent thru
our present organizations. The rates
are fixed and determined and all must
live up to them. But if one agent
should cut rates or advertise to do
so or break away from the established
order, it is easy enough to bring pres
sure on him to force him into line.
Most agents want more than one COM
pany for business. If they are reported
against they will lose the companies
that are in the agreement. This sys-
tenn works first rate in the cities; and
in Des Moines, Burlington, Sioux City,
Davenport. Dubuque and such cities,
the law does not interfere with US in
the least. But in Fort Dodge, Water
loo, Oskaloosa and cities of that class
it is found almost impossible to main
tain any system or keep up the rates.
There are in most of these cities some
of the best agents who will not join our
association as long as the Iowa law
stands there. They feel that to do so
would be to violate the spirit of the
law and they do not want to do even
this 1t is therefore regarded as es-
sential that the law be declared un-
constitutional"
The policy of the insurance lobby be-
fore the last legislature was to leave
we'll enough alone. No attempt was
made to get any new legislation and all
that was done was to fight off any
thing that looked dangerous. Nothing
could be got thru a committee that was
in the slightest degree distasteful to the
insurance lobby. Some of the insurance
men are understood to depreciate the
fight on this law because they feel that
if it is destroyed they will reopen the
insurance legislation and get some
thing good deal worse.
SUICIDE AT DAVENPORT.