Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1904-01-14
FRATERNAL MERGER
Ancient Order of United workmen and
Iowa Workmen Believed to Have
Fixed Up Long Standing Differences.
and Will be Consolidated.

Des Moines. Jan. LIT is reported
that the struggle of twenty years
standing between the Ancient Order OF
United Workmen and the Iowa Work
men may be amicably ended by the
absorption of the latter by the for.
| mer
| The contest between the two organ
izatons has been the most notable In
the history of fraternal insurance. the
| Iowa Workmen having seeded from
| the parent organization about 1884
No official ee..iea,2;icn OF TIE report
that they We're about to be CONSOLE
dated could be secured yesterday. the
leaders of the movement fearing that
the negotiations had not progressed
sufficiently to make statement.
7. G. ellison. OF Knoxville member
of the auditing committee of the
Iowa Workmen stated last evening
that such a thing would not surprise
him, although he did not have an Off
cial confirmation of the report
The Workmen were organized on
what is known as the level rate"
plan. each member no matter whether
his age was IS or So. being assessed
81 at each assessment. This worked all
right for awhile. but later the system
had to be readjusted. One of the pro-
visions made in the readjustment was
that a certain death ratio be fixed for
each state and in states where the
number exceeded the limit as prescribe
ed, the general association assumed the
surplus. At the convention. the Iowa
delegates kicked stating that 1t was
not right to place Iowa on the same
basis as the southern states. where the
death ratio is greater on account OF
climatic conditions.
Prior to the time. Iowa had secured
more than the necessary 1000 members
in the state to allow the formation OF
a state grand lodge. making them
practically independent of the national
organization.
The Iowa delegates left the national
convention and returning home called
a meeting of the Iowa Grand Lodge
and succeeded in securing the seces-
sion of the Iowa body. About one-half
OF the members in the state left the
old organization and formed what Is
known as the Iowa Workmen.
The national organization immed-
lately began a fight on the Iowa body
and succeeded In wrestling good
many of the younger members from
1t. Since then IL has been an uphill
struggle for the Iowa organization.
The lodge ran into debt, the old rate
Ia ,ffir "a, aat
the death losses. Some years ago. the
Iowa organization reorganized on what
Is known as the step-rate plan. This
caused d!ssension and about 800 OF
the members withdrew,
About three years ago the indebted
ness or unpaid losses of the orsaniza-
ton totalled nearly 100000. BY the
new step-rate plan. this deficit has
been met. T. G. ellison, who returned
from Waterloo, where the auditing
committee examined the books of Su-
preme Secretary II. B. White Tuesday,
reported that they had paid the entire
deficit, and now had 4 surplus of about
$4,000. The struggle had been a hard
one, the assessments on some OF the
older members exceeding $50 per an
nun.
In consequence of the condition OF
affairs, they were unable to solicit new
business. and the membership grad
ually waned until they now have but
900 members. This number Is all
most exclusively old members, the av-
erage of which is high.
Since the deficit of the organization
has been met, the Ancient Order of
United Workmen is said to have been
negotiating to again secure control of
the seeding lodge. Whether the Iowa
Workmen will accept will probably be
determined at meeting to be held
within the next few months.