New-York tribune., 1905-11-09
Mr.. M'CLINrOCK WARY.
INSURANCE UP AGAIN.
Little Information from Mutual
.4ctuary-J. r. Hegeman on Stand.

For the first time since it began its sessions
the legislative insurance committee. which re-
sumed work at City Hall yesterday. failed TO
attract q large audience. Moreover, the lew
spectators soon departed, the session was
devoted to the further probing of the technical
phases Of the insurance business q line thatsthe
committee has announced its intention of STICK
ing TO from now until it ends its work Sen
afor Armstrong declared that he believed the
committee would be ready to report its recon-
mendations to the legislature by February l.
The absence of Assemblyman McheoWn' tue
BROOKLYN Democrat. who was the only rnen1oet
of the committee TO meet defeat. was noted with
comment and regret by the members OF the
committee.
Emory McClfntock, the actuary of the Mutuai'
occupied the stand for the larger part of the day.
and testified TO various technical phases OF IN
surance methods including those by which
dividend percentages and loadinss are calcu-
lated At the close of the session John r. Hege-
man, president Of the Metropolitan Life, took the
stand and began to furnish interesting details
about the industrial insurance business of his
company. He was still the stand when ad-
1ournment was taken.
Mr. McCIintocks testimony was largely an
exclamation Of the cost of new business based
on the fact that it cost the Mutual s9S30,i53 in
1904 Mr.. McClfntock explained that this was
reduced by lapses and loadings first year
premiums by s5.158,69S. At this point Mr.
Hughes incurred if the witness thought it justi-
fable to take s4s72,05 which would otherwise
have been divided among the policyholders and
expend 1t for new business. MI McClintock in
sisted that IT was.
Pressing the point he had raised at an earlier
hearing Mr.. Hughes sought to develop the exact
process by which dividend rates had been ar
rived at in previous years and how the loading
cy7Rra
nor did he get any specific information as to the
loading factors used In recent years in making
up the dividends. Then Mr. Hughes tried to hnd
out why the loading factors for 1903 and 1914
had been the same while difference before that
wear had resulted in reduced divfdends
The failure to get definite Information pro-
voked comment from Mr. Hughes that tho VII
ness wa. hardly eager in his method OF supply
ing Information. After some fencing Mt NC
CIintock admitted discrimination in favor or tne
policies of the last two years, in order to aVoio
q reduction in the first year premiums An IN
outry made by Mr. Hughes to the view of the
witness on the practice of allowing an agent
larger commission on deferred endowment pol
icy was answered by the statement that 1t was
the desire of the company to uphold method OF
insurance which it advocated. and that change
would deroralize the agencies. No other Jusu-
hcation was known to Mr. McClintock
The testimony of MI Hegeman in the after
noon indicated the extent of the industrial ousi-
ness done by the Metropolitan OF the sI.4i"'-
424 2S1 outstanding insurance OF this company
il was shown that 81, ,12T, ,SS9,22S was industrial
Premiums for this insurance were quoted Iroih
the ages of ten to fifty-nine at from . TO on
cents = week paid through life. In case of fati-
1Ire to pay 1t was shown that a paid-up policy
was issued after five years This rate, Mr.. Heg-
aman erplained was approximately twice that
NJ regular insurance the difference he said, being
dra m the fact that it was retail Insurance. as
compsretI to wholesale, while the mortality rate
was double that of the ordinary.
Some interest was shown by the committee in
the method of medical examination for industrial
insurance. II proved that the physician re-
ceived from % to 80 cents for examining each
risk ApparentIy the examination consisted i'll
.'seeing'' the applicant in the case of children
under eight years old. This was the 23-cent ex-
animation
Did you hear Mr. McC1intock testify here
to-day that the annual expense of the Mutual
life was about 20 per cent of the income. the
that of the New-fork Life and Equl-
tabie?" Mr.. Hughes asked
II did not was the reply. Every million
dollars worth of business done by the Mutual
would represent four hundred transactions In
industrial companies it would be an average OF
about seven thousand transactions. The labor
involved I'm the collections regarding the 1nous-
trial policies is greater than that taken up III
the line of other policies.
mo matter what the labor is, said Mr..
Hughes 1T is paid at the rate of II per cent
of the collections Is that not fact?
Yes. that is So. replied Mr.. tegenlah: tine
collectors get ID per cent
Mr. Hughes after the session announced that
to-day he would take up the various elements
Of expense in the industrial policies and try to
obtain information about them in order to judge
how far they are of value to the workingman.
considering the very high rate of premiums. NJ.
Hegernan represented by a distinguished
array of counsel headed by John G. Milburn.