Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-11-02

the conduct of quasi-public corpora
tions He demanded that the books be
kept open to the public. All honest
men will approve the suggestion. Only
bad men fear public opinion. The HE
insurance investigation furnishes the
strongest possible proof of the wisdom
of this suggestion. Had the doings Of
the McCurdys and the McCalls and
the Alexander's and the Hydes been
open to the public. their teeth would
have been drawn long ago. AS II IS
public opinion will drive these miser-
able grafters out of business just az
sure as the sun shines The investiga-
ton has done a great public good for
the reason that 1t has educated the
public along lines in which education
was much needed. The regrettabla
part OF all this is, the innocent must
suffer with the guilty The very best
managed companies In America today,
are doing no business. simply because
the disclosures have so shocked men
that they do not discriminate, they sus-
pect all life insurance. with the result
that men are rushing into the assess
ment companies.
l feel sure that I am safe In saying
that the old line companies are doing
practically no business. and l say 1t
Is to be regretted. l know of no instl-
tuition Of more value to the people than
life insurance. and I know of no plan
so nearly perfect as the old line COM
panies offer, with this exception--the
rates are too high and ought to be re-
duced They must be and they will be.
But the present tendency to cure the
evil by rushing into the assessment
companies is no cure at all. I am not
decrying the fraternal insurance. 1t
has its uses, and 1t Is worth all 1T COSTS
That is not the point.
When bank fails some people
withdraw their money from safe banks
and bury 1t. or put 1t In an old trunk
in the attic or In the oven of an un-
used stove. 1t earns for you nothing
there, and It is only safe so long as
the trunk or the stove is not used. In
little while the episode OF the bank
failure Is forgotten and the money Ia
put back into the bank and the owner
then wishes he had never withdrawn IT..
This is exactly what is happening now,
with this exceptiOn--no life insurance
company worthy the name has failed.
none is going to fail. The most scam
dalous populations in three great COM
panies have been uncovered. and I'M
medtately the unthinking public ac-
cuse all OF crookedness Nothing could
be more unfair, more detrimental to
one OF the most valuable and beneficent
institutions ever devised by man. ven
ture this assertion, an assertion that
is incontroyertible, and that proves
conclusively the stability and safety OF
life insurance. If several of the great
banks were now being investigated and
| IL such investigation disclosed the same
methods and practices as have beer
common to the New York insurance
companies, 1t would create such
panic that within sixty days over hall
/ the banks in the United States woule
have to go into liquidation.
No life insurance company has gone
info ,iouidation, Notwithstanding thu
awful and monstrous things that nave
haar made public. No we'll informe.
man expects liquidation from either oh'
OF the companies under ihVes'lsa'ioo
unless it results from loss OF BUSINESS .,
4 T admit this is possible, and even .he'
I look for no impairment IN the lesa
4 reserve, Notwithstanding MI. Lawson
warning. ,,,,,a,
+ do not believe Mr.. Lawson wher
he SAYS the transportable funos are =,
danger This is moonshine ! en.hr
a great deal of Lawson, thlIik l'le
4 American people owe him much' ali
going to send him my MUTUAL LIZ
proxy, and don't care VINO kno"ns ~
advise every Mutual Life pol1cy hoia'
err in Iowa to do the same thing. ms
Mc(,urdy gang has got to go. II the,
steal the reserves and go abroad, as
Mr. Lawson suggests they may, tn
American people will follow them te
The end of the earth, but they won't "
it.
Have I faith In Mr.. Lawson? yes ane
Inc In business his character has never
been assailed, know nothing about MS
motives He is stock gambler, ane
i while he has played the game to win
he has never stolen the savings OF poo
men. and he never will. Lawson at the
head of the Mutual Life would be
vast Improvement in McCurdy, bu
Lawson doesn't want to be the head o.
i the Mutual Life, he simply wants tx
wrest 1t from the hands Of the scound.
rolls who now control it. SO much tol
this.
II said in my last article don't write
endowment, this should be qualified
T am not a believer in any great ex-
tent in endowment insurance, but there
is nothing in it, as there is In tontine
| that is illegitimate, immoral or unbusi-
nesslike IT is in no sense gaanpllne
contract and it may be splendid
thing for those who can afford 1t. II
is savings bank deposit, and 1T ought
TO earn you, and generally does carr
YOU 4 per cent, but the laboring man
or the young professional man is KEPT
pretty busy taking care Of Mary ano
the kids. What he wants most is tc
protect them, he is the wage Garner
and when he dies the wages stop
This is the fundamental principle OIL
life insurance, and my only objection
10 endowment is, it departs from the
fundamental and enters the domain o1
speculation, but endowment is not tc
he classed for one moment with tom
tine. which includes all classes of de-
ferred dividend policies They are i'm
moral and wrong because they are Lot
teries, gambling contracts. If your
regular premium on an annual DIVIDEND
policy of $1,000 is $25, your premium
in a. deferred dividend policy of u
years would be about $50, you pay the
larger premium with the promise thai
if YOU are living at the end of 20 years
YOU will receive your full share of this
Dot. If you drop out or die the others
in the class get it, If the others droI