The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-11-10
10 HE STATE
NEGRO WOMAN WITH ANOTHER
 TALE OF INSURANCE WOE.
The Wife of Thaddeus Brantley Ap- plies to Commissioner McDayid fer Aid In Collecting
 Her Claim.

Another tale of insurance woe. spring ing from policy of the mutual aid va- riety. was carried to Insurance Com missioner F. R. McDavid yesterday by the wife of Thaddeus BrantIey. of No Meehan Avenue, Montgomery. who has been pushing two claims on the Southern Mutual Aid Association of Birmingham for over a year. The In- surance Commissioner gave the negro woman patient ear and devoted some time to getting the facts of her report cd troubles.
 the young Insurance Commissioner to- day, perhaps. as there is a good deal of history to be brought out. As soon as the narrative is completed Mir. McDavid will take up the claims directly with the President of the insurance com pany, c. P. Orr of Birmingham. The office will be asked strictly the reason why the claims of the negress should not be paid. The woman claims she has gone through no little forbearance in trying to get settlement of her claims
 The appearance of Brantley's wife in the Capitol is not new at this time. Policyholders of her class and mostly of her race go frequently to the Com missioner of Insurance to get help in at least an arbitration from that off,
 
 practice of these small policyhofders in leaning upon the States authority for protection the procession to the Capitol is thicker every month.
 The Brantley woman owns two poIi- cies with the Southern Mutual Aid Com pany. Both of them contain a sick and accident indemnity clause. One is on the life of her son and the other on the life of her husband. She told MT Mo- David that she has been carrying the policy on her sons life for over five years and that in her husbands name for about as long. Last April a year ago her son was killed. She says she tried to collect the claim then and has tried to do so ever since. She claims she has not received cent of indem- nifty, despite her industrious efforts, and yet she tells that she has paid to the company m jre than the face value of the policy.
 Her husband has been sick a year, she reports to the Commissioner and she tried her hand in getting some sat- isfaction out of the policy that is to protect him. There has not been any indemnity coming to her on this. She said she felt that the limit of endurance lad besn reached and she could not see any recourse but to apply to Mir. Mo David. In the meantime she continues to pay the premiums on the policies which are for $25 each. a small amount, she says. but of pretty good size when looked at through her eyes.
 The Montgomery agent of the com pany maintains that there Is no jus tice in the claims. It is alleged that the son of the negrcss was killed while in a criminal net and that the policy on the husbands life does not cover his illness.
 This is not the first complaint that has been made to Commissioner Mc- David on claims against the Southern Mutual Aid Association. Once or twice before claims have been taken up di- rectly by him with the officers in Birm- ingham and each time there was a sat isfactory explanation and nearly as oft en there was a remittance to the policy holders. The negroes who avail them selves of this protection express their gratitude always and as a rule have not applied for State aid and influence until every other means has been ex- hausted.
 There Is an extensive business of the mutual aid and accident class in the city of Montgomery and vicinity and a great portion of the complaints arise here.