Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1905-07-11
not fall in time of ad,ersity and trou-

not fall in time of adversely and trou.
| BILE
No Signs of Decay.
The system of fraternal effort in
life protection, though no longer young.
shows no signs of weakness and de
cay; but each new year, in the glare
of light as fierce as that which beats
upon a throne, it does the worlds work
and takes unto Itself some lesson learn
ed from past experience. Membership
in the various societies has multiplied
into the millions. representing billions
of dollars of life insurance, and still
the people have urgent need of frater-
nifty. Humanity ever Keeps pace with
the advancement of he years, and
thus the Injuries of today become the
necessities of tomorrow. To secure
either luXuries or necessities after the
death of the wage Garner. the need of
life protection is obvious; and to get
it at cost within the average means,
measured by what man or woman
earns in daily toll, it is equally obvious
that the people must look to fraternity.
The need has always existed and must
necessarily exist. Men are crying,
New lamps for Old hoping thereby to
find Aladdin's treasure; but the wheels
are always turning, wheel within wheel,
and deaths harvest of one year is ever
the promise of others yet to be. So
when another year shall have dawned,
it may be your face, OF it may be mine.
that will be missed from the lodge
rOomroom, but it win mean another
little dot on the landscape and another
thousand or two added to the millions
that fraternity is scattering with lavish
hand.
The Problem of LaPsatiOn.
Since the last meeting of the SUI
preme tribunal new business to the
amount of $5,559. 600, and representing
G,133 new members, has been placed
upon the books, making the insurance
in force at this date $S173.5O0.
Il do not need to remind you that the
field is full of insurance societies, all
striving to increase the membership
through their deputies. and you are IA
miliar with the vexing problem of lap
sation affecting all forms of insurance.
The great number of people who every
year drop out of insurance societies, or
able feature of fraternal work. 1t is
the fly in the ointment of every govern
ing body Lapsation is costly to a So
ciety, because the same work and ex-
pense have to be gone over again to
fill up the ranks, and the net increase
of membership suffers in the showing
just so much. A shifting current
seems to always be at work among
the members Of fraternal society, as
we'll as in the old line companies, and
the great pity is that humanity is SO
tickle in its insurance obligations.
Insurance LaPses.
Touching the subject of lapsation
it is the practice in the supreme Office
to notify delinquent members on a spe
cial notification card for that purpose
and this notice is sent to delinQuents
month after month, until the period is
reached at which they cease to he mem
bers under our laws Every issue Of
the official organ. The Fraternal Trib-
une, contains admonitory warnings as
to the payment of assessments, to the
end that all members, or at least all
who read the official paper sent them
free of charge each month. may have
their attention directly called TO the
importance Of keeping their insurance
in force at all times. The great ma
jority of our local secretaries, entering
heartily into the spirit Of the occasion,
give valuable time and effort to keep
their members in good standing. and
indeed much depends upon the secTe-
taTy, in every tribunal, in the allim-
portant matter of keeping in force the
business placed upon the books Of the
society from month to month. / honor
the secretaries for their splendid 10y
atty to the Fraternal Tribunes, for the
intelligent business capacity displayed
in the conduct of their office, and l
firmly believe no society is more for
tunate than ours in the selection Of
those who fill the important position
Of secretary in the lower bodies
Feeling cf Unrest.
I'm the field of general life insur-
ance there is feeling of unrest among
the people The disclosures made IN
the newspapers concerning the Equita-
bic Life. the largest of Old line .compa-
MES. has had its resultant effect and
placed a ban of suspicion upon the
system generally. Among the fra