Los Angeles herald., 1905-05-14

the vast majority of men the
word insurance" has meant
L persistent and persuasive agent,
a medical examination, yearly pre-
mium-one of those things which comes
around with deadly regularity and
which must be paid whether the butcher
is or not-and withal sense of security
that If the worst happens, wife and
babies will have some protection.
In the last two or three years there
has, however, gradually developed a
consciousness of new financial
power, something vast, mysterioSs,
overwhelming. We are beginning to
ask what this power is. Perhaps few
plain facts will enable us to give the
right answer Here they are:
The total assets of thirty-one life in
surance companies of the United States
amount to $2,399, ,912,O74.
Compare that sum with the total cir
culation of money in the country-$2,-
55S, 2,9S3 The assets of all the ma
tional banks in New York are only ST.
4SS, ,557, 1882. The assessed valuation of
all the real estate in New York city,
$5,o15, 46S,779 is but twice the amount
of the life insurance assets.
Moreover, these assets are increasing
at a marvellous rate. In 1880 they
amounted to 1892, ,7S9 427; in 1895 to ST.
13S, S,659,726. They have doubled in ten
years and increased 512 per cent in
quarter of century The estimated
wealth of the United States in twenty
five years has increased 146 per cent, so
that the insurance power is growing
faster than the country itself
Take some of the big items that make
up this great aggregate of assets. The
insurance companies own $167,9 1856, 115
worth of real estate. Their invest
ments in stocks and bonds amount to
$1,216, $685. 1913, a sum equal to more than
per cent of the par value of all the
securities admitted to dealings in the
New York Stock exchange. Their loans
on real estate mortgages are $64O,S13,541
and on collaterals $40 707, ,703.
Some Amazing Totals
The income of the insurance COM
panies in 1904 was $500, 172553. In rain
or shine, in prosperity CT panic, in
tight money and in times of ease,
more than $1.5OO,OOO pours into the
treasures of the life insurance COM
panies every day. The very last thing
that a man defaults on is his insurance
policy. The insurance companies have
the revenue of an empire. The yearly
income of the United States govern
ment, including postal receipts, amounts
to 1854 1878; deducting the postal re-
ceipts the revenue of the government Is
about equal to the life insurance in
come.
Their expense of management-$11G,-
907, ,390-ls actually larger than the
yearly cost of our expenditures during
the last fiscal year for the military
establishment, including rivers and har-
bors, forts, arsenals and seacoast de-
fenses.
Almost beyond human conception is
the total Of life insurance in force"
The figures are 1,4S7, $50, 1858. or equal
to considerably more than one-tenth of
the wealth of the country. There are
now four companies, the Mutual, the
Equitable, the New York and the Met
ropoitan, whose insurance in force ex-
ceeds one billion dollars, and one of
these, the New York, now boasts Of
nearly two billions.
This brings us face to face with the
fact of concentration in insurance,
More than 55 per cent Of all the insur-
ance in force is carried by these four
companies, But the concentration is
shown i'm more remarkable way by
limiting inquiries to the big three" in