The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1905-12-29

of experience. to avoid as far as pos
sible any exact public information as
10 who represents us. The known
presence of a corporation representa-
| tive at the legislative halls is signal
| for renewed vigor in the attacks of
blackmailers and eranks, and unfoT-
tunately members of the legislative
body are frequently deaf TO reasoning
| where n0n-voting or corporate inter-
| est is at stake. Where Ii becomes
/ necessary we have often occasion to
employ the columns of the public
press for a discreet advocacy of our
views, this method has been found to
| be very efficacious, but it has also been
] found very expensive. / have found
that in my work in every legislative
body in the United States there was
as large a proportion of honest men
as there is any body of men in any
walk of life Permit me also to state
| that in my work | have not found il
so difficult to defeat blackmailers. A
man who is out to blackmail corporate
| interests, is generally well known, and
| his character thoroughly understood.
These men never retain influence for
any length of time. and / have found
that requests to the honest member of
| the legislature for help in defeating
the blackmailer, is always readily
and cheerfully granted"
| A statement of money received by
Mr.. Hamilton shows a total of $72o,-
| $50 for the years from 1899 to 1905.
| He calls attention to an expense of
$S3,10O for "retainers and newspaper
articles" in 1904, and says large
portion of this expense was occasioned
by an attempt to create public senti-
ment throughout the United States in
favor of national supervision of insur-
ance. Under the same heading $9G,-
900 is charged for 1905 and the increase
was due, he says, primarily to the
troubles in the Equitable Life Assur-
ance Society.
| In concluding his statement Mr..
Hamilton says that "the injunct!Ons
of the president of the New York Life
to me were always Enthusiastically OK
plicit that my expenditures and my
work were to be strictly confined with
| in the limitations of the law Of land.
| These instructions have been faithful
| ly followed to the letter There has
never been disbursement made by me
! of the company's funds which tres
passed upon the instructions given me
by the president of this company and
II want it thoroughly understood that
not one dollar of any moneys ever
paid to me by the New York Life IN
| surance Company has been used i'm
properly or for improper purposes, or
| in a way that transgressed either the
statutory law Or the moral law"
| A statement of legal expenditures
othr than those to Hamilton were
produced by Mr.. Mccall, showing a
Total of such expenditures of 81, 1O3,-
92O from 1901 to 1905.
Secretary Mccall was questioned by
Mr.. Hughes as to what further light
he could throw on the statement OF
Mr.. Hamilton, but he said he could
| give no information. He did not
question Mr.. Hamilton's figures nor
| the large amounts for travelling ex-
penses He asked Mr.. Hamilton for
a full statement and relied on his
| honesty to explain everything. He
did insist that Mr. Hamilton produce
! checks or check books but Mr.. Hamil-
| ton said he had none.
When Mr. Mccall was excused Henry
D. Appleton, Of the state insurance de-
partment was called. He was told
| that Mr.. Morgan, former president OF
the Bankers Life Insurance Company
had testified that Mr.. Appleton had
said it would cost the Bankers Life
$4,000 to reincorporate. Mr.. Appleton
somewhat heatedly said:
eff Mr.. Morgan said that he is a
| liar"
| He was called to order by Chairman
Armstrong.
Louis F. Payn, former superinten
dent of insurance of the state of New
York, was called to the stand late in
| the day, and explained large num-
ber of appointments of confidential
examiners, on the ground that an un-
| usual number of examinations were
| made during his tenure of Office. Mr..
| Hughes produced a list which showed
| that in 1897 two examinations were
| made and in 1898 two more were made,
while in 1899 the last year of Mr..
Payn's administration the number
had not been brought out when all
| journment was taken.
The affairs of the Mutual Reserve
Life Insurance Company were taken
up with the witness and during this
| line of examination Mr.. Payn stated
that he had been opposed to Mr.. Burn
ham as president of the Mutual Re-
serve and said he had tried to get him
out.
Mr. Hughes asked why he had tried
to get him out and Mr.. Payn fatty
stated Because | thought him a
crook"
Mr. Payn will resume tomorrow.
A point of interest in insurance
matters developed in the courts today
when Justice Greenbaum in the Su-
preme court, granted a writ of man
damus to Clarence H. Venner and one
hundred other policy holders direct
ing John A. Mccall. president Of the
New York Life 10 furnish them with
a complete list of polfcy-holders. The
board of trustees of the Mutual Life
Insurance Company held meeting
today and elected Emery McClintock,
the actuary of the company as vice
president and director. He viii be in