Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-11-17

| as the language Of the Insurance conf
missioner Of Michigan: III you teach
and the public demands that every
element which appeals to the gam
bling instinct Of our nations be elirnl-
| mated from the life Insurance contract
the business will he placed ON high
er plane. When every vestige or gam
bling Is eliminated from the life in
surance contract the last incentive to
speculation or extravaganza In the
handling OF life insurance funds will
have .been removed" The commits
sioner of Louisiana Says: THE use Oh
the deferred dividend policy In nli-
tual company should be prohibited. 1t
is a relict of the tortire system (afbol-
ished by wisconsin, and 1t Is In prin-
| ciple gambling and in practice. as ex-
perience has proven, such q dislp-
podntment as to almost amount to
fraud" 1t furnishes cigars and wine
and billiard money to the McCurdys.
but none to the policy holder.
The laws OF Iowa are very good, but
they can be made better. The manner
In which Iowa companies must invest
their funds and the manner In which
the auditor controls securities Is well
nigh perfect. An Iowa company can't
gamble in stocks neither can II organ
lie trust companies or safety deposit
companies, In which to deposit its
money for the benefit OF the stockhold-
ers In these side companies,
The legislature should prohibit all
forms Of gambling contracts.
1t should limit the salaries OF the Of
ficials.
1t should reduce all premiums on life
and endowment policies, rs percent, at
least 20 per cent.
1t should give to our commissioners
the authority to refuse a certificate to
any foreign company. If, on examina-
ton, he finds the company paying ex-
travagant salaries, or guilty Of any
kind of reckless expenditures or doing
things that we prohibit our own COM
panies from doing.
It should make 1t felony for any
official to approve of any expendi-
ture for the purpose OF influencing leg
islators.
It should insist on the compensation
OF agents and solicitors.
It might require agents. and solicitors
to have good moral characters This is
no chlmerical A state or county sup
eIlIlleiiueIlt may IcluSc q CcIthICdlS W
any teacher who has not good moral
character. Any scoundrel or villain
may enter the insurance field. The
company with whom he makes his
contract pays so cents to get the IL
cense and that Is all there Is OF it.
Life insurance Is trust. 1t must
be so administered. 1t Is just as es-
sential that we employ reputable
men as In banking and know OF no
reason why license to work life in
surance should be issued to a scoundrel.
1t is well known fact that the life
insurance agent is avoided by the bus
mess man as he would avoid contag-
ious disease. The reason Is so many
| of them have no character and SO the
| life insurance agent who is gentle
man is placed at a disadvantage. Read
ers Of the T.-R. will recall the MOTOR
ious Vigneaux, how he was kept IN the
employ Of great company and shield
! ed notwithstanding defalcation after
ldefalcation, and forgery after forgery.
From Cedar Rapids he was sent to prey
on Grinnell, when he had run his race
here he went to Atlanta, Ga. To escape
the penitentiary there, he was trans
ferred to Michigan, but at last he ran
up against a twelve year sentence, ana
his usefulness (?) was at an end.
One OF the most conscientious life
insurance men in Des Moines recently
| told me that his company was COM
/ PEELED to compete with a gang Of un-
considerable solicitors working as life
insurance agents in this state, many of
whom had Jail records and were per-
sonally disreputable,r yet the agent OF
clean character pays just as much for
his license and it has less value to
him.
/ have tried to defend life insurance
in these articles. I have tried to help
my readers discriminate between the
genuine thing and the sham. ] have
tried to outline a few of the things
that 1t seems to me might be done;
not all Of them, but SIGH as come honla
to me with force and if anything comes
of my efforts shall be repaid.