Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-02-04
'OL D-AGE PENSIONS
French Government is Com
mittsd e the Principle.
HOW IT. " ILL WORK
MANY DIFFICULTIES WILL SURE
LY BE ENCOUNTERED.
People Who Think It Gould All Be
Done Better Through Private
Enterprise.
HOW tt " ILL WORK

Special Correspondence Of The Evening Star
PARIS, January 81 1905.
l. Every workingman in France is to have
an old-age pension.
The government is committed to the
principle; its special assurance commission
has presented plan. and last night. at the
annual banquet of the Republican Club. M.
Millerand, one of the most popular and
powerful workingmen's politicians of
Paris, accused it Of torpor in face Of the
100000 or 4O,OOO,OO0 francs increased tax
alton it demands. Later, over their cigars
group of advanced republicans were
chatting over this brotherly love subject
The great iniquity of modern life is I'M
certainty Of the future said one of them.
How am to live when 1 grow old?"
Had you lived in the stone age" unused
a thoughtful party with white whiskers,
the tribal group would have taken care of
you. You would have been patriarch, a
repository of tradition and advice because
they had no books), and brave young hunt
ers would have handed you choice bits of
meat"
Had I lived under the feudal system my
landlord would have seen 1 did not want
To-day, or tomorrow"
Tomorrow the government will assure
you what is strictly necessary put in
y
being cynical.
IF it does not do any better for the
workingman than 1t does for its own en-
ployes the Workngman will scarcely thank
it." pronounced the thoughtful whiskers I
started in establishment. and so did others.
I had imagined French government en-
ployes peculiarly fortunate in their right
to the ''retraite, or retiring pension.
The French government holds back 8
per cent of the salary Of each and every
one of it's clerks, in order to pay them
of sixty years." he began. But suppose
the clerk dies at the age of fifty-nine
years? What does his widow have?'
Her eyes to weep with muymured the
young cynic.
If He Dies Too Soon.
THE government keeps the per cent"
continued the other. Take the particular
case of university professor. beginning
at twenty-five with salary of $740 Let
him obtain class promotion every five
years till the end of his career, an increase
of $50 If he dies at fifty-nine the govern
ment will have held back from him 1900
in all-and then confiscate it, on the prin-
ciple that to be, entitled to the 'retraite
one must live to the age of the retraite.'
Suppose the young professor had begun
putting aside the 5 per cent of his salary
himself. Beginning with S37 per year ne
could take out an endowment life insur-
ance policy for 81, 725-and if he died the
next week his widow would get the money.
But he is too wise to die After tye years
his salary is increased by $50, with 5 per
cent of which he begins paying for tiny
'viagere.' or annuity. to begin running
when he shall be sixty years old. And so
on. At forty-fve he Will get $3.50 accu-
INFLATED profits on his endowment policy.
This, too he soaks in an annuity. At the
age Of sixty he cashes in and buys another
annuity, to begin running at once Now,
do you know what the governments prin-
OIL ic reCnactiDp the > cent 1t hOlQS
s.The government contributes an equal
sum each time and put the Two at inter-
est" said some one.
EXACTLY" said the thoughtful whiskers,
but suppose, instead of holding back the
5 per cent the government should contrib
ute equal sums with the young professor
toward the buying of his endowment poll
cy and annuities, do you know Where ne
would be at the age of sixty!
HE would have had S3,40O insurance all
the time, for one thing replied the young
cynic.
yes, and without even asking or accept
ing his retiring penson-continuing. II he
wished, a few years more Oh ms norman
salary-he would nevertheless be entitled
to an annuity of 5000 per year!
According to its own scheme, what
would the government give your profess
sor?" I asked.
IF he has the luck to live to the age of
sixty, his highest possible retraite is 5000
per year-while if he dies at ffty-nine he
gets nothing"
Could Be Done Much Better.
1t is certainly discouraging for the social
istic idea-every time the government tries
going into business, 1t is found that the
private money making enterprises could DO
the thing better. Example, French cigars
and cigarettes, made by the government.
Americans in Paris howl against them.
Example, the telephone system of Paris
the worst in the world. 1t is run by the
general government. Thus one OF the
great objections of specialties like Paul
Deschanel, Paul Imbert-and of President
Loubet himself, as a convinced mutuallst
to the present government scheme Tor
workingmen is the proposition that the
government itself shall cause the premium
sums to fructify.
In the present government plan there is
created a system of obligatory insurance
for the Workngman.
rs the government to pay the premiums
with its 30,0e0,O00 40,O00V0 increased
taxation? inquired the young eynle.
at would not be sufficient, replied a
new man with smart businesslike air.
THE workingman and his employer VIII De
required to pay regularly equal sums INTO
a new governmental insurance service; ana
the contribution of the government VIII be
divided between the bookkeeping and eiking
out high enough rate of interest to make
the annuities practical"
On this these arose discussion IN WElcn
NJ. Millerand himself took part, blaming
the present cabinet for thus neglecting to
keep its promise to put the law through.
Halt of the group, with him, praised the
special Insurance commission, winch was
left to perfect its plan without much en-
couragement but the other half demurred
to its obligatory state insurance bank; and
with this copsidera ton we enter the vast
domain of mutually in present day France.
A Possible Solution.
I have already written you of the won
derful growth of naturalist (mutual add So
cieties which recently held banquet of
80 600 covers. The French workingmen and
lower middle classes have taken to them
wonderfully; and a great school of politi-
clans look to them for the true solution of
the worldngman's Insurance problem. But
if the state Is to handle the forced con-
tributions of workngmen and employer,
terrible blow will be struck at the mutual
ist cause.
Mo-. exclaimed NJ. Paul Imbert, who
has just written a book on the subject,
1.-The plan of the commission is insufficient
in its concessions to mutuality. i know
that at the last moment they have pro-
posed compromise which admits that
the percentage of the workingnan's pay to
he hal loc oh NV h