The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-12-20
INVESTIGATION IS
 PROGRESSING WELL lnquiring Into Affairs of Wash ington Insurance Company SEVERAL REFORMS MADE President Tatock Takes Different View of the Question From Other
 Insurance Men-FeW
 Loans Paid Up.

New York, December 19.-An inquiry into the affairs of the Washington Insuran company was begun today by the insur- ance legislative Investigating committee when President Tatlock, president of the company, was called to the witness stand MT Tatlock was elected in December, 1904 after an examination of the company by
 the state insurance department. which
 resulted in a reorganization of the man. agement of the company. MT. Tatlock re- ceives a salary of s20,000. He detailed a
 number of reforms that had been insti- tuted since the reorganization, among them the abollshing of cash surrender value in policies and the elimination of the loan feature. He expressed somewhat of 8 different sentiment from other life officers, in that his experience had been
 that only about per cent of loans were
 ever paid up, and that loan was but | deferred surrender of policy. He viewed | the situation as such and considered it 1 bad investment.
 Questioned about s6OOO0 rendered agents | being placed upon the Books thus far this year. These he explained were a legacy
 from the former management. No contri- buttons for political purposes had ever been made by the Washington Life as far as the witness had been able to learn, and
 the only thing in the nature of legislative
 work was a retainer to W. A Walker.
 who the witness thought was a Chicago
 newspaper man. This retainer was paid
 from 1891 until MT. Tatlock took the pres
 idency, when it was cut off Walker wrote
 several serial stories on insurance, and
 upon insurance measures that would be
 pending in western legislatures. l Funds Are Investigated.
 Immediately after the first of the year,
 at the instgation of the finance commit 1 tee, a great deal of the company's hold 1 ings in bonds and mortgages on real es- l tate were closed out, and the funds in- vested in negotiable securities. In great
 many of these transactions the securities were purchased through A. F. Ryan x l Bro, who are sons of Thomas F. Ryan. l About $4, 900 has been invested in secur- | tiles since January 1 last. The company
 had never gone into syndicate until this
 year. Since January it has been in six l Previous to calling MT. Tatlock Pres ident H. P. Townsley of the Life As- i sociatlon of America. was called to com l plete his testimony, which was interrupt
 ed by adjournment yesterday. He receives | a salary of s12,000 year. He said that
 s5OO0O voted to him and Eugene Van | Schack for organizing the company had
 come under the observation of the insur-
 ance department and that the attorney 1 general had notified them that it would
 have to be paid back.
 l MT. Townsley detailed how the life as-
 socation controls the Bankers Life In- l surance company, which is under yot- l ing trust
 l The Knickerbocker Investment com pany owns majority of the voting trust l certificates of the Bankers Life Insur-
 ance company, which are pledged to the 1 Manhattan Bonding and Underwriting
 company. which Townsley and Van 1 Schack organized, and of which they are l directors.
 When the committee adjourned Presi- l dent Tatlock of the Washington Life l was on the stand.