Waterbury evening Democrat., 1905-06-16
ROYAL ARCANUM.
Old Members Not Paying What Their
 Protection Costs.

Protection Costs.
 The Royal Arcanum Bulletin, the official organ of the supreme counci
 of the order, in its June issue, goes al
 length into the much discussed ques
 ton of changes in rates. An editorial tells why an adjustment at this time was necessary, summed up as follows
 Because the revenue from the present scale of assessment during the past two years was not sufficient to pay the mortality claims, the surplus in the current cash account had been ex- hausted, and the emergency fund trenched upon at the time of the meet ing of the Supreme council" This made it necessary to do one of three things, lAadjust the rates. go back tQ the old policy of calling extra assess, ments. or use up the emergency fund. No member of the Supreme council ad- yised return to the old system of making extra assessments, but a small minority were at first In favor of al lowing the matter to go over for an other year and drawing upon the emer- gency fund to make up the deficiency. When it became apparent to the large majority that readjustment was necessary, the question arose whether it should be merely tenn porary expedient, or equitable and per manent. the council favoring the lat. ter course after much discussion.
 Experts had assured the administra- tive officers that the experience of twenty-seven years was ample and ac- cordingly a mortality table was made from this experience and rates reduced therefrom. Their accuracy has been vOuched for by competent experts. The old scale of assessment, which dates from August 1, 1898, had not been In operation two years when 1t became evident that It was not equita- ble towards the members of different ages. Young men, with low death rates, were contributing as much as the older members who had become impaired risks, and the mortality cost of the older members exceeded their contributions. The writer refers to his own case, where he has paid $1O.60 year on $1.0O0 since August 1, 1868, on the basis of his age at entry, or as- sessed age. while, since August i. 1868, 1t has cost the order more than $20 a year for each $1.000 of protection it has given to him and during 1904 more than 80. This deficit in his contribu- tion was made up by the contributions of younger men admitted since August 1. 1888. The new rates of assessment will wipe out these deficits and all members will start anew on October on the same basis. each one having the choice of the method of contribution, the regular rates and the different op- tions being so adjusted on the basis of the mortality experience of the order that all the contributions will. in the end. he equivalent to each other"
 The Bulletin states that on Decem- Der 31, 1904, less than 10000 members of the order were 6 or over and while much sympathy is expressed for them because the new plan seems to treat | them harsbly. it should be remembered that they had their protection in past years at a rate 'ridiculously cheap and that they have lived.- How to ease up on the old members for whom they had sympathy was the hardest prob lem before the executive committee. and they loaded the rates for the young men for all they would stand in order to help out the old men,