New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1906-03-17

| york life after snarrinr with Senator Armstrong
for time, renewed the attack Of the companies
against the limitation OF new business
Mr.. MERR1TTs SPEECH.
Assembyman Merritt, OF ST. Lawrence County.
who a candidate for Speaker of the House
! this session, appeared a poiicyholder In the
/ Equitable and the Washington Life. He went
into the peculiar stuat ton which the Equitable pre-
sents that Thomas f. Ryan is in control. lie
said In part:
notice With @ that you hsye not st @
Department of Insurance shall hereafter be paid
by the state directly and not by the imposition OF
believe that such change would meet wilt with the
ment l have heard upon this suggestion has been
in favor Of il. and trust that you may deem it
The pfoPossd section $ provides for the %uta
It seems to be Simply justice that these policy
holders should be given voice in the choice e. OF
owns this huge capital The business of the amend
consdeTed is the po%er of the legislature to enact
the legislation proposed.
form in the case of the Equitable Lfe-wtthout the
courts having passed upon this provision a or mg
the controlling interest In the capital STOCK whlch
If this proposed act becomes a law It will simply
strengthen the hands of the person controlIng the
majority of the shares of the society's stock. for
the second condition to naturalization requires that
the plan of retirement shall nrst have been ap-
proved by vote Of the stockholders representing
majority of the shares; and. as have already
stated, IL Is universally known Wnere TINS power
lies have therefore. in my proposed amen 1 p
struck out the second condition. which requires the
plan OF retirement. for the reason that as 1 be-
iieve the surplus belongs the policyholders and
should have the power Of determining what Il Is
and the complications resulting from stockholders
control done away with
1t is certain that Mr.. Ryan. controlling the
jorty of the stock OF the Equitable. viii not con-
sent to any plan of naturalization which does not
when he paid the o RT Hyde in the private
ton which ne had with him when he bought the
The proper way to mutualize a company is for the
Legislature exercise the reserve powers or the
state and amend the charter of the Equitable So
ciety This power is explicitly reserved both by the
Henry C. Iippincott manager of agencies OF the
Penn Mutual Life Company. Of Philadelphia, made
a last plea for the agents He admitted that the
small companies had suffered severely from the
unholy competition Of the big companies. but held
that actual agents were not overpaid.
Senator Armstrong declared that it was the delib-
crate purpose OF the committee to encourage
straight life insurance at the expense of the en-
dowment and other speculative forms.
Stewart Brown. who announced himself
New-York broker. with connection with any
insurance company except that he held policies
amounting 10 $4,000, was the last speaker If
there part OF the reform bill against which
he did not protest IL seemed to be because he had
forgotten it. He argued vaguely for everything
from expensive business to deferred dividends.
Brown. it developed. used 10 be confidential
agent OF the late John A Mccall. He became pres
ident OF the North American Trust Company. He
left that place when the Produce Exchange Trust
Company got into trouble and the North American
company questioned certain transactions
Just before adjournment telegram was received
from Governor John a. Johnson OF Minnesota, who
said that policyholders all over the country were
looking TO the Legislature of the State OF NewYork
TO pass laws which would properly reform the life
insurance companies