The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-01-28


conditions Will be.
For instance, what Fire Insurance
Company would be willing to Fix a
uniform rate that would be charged
for the next 25 or 80 years? That is
what the Life Insurance Companies by
their contracts must do. What manu-
facturer, or what railroad company
would be willing to agree upon per-
manent rate for a commodity, or as a
carving charge for the next 10 or is
years? In Life Insurance rate IS
charged, which experience has taught
to be adequate, and the savings are
returned to the policyholders in what
is known as dividends, so that IN
the end they get insurance for the
absolute cost, and the Company con-
ducts it's business on plan that may
be regarded as safe as human ingenui-
ty can devise.
1t is well known that thousands of
Assessment Companies have started in
this country during the past rs years,
with view to furnishing life 1nsur-
ance for about one-half what it costs
the regular Companies. All that exists
of the most of them is a memory, and
this is the result that usually follows
when somebody undertakes to furnish
an article for less than it costs.
have made the above explanation
and defenses, because 7 believe it is
our duty to give the facts, so that we
will not be misled by the criticism
and discussions that appear in the
press and otherwise and that are like
| ly to continue for some time; and we,
as officers, directors and solicitors of
this new Western Company should be
ever on the alert to defend that which
| is good in all life insurance Companies,
as well as to avoid that which may not
be desirable.
| shall now devote a few remarks to
the Company IN which We are all in
terested, THE CONTINENTAL LIFE
INSURANCE AND INVESTMENT
! COMPANY.
There should be a motive back of
any great enterprise. Why organize
another Life Insurance Company? was
the question which I often asked my
! self, and was often asked Of me when
the preliminary work was being done
in the way Of getting subscriptions to
! the capital stock of the Company, and
discussing it's plans of OrganiZat ton.
Certainly the field was already COW
cred by many excellent Companies or
ganized in the east, and some few
smaller ones in the middle west and
the Coast, and solicitors for these Com
panies were and are to be found in
every nook and corner of every west
we gave to the public for organizing
this Company, were mainly two, to-
! wit:
FIRST: From an economic stand
point the West, including the noun
tain and Pacific states, should have
one large Life Insurance Company that
would furnish as good, if not better,
insurance contracts to the public, and
instead of sending premiums collected
for such insurance to the money cen
tiers of the east they would be in
vested in securities here at home.
l think the recent criticism which has
had the most telling effect, is the one
| which states that the New York COM
panies are too large. too unwieldy, that
their business has become of such mag
nltude that it is almost impossible for
any set of officers to give personal at
tention to its details. and to keen its
funds carefully invested in the best
class of securities. Also that the ac-
emulation of such a vast amount Of
money, a large portion of which mus
always be held in a cash reserve, af,
fords temptation for speculation. II
fact, we believe that all the abuse.
Which have recently been disclosed, art
! the result of these conditions. One ia.
miliar with the financial and the insur
ance press of the country, cannot fai
to notice that the newer and smaller
| comp dpieS are being given more con
s1deratiOn, and the public is advised
| that better returns can be secured OF
policies in these companies than in tn
| older and larger ones, which hav,
[ amassed such vast amounts of none.
and business details.
Our presentation then TO the publi
! was along the line that it was not nee
essary that an Insurance Company b
2 established in New York City, Chica 20
! Boston or st. Louis, in order to insur
its success and safety, and that il wa
= not necessary for the people of tn
{ coast and intermOuntain states to sem
: 100000 600 or $15,000,G00 annually in ex
S cess OF death losses and other expense
= TO the east to be invested in securities
2 which will promote the Industrial devel
p Opment of that particular section of tn
a country. We believe that the West af
: fords as safe securities, with bette
rates Of interest, than can be obtaine
in the East.
Z Second.-We also claim that a ney
= Company has the advantage Of an oil
S Company, from the fact that it ca
= avoid some of the mistakes that haV
e been made, and certainly has as an asse
the experience of other companies I
= guide the conduct of its affairs, bot
as TO its organization and policy con
9 tracts which are offered to the public
We have constantly kept in mind thi
n main central thought-not to build u
a a local Company anywhere, in Sa
= Lake City, in Montana, or in San Fran
!, cisco, but large Western Life Insu1
= ance Company that could be locke
; upon as distinctly western, large in il
: scope, and appealing to people in til
!, various sections Of the Western State
y With that idea in view from the begin
, ming we solicited stockholders over a
( wide a scope of country as was possibl
= in the time we had at our disposal be
i fore completing the organizat ion
This movement of establishing a. ger
: eral Office in San Francisco at this tim
7 from which the general business of til
n Company can and will be conducted, q
n well as from the general Home Office
n Salt Lake City, is but in keeping wit
y this original idea Of making a Wester
= Company, and bringing into its fold e
e much influence from as many source
d as possible. I realize that there is SON
n objection, and that there are d;fficultit
# in welding and moulding an organize
= ton on this plan so as to get the be
d effective results, but so far, no one wi
e dispute that our success has been PHI