The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1906-02-08
LIVING FIGURES IN THE ANNUAL
STATEMENT OF THE METRO.
s3q PoLlTAN LIFE.

The yearly compilation of statistics
pltblished by the Metropolitan Life In
surance Company is never dry reading.
A summary OF that Ccnlpany's business
for the year 1896. just issued. tabulates
astounding figures In the concise manner
Hpproved BY oaccountants, and following
the custom of former years, supplements
them with a clear and lucid analysis for
the benefit Of people who are not ac-
countants.
Few persons are sufficiently familiar
with great financial operations to grasp
Immediately the full significance of n
balance sheet in which totals and grand
totals are expressed in hundreds of mil
lions, hut the purpose of a Life Insurance
statement is DOUBTLESS TO inform and en-
tighten It's multitude of policy-holders,
and this purpose the Metropolitan man
agenent accomplishes with signal sue
cess. Following closely upon n period of
agitation in the life Insurance field such
n statement Is timely and specially in
teresting. s
The Metropolitan calls attention to the
fact that the number of its policy-holders
(now Increased to more than eight and
half million) equals the combined popu-
.lation OF our eight largest cities. In
other words, If the Company's policies
now In, force, were all placed in New
York. Chicago, Philadelphia. Boston, ST.
Louis, Cleveland. Cincinnati and Mlwau-
kee, every man, woman and child in these
communities would possess one.
Men now living remember when the
whole United States could hardly have
supplied so vast number of insurable
persons. Even at this day there are
twenty-four States and Territories whose.
combined population does not equal the
nv, y,Ab of Ia oily !, n
this one great company.
s Ntneteen thousand persons were In the
.Conpany's service at the end Of 1905.
Ifsone adult bread-winner. represents five
individuals in the total population, nearly
a hundred Thousand persons draw sub
sistence from this institution-not In In
surance benefits. but in direct payment
for service to the Company.
This army OF nineteen thousand .em-
ployees evidently includes no drones.
During the year just closed II handled Il
daily average OF one and half million
dollars In new business alone. The Com
pany issued on the average nearly seven.
thousand new policies every business day
during the Same twelve months
Il "a single item which illustrates graphic
ally the real meaning and purpose Of all
Transformations buslnessis that relating
to insurance claims paid during the year,
THESE amounted 10 more tnan Sl6.OOO, Vp.
This means that some one received from
the metropolitan Life In benefits one
hundred and six dollars every minute of
every business day of eight hours
throughout the year,
Again, the uncertainty of life and
health, and the universal need OF life In
'surnnce are most impressively, empha-
sized In the statement that 1514S policies
paid within the year 1905 had been In
force less than twelve months; and that
a 500 OF these policies We're paid In less
than three months from the time they
were issued.
The Metropolitan Life began the year
1906 with assets of more than one nun
bred and fifty million dollars, showing an
Increase OF more than twenty-three mil
lion dollars over the preceding twelve
months.
The Company directs particular atten-
tion to tho fact that II does not issue
,Tontine, or deferred dividend policies,
nor any form of contract which fails to
specify In exact terms what the insured
Is to pay In premiums and what heGis to
receive III benefits That the simplicity
OF its contract-agreements is q popular
feature Will not be questioned III the slght
of fucts above noted.