New-York tribune., 1906-07-16
READY TO COPY NAMES.
NAY. DO 1T IN TEN DAYS.
PolicyhOlders' Committee viii Make
EUery Effort to Rush Work.

One OF the largest tasks Of fits kind ever at
tempted viii be undertaken by the international
policyholders' committee when the lists OF poll
icyholders of the New York Life and Mutual
Life insurance companies are placed on file at
Albany Wednesday. All efforts to get copies
OF these lists from the companies having failed.
the policyholders' committee has planned to
have copies Of them made at Albany in the
shortest possible time. They expect TO establish
a record for this kind of work. as the time
within which they can communicate with the
policyholders before their ticket Of trustees
must be made up is only sixty days.
There are about 100000 names on both lists
as unavoidably, there has been some duplica-
tion. Some idea Of what it means to copy this
number OF names and addresses may be formed
when one realizes that there fewer than
100000 names in the Manhattan directory. Ac-
cordng TO the law, a policyholder can have only
one representative copying the lists. It mas
been estimated that it would take one man three
years to copy all the names. That the work may
be done in some reasonable time, the policyhold-
ers' committee has obtained authorizations for
copying from 500 policyholders. and will put at
work as many copyists as can be accommodated
in the Assembly Chamber. This ROOM which
has been set aside for the work by the Superin-
tendent of Insurance has facilities for about 100
men
Experts have been engaged ana VIII De uIl0eI
the personal direction of George r. Scrugham,
the organization manager of the policyholders'
committee Each man will badge, so he
may be identified. it is feared that others
may attempt TO confuse the work. Mr.. Scrug-
ham said yesterday:
No policyhoder or friend Of the policyholders
will seek to embarrass US in this work. and yet
are without fear of being embarrassed.
But public interest in the work II progresses
viii be a powerful safeguard for US. People
1;rxr OF
committees of policyholders seeking access 10
the lists for the purpose Of obstruction constl-
tutes difficulty against which we may have to
oonteno- All this enormous labor ana expense
on the part Of the poiicyholders to secure the
right 10 these lists have been made necessary by
the obstructive tactics or the self-consututeu
Tnanagements Of the two companies, representing
only their own selfish interests Everything pos
sible has been done by the insurance companies
10 stiie the voice of the policyholder at the
coming election When II found that the
printing Of the lists of names might compel the
companies to furnish policyholders with copies
thereof they abandoned the idea of printing
them.
Mr.. Scrugham then declared that to prevent
the committee from getting the lists in advance
the New York Life had them stencined at cost
Of So a thousand names and the Mutual had
them typewriter at cost of IS 30 thousand.
An extra copy of one Of the latter lists he says,
was in the possession of an addressing COM
pany, and could be obtained, if the Mutual Life
would permit it, 1t will cost the polfcyholders
committee So a thousand make their copies.
They hope to do the work in ten days
If this history Of the recent performances OF
the companies with respect 10 the lists is not IN
itself sufficient to arouse the poicyholders. said
Mr. Scrugham then nothing will
1t is understood that there was conference
yesterday Of several of the trustees of the Mu-
fual Life in an effort TO straghten the tangle
as to the makeup Of their administration
ticket" Some progress was made, but so far as
could be learned. the slate was not entirely per-
fected and there viii be other conferences to-
day. The meeting of the board for the nomina.
tion of the ticket viii be tomorrow.