Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1907-09-18
SAVINGS INSTITUTIONS WILL
TAKE OVER BIG BUSINESS.
DONE BY OTHER CONCERNS
New Law Soon Goes Into Effect
Cost of the Policies to the Holders
on Small Deposit Accounts Reduc-
ca to Real Disadvantages of
Plan Are MUIR erous.

~ LIZ last legislature and
soon to go into effect, if taken adyant-
age of by workingmen, for whom il
was designated. will not only save to
them millions of dollars every yea
which now go to corporations without
the state but will add hugely to the
savings banks deposits.
The purpose of this law is to en-
able workingmen who are now denend
ent upon the Industrial insurance com
panles Of the small individual amounts
OF protection they are able to buy. to
get the same or a larger amount of
protection at greatly reduced cost
When the law goes into operation
and the details have been worked ont
1t VIII be possible for a man or a VIC.
man or child to go to a savings
bank and "over-the-counter' obtain an
industrial insurance policy for any
amount upon the payment of a given
sum and an undertaking to pay a like
sum at regular intervals.
Every Protection Afforded.
mus far the process is like that of
me industrial companies. But the say.
lngs bank will go a good deal further
II viii, after deducting the actuaI
cost OF the business, place the balance
of the payments on deposit the
pohcy-holder thus becoming bank
depositor. ''A
IN the contingency that the policy.
py reason of illness or death. ha.
comes payable, the bank will after
paying the fun claim, hand over the
balance of the deposit, if there be any.
10 the policy-holder or his heirs.
1hat the bank may never. under
any circumstances, be engaged in
business which in the slightest de.
gre jeopardizes the money of those
aepositors who are not policy holders.
the law contains the important provis.
ION that the amount payable to a
policy holder shall never exceed the
amount Of his credit as a depositor.
This is the only feature of the law
winch will enable the old industrial
insurance companies to continue pusi-
ness In this state, in competition with
the savings banks. Their solicitors
may represent to unthinking men that
the bank is somehow to get the best
OF the bargain, for, until a policy-hoId-
er has been such long enough to have
an appreciable sum OF deposit. the
usual amounts of industrial insurance
policies, the industrial company
can truthfully say it will do what the
bank viii not. pay the full face of the
policy.
Hope Placed In Publicity.
This seeming objection to the new
law has been carefully considered,
however, and 1t is expected that it
VIII be overcome by the aid of the
labor unions and other organizations.
which Will inform their members of
the benefits Of the new law as com
parded with the methods of the indus
trial companies.
The scheme of savings banks insur-
ance In its present form owes its ex-
istence to Louis d. Brandeis, a Bos.
| ton lawyer. who, although often re-
tanned by employers associations and
large employers of labor, is intensely
interested in the welfare OF the So
;alled working classes.
Mr.. Brandeis has voluntarily given
great amount of his time to this
matter. Her perfected the scheme, he
spent many days and evenings ad.
| dressing labor unions, boards of trade
and other bc4Ies to explain the plan
and urge their cooperation He ap-
peared before the legislative commit
tees having the bnl In charge on sew.
esal occasions, AMI finally conyine-
ed the people and The legislature that
the scheme SHOULD become a law, des-
pite the very strong fight which the
Industrial companies made.
Commissions are Eliminated.
Mr.. Brandeis showed by their own
figures that the cost on Industrial in
surance bought of the industrial COM
panies is all out of proportion to the
cost of the same insurance bought of
a savings bank, and that there are
other advantages to the plan of equal
Importance
One OF the chief items of cost in
industrial insurance is the commits.
sion of the solicitor or agent aud the
commission of the collector of the
premiums. Savings banks insurance
will save to policy holders every cent
of this item of cost, for the banks
will employ no agents or solicitors.
| and the policy holders must take the
premiums to the banks.
AS the bank will not be engaged
IN the insurance business for the pur-
pose of money making directly from
that business, but from the deposits IL
will bring in. tnere will be no huge
dividends for stockholders to provide
for, as the industrial companies have
and the "over-the-counter" business
viii be conducted on the basis of act
ual cost.
This actual cost win consist mainly
OF bookkeeping and clerical expenses.
and viii be vastly smaller than the
present cost of industrial insurance.
On top of other advantages the mol
icy hole Al becomes a band depositor
The bank viii do what the insurance
company will MOTT will pay the face
II the policy and any balance that