The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1909-03-15
INSURANCE AFFAIRS
State Office in New York to Be Re
organized.


Albany, March ia complete re-
organization of the New York office
of the Insurance department has been
intrusted by State Superintendent OF
Insurance Hotchkiss to Charles s.
Fowler of Albany who has been APP
pointed second deputy superintendent
of insurance and designated to take
charge of the bureau in New York. Mr
Fowler will take hold early next week.
The place to which Mr.. Fowler has
been vacant since the resignation OF
Robert Hunter, whose retention by
Otto Kelsey after his record had been
assailed during the insurance investi-
CATION was partly responsible for the
two recommendations by Gov Hughes
for Kelseys removal
Recently the place has been filled
by Daniel +. Gordon as acting chief
deputy superintendent. There are
about forty attaches of the New York
bureau of the insurance department,
which includes the important examin-
ing and auditing departments. Mr..
Fowler said tonight that he would
carry out his instructions In the most
thorough manner, and that fitness and
character alone would be regarded by
him as requisites in making appoint
ment.
Mr. Fowler has been connected with
the state civil service commission
since 1896, and of late has been its
chief examiner. He is a graduate
of Cornell University and was admit
ted to the bar twelve years ago, but
has never practiced law. He was the
first president of the National Associ-
alton of Civil Service Examiners
Mr. Fowler was not known to Sup
erintendent Hotchkiss until few
days ago. He was recommended for
the position by President Schurman
of Cornell, Prof. Bristol of Cornell,
Presiding Justice Ingraham of the APP
pellate Division of New York, City
commissioner of education, Andrew
S. Draper, state superintendent of
prisons, Cornelius " Collins and Ex-
else Commissioner Maynard ~ Glenn
ent.
The condition of the New York Of
fee of the state superintendent of in
surance was one of the chief matters
dwell upon by Matthew c. Fleming in
the report he presented last year to
Gov. Hughes on Otto Kelsey. Among
other things he stated that the depart
ment would go on yearly grinding out
its routine business without much dir
ection"
He pointed out that the market val
ne Of securities returned by compan-
les were not verified. In the same
way the returns of the big companies
on policy values were also taken with
out verificatlon.
These returns are made in such a
way, said the report, that ut would be
! impossible to detect fraudulent lapses
and restoration or changes in the mat
/ ter Of valuing given policy. In ver-
/ flying the assets on an examination II
seems that the practice has been to
check up book values and that no plan
for verifying market values has yet
been adopted.
The report also states that It has
been the regular thing ito designate
an appraisal of real estate or an ex'
animation Of a title to the same as an
examination"
Mr.. Fleming also went at length In
to the question Of dividends and show
ed that the department had taken nc
steps to see that It got full informa
ton from the companies on which &c
base any conclusion. In the same way
MIR. Kelsey and the department exer
clsed little or no supervision over the
sale OF stocks by insurance companies
the John +. Dryden purchases from
the Equitable or the Hartman roads
loans from the Mutual and other sucl
matters.