The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1909-01-06
.obnbly few of us nave noted how

spreading about the world. In Ger
many the plan In It's practical opera
tlon might be called q form OF COM
pulsory insurance under Government
direction and with Government help.
Thus every person working for
wages or salary not exceeding $500
year must take out an old age or
lnflrmity insurance policy on which
he pays one-half OF the annual prem
lum while his employer pays the other
half. From the fund thus obtained
pensions are paid to persons whom
sickness or inlirmty have incapaci-
tated for work as well as to those at
tanning the age OF seventy years. To
each recipient OF an invalid or old age
pension the Government makes an ad-
ditional grant of Its own.
The amount OF the pension Is de-
termined upon the double basis of the
wages received by the pensloner while
he was at work and the amount he
has paid in premiums.
In 1907 there we're Insured In Ger
many In the Government Old Age and
Invalidity Insurance more than four
teen million pcrsons--from which as
founding fact you can gather some
thing of the proportions of the new
idea, says Charles u. Russell, In a
notable article In Hampton's Broad
way.
In practice the invalidity pension
! has proved more popular than the
| strictly old age pension, for the rea-
son that the innrmlty pension can be
entered upon when the invalldlty oc-
ours and after the age OF seventy It
takes the place of an old age pension.
Thus while in 1907 there were 110,-
OCT persons receiving the straight
old age pension, there we're more than
100000 who we're In receipt of the
infirnnity pension. The total national
expenditure in 1907 on the insurance
account was s52,750,OO0, OF which
about s4,200,000 was for old age
pensions.
The average pension was:
| Per Year.
| For old age. S39.55
For permanent invalidlty.. 40.04
For provisional invalidity. -. 40.14
or course these sums seem very
small to us, but we must remember,
first, that the difference between our
country and Germany in respect to
the relative cost of living is a fact
| always to be reckoned with in maxi
ing comparisons, and second, that
Germany was the pioneer In these
reforms and her cautious first steps
have been far exceeded by the nations
that have followed her.
There are FIVE classes of contribu-
tors to the German fund:
]. On annual wages or salaries OF
$3.50 the annual premium is 3h
| cents a week 2. On annual wages or
salaries of $137.50 the annual prem
ium Is 5 cents week; 8. On the an
nual wages or salaries of s212.50 the
annual premium is 6 cents week; 4.
On annual wages or salaries OF
$2S7.50 the annual premium Is ~
cents a week; 5. On annual wages
or salaries of $500 the annual prem
ium Is 0 cents.
Benefactions under the act are
somewhat restricted. Thus old age
pensions are paid to only those who
have contributed for at least 1900
weeks and the disablement pension to
those who have contributed for al
least 500 weeks. 1t was thought that
a wholly unrestricted pension scheme
was too fearsome an experiment, the
whole thing being at best SO bold q
leap In the dark and in defiance OF
sacred traditions.
This is the scale of German pen
sions according to classes:
Glass 2.............. $500 veal
Glass s3.............. 8. 42.50 yeal
Glass 4. 4.............. $3.50 a veal
Glass 5. ........ $3.50 yeal
Even In country where living i:
as cheap, easy and comfortable as il
is in Germany, $3.50 year as g
pension is no great sum; but 1t is ar
income, man can live on it in Ger
many, and every reform must have 6
beginning, often of timid and feeble
character.
There is also another matter to bt
considered. The Government collects
and cares for the fund from which
these pensions are paid, composed o
the contributions of workmen ant
employers. 1t is thus in possession
of an enormous sum of money. Mucl
of this money 1t invests for profits Il
order to provide the pensions, bu
part of 1t is put into Improvement
for the benefit of the workmen for tht
sole purpose of improving thei
health and thus keeping down th'
pension payments. Is not that mos
curious and suggestive fact? AS |
matter OF mere business the Govern
ment uses a part (and very consid
erable part) of the fund at its dis
posal to build sanitary homes To-
workingmen, hospitals for working
men, and to fight tuberculosis anon,
wortingmen. And largely from thi
cause have come those excellent, airy
well-lfshtsd dwellings in which 8,
l