The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1910-12-13
GROWTH or LIFE lNsuRAncr

''S"sn VI LIFE INSURANCE.
~ ms address in Chicago at the
fourth annual meeting OF the Asso.
citation of Life Insurance Presidents
Paui Morton, president of the Eonit.
aoie' took occasion to refer to the Won
derfui growth of the l..e insurance bust.
ness. Fifty years ago life insurance in
the United States averaged 1925 ner
capita. Ten years ago il had risen ia
500 per capita and today it is esti-
mated as amounting to abour s15o
per capita. Fifty years ago the total
outstanding life insurance carried by
all old line life insurance companies
doing business in the United States
was less than that now carried by
Illinois companies alone. Within
nifty years the volume OF life insur-
ance business has increased from
sl60,ooo,0o0 to SIS. 100000. almost one
hundred fold, though in that time the
population OF the. United States has
increased less than three.fold
Mr Morton went on to state what
western people will be pleased to learn
that as general proposition the
eastern life insurance companies are
making an effort to invest their re-
serve funds in those sections of the
country which produce the premiums
He instanced one large life insurance
company which five years ago had
real estate mortgages in only eleven
different states but which today has
them in thirty-one different states
He said he knows of one company
which has $6,000,O00 less in mortgage
loans in New York City than it had
five years ago and which during tina,
time has increased its mortgage
loans in other states about $4,000,
COO
Mr. Morton gave reasons why the
meeting of insurance presidents was
being held in Chicago, saying that the
center of life insurance is rapidly NOV
ing westward in this country. Mr.
! Morton also said the meeting was be
ing held out of respect to the won
derful valley OF the Mississippi,
which "agriculturally, commercially
industrially, financially and prospect
lively is greater than ali the far-famel
valleys OF history. and yet it is onl,
in the vestibuie OF its infancy. so fal
as production and wealth are concern
! ed: and in my opinion is destined te
have more political power: more
prosperity: more happiness and great
! er influence in the affairs of the world
/ than any other similar area on the
face Of the globe" The speaker pro
| claimed the west the future center Of
insurance activities, declaring thai
the star of Insurance. like the stal
| of empire, westward takes its way
Continuing. he said:
I'VE are also here because of the
very happy investments that life in
1 surance companies have made in the
middle west. We want those who live
here to understand that while the
estimate reserve held for policyhold
ers residing in the Mississippi valley
amounts to about $5S3.000 0u0, the life
! insurance companies have invested
! in this same territory over s726,
| 100000; in other words, we ar,
not, as many are led to believe, drain
ing this section Of the country of its
money in life insuranc. premiums
and taking it east to invest, but or
/ the contrary we have actually invest
ed over $143. 00O, 900 more In this ter
ritory than the total reserves fol
! this same territory amount to. an,
when speak Of the Mississippi val
ley in this connection I mean onl,
the middle states
Robert Lynn Cox, general counse
and manager of the association, spok,
on the nature and extent cf life in
surance institutions in colleges ant
universities Mr.. Cox pleaded for q
4 general effort on the part of the in
surance people to aid colleges in put
ting an insurance course n thei
vocational curricula.