Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1911-02-09
GAMBLE AT lloYD'S
over ROYAL BIRTH.
Insurance Brokers Ready to
Take On Most Any Kind
Of q Bet.
London Correspondence in the Washington
Star.

0NdI.
When the story was printed in q
number of London newspapers that IN
interesting event was expected in the
royal family some time. this year 1t was
accepted generally as true, and even
the official denial. which usually follows
such announcement. didn't cause any
n to have any serious doubt about it.
NOW. however. there is Il story going
round the city that the rumor was
started by a number of shrewd insur-
ance X at Lloyd's who saw i'm it
the chance to make a lot of money.
Whether the insurance brok ers are
guilty or not. it is certain that they
have not failed to take advantage OF
the situation created by it. They have
underwritten insurance for many hum
areds OF thousands of dollars at the
handsome premium of 80 per cent
against the -postponement of the coro-
nation on account of q birth i'm the
royal family. such a postponement
would mean heavy loss to thousands of
London tradesmen who are now MAX
ing arrangements for the goods re-
Nulred for the festivities, and they
thus may be said to have a legitimate
insurable interest. 1t doesn't matter to
the brokers on Lloyd's, however,
whether there is any insurance inter-
est or not. They will write a risk ON
Nny imaginable combination of circum-
ssNiiAS II OiIIS VIlc premium OIIeTeO Is
high enough to tempt them.
They We're hard hit when the late
King Edward died. His illness was so
unexpected and the medical bulletins
for the first days We're so hopeful that
the brokers accepted risks at a pre-
mium as low as 10 per cent. One en-
terprising American ~storekeeper in
London had IA large stock of prayer
books containing the prayer for King
L Az Ne I'd or crA 800 -
salable as soon as King George as
cended the throne. but the ~storekeeper
had them insured at a 10 per cent pre-
MUM on the first day of the kings ILL.,
ness, and he made a handsome profit
by the transaction. He had also been
shrewd enough to buy up all the float
Ing stocks of black goods in the mar.
ket. and he insured them, too, against
the event of the kings recovery. He
lost his premium on that transaction.
but he made 1t UP in profits on thu
sale of the goods.
The other day Il man was expecting
an event of the kind which the king is
now said to be looking forward to-
Some OF his friends chaffingly suggest
ed that it might be twins. He went of
to Iloyd's on the spot and for a s per
cent premium obtained a policy for
$4,000. payable In case Of a double
event. Sure enough. the twins arrived
on time and ne got his $4,000. An
IN ilIdIe III GIlNlcu IlS luck Wd6 eXs
pecting a similar event and tried to Sc
cure a policy payable i'm the event of
the baby having blue eyes. The brok-
ers We're quite willing to write the
policy. but they wanted SO per cent as
a premium. and the prospective father
declined the gamble. When the baby
was born with blu eyes he invited all
his friends to kick him.
Many people think that Lloyd's is a.
company or a firm. but they are wrong.
1 H rAn11r, 1nncr al nj All 900 10 a.
has any existence it is a corner of
the rotunda Of the Royal Exchange
where the insurance brokers gather to
do business. They used to meet in a
coffee tavern kept by a mar named
Lloyd and the name has stuck to them.
ever since. Ship brokers and owners
used to meet I'm he same place. and
from this fact also springs the title OF
Lloyd's register of shipping and the
famous Lloyd's system of reporting
ships. The famous Captains room at
Lloyd's" is now in the aseme of the
Royal Exchange.
OF course. a lot OF the insurance
business done at Iloyd's is perfectly
legitimate, but II lot of it is pure gam
bling. No broker has the actuarial cal-
culations at his finger tips of the prob
ability of twins being born, so that any
premium he may quote is just a bet. In
the same way race tract gamblers
h. Sfl 'Oio Itcl dIfU Insure IncIl.
selves at Lloyd's against loss. 1t is
difficult to see now the broker who
takes a risk of this kind differs from
an ordinary booknaker. A couple of
years ago IA plunger who made up his
I mind to try to break the bank at Monte
Carlo. insured himself against being
cleaned out. He came sack in a couple
of months for his money.
A COMMON form OF gambling at
Lloyd's is INDUCED i'm by persons who
think they have inside information as
to the chancellor of the exchcquer's
Intentions about new taxation when
he introduces the yearly budget. They
insure against Il rise or q fall in the
tea tax. although they have no more
than a drinkers interest in the price
of tea, or they BET that the income tax
will be higher or lower. During the
recent rubber boom a lot of persons
found ii more exciting to insure at
Lloyd's against ii rise in the price OF
rubber than to take Il flier i'm the rub
Der share market. Men before they
go on a journey often take out g.
policy either against an accident or
against there being no accident. In
fact, if you nave the money you can
find some one at Lloyd's to take either
side of any gamble you propose.
Realization.
OF the fabric Of filmy dreams. Dear.
J wrought in the days gone by,
And I built me a land whose golden strand
Lay under a shining sky: