Omaha daily bee., 1911-11-08
WOODMEN CIRCLE CENSURED
State Auditor Barton Makes Report
Of Examination of Order.
laws OF STATE ARE VIOLATED
Mrs. Emma u. Manchester. Supreme
Guardian, and other Supreme
Officers Are Charged with
Many Irregularities.
tFrOm a SAD Correspondentl

l.
LINCOLN. Neb. Nov. 7.-(special Tel
egram.)-That the heads Of the Woodmen
Circle violated their own laws. that they
used arbitrary power in the adjustment OF
many OF their affairs and that they gen
orally disregarded the presidents OF the
order TO which they belonged, is set out
In a severe censure OF Mrs. Emma b.
Manchester and other officials In a report
made today by Auditor Barton OF this
state, and Auditor Bleal5ly OF Iowa.
The report follows aenpng investigate
made by these two officials as a result
of complaints by half a dozen members
of the Woodmen Circle who charged that
lax methods were in vogue under the
present regime. The complaint was made
Just prior to the election OF officers
which occurred early in September at
Rochester, N. Y.
In the report Auditor Barton says:
we beg to transmit herewith a COPY
OF the report on the joint examination
Of your order made by the examiners
of the insurance departments Of our re-
spective states and request that the same
he Immediately submitted to the execu-
tive council OF the order for their serious
consideration. To the end that the re-
forms so undeniably necessary in the
conduct of affairs of the order may be
promptly and efficiently effected.
Payment of Fees to Examiners.
Charge 1-Inasmuch as the attorney
general Of Nebraska has ruled that there
is no special statute governing the paw
ment of examiners fees, except for the
examination Of foreign fraternal societies,
IN NhaN a1,a
established by the Nebraska depart
nent in past years as to the fee to be
paid for examining this class of assocla-
tons, which examinations are required
to be made the same as any of other
class OF insurance companies or associa-
tons, the payment of a fee Of ten dol
lars per diem and actual expenses Is not
excessive for an association of your class
to pay an individual of the required abil-
ity to direct examinations OF this char
acter
Charge 3-The first matter of inn
portance is the admission to your So
ciety OF seventy-two members over age.
bl6 under age, no dispensation, and PIG
under age with dispensatlon granted by
the supreme guardian, and we are Of the
opinion that the aggregate of similar
cases would be largely increased IL the
period was extended beyond that named
In the report.
Law of State violated.
In these admissions you have not only
violated the law of your state. but the
law OF your order, and have placed your
selves in position to be severely crit
cised by your members, If not actually
involving question as to the legality of
the certificate. Such conduct in the Of
1ices of concern which expects their
members to obey its law, is unexcusable.
We feel that 1t would be unjust to these
members to insist upon the cancellation
of their certificates, as they themselves
are innocent of any wrong doing, but de-
sire to state that any repetition of these
irregularities on the part of the manage
ment Will meet with most drastic treat
ment on the part of your home depart
ment.
Charges 4 and 9-While the evidence
submitted in connection with these
charges would indicate that in some in
stances the end attained justified the
means, there has evidently been a mani
1es disregard of the laws of the order
governing the respective matters, as well
as Capitalization OF power in the SUI
preme guardian, which, in our opinion
should be carefully vested in and confined
TO the proper departments. Such practices
should be discontinued in the future. and
while we recognize that the suprame
guardian possesses certain general prorog-
atves under the law OF the order, the
power is not given her to set aside the
laws specifically applying to its various
departments.
Supreme Physician Censured.
Charge 5-We believe that the SUI
preme physician is to be condemned for
her action in accepting the applicant who
had been previously rejected by her as a
local examiner, despite the claim that
her action was the result of duress"
Finding of Examiners.
Accompanying the findings of the audi
tors report OF the examiners. a volum-
inous record which dealt first with the
financial condition of the order and then
took up the charges in detail. The order
is found to be In furnishing state Last
year the income was over 81, 100000 and
the disbursements a little over 100000 1t
has net assets of nearly S2,0OOOOO.
As to the charge that Mrs. Manchester
paid the state examiners SO a day and
had repeatedly Informed members that
the man would arrange the reports TO
her liking, the evidence is stated to dis