The Calhoun chronicle. [volume] (Grantsville, W. Va.) 1883-1984, 1912-08-27

4
been going carefully over my affairs
under sense of impending death. In
one matter | conceived myself to have
made a mistake, and ! wish to correct
IL, If possible You are aware OF the
recent vicious public assault on the
insurance companies. wave of hos
tile. rabld, universal sentiment. There
seems TO be no particular reason for
It, The movement is phenomenon
recurring constantly in the history OF
our civilization. l believe these pc
riodic storms of public opinion to be
organic and inevitable. All establish.
ed institutions. no matter how excel.
lent, are subject to such assaults. l
pointed this out ten years ago to the
bank officials of New York when a
wave OF sentiment threatened the es-
tablished monetary standard"
He pulled his baggy form together
IN his chair AS he spoke. his voice
became somewhat clearer.
Now, In all this investigation what
wrongs have been exposed? Indeed
none, outside of a few companies. ex
cept that those in control of these
insurance companies had the use of
large sums OF money and, not being
infallible, made sometimes question,
able Investments: and the further fact
that considerable sums were used in
politics. Why gentlemen, everybody
knows that the average Assembly of
the State is composed largely OF men
who scheme to eXtort money from com
mercial Industries by threatening them
with destructive legislation. The COM
merce OF today IS no better off than
the commerce of the middle ages. 1t
must still purchase immunity from the
Danditu. Sometimes these highway
men can be fought, but usually most
Industries have found it less expensive
TO pay the toll. Consequently, no
higher injustice can be imagined than
TO hold officials of an insurance COM
pany responsible for such expendi-
lures. 1t is like shooting a captain
for handing over his ships money to
pirates In order to save his cargo.
why, there is not an insurance com
pany in America that could hold Il.
self together for year as a money.
a representative at Albany"
Sir" said Randolph Mason. this
statement is neither entertaining nor
instructive. Please come to the
point"
I beg your pardon" replied the in
valid; Il am coming to the point Five
years ago foresaw the arrival of this
outbreak, there were certain signs
which l shall not stop here to dis
cuss; and | began to prepare my com
pany for this era of exposure. The
result of that labor is today evident.
My company stands almost alone with
clean bill of health. But the cost
to me as an individual would stagger
America If 1t knew. / have done the
labor OF fifty years in five, and have
expended every dollar that | or my
family possessed to accomplish this
result.
You are not to imagine that during
this time the political banditti were
any the less threatening or avid. |
fed them as usual, but, unlike the 9TH
er companies. l paid this tribute with
my individual fortune. Now, then,
gentlemen, have come to the mat
ter In hand. One year ago a politician
Of national reputation determined to
force my insurance company to bear
the expense of his candidacy for n
high office. He controlled certain ave
nues of legislation, and threatened us
with a statute which would have Sc
questered the assets of our company
In dozen different states, recalled
Its investments, and left 1t no way
profitably to place it's surplus funds
1t would have been, in fact, ruin I'M
der the guise of law. In plain
terms, his price was three hun
dred thousand dollars. got him
down to two. l had no longer any
money of my own, and / would not
use that of the company, even to
save It from destruction My wife
owned this house, built with money
inherited from her father in England
we were both born In Sussex. / ex-
ecuted q mortgage on It directly to
this politician for two hundred thou
sand dollars. l took this chance with
my family and myself l felt sure
that this present wave of insane out
cry against insurance companies would
finally pass. and that when business
quiet was again established l could
rebuild a fortune"
The man stopped, his tongue was
beginning TO get thick He drank
little more of the colorsd liquid from
the glass
II made the same mistake" he con
tinued, that the fool did in the para
BILE This tremendous high-pressure
has worn out the machinery. awoke
month ago to the fact that / wac
scrap iron. / am barely fifty and yet
every organ Is dying of old age-ex.
hausted. ] cannot live a week"
The invalid must have seen an OK.
preston of Impotence or protest IN
Randolph Mason's face, because he put
up his hand and hurried on.
II have been thinking over these
matters, with Death sitting here az
my elbow, and ! have come to the con
clusion that ! have done a wrong to
those dependent on me The Christian
religion puts the lnhdel FIRST I'm tho
catalogue Of the condemned, and yet
ne that providoth not for his own
household is declared worse. Every
sentiment of practical humanity
stands for the priority Of that obliga.
tion. ] am about TO die. and have
in fact not Two dollars to click to-
gethor except my salary, which win
cease at my death More than that
] have taken my v-ffo's o.te41 49,