The Bridgeport times and evening farmer. (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1918-1924, 1918-05-22
ninety Per CENT.
OF U. S. ARMY AND
NAVY is INSURED
Uncle Sam at Head of Great
est Insurance Bureau in
the World.

washington, May 22,-More than
sis, 100000 insurance on the lives
Of more than 10000 soldiers and
sailors already has been written by the
Bureau of War Risk Insurance. That
is said to be more insurance, all writ
ten since the middle of October, than
is today on the books of the twenty
largest life insurance companies in the
world. All kinds of problems have
been met with in achieving this gil
gantic task, according to information
furnished to Congress by Thomas B.
Love, Assistant Secretary of the Treas
ury in charge of the bureau, and other
officials.
The war risk law provided for pay
ment of family allowances and allot-
ments and for administration of
compensation insurance law applica-
BILE to 1000, 900 risks and for the
writing of this insurance on the lives
OF a possible 100000 soldiers and
sailors. The applications for allow
ances and allotments of the soldiers
and sailors pay had to be obtained
from Ahe ends of the earth to which
those in war service have been scat
tered. From December 20 until the
beginning of this month the bureau
mailed out $500, 900 individual checks
to families of dependents in the United
States, approximately $50, 900, 900 has
been paid out in allowances and al
lotments; and in addition many thous-
and claims for scompensation have
been made, some paid and others dis
allowed.
More than 95 per cent of the sold
49, ~
have taken the insurance and apph-
cations for it have come in at daily
rate involving from $50,000,000 to
100000, 900 of insurance durinfi the
last month. A clerical force of about
1890 people is employed by the bu-
,reau in the work. A bill is now pend
ing in Congress favorobly reported by
the House interstate commerce COM
naittee, amending the law in num-
Der Of details, providing for instance
that automatic insurance shall be pay
able to the mother whether depend
ent or not and to the father as well
and making other broadening features
in the interest of the soldiers nearest
of kin.
Bureau records show that there are
E1,062, Oe1 application blanks returned
pendents of any kind. There is g
surprisingly large percentage of those
men who do have dependents, the
frst,knowledge of whom the bureau
learns when the dependents write il
for information.
One of the surprising Developments
is the number of complaints that the
bureau is, getting from men no have
asked exemption from their wives OF
who. claim they have no wives" II
one city recently Commissioner Nesbit
of the Bureau, has advised Congress
J he recently sent an investigatgato
to look into 80 cases where men hat
claimed exemption form their wive
and said they did not know where tn
wives were living. The bureau loca
ted 81 of the 33 wives within a weel
and the government has absolute evi
.dence that many of these men knew
where their wives were. The mel
did not want the wives to get the mon
icy.
In the course Of the testimony re
Gently given before the House com
mittee Paymaster General Cowie, o
the Navy, declared that in the excep
ton all cases where naval officers d
not support their families they ar
made to do so very quickly. Abou
six weeks ago a wife called at tn
Navy Department about the failure G
support and inside of fifteen min
rutes'' said Admiral Cowie, that gen
itleman was sent such a letter that h
looked for her in proper order an
inside of three days I had an allot
ment in my office from him"