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Show GROWTH OF LIFE INSURANCE Overflowing Money Vaults Besponst-ble Besponst-ble for Scandals. In 1SS0. according to nn estimate published by an official ot the New Vork Life Insurance company some tlmo ago, all the American life Insurance companies together hnd on an aT agi about fi at risk for each person In th" Unlteil States. Ill 1091 the amount at risk per capita hnd grown to about tx. Increasing aewnleenfold In thu forty-ono years. It fui-ther fui-ther evidence were required to show how rapidly thlK business has boon growing It would be found In the enormous Increase of cash p.iotets among tho leading companies, which havo grown out of all proiwrtlon to the Increase of Insurance at rl.'k. "If no new Insurance were written.'' said tho authority above quoted, "It palsy should 'suddenly seize th tremendous activities of theae companies, tho contrncts that nre now outstanding and well established In thu very nature ot tho case would bring In such sums of money that the companies would be compelled com-pelled to becomo an nctlvc factor In the Investment In-vestment world." In thi face of such evidence' as the investigation investi-gation In progress In New York Is bringing to light It Is plain that whatever plan may be adopted for tho regulation ot tho life-insurance business It miibt provldo for somo adequate ade-quate supervision ot tho way In which these prodigious sumn arc Invented. In general the Insurance concerns may be assumed to have in ado their policy conform to fairly safe and conservative principles of Investment An analysis of State Insurance reports made some time ngo Indicated that of the $l."?3.91G.OrtO of nsscis then l-eld by twenty-eight of tho leading lead-ing life companies, moro than 41 per cent was In bonds, the other securities. In the order of the umouiits carried, belnc mortgages, real csinte. loans on iwllclou nnd stocks. ' Of stocks, tho least certain form of security, some companies com-panies carried none. It Is equally plain that while the hulk of tho Insurance funds Is thus safely secured, the ofllclnls with tho excess ot funds nt their dls-powil dls-powil are prone to Indulge In transactions that bear more the character ot speculation thnn of Investment. To Judge from tho wuy some of tho New York companies' officials have Juggled Jug-gled with tho money of policy-holder, taking a private profit therefrom nnd concealing tho transaction from State ofllclalx by tricks, they seem to have enst osldo conscience entirely as n business n?st. With Mich conditions today and th Insurance business still growing, what are conditions likely to lo .a fow years hence, unless som" restraint Is placed upon the methods meth-ods employed In managing these great accumulations accum-ulations of wealth? fhleago News |