| Show legislative life insurance investigation committee hears relations of insurance and trust companies les new york sept 7 the affairs 01 tho equitable insurance society and tho mutual alfo company held the attention today of tho legislative lile insurance investigating committee in session in this city nothing particularly new was developed n relation to the society other than tha statement drawn from one of the officers that the society does not know ho present whereabouts bt thomas D jordan the former comptroller it was stated that mr jordan was wanted as a witness to explain the loan of made to the equitable society by the mercantile trust company it was also stated that james B hyde former first vicc of the equitable later will be called as a witness before the committee the inquiry into tho mutual life insurance company was begun the testimony drawn from an officer ot the company showed that the mutual controls many trust companies them the morton trust company the guarantee trust company and the united states mortgage and trust company on deposit with these companies tho insurance company keeps hundreds of thousands of dollars against which it docs not draw it was explained that the prosperity of the trust companies meant the pios polity of the insurance company the insurance deposits draw 2 per cent and the trust companies pay as high as 20 per cent dividends on the par value of the stock or 5 per cent on the market value frederick cromwell treasurer of the mutual life said the company had bought securities from syndicates that officers of the company also bought securities from the syndicate and received individual profits by selling these bonds to the company ho did not sea that there was any impropriety in tho officers going into syndicates when the company had gone in first mr cromwell was still on the baand when tho adjourned until morning it was brought out during the investigation vesti gation that mr hyde had bound himself with mr ryan to return the paid for abo equitable stock provided full delivery was not made at the expiration of the trust mr alexander was questioned as to the whereabouts of thomas D jordan formerly comptroller of the equitable he said he did not know where mr jordan was the committee desired to know where mr jordan ws because he was one of the men who knows about the unexplained loan of the mercantile trust company to the equitable on the subject of former prices of equitable stock mr alexander said it had sold 1000 a share fifteen years ago recently marcelius hartley dodge had purchased tour shares at more than each the hyde stock was sold to mr ryan at approximately a share questions regarding the relation of the mutual life insurance company to guarantee trust company asked by frederick cromwell treasurer of the mutual he said that every member of the finance committee of the mutual with the possible exception of mr grannis was a stockholder in this trust company mr cromwell quoted a transaction in which the mutual had purchased several millions of cuban bonds while the guarantee trust company hal bought one million dollars worth why the mutual did not pur chase all the bonds itself mr cromwell replied that the insurance company did not wish to assume all the responsibility of possible loss mr cromwell said in reply to questions that the mutual which owned nearly halt of the trust companas comp anys stock would havo lost through any losses of the guarantee trust company mr hughes remarked 1 I do not understand what advantage trust companies aro to insurance companies asked to describe the mutual alliance trust company worth of whose stock was owned by abo mutual mr cromwell said it was a small company organized for business in the east side of new york and serving to aid tho mutual la buying largo stocks of bonds but that jt never paid a dividend herbert II 11 white secretary of tho connecticut mutual life insurance company gave the salaries of the connecticut mutual officers as president acting vice president secretary and treasurer he said that his company only made advances to agents when a new agency was started william H kingsley secretary trea surer of the penna mutual lite insurance company of pennsylvania said that the socie tys charter does not permit voting by proxy tho management takes no steps he said further to secure itself from being put out of office by an irresponsible majority of policy holders frederick cromwell treasurer of the mutual life was recalled he explained that in a syndicate in which the mutual life was concerned abo insurance company got all the profits it any members of the finance committee went into it privately it was through some banking house and not through the mutual the mutual he said has 2000 shares in the morton company and keeps a deposit there right along of or against which it does not draw it has not been drawn against since mr cromwell explained these large deposits by pointing out thai on all the stock the mutual held it had a profit of and that the trust companies held large amounts of this he regarded tho investments in the trust companies as very profitable would it be fair to assume that syndicate transactions are gotten up for the benefit of the managers the witness was asked I 1 without any question he replied now what good to you are trust companies you are well known as holders of large money you must have many applications for loans wo dont hear or ia we to invest in railroad companies and other large transactions tho japanese bond issue canio up ay special mention and mr crom wo said he was in it as well as the a prost of one quarter or a million dollars lie otten went into syndicates when the mutual had gone in first you dont thinh that alter using your best judgment on of the mutual alfo in syndicate transactions there is any impropriety in your malting money out of the same transactions no mr cromwell said he was a member of the syndicate which bandied tho japanese bonds the mutual was buying bonds from the syndicate and in the transaction in which kuhn loeb co acted as tho promoters he acknowledged having bought fifty bonds himself and as far as ho knew other members of the finance committee ot the mutual lite bought individual holdings and received individually heir share of the profit made by selling te bonds to the mutual it developed that the mutual receives 2 per cent interest on its deposits in the morton trust company the united states mortgage trust was next up this company belongs to the mutual lite and was obtained at a cost of tho company pays 20 par cent on the par value ot its stock and 5 per cent on its market value passing on to tha bank of california the witness testified that the mutual held shares of the nominal value of which had been purchased at the cost of tho committee then adjourned until tomorrow at 10 SO WESTERN IDEALS TRIUMPH peking sept G delayed in transmission an important edict has been issued in response to the memorial of yuan shi kwan and other prominent men abolishing examinations tor the old system of degrees by means of this system established from time immemorial china has recruited gov officers the idea ot obtain ing by competitive examination the best educated men Is good but it has been rendered entirely futile by the knowledge demanded hitherto tho aspirant for honors was required to be proficient in the writings of confucius and mothr classics the ability to compos essays in peculiar form really a kind of literary jugglery the learning so ac quiren was entirely useless tor practical purposes while tho close study required to attain the necessary knowledge prevents attention to other modern and more useful subjects moreover the posts of honor always falling to the lot of successful bandl tes thus educated discouraging effta in tha direction of western learning in future officers will be recruited from tha ranks of those educated according to the modern system in schools to bo established throughout the country examinations will be held in the various schools and not in the central towns as formerly this edict offers the strongest inducement to the chinese to acquaint themselves with western learning aad will prove a most effective means for cainas chinas salvation another edict advocates the dispatch of increasing numbers of students abroad chiefly kcf america and england |
