AUSTRALIAN MUTUAL PROVIDENT SOCIETY.

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume I, Issue 104, 17 July 1877, Page 3

AUSTRALIAN MUTUAL PROVIDENT SOCIETY.

(From the Timaru Herald, March 10.)

MR. B. SHORT, Travelling Agent for the Australian Mutual Provident Society, delivered a long and most interesting lecture on March 9, on the subject of Mutual Life Assurance. His Worship the Mayor was in the chair, and the Mechanics' Hall was filled with a large and attentive audience. Mr. Short's as a lecturer are unquestionable, and he enlivens his subject with a great deal of the humorous. He commenced his remarks by touching on the beauties of home life, and the power which each member of a family, more especially the mother, wife, or husband had to make it all that could be desired. He was glad to see so many young people present, who, he was sure, anticipated making happy homes for themselves, and he hoped to give them a hint or two to enable them to attain their desire. He went on to say that the only two schemes before the public of this colony were the Government and the Australian Mutual Provident Society. He had no intention whatever of running down or depreciating the Government scheme. New Zealand was quite large enough for both,, JHe would just refer to the position of the Australian Provident Society. It was purely a mutual one; the whole of its profits belonged to the policy holders themselves, while with a proprietary company a proportion of the profits went into the pockets of the shareholders. It was an extension of the principle of the Friendly Societies, which cooperated for the purposes of providing in case of sickness or benevolence ; while the Mutual Provident Society made provision for the calamity of one's death. During the twenty-eight years of its existence the Australian Provident Society had paid away £700,000 to families which otherwise would have been left dependent or unprovided for. If a man was insured in the Society for more than thirteen months his policy practically became indefeasible, nor did he lose it so long as its surrender value was sufficient to pay for the next year's premium. If a member of the Society for three years, he could borrow 90 per cent, of the surrender value by simply signing a letter. In this way the society had £157;000 out on loan. • He would like people to understand that the premiums received in the colony were not taken out of it. Many people were not aware of that fact. There was a board of directors for each colony, and all the business done in New Zealand was controlled by the board of directors for the ■colony. The Mutual Provident Society was as much a New Zealand Society as if it had been started in New Zealand. The Society's eggs were not confined to one basket. While they had 170,000 invested In the securities of this colony, they had £1,800,000 in those of other colonies. Supposing a crisis were to come here the Society would not sell out; the bulk of their securities were elsewhere, and they were stronger by distributing their risks. He strongly recommended j r oung men between the ages of seventeen and twenty to Insure ; because at early ages the premiums were very small. The Society had only 70 out of every 100 that were expected to die, gaining 30 per cent, in the difference. And who got that gain? Why the insurers ; but the Society had also great advantages in investing its money, aud frequently made large profits in that eway. The policy-holders benefited by that, for they got a share of the profit. Another security which insurers in New Zealand had was that the Society had deposited £20,000 with the public trustee of the Ifcolony, and any person, by paying 55., could register his policy with the trustee, and obtain the additional security thus afforded. The Society's premiums were made up of two calculations—one for risk and the other for expenses. In five years they did not absorb by £100,000 that portion of the premiums paid for expenses consequently that sum was savod ; yet the tables were framed upon the 4 per cent, computation. All made over thnt went to the policy-holders. The Society lent about $£00,000 upon the same terms as the building societies, which returned to the Society a much higher rate of interest. People could not make a mistake in joining tin's society. All its profits went to the policy holders. It had been in existence twenty-eight years, and had more than paid out of interest alone every death claim that had been made upon it. Therefore people were short-sighted if they did not insure with the society. Mr Black believes that in a few years the society would be able, liko some American mutual offices, tff distribute £200,000 a year in that way. In a word, the prospectus of the Australian Mutual Society were brighter than they had ever before been. It could not possibly fail unless the laws of mortality altered. At the conclusion of his remarks a hearty vote of thanks was passed to Mr Short for his instructive lecture ; and another to the chairman. Several persons then came forward (the chairman amongst the others) and tendered their names as being desirous of becoming members of the society. ■

(From the Oamaru Evening Mail, March 7.) Keferring to the remarks we made on Government Life Assurance in our issue o£ March sth, we wish to state that when comparing the Government scheme with private companies we did not intend in any way to deter people from taking policies in such an undoubted Society as that of the Australian Mutual Provident, which was commenced as a benevolent society for working men twenty-eight years ago, the Direciors and Secretary first year giving their services gratuitously—the total cost for the same period begin £90. _ It is wonderful that witla so small a beginning the Society should have grown to its present prorportions, with an accumulated fund of nearly two millions sterling, which represents considerably more than ninety per cent- of the whole of the premiums received on existing polices, and this after all claims, bonuses, and expenses are paid. About fifty per cent, would be sufficient to proVe the soundness and security of the Society so that a very large surplus is available as a reserve for bounses, in which new members participate. We. understand this, to a great extend is owing to the great care of accepting risks, for while extra provision was Triad c in case an eqidemic should carry of£ larger numbers than calculated by the tables, only 70 persons have died out of each 100 expected, leaving a large margfti ; and as the scheme is purely cooperative, this gives increased stability and profits to persons insuring at the present time. Every during the

whole twenty-eight years has been paid out of interest alone. Having compared the tables of both Government and the Mutual, we find that we were in error in lying stress on the lower rate of the former, as the . Mutual'e whole life-tables without profits, is less than the Government tables ; and although the other tables are die very large bounsesallotted to theMutnal's polices leaves a wide margin after making deductions for smaller premiums. An instance of this : A member insured, during 1853, in the Mutual, for £1000, for which he paid £26 17s 6d, or about £4 5s per annum more than the Government rate ; but in 1873 his cash bonuses amounted to over £285 —or his added bonuses, £687. We have made these remarks in justice to the Mutual, as we were under the impression that other officers, of a very different character were doing business in "'the district, but having been informed that no other Society but the Australian Mutual is canvassing for policies, we felt it right to make the above remarks to ossure the many whom Aye are glad to learn have-taken policies in the Society of its succes and stability, and when it is borne in mind that all the monies received in the colony have been invested here, that the business is conducted within the colony that every member has a vote if he likes to exercise it, and that the business of the Society has been conducted' in the most honorable and liberal spirit, no policy having been settled in. a court of law, one notable case in Oamaru of a member of 18 month's standing , a few days, in arrears where thejjoffieo paid the claim, gives.to this Society an altogether different character to the Societies referred to in our article, and while wishing success to the agent of the Australian Mutual Provident Society. T. S. BULMER, Esq., M.D., formerly Quarantine Officer, Wellington, and Medical Referee for the New Government Insurance Department, is now Medical Referee for the Australian Mutual Provident'"Society, and will be present at the lecture of Mr. Short, so that parties desirous of entering the Society can bu immediately examined. Examinations can be made at Dr. Bulmer's residence, Beach House, rear of public school, Akai - oa.