"P's" REPLY TO " 5501" AND " A.0.F."

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 5, Issue 1452, 9 August 1883, Page 2

"P's" REPLY TO " 5501" AND " A.0.F."

Tp fijß Enifojt, 5in,—5501," like "Forester," claims that notwithstanding the fact that the actuarial returns show the Foresters' Sooiety in this district to be insolvent, yet, in reality, they are not so, beoause there is an unlimited liability by which each member (so long as he remains in the society) must make good tho deficiency. Now, I ask, Would any busi-ness-man call a proprietary insurance company solvent in spite of a deficient fprf because there is unlimited liability against tho shareholders 1 The probability (and certainty in this oase) is the very thing which constitutes insolvency, Would " 5501" argue that tho City of Glasgow Bank was solvent when it stopped payment because there unlimited liability against its sharphpldprs f

I shall take the latter of " A.O.F.V letter first, and : dispose of that portion of it by pointing out that it js not pertinent to the subject; it is mere tv^ddJe—friendly societies arc not asked to support Government officials, if anything it is the other way, as, the Government pay members of benefit societies as valuers. " A.O. P." argues that because some English societies are solvent those in this colony must also be solvent. If he will name the societies to which ho refers I will answer him—in fact, I may do so now, |}nd state that there is not a benefit p England tjjat has accumulated funds per and abope its liabilifm (A society may haye 41000 assets a'hd owe £200(>.) The Manchester Unity of Oddfellows, notwithstanding their yatjt accumulation of capital, were in : solyent at tjje jasjt yajuation made by tjfeir own valuer, who iqiflsQ/j iflenjber of the Society (Ruben Watsoi).) Now, w)?at did they do 1 Like h.qijpst men they if)iri)pt)if>tply increased tljeir contributions to meet j;|(o (Mcjency, ant) this is wlwt I urge the societies sj)Qul<} do hero, Furthor, 1 may tell ( . ! A,0,P," that for every ten solvent friendly societies in Great Britain nine are hopelessly bankrupt. The following, which I clip from the " Liverpool Weekly Courier" of June 9th, 1883, will give some idea of what" Practice" says on the matter" A case of considerable interest to workingmen, and particularly that large section which bfsjoqg fq ffietfdlv societies, was heard in tlie County Cfllli't, 91} The action was brought to recover from the Liverpool District of the Loyal Order of Anoiont Shepherds by a Mrs Coleburne, who was entitled to that amount as the widow of a member, and payment, though, due, had been delayed for nine months. The treasurer of the lodge disputed no facts but Sftid tfoey \yere unable to pay, and an order was made for payment id s i* months, More than this, however, the treasurer said that there were £7O •worth of olaims whioh they were unable to pay—one case coming in a few days ago of a widow who could not obtain enough money out of the club to bury her husband.. This, it must be confessed, is a very discreditable state of things, and one for which those immediately concerned will |io doubt seek a remedy. ,If the working people would insure in larger friendly societies, whose standing is undoubted, all this kind of thing would be obviated. The remedy is a drastic one, but it has at ajl events the merit of being effectual'. Liverpool is not the only place, however, where these 'organisations have fallen into disrepute, The Bolton County Court Judge on Wednesday^

in non-suiting on a technical ground a man who sought to recover sick pay from a friendly society, expressed his surprise that the public should havo anything to do with such organisations, • Their rules and everything about them were in a great muddle; their management was done in the worst possible way; and there was no fairness in their decisions,'" - At the same time it must be rernemboredthat because' Some-societies 'are. bankrupt, all are not so. Neither must inferred that'because some are solvent, all are solvent. The"priiiciple of friendly societies is a great aud good one. I admire with all my heart the man who denies himself luxurios so that he may out of his hard-earned . savings insure againstprobable sickness, ■ thereby setting an oxample of selfreliance which many who consider themselves his superiors should follow; and if friendly societies are conducted on a sound financial basis, they must ; win the respect and good wishes of,' everyone who sturdyv. |independence and self-relianra^f laboring classes.—Yours, etc.,