PERTINENT PARAGRAPHS. We offer no apologies for reproducing the following paragraphs from the President's New Year circular. They are good not only for January the 1st, but for July the 4th, or any other time, either now or in the future: "The Equitable's preliminary building is done and now our chief aim must be to maintain, and guard, and render lasting and imperishable this great organization, so that its policyholders shall enjoy the utmost security, be guarded by the most absolute protection, and obtain the utmost advantage which can be secured for them under a wise and conservative administration. "The agent will find his work materially lightened if he can quickly secure the confidence of those with whom he talks, and there is no way of securing public confidence so readily as to be able to point to a righteous, conscientious, successful, progressive mangement-a management which has secured, and maintains the confidence of its existing members. "Nothing in the experience of the officers of the Equitable Society has given them greater pleasure and encouragement than your loyalty and enthusiasm in connection with this reform-a reform the far reaching consequences of which all of you may not have seen clearly in the beginning. This gratification has been due chiefly to the fact that your action has proved your confidence in the management of the Society; it has shown that you clearly recognize that whenever a change is made by us, it is made for the benefit and advantage of the business, and consequently designed to aid and benefit the agent. Of one thing you may be certain, and that is that with such a history as ours behind us, the officers of the Equitable will never consent to any retrograde movement in connection with any point in which principle is involved; that, with a reputation second to none for conducting the business on the highest plane of strict mutuality, the officers of the Society will never seek to gain temporary applause at the expense of solidity and consistency, and true permanent prosperity. "Never lose sight of the fact that the Equitable is in every fibre a mutual organization. This explains the fact that what is to the interest of the Society is to the interest of the policyholder, and what is to the interest of the policyholder is in the long run necessarily to the interest of the agent. It is one of our proudest boasts that in the early days the Equitable came to be known as the 'Agents' Company,' for the same principles which have constrained the management of the Society to guard and protect the interests of its policyholders have induced it to guard and protect the interests of its agents, not in a superficial way, but after looking into the future and carefully determining what measures will be best in the long run for those who work for us, so that the motto of the Equitable agent may be the motto of the Equitable Society-'Not for a day but for all time.' "The Equitable does not seek to attract to its ranks the superficial, inconstant, ephemeral agents that are floating everywhere on the surface of the community, and who, having no permanent interest in the business they transact, are the men to sell the policies of the character referred to above, but we desire to attract to the Equitable those who have selected life assurance as a permanent business; who can appreciate the advantage of working for a company whose officers dare to do right no matter what the consequences may be; agents who recognize the advantage of representing that company which has the greatest strength and are ready to co-operate in so conducting its affairs that it shall continue always to be the 'strongest in the world.'" SURPLUS. Not long ago the Superintendent of Banks wrote the following letter about a financial institution regarding which some rumors were afloat: "Dear Sir.-In order that the public may get no false impressions as to the standing and the affairs of the Trust Company, I wish to state that I find it in an entirely solvent condition, having a surplus of at least $1,000,000. Very truly yours, "F. D. KILBURN, Superintendent of Banks." This was published in the papers and the public were instantly satisfied. Observe that this letter contains no further information than that the company had a million dollars of Surplus. The Bank Examiner knew what the public wanted to know, and there he let the matter rest. be paid sooner or later. How soon is one of the great uncertainties. ABOUT NORFOLK, VA. One of our correspondents writes as follows: I spent a few days in Norfolk not long ago, stopping at the "Monticello," one of the newest and finest hotels in America. I had the good fortune to meet there your courteous and accomplished manager, Major Myers, who initiated me into the attractive mysteries of the Lynnhaven oyster, cooked in a chafing dish and seasoned MR. WOLF GIVES MR. DOG A STRAIGHT TIP. Honorable agents should warn the intended victims of such "wolves," of the real motives of those who advise them to give up the substance for the shadow. CERTAINTY. That every life assurance policy, in a sound company, will, if kept in force, be paid sometime, is one of the certainties in this world of uncertainties. Policies insuring property are paid in but comparatively few instances, as payment only follows disaster. Every life policy must with his own hand. The Major is a good specimen of the sort of men who represent your company. He is full of the Equitable spirit, for which your field officers are famous. Every man, woman and child in the place knows him; he is universally popular, and everyone who knows Major Myers knows the Equitable. As we walked through the streets he told me the names of all the men who passed, and he placed in one of the following categories nearly every thus identified: "He has ten, or twenty, or fifty thousand in the Equit able;" or, "He has $5,000, but he ought to carry $50,000, and I shall keep after him about assuring, and I expect to get him. At all events he has promised me that whenever he takes assurance it will be in the Equitable." man He introduced me to a number of the prominent citizens of Norfolk, and always finished up the introduction by saying that they were either policyholders already, or would THE PARIS EXPOSITION. M. Percy Peixotto has made arrangements to have a very handsome and instructive exhibit in the "Publishers' Building" at the Paris exhibition. This exhibit will display the growth and progress of the Equitable, with other interesting and instructive features of the work and operations of the Society. We trust that any representative of the Society having any policyholders who intend going to the Exposition, will invite them to visit the Equitable exhibit, where there will be representatives in attendance and every facility for reading and writing, etc. We think it would be well to cordially invite our policyholders to make themselves at home in the Paris office of the Society, Avenue de l'Opera, 36-36 bis, where they will be heartily welcomed and every courtesy extended, and where they may have their mail addressed, etc. If you have a policyholder going to this Exposition we would suggest that you give him a letter of introduction to M. Peixotto. Such a letter will be honored in every way, and earnest consideration given to the person so introduced. THE VALUE OF LIFE. In nine cases out of ten, it may be taken for granted that a man's life is worth more to-day than it was worth five or six years ago. Men are earning more, are making more in their business or profession, and for this reason the value of a man's life must always be greater in prosperous than in dull times, so far as actual dollars and cents are concerned. If a man in hard times is earning $5,000 a year, and in the prosperous times of to-day is earning $10,000-and probably planning for the spending of it-he certainly needs more protection than when he was only making half that amount. If such a man should die today his family will lose double the income of which they would have been deprived if he had died years ago when he was earning only half the amount. Such a man needs to carry assurance accordingly. This does not apply to any particular class, but to practically all classes of men. Men are making plans on the basis of large earnings during the next few years, and it certainly will be a sensible thing for them to carry adequate life assurance so that their plans can be carried out even in the event of their death. |