CONTINENTAL ASSURANCE COMPANY, Chicago, Ill. Organized 1911; capital, $100,000. H. G. B. Alexander, president; L. C. Rose and H. A. Behrens, vice-presidents; Manton Maverick, secretary; E. G. Timme, actuary and assistant secretary; W. H. Roberts, treasurer.

CONTINENTAL CASUALTY COMPANY, Chicago, Ill. Organized 1897; capital $300,000. H. G. B. Alexander, president; W. H. Betts, secretary.

CONTINENTAL LIFE AND HEALTH INSURANCE COMPANY, Atlanta, Ga. Organized 1901 as the Continental Aid Association, reorganized 1916. LeRoy Smith, president; W. S. Hunter, vicepresident; B. M. Cross, secretary and treasurer.

CONTINENTAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, Washington, D. C. Organized 1914. Edwin G. Cover, president; I. S. D. Sauls, vice-president; LeRoy Smith, secretary and treasurer; H. A. Bartholomew, assistant secretary.

CONTINENTAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, Wilmington, Del. Organized 1907; authorized capital, $1,000,000; cash capital, $396,790. Philip Burnet, president; Harvey L. Cooper, vice-president; George E. Saulsbury, second vice-president; John D. Kurtz, treasurer; Charles R. Churchman, secretary; Dr. P. W. Tomlinson, medical director.

CONTINENTAL LIFE INSURANCE AND INVESTMENT COMPANY, Salt Lake City, Utah. Organized 1904; capital, $208,875. F. J. Hagenbarth, president; H. E. Edwards, vice-president and general manager; and H. N. Mayo, vice-president and medical director; M. B. Johnson, secretary; J. V. Cummings, assistant secretary; W. S. McCornick, treasurer.

CONTRACTORS MUTUAL INSURANCE CORPORATION, New York, N. Y. Organized 1914. Stephen V. Duffy, president; John B. Chinnery, secretary.

COOK COUNTY PLATE GLASS INSURANCE EXCHANGE, Chicago, Ill. Organized in March, 1915. The present officers, elected in January, 1916, are: President, E. J. Collins, Fidelity and Casualty; vice-president, James I. Loeb; treasurer, H. S. Slipner, Metropolitan Casualty; secretary, Charles R. Ray.

CORPORATE SURETYSHIP. Following the custom as old as civilization, it was impossible, until comparatively a few years ago, to furnish bond excepting by personal sureties or collateral security. Corporate surety companies were therefore formed to enable a man to pay a company a premium for serving in lieu of personal surety or collateral security, guaranteeing the obligee against loss, if the conditions

of the bond should not be properly met. Corporate suretyship has been aptly described as a means of saving one's self from one's friends. This operates both ways, in that a man by furnishing corporate surety is relieved from obligations to friends who might serve as personal sureties; and those qualified to become sureties can better afford to pay the surety bond premium for a “friend," rather than risk personal loss by becoming his surety.

Since surety companies are classified as insurance companies, and the giving of bonds being far older than any form of insurance, it seems strange that corporate surety should be so long attaining its proper place. Insurance corporations became reasonably common in the seventeenth century, yet the first surety company was organized in 1851, but not admitted to the United States until 1881. One American company writing surety business was organized in 1876, another in 1884, and the important fact is that these four companies still survive, and practically all of the host of companies organized beginning with the year 1897 have ceased doing business.

This is due to many causes, but primarily to handling suretyship like insurance, assuming the volume of premiums would take care of the losses and writing business freely without regarding anything but the erratic loss experience gained from time to time. The chief errors included inadequate rates, improper standards of underwriting, underestimated loss reserves, and over-confidence generally. Needless to say that the companies which confused the ideas of mere production with those of safe underwriting, did not live long enough to acquire any experience, and that no stability was given the business until the formation of the present system of standardization of rates (differentiated as to the liability in various states under their ever-changing laws).

There are many mistaken conceptions of the scope and purpose of corporate suretyship, but the worst is the erroneous theory that the premium is intended to cover the risk. This is not the case, as a corporate surety is merely an accommodation surety and all elements of risk must be eliminated, as far as possible, so that the premium merely represents a service fee to save the principal from being under obligations to personal surety, and yet, at the same time, contemplating full re-imbursement to the surety company of all loss and expenses incurred.

The average surety company is qualified to transact all of the socalled multiple lines, i.e.: To cover all hazards, excepting fire and life insurance. The most successful companies are necessarily those which, though chartered as above, restrict their operations to fidelity, surety, and burglary business, for the only difference between fidelity and burglary is that the latter covers larceny, theft, and robbery caused by parties presumably unknown to the assured. In its properly restricted sense, corporate suretyship comprehends the issuing only of such obligations as a personal surety might sign with proper qualifications, and the soundest argument in favor of corporate-suretyship is the fundamental principle that the individual surety may die or fail and that only a permanent institution can be trusted on long contracts.

Many of the earlier companies began by writing only fidelity bonds; i.e., guaranteeing honesty and faithful performance of duties of officers and employees. Fidelity business still forms the foundation of a properly balanced surety income, and is the best class of business from all standpoints, because self-respect deters losses, realizing that discovery brings disgrace and punishment.

Next in line comes what are styled court fiduciary bonds, involving the same elements, but including as well, ability and proper fulfillment of trusts. To secure the proper administration of the trust and compliance with law and court orders by Federal and Bankruptcy fiduciaries, joint control of the assets is exercised by the referee, or the clerk of court. Surety companies follow the same practice in most cases, especially long terms trusts, thus safeguarding the interests of the beneficiaries, and, besides assisting the fiduciary, this relieves him by sharing responsibility for his disbursements. This practice has the approval of most courts and is provided for by enactments in most

states.

From this point on, all miscellaneous suretyship involves financial strength the ability to perform the contract, pay the amount involved or other object to be attained; and these bonds must, therefore, be underwritten entirely on banking principles. Bonds on appeal, supersedeas, and all other obligations equivalent to the endorsement of commercial paper, can only be safely guaranteed by the deposit with the surety company of cash or marketably convertible collateral equal to the face of the bond. Where collateral is not imperatively essential, the financial statement of the contractor or similar applicant must be unquestionably adequate and absolutely verified.

In spite of all precautions that can be taken, the percentage of actual underwriting profit is remarkably small, and statistics show that the most substantial gains are from the income from investments, salvage, and other sources the companies paying only nominal dividends and keeping operating expenses at an irreducible minimum. [For statistics see Surety and Fidelity Insurance.]

*By William H. Drapier, Jr., Superintendent of Agencies, National Surety Company, New York, N. Y.

COTTON STATES LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, Tupelo, Miss. Organized 1912. E. C. Hinds, president; W. T. Reeves and Travis H. Taylor, Sr., vice-presidents; Ira F. Archer, secretary; S. J. High, treasurer; W. R. Halliday, actuary.

CREDIT INSURANCE. (The guaranteeing and indemnifying merchants and others engaged in business and giving credits from loss thereby.) In 1893 there were four companies in the United States engaged in this business; only one domestic company, the American Credit Indemnity of New York, was in the field at the beginning of 1898. The business is now transacted by one American company and the United States branches of two foreign companies. The credit insurance business of three companies in the United States in 1915 was as follows:

The plan of credit insurance under which the United States Credit System Insurance Company of Newark, N. J., the pioneer company, worked was described by the insurance commissioner of New Jersey in his annual life insurance report of 1895, in making a statement of the reasons for the failure of the company. [See Cyclopedia for 1904–5.]

CRESCENT LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, Indianapolis, Ind. Organized 1914. John C. Humes, president; Ralph C. Cope, vice-president; Leslie D. Clancy, secretary; T. B. Lyons, treasurer.

D

DAKOTA MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, Watertown, S. Dak. Organized 1907; capital, $200,000. John B. Hanten, president; F. L. Bramble, secretary and treasurer; W. P. Robison, superintendent of agents; E. D. Lacy, actuary.

DAKOTA WESTERN ASSURANCE COMPANY, Watertown, S. Dak. Organized 1908. The company reinsured in the Surety Fund Life Insurance Company of Minnesota in 1916.

DANVILLE ASSOCIATION OF LIFE UNDERWRITERS, Danville, Ill. The association was organized in April, 1916, and the officers elected are: President, Charles N. Brown Illinois Life; vicepresident, F. M. Ferris, New York Life; secretary and treasurer, Donald D. Millikin, Union Central; executive committee, Lin H. Griffith, Federal Life, chairman; Frank L. Hendricks, Massachusetts Mutual; R. B. Kinningham, Northwestern Mutual; William Linck, Mutual Life, New York; and the officers, ex-officio.

DAVENPORT LIFE UNDERWRITERS ASSOCIATION, Davenport, la. Organized in February, 1915. Officers were elected as follows: President, S. Griffen Ball; vice-president, J. W. Higginbotham; second vice-president, Wm. McLean Stewart; secretary, George E. Ott; treasurer, A. W. Brown. The present officers, elected in February, 1916, are: President, H. L. Williams, Northwestern Mutual; vice-president, Frank H. Perry, Penn Mutual; second vicepresident, L. M. B. Morrissey, Phoenix Mutual; secretary, A. W. Brown, Mutual Life, New York; treasurer, E. N. Coleman, Connecticut Mutual.

DAYTON ASSOCIATION OF LIFE UNDERWRITERS, Dayton, Ohio, was organized in February, 1915. Officers were elected as follows: President, H. W. Lyndall, Travelers; vice-president, Hamilton Kerr, Mutual Benefit; second vice-president, R. T. Baker, Union Central; treasurer, J. M. Markham, Northwestern Mutual; secretary, W. O. Cord, Michigan Mutual. The present officers, elected in February, 1916, are: President, Ril T. Baker, Union Central; vice-president, J. B. Henley, Metropolitan; second vice-president, W. T. Nuttall, Prudential; secretary, H. A. Masterson, Travelers; treasurer, J. M. Markham, Northwestern Mutual; executive committee, Daniel C. Brower, National Life of Vermont; Harry D. Pease, Equitable; A. H. Scherer, Midland Mutual; and W. O. Cord, Michigan Mutual.

DEATH ROLL OF 1915. The following is a list of persons connected with life and miscellaneous insurance who died in 1915: