Benefit or Friendly Societies, Sll 



" The actuaries, however, Mr Finlaison and Mr Griffith Davies, whom 

 they desire<l to prepare tables upon these principles, have found it more expe- 

 dient to combine the three contingencies ; and your Committee recommend, 

 with much confidence, the Rules and Tables of Payments which these gen- 

 tlemen have prepared, with a view to their adoption by new societies.** • 



There are few other observations in this Report requiring here to be no- 

 ticed. It is suggested that the provision in the act of 1819, requiring the 

 tables of every society who may wish to enjoy the benefit of that act to be cer- 

 tified by two actuaries as correct, should be repealed ;— that, for insuring ac- 

 curacy, a direct reference of the rules of societies requiring sanction should 

 be made to the National Debt Office through the Clerks of the Peace ; — that 

 returns of the states of societies* affiiirs should be rendered as often as the 

 magistrates in Quarter Sessions may require, or, at any rate, once in 

 five years ; — and that the penalty in these, and all other cases of default, 

 should be the deprivation of the benefit of A}^ per cent, interest for their mo- 

 ney. It is likewise suggested that the interference of two justices in petty 

 sessions might properly be applied not only to the case of an unauthorised di- 

 vision or misappropriation of the funds, but to all other proceedings leadinf^ 

 less directly to a misappropriation of the funds, particularly the admission of 

 members beyond the age authorised by the rules, and thereby endangering 

 the stability of the society. Lastly, the Committee concur in most of the 

 other suggestions contained in the Report of 1825, and recommend to the 

 House their being formed into an act, which shall likewise consolidate all the 

 former enactments with regard to such societies as have been enrolled subse- 

 quently to the act of 1819. 



To the foregoing summary a very few additional observations 

 will at present suffice. 



By the late investigations, the utility and principles of Friend- 

 ly Societies have been fully developed, and means have been 

 pointed out, by which their schemes may be as permanently and 

 beneficially conducted as those of any of the higher classes of 

 mutual assurance associations. Although some difference of opi- 

 nion still exists as to the rates of sickness and mortality which 

 should be adopted for the calculations of such societies, yet the 

 data and tables that have been already procured may be safely 

 taken as standaixls, until, from farther experience, more satis- 

 factory guides can be obtained. As the tables of contributions, 

 however, materially differ from each other, it may become s 

 question which of them is best adapted for the practical pur- 

 poses of societies ; but it will be obvious that this must greatly 

 depend upon the circumstances in which the members of any 

 particular society may be placed,— whether situated in the coun- 

 try Qx in towns, in high or low situations ; and whether engaged 



* Report iu ia07» P> l^ 



%2 



