288 Mr W. Fraser on the History and Constittition of 



be very little dependence placed upon them ; they seem to have been taken 

 on a gross average ; that such must be the average of sickness ; and I had no 

 data from which my conclusions could be drawn entitled to confidence."— 

 Page 56. 



March 18 John Finlaison, Esq. again examined. He is " stUl of opinion 



that, with the materials now existing, we are unable to reduce the event of 

 sickness to a determinate law ; but, nevertheless, I apprehend that it might 

 be considered analogous to insurance against fire and sea-risk, and judged of 

 by experience with tolerable accuracy." He farther observes, that there ex- 

 ist extensive data for forming a judgment on the subject among the labour- 

 ing classes in his Majesty's arsenals, as also in every regiment in England, 

 and submits the propriety of obtaining returns from these and similar sources. 

 He likewise handed to the Committee the form of a return, which he con- 

 ceived Friendly Societies could comply with, and without any difficulty. — 

 Page 68. 



April 22 Charles Oliphant, Esq. convener of the Committee of the 



Highland Society on Friendly Societies. This gentleman having explained 

 minutely to the Committee the way in which the returns to that body had 

 been collected, and the manner in which their sickness table was framed, 



Mr John Finlaison was again called in. " When you gave an opinion to 

 this Committee on the 11th of March, upon the formation of the Scotch 

 Tables, had you made yourself master of the mode in which the tables were 

 constructed in their book ? I had not ; for I only then saw the book for the 

 first time in the committee-room." — " Have you looked at the Report since ? 

 I have : I have looked at the Report, and looked at the mode in which the 

 tables were constructed ;" but he is still not able to give any farther " opi- 

 nion upon the tables, except that as much was done as was possible with the 

 means which the framers of that Report possessed ; yet I think that the data 

 must be considered as far too limited to deduce tables of premiums from. — 

 When you say that the data are far too limited, do you mean that the num- 

 ber of persons was too small ? Yes ; but I consider that the foundation is 

 laid by that method for perfecting the information, so that at a future period 

 something may be done. — You conceive, then, that the mode which the High- 

 land Society adopted was the correct mode of coming to the result they de- 

 sired ? I am not exactly prepared to give an opinion upon that question ; I 

 don't know that it is the best mode that could be adopted.— Because you said 

 before that it was not ? Will you be so good as to read what I said before on 

 that subject ? You were asked, ' You are aware that the Sickness Table ap- 

 pended to that Report is framed upon the experience of seventy or eighty 

 societies in Scotland ; and then, supposing the returns from these societies to 

 be correct, do you conceive that Table III. is formed upon correct principles ?' 

 and you said you did not ; Now, are you satisfied upon that point ? I am 

 not any farther satisfied than I was before." 



Mr Oliphant re-examined. " You heard the last observation of the wit- 

 ness (Mr Finlaison), will you have the goodness to make your observations up- 

 on it ?" " The statement made by Mr Finlaison is mentioned in his deposi- 

 tion, which I have seen ; but he mentions that he had not read the report at 

 that time. On looking at the report you will please to observe, that the sick- 

 ness is always referred to the exact age when it occurred. Under the column 

 Free Members, the number of members during the year is given in each class ; 

 and under the head of Allowances, the sickness arising in that class, and during 

 that yeM", is given. The error into which Mr Finlaison has fallen, may have 

 arisen from the abbreviated form in which it was necessary for us to exhibit 

 the results. The details from which these are derived form a volume about 

 the size of an ordinary atlas. We could not publish such voluminous details, 

 and the abbreviated form adopted in exhibiting them, has, I presume, given 

 rise to the misconception." — " What proportion of the societies do you ap- 

 prehend did give the information ? An extremely small proportion. Whilst 

 from the whole kingdom of Scotland, we collected returns from between 70 

 and 80 societies, I have had an application from the societies of Edinburgh, 



