CHAMBERS'S INFORMATION FOR THE PEOPLE. 



to each fund, and is. a year payable by each 

 member of each fund. Females, being generally 

 longer lived than males, are admitted at a lower 

 rate. The general soundness of these arrange- 

 ments has been proved by the periodical examina- 

 tion of the society's affairs, although experience 

 has shewn that the Highland Society's sickness 

 table, which has been repeatedly condemned by 

 such men as Dr Fair and Mr Neison, is defective, 

 and needs revision. 



Statistics of Friendly Societies. 



It is estimated that the various friendly societies 

 in the United Kingdom possess over 4,000,000 

 members, and that as many more are interested, as 

 wives, children, &c. of members, in the benefits 

 promised by these institutions, the number ol 

 which is believed to exceed 32,000 registered and 

 unregistered in England and Wales alone, the 

 funds at the command of the same being com- 

 puted at ji 1,000,000. The societies have been 

 grouped in several classes : affiliated societies or 

 orders, ordinary large or general societies, county 

 societies, local town societies, local village and 

 country societies, trade societies, dividing or 

 yearly societies, deposit friendly societies, collect- 

 ing and burial societies, annuity societies, and 

 female societies. 



Among the affiliated societies, we have the 

 Independent Order of Odd-fellows, with 3488 

 courts or lodges, and 435,988 members, on the i ith 

 January 1874 ; and the Ancient Order of For- 

 esters, with 3651 courts or lodges, and 407,009 

 members, on the ist January 1874. Taking the 

 various orders in this section, possessing over 

 i coo members each, we find that in England and 

 Wales they number 34, with upwards of 1,250,000 

 members. Several of the orders have branches 

 in the various British colonies, and even in the 

 United States. The number of affiliated members 

 in Scotland and Ireland is estimated at 25.000. 

 Sir George Young says that ' the principal 

 drawback incidental to the affiliated system is its 

 expense. The threefold management of order, 

 district, and branch costs much more than that 

 of a local club ; not, of course, more by three 

 times, but still more. The expense of sending 

 delegates to the district and general meetings is 

 often a severe tax upon the branches.' 



The ordinary large societies are described by 

 the Registrar as ' doing business over the counter 

 offices for life-assurance and sickness in which 

 there is no connection or personal acquaintance 

 among the members, as there is in the ordinary 

 friendly society.' Of these societies there are 

 about loo in the United Kingdom. The Hearts 

 of Oak and Royal Standard are types of this 

 class of society. The members transmit their 

 contributions by post-office order, and receive 

 sick-pay and other benefits in like manner. The 

 affairs are managed by committees sitting in 

 London ; the only control possessed by the mem- 

 bers being that exercised at the general meetings. 

 The six leading associations of this class in 

 London possess 46,198 members, and funds to 

 the amount of .230,869. 



The county, local town, and local village so- 

 cieties are ordinary friendly societies, differing 

 chiefly in extent, and in details of management 

 Several of the local town societies are in a singu- 

 larly prosperous condition, as at Hitchin, where 



520 



the Friendly Institution, with 313 members, pos- 

 sesses funds to the amount of 15,273. Trade 

 societies include such associations as the Scottish 

 ' Commercial Travellers' Friendly Society,' the 

 ' Locomotive and Steam Enginemen and Fire- 

 men's Society,' and the ' Manchester Warehouse- 

 men and Clerks Provident Association.' None 

 of these have anything to do with trades-unions. 

 Of dividing or yearly societies, we have already 

 spoken. They appear to be very numerous, espe- 

 cially in Scotland, where the practice is common 

 of having two societies dividing alternately every 

 six months, the same persons being members of 

 both. The deposit friendly societies are of a 

 somewhat artificial character, being attempts at 

 combining the savings-bank with the fnendly 

 society, but hitherto they have not made much 

 progress in this country. Some of the burial 

 societies are on a large scale. One at Blackburn 

 had, in 1872, 130,370 members, and funds esti- 

 mated at ^18,725. It is estimated that in the 

 United Kingdom there are no less than 600,000 

 members of burial societies. The collecting socie- 

 ties are very numerous and powerful. Among 

 these are the Royal Liver Friendly, with 550,000 

 members, and ^264,795 capital ; Scottish Legal, 

 216,343 members, and ,54,982 capital ; and the 

 United Assurance, 140,000 members, and ,15,311 

 capital. Twenty of the largest of these societies 

 are found to possess, in the United Kingdom, 

 1,426,073 members, and funds to the amount of 

 461,605, 43. lod. The annuity societies are 

 few in number, and, in England at least, appear 

 to be dying out Of registered female societies 

 in England and Wales, we have 283, with 22,691 

 members, and a capital of .79,053. 



These facts shew the extent to which the 

 friendly society system has been adopted in this 

 country, and the important influence it exercises 

 on the social condition of the labouring-classes. 

 Defective as is the management of many societies, 

 they are not wholly useless, and could they 

 be placed, with the consent of their members, 

 upon a sound basis, they would do much to 

 lighten the national burden of pauperism. As it 

 is, they annually save no less than ,2,000,000 to 

 the rate-payers of this country. 



ANNUITIES. 



In addition to the annuity business which forms 

 such an important item in the transactions of our 

 friendly societies, there are numerous companies 

 which grant annuities on the principle of making 

 a profit by them ; and sometimes this branch of 

 business is carried on in connection with that of 

 life-assurance. There are also associations of 

 individuals for obtaining annuities and endow- 

 ments to widows and other nominees on the 

 mutual-assurance principle ; and one large class 

 of these, at present flourishing in various parts 

 of the United Kingdom, are said to be based on 

 unsound calculations, and fraught with disappoint- 

 ment to those relying upon them. There is indeed 

 one circumstance generally unfavourable to an- 

 nuity business namely, that the ordinary tables of 

 mortality present views of the expectation of life 

 somewhat below what is at present the truth 

 'n England. Hence, what makes life-assurance 

 Dusiness everywhere so prosperous, is precisely 

 that which tends to make annuity business a source 



