294 A S S U R 
fhips, and lives; the London Affurance, in Birchin-lane, 
for fhips, houfes, and goods; the Hand-in-Hand Fire- 
office, Angel-court, Snowhill, for houfes only ; the Union 
Fire-office, Maiden-lane, Wood-fireet, for goods only ; 
the Weftminffer Society, for granting annuities, and in- 
furing houfes and lives; the Sun Fire-office, Cornhill, for 
houfes and goods ; the Phoenix Fire-office, Lombard-fireet 
and Charing-crofs, for every kind of property; the Ami¬ 
cable Society for a perpetual Affurance-office, Serjeant’s- 
inn, Fleet-ftreet; and the Equitable AU'urance-office, on 
Lives and Survivorfhips, in Bridge-ffreet, Blackfriars. 
The London Affurance, is a corporation eflablifhed by 
a charter of George I. in 1720; under power of which, 
Affurances are made from the rifk of fea-voyages, and 
from the danger of fire to houfes and goods; the prices 
of which are regulated by the apparent rifk to be allured. 
They alfo make alfurances on lives ; the prices of which 
are formed on an eftimation of the probable duration of 
life at different ages, on the confideration of the apparent 
health of the perfon to be allured, and of their avocations 
in life. This corporation, and the Royal-Exchange cor¬ 
poration, gave each the fitm of 150,0001. to government, 
for an exclufive right of making afl'urances as corperate bo¬ 
dies. They are known to poffefs a large and undeniable 
fund to anfvver Ioffes: and the prudent management of 
thefe corporations has enabled them, of late years, to in- 
creafe gradually their dividends to the proprietors of their 
ffock. This exclufive privilege to make affurances as cor¬ 
porate bodies, is of great advantage and convenience to 
the public ; and, as they aft under a common feal, the 
affured may have a fpeedy and eafy mode of recovering 
Ioffes, and cannot be fubjeft to any calls or deduftions 
whatever. When their charters were granted to them, it 
was enafted, that if a proprietor of the flock of one cor¬ 
poration fhould at the fame time, either direftly or indi¬ 
rectly, be a proprietor of Hock in the other corporation, 
the relpeftive flock fo held is to be forfeited, one moiety 
to the king, the other to the informer. This was evidently 
fettled to prevent their interell from becoming a joint one; 
fo that they fliould be made to afl in competition to each 
other, for the greater benefit of the public. 
The Royal-Exchange Affurance, is a corporation efla- 
bliffied by charter, as above, under the power of which, 
affurances are made from the rifk of fea-voyages, and from 
the danger of fire to houfes and goods ; the prices of which 
are regulated by the greater or lefs rifk fuppofed to be 
affured. They alfo make affurances on lives, the prices 
of which are formed on eftimation of the probable dura¬ 
tion of life at different ages, and under different circum- 
itances. This corporation has alfo, like the former, been 
empowered to grant life-annuities by an afl of parliament, 
which requires that the prices of the annuities fhould be 
expreffed in tables, hung up in fome confpicuous place in 
their offices, for public infpeftion ; and no agreement for 
any price is valid, but fitch as (hall be expreffed in the 
tables lad made and publifhed by the corporation. 
The Amicable Society at Serjeanffs-inn, requires an an¬ 
nual payment of 5I. from every member during life, pay¬ 
able quarterly. The whole annual income, hence arifing, 
is equally divided among the nominees, or heirs, of fuch 
members as die every year. But this fociety engages that 
the dividends fhall not be lefs than 150I. to each claimant, 
though they may be more. No members are admitted 
whole agesare greater than 45, or lefs than 12; nor is any 
difference of contribution allowed on account of difference 
of age. The fociety has fubfifted ever fince the year 170&, 
and its credit and ufefulnefs are well eflablilhed. 
The Equitable Society for Affurances on Lives and Sur¬ 
vivorfhips, at Blackfriaris-bridge, was eflablifhed in the 
year 1762, in confequence of propofals which had been 
made, and leflures, recommending fuch a defign, which 
had been read by Mr. Dodfon, author of the Mathemati¬ 
cal Repofitory. It affures any films or reverfionary annui¬ 
ties, on any life or lives for any number of years, as well 
as for the whole continuance of the lives ; and in any man¬ 
ner that may be bed adapted to the views of the per fetus 
A N C E. 
affured : that is, either by making the affured futns pay- 
able certainly at the failure of any given lives, or on con¬ 
dition of furvivorfhip; and alfo, either by taking the price 
of the affurance in one prefent payment, or in annual pay¬ 
ments, during any fingle or joint lives, or any terms, lefs 
than the whole poffible duration of the lives. In fhort, 
there are no kinds of affurances on lives and furvivorfhips 
which this fociety does not make. 1 
In doing this, the fociety follows the rules which have 
been given by the bell mathematical writers on the doc¬ 
trine of Life Annuities and Reverfions, particularly Mr. 
Thomas Simpfon, profeffor of mathematics in the Royal 
Military Academy. It is to be obferved, however, that 
the fociety takes the advantage of making its calculations 
on the fuppofition that the interefl of money is at fo low a 
rate as three per cent, inflead of the ufual interell of four 
percent, which confequently raifes the infurance propor¬ 
tionally higher; and it alfo founds its calculations on the 
tables of the probabilities and values of lives in London; 
another circumftance which fecures a very advantageous 
profit to the fociety, as experience has proved that the 
deaths are really in a much lower proportion than accord¬ 
ing to thofe tables, and even lower than thofe of Dr. Halley* 
which are founded on the bills of mortality at Breflaw. 
By thefe means the fociety finding itfelf, by experience, 
well fecured againft future hazards, and being unwillin" 
to take from the public an extravagant profit, have redu^ 
ced the future payments for affurances one-tenth; and it 
feerns there is reafon to expect that this will be only a 
preparation to farther reduction. 
From the foregoing account of this fociety, it is matiifeft 
that its bufinefs is fuch, that none but fkilful mathemati¬ 
cians are qualified to conduct it. The interefl of the fo¬ 
ciety therefore requires, that it fhould make the places of 
thofe who manage its bufinefs fufficiently advantageous, to 
induce the ableft mathematicians to accept them :°and this 
will render it the more neceffary for the fociety to take 
care, in filling up any future vacancies, to pay no regard 
to any other confiderations than the ability and integrity 
of the candidates. The confequence of granting good, 
pay, will be a multitude of folicitations on every vacancy, 
from perfons who, however unqualified, will hope for 
fuccefs from their connexions, and the interefl they are 
able to make. And fhould the fociety, in any future time, 
be led by fuch caufes to trufl its bufinefs in the hands of 
perfons not pofieffed of fufficient ability, as mathematicians 
and calculators, fuch miflakes may be committed; as may 
prove, in the higheft degree, detrimental and dangerous. 
There is reafon to believe, that at prefent the fociety is in 
no danger of this kind ; and one of the great public ad¬ 
vantages attending it is, that it has eflablifhed an office, 
where not only the bufinefs above deferibed is tranfaded 
with faithfulnefs and fkill, but where alfo all perfons, who- 
want folutions of any queflions relating to life-annuities, 
and reverfions, may apply, and be fare of receiving juft 
anfwers. The following is a 
Table of the Rates of AJfurance on fingle Lives in the Society 
for Equitable AJurances. The Sum affured 100/. 
Age. 
For one year. 
Forfeven years 
at an annual 
payment of 
For the whole 
life at an annu¬ 
al payment of 
1 . 
s« 
d* 
1 . 
s. 
d. 
1 . s. d. 
IO 
I 
9 
6 
I 
10. 
7 
2 2 IO 
15 
I 
I I 
O 
I 
12 
7 
2 6 6 
20 
I 
*3 
II 
I 
l6 
Q 
2 12 10 
25 
I 
17 
7 
2 
O 
2 
306 
3° 
2 
2 
6 
-2 
6 
0 
3 8 11 
35 
2 
8 
7 
2 
14 
2 
3 I? 9 
40 
2 
19 
2 
3 
5 
I 
4 7ii- 
45 
3 
I I 
O 
3 
18 
6 
500 
50 
4 
4 
s 
4 
II 
2 
5 12 
55 
5 
O 
9 
5 
11 
7 
6 9 3 
60 
5 
1 9 
1 
6 
16 10 
7 17 7 
65 
7 
O 
I I 
8 
13 
O 
10 3 9 
Ther* 
