Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, With the Annual Message of the President, Transmitted to Congress December 2, 1895, Part I

Mr. Jackson to Mr. Olney .

Embassy of the United States,
Berlin , July 12, 1895 . (Received July 30.)

No. 300.]

Sir: Referring to Ambassador Runyon’s dispatch of the 11th ultimo (No. 273), I have the honor to report on the present condition of the affairs of the Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York in Prussia.

At the time of the ambassador’s departure from Berlin a memorandum—which had been prepared with the assistance of Mr. McClintock, the actuary of the company, and which embodied the principal points of the memorial dated May 31 last, addressed to the President by Mr. McCurdy, the company’s president, and transmitted as an inclosure in the Department’s instruction, No. 313, of the 4th ultimo—was under consideration by the Prussian Government. The ambassador had left this memorandum at the foreign office during an interview which he had had with the acting secretary of state for foreign affairs on or about June 27, and on July 3, when General Runyon called to inform Baron von Rotenhan that he was going on leave, no answer had as yet been received from the Prussian minister of the interior, to whom the memorandum had been referred.

On July 8, no answer having yet been received and as the date for the withdrawal of the concession was only a week off, I accompanied Mr. McClintock, at his request, to the ministry of the interior. There we had an interview with the acting minister, and learned that a reply to the memorandum had been prepared and would be transmitted to the embassy through the foreign office, and that as the United States Government had interested itself in the matter the concession would not be withdrawn on the 15th instant, but that the final decision would be reserved until the minister and the privy councillor having special charge of such matters had returned from their vacations, which would be about the middle of August, and that no steps would be taken toward the expulsion of the company from Prussia without due notice.

Mr. McClintock, however, preferred to make an attempt to obtain an earlier settlement of the case, and the same day addressed a letter to me (a copy of which is inclosed, marked inclosure 1) of which I left a copy with Baron von Rotenhan on the 9th instant, together with a memorandum (inclosure 2 herewith) which I had prepared and of which Mr. McClintock expressed his approval.

Baron von Rotenhan, after reading the memorandum, Mr. McClintock’s letter to me, and the “suggestion” (written in German in the original) made by him, asked if he was to consider the request as coming from the United States Government. To this I replied that I did not feel at liberty to say that, but that as the embassy had been instructed to use its good offices in behalf of the company, I was sure that the United States Government would be gratified if the Prussian Government found itself in a position to arrange matters in a manner which should be satisfactory to the company’s authorized representative.

It is not, however, to be anticipated that a decision will be reached for several weeks—until the return to their posts of the officers of the ministry of the interior—and during Mr. McClintock’s absence, he having left Berlin to-day, I shall take no further step in this matter, unless instructed to do so, until a reply from the foreign office is received.

I have, etc.,

John B. Jackson

.

[Inclosure 1 in No. 300.]

Mr. McClintock to Mr. Jackson .

Berlin , July 8, 1895 .

Sir: Several residents of Berlin who approve the principles of the Government concerning control of surplus held for terms of years tell me that the annexed suggestion would, in their judgment, be satisfactory to the Government. If it is adopted by the Government, the company will be content.

If the company is acknowledged to be strong and honorable (and the company invites and will pay the expense of an examination in New York by any Prussian or other expert whom the Government may send for that purpose), it would seem that restriction to plans of business approved by the Government must be sufficient atonement for its failure to report by groups when it carries on no groups.

Yours, etc.,

Emory McClintock,
Actuary of the Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York

.

Proposition for most gracious consideration.

Instead of a withdrawal of the concession, as punishment for noncompliance with Section IV, 8, let it rather be ordered:

That any company which does not comply with the provisions of Section IV, 8—

(1) May issue no policies in Prussia, except with dividends which are payable annually.

(2) Where such a company publishes a statement showing the amount of its surplus, it should always state that only those policies which are in force at the time of striking the balance shall participate in the future dividends from the accrued surplus.

(1) The question of control will be settled per se as each policy receives its dividend annually.

(2) No person taking out a new policy could erroneously be made to think that he could draw benefits from the large surplus from former policies.

[Inclosure 2 in No. 300.—Shown to and approved of by Mr. McClintock and left at Foreign Office with Baron von Rotenhan, July 9, 1895.]

memorandum.

The inclosed copy of a letter—with annexed suggestion—has been received to-day from Mr. Emory McClintock, actuary of the Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York, who is at present in Berlin with full power to act for and in the name of the above-mentioned company. The “suggestion” is intended to take the place of any previous suggestion or proposal made, and it is Mr. McClintock’s desire not to enter into any controversy based upon the memorandum left with his excellency Baron von Rotenhan, etc., by the American ambassador about two weeks ago, to which it is understood a reply has been prepared by the Royal Prussian ministry of the interior. This reply the Mutual Life Insurance Company is willing to accept without further discussion at this time.

At an interview which Mr. McClintock had on July 8, instant, he proposed leaving a copy of the “suggestion” now made with the officer in charge of the Prussian ministry of the interior (Director Hasse), but that officer stated that he would prefer to receive the same through the Imperial foreign office.

The Mutual Life Insurance Company is very desirous of continuing to do business in Prussia, its only building in any European city being situated in Berlin, and it is anxious to conform to the Prussian regulations in so far as its present business system allows, or by making changes in the Prussian business which would not operate to its serious detriment elsewhere.