FRIENDLY SOCIETIES.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 13747, 31 May 1910, Page 3

FRIENDLY SOCIETIES.

DEPUTATION TO THE HON.. J. A. MILLAR. (SPECIAL TO "THK J'RESS.") DUNEDIN, May 27. In reply to a deputation of Friendly Societies which «sl<ed that clauses 1«> and 1G .should be reinstated in the- Bill passed last session, the Hon. J. A. Millar said that the matter the deputation had brought under his notice was one of very great importance, and "was fur-reaching in it-> effects. He quite agreed, that they were now reaching a critical stage in the history of their Friendly Societies in New Zealand, for the simple reason that Friendly Society schemes, like those of life insurance and superannuation institutions, required to goon for a number of years before they reached the point when they knew whe-. ther they were going to be financial or not. The New Zealand societies were now gradually approaching that stage when those who originally founded them were coming to an age when naturally they .became a bigger charge on the -funds? than in their earlier days. The question of paying a sufficient contribution to meet the liabilities was one ol" the utmost importance to every society. When the original Bill was brought down by the Govern-nent the flaut.es in question were in the Bill. In 1909 the same Bill came down again and was referred to a Committee aim t-vider.ee was taken. It was pretty well on in the session before it came back io tho House- and tho opposition which was threatened to the Bill made it ab-r-olutely necessary, if the Bill was to <s,o en the Statute Book at all that session, to sacrifice the two clauses that were going to cause debate. Ho would lay the representations of the deputation before the Minister of Finsnce in regard to re-introdneiion of a thiru Bill containing either Clause 13 or Clauses lo and 16. as he might think most suitable. He thought it only rip.ht that whihi thp Government provided machinery for the registration of Iliose societies it ought, a.v far as possible, to see that tiiose who took adi ant age of tin's legal machinery '\y joining the societies were protected, .''"very society purporting to offer benefits to the people of New Zealand should have its tables acfruarially in-

rcstigated and certified to as being capable of doing what it professed to do.