DRUIDIC TROUBLES.'

Wanganui Chronicle, Issue 12856, 16 December 1912, Page 5

DRUIDIC TROUBLES.'

THE DEATH LEVY SCHEME,

AN UNSOUND SYSTEM

THE NEW SCHEME

POSITION EXPLAINED

CONSOLIDATION OF SICK FI?ND.

(Special to/'Oiropicle.")

AUCKLAND, Dec. 14. A good deal of coiicern^hias Jbeea evinced among members of Druid Dodges recently concerning the death, fevy and the oonsolidaltion of the sick^funds. Mr A. Thomipson, Vice-iGiiand Bresid'en|> of, the Order of Druids, was therefore interviewed by a, l-epresentatiye of the "Star.", "The position," he.said', "is explained very simply. When ithe (present system first came into fore© it was only costing the members' Is 6d per annum, tout last year it totalled" 11s., and for the past quarter the levy am-, ounted to 45., which, df maintained, would reach 16s : per annum-. In 1896\ ; the deaths totalled three, but in 1911 .the liumibor iwas 46.. At the /present . \rate of cqjiitri'butioii and .meniibership, . '■ the".-.liabilities under the death scheme fin existence are £1;100,000, and tho I assets £250,000. Bad this tfund been I put on a proper basis at its foundia- ■ tion it would' have been a fine thing now !. for the Order, but the (absolute posij tion is that the Grand Lodge. [pays out the benefit -and collects the levy at J the end of cadi quarter., so that there | are no accumulaited funds. The execu- ' tive considered it to be their duty to submit <a scheme th/at as actuaraly sound, and the one submitted, I'miay add, lias the unanimous approval. of the executive as being in the best interests of th& • Order. It will 'also, when (adapted, be j resrifst-ered by the Government Ilegiistirar of Friendllv.-So.cietic.-3 a<? being financially Bound. All members over theiage of 45" years will be admitted as at that <age, and the added liability on accounlt of that will be met by a, levy of 3d per \ £20 per annum on the mejiifbers ta<bing up. the scheme. The levy will continue until that (special linlbilityjs liquidated. The object1 of the executive is to seethat every anemibeir sets the (benefit thatf is offered to him under ianv such scheme and that is guananteecl , under the scheme submitted, joining which, by theway. is quite a voluntary matter. " Then there is the question Q)f the ■ ■consolidation-.of 4>he sick fund. Tha* system has been adtopied in the ComTnoniwealth and has proved a success. In- New South Wales tflie number of members of -.friendly societies is 149,----422,' and the number of members of consolidated societies is 149,103 a percentage of 99.98. Tlie system has -been fairly tried in the Cammon.wealth, an<J' has proved such a marked success that societies which, previous to joining, showed a. deficit, now -have a suiiplus. In some cases tlie benefits ha,ve been, increased and the contributions decreased. The .principal feature of the consolidated scheme as that the members receive the greatest possible benefit for the amount ttheypiy. Another point under the present system is that off a member being unable to take his clearance from one lodlge to another. Tha£ will (be abolished, so that a member can join, waithout further examination, the nearest lodge of the order, no matter what part of *he Dominion he may remove to. Under the oonsoifi3-atioh. system the funds are lent to ibetteradvantiage, and I may add, will ibe finally approved next Februiary. lafter which the scheme will be- brought intoforce. . ■ • >" "There is another poiat to which I wish, to refer—our death benefit scheme does not name tJhe sum £50. The sum® provided -for are £20 -up tio £80. For the former, the contribution- per - quarter is Is Id, and -for ,the latter 10s 6d. _ Another matter I wish-to emphasise is that the consolidation off furitlis - does not carry .with it centi-aliaatjon, as provision has been .miade in our scheme for lodges with over three hundred members to invest their own funds on behalf of the Grand Lodge triistees. The moneys will not be invested in any one ; district, but where the best seour'itv is. offering."