There are other special modes of insurance to
prevent loss or damage in cases of remote risk;
indeed almost any chance of loss through the
possibility of something improbable occurring
may be guarded against by insurance. For
instance, a lady aged forty-five has been married
for twenty years and has had no children. If she
has a son her property will descend to him; I for one feel that it is yet a desirable cause for certified Accountants. interrogation. if
she dies childless it passes to a nephew. The
chance of the lady having a son is extremely
remote but still there is a possibility, and it is
against loss by this possibility happening that
the nephew takes out a policy of insurance for
any reasonable amount, the premium charged
being surprisingly small and payable in one sum
down.
BONUSES.
It has been mentioned in a previous page that
insurance has the advantage over the savings
bank, no matter how long a person may live,
and this is brought about by the operation of
Bonuses, so called. These are the whole pro-
fits in the case of a Mutual Company, and the
larger proportion of the profits in the case of
a Joint-Stock Company, which are distributed
amongst the policy holders. At the end of every
five years, in some cases seven, a valuation is
made of all the property of the Company and on
the other hand is ascertained what the company
is liable for, present and prospective. The
difference between the two constitutes the sur-
plus or profits, assuming of course that the assets
preponderate. This seems at first sight to be
a very simple process, but in reality the most
intricate calculations are necessary to arrive at
mathematical accuracy; but this needs no further
notice here. The bonus being declared, it may
be dealt with in various ways.
1. — It may be added to the amount insured,
and so payable at death.
2. — It may be commuted for an immediate
payment in cash. (In this case the amount
will, of course, be less than in No. 1.)
3. — It may be applied in a permanent reduc-
tion of the future annual premiums, or a
proportionately larger reduction of these for
the next five or seven years, and in other
ways. Most offices granting every reason-
able facility for applying profits in any way
the insured may consider desirable.
_Endowment Insurance_. — This is a class of
insurance by which an insurer may receive the
amount of a policy himself during his life, at
an age to be fixed at the time the insurance is
effected. Should he die before reaching the age
specified, the money is payable to his represen-
tatives.

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