The 29th regiment repaired to the spot prepared for firing, and there would have been a fierce contest but for the excellent conduct of the acting governor, Hutchinson. He took Captain Preston severely to task for firing at the people without the orders of a civil magistrate, and then, quickly working his way to the State House, took his stand in the balcony of the council-chamber looking down King Street, and made an address promising that the law should prevail and justice should be done to all. The next morning Hutchinson was waited upon by the selectmen who informed him that there would be no peace until the soldiers should depart. Hutchinson claimed, however, that the regiments were not under his command.

A mass meeting was soon held in Faneuil Hall, and was addressed by Samuel Adams. It may readily be believed that he advocated no compromise, and a committee of fifteen was immediately appointed of which Adams was a member. According to instructions, they at once repaired to the council chamber, and demanded the instant removal of the troops. At three o'clock a regular town meeting assembled in Faneuil Hall, but, owing to the great number present, adjourned to the Old South Meeting House. Then the committee of fifteen appeared making their way from the council-chamber to the meeting-house. Samuel Adams was at the head, and as the crowd made way on either hand he bared his head, and, inclining to the right and left, as he passed through the line, kept repeating: "Both regiments or none!" "Both regiments or none!"

In the presence of the dense multitude in the Old South, the governor's reply was rendered: the 29th regiment should go to the castle, but the 14th must remain. Then the cry arose, "Both regiments or none!" and as the shout echoed from every quarter it was plain that the people had caught the meaning of the watchword, given shortly before by Adams. A new committee, also including Adams, was appointed and sent back to the governor, and as they stood in the council chamber the scene was one that John Adams pronounced long after as worthy a historical painting. A few sentences from Adams' address to Hutchinson are clear enough to show the intense earnestness and patriotism of the man.

"It is well known," he said, "that acting as governor of the Province, you are by its charter the commander-in-chief of the military forces within it; and as such, the troops now in the capital are subject to your orders. If you, or Colonel Dalrymple under you, have the power to remove one regiment, you have the power to remove both; and nothing short of their total removal will satisfy the people or preserve the peace of the Province. A Multitude highly incensed now wait the result of this application. The voice of ten thousand freemen demands that both regiments be forthwith removed. Their voice must be respected, their demand obeyed. Fail not then at your peril to comply with this requisition! On you alone rests the responsibility of this decision; and if the just expectations of the people are disappointed, you must be answerable to God and your country for the fatal consequences that must ensue. The committee have discharged their duty, and it is for you to discharge yours. They wait your final determination."

Hutchinson for a long time stood firm, but yielded at last and the troops were removed.

It is not the purpose of this paper to follow Samuel Adams through his active career in the years of the Revolution and the succeeding period. It is always Samuel Adams, the unswerving patriot, the adroit leader, the man of the people. It had long been felt in England that his was the most active spirit in the cause of the patriots, and there was much talk of effecting his arrest and bringing him to trial on the charge of treason, but the move was never made. Adams' courage never failed. He had long given up the idea of any compromise between the colonies and the Crown, and there is nothing conciliatory in his words or acts. When the tea was emptied into Boston Harbor it was easily understood that Adams was the real leader in the action. No one familiar with the life of the great town meeting man, as Prof. Hosmer likes to call him, can doubt that he had the essential qualities of an adroit strategist. Cromwell once locked Parliament out, Adams once locked the Assembly in. He had secured a majority of the members to vote for a Continental Congress, but could the resolve be presented and brought to a final vote before Governor Gage could prorogue the Assembly, as he would use all speed to do, the instant the first knowledge of the scheme reached his ears? On the 17th of June, just one year before the Battle of Bunker Hill, that question was answered. The resolve was offered that day providing for the appointment of delegates to such a congress. Tory members at once essayed to leave the hall to dispatch the news to the governor, but the bolts were fast, and Samuel Adams had the key in his pocket. Two months later the delegates were on their way to Philadelphia,—Thomas Cushing, Samuel and John Adams and Robert Treat Paine.

Events then transpired rapidly. So far, Samuel Adams was almost wholly alone in the idea of independence, but it was declared by Congress less than two years later. For more than twenty years longer, Adams continued in public life, but his greatest work was before the Declaration of Independence rather than after. There were times when the cause of the patriots must have fallen through but for the nerve and skill of this man. Bowdoin, Cushing, Hancock, Otis, and even John Adams could not have been thoroughly trusted in the last years of the colony to bring affairs to a successful issue. But Samuel Adams was fitted by intellect and character, adroitness and courage, tireless energy and by never failing devotion to the public good, to be the man for the time.

When America had become a Republic, and Adams had returned from Congress to his native town, he served as presiding officer of the Senate, then as lieutenant governor, and, upon the death of Hancock, governor, to which office he was several times chosen by the people. He died in 1803, and his dust lies to-day in the old Granary Burying Ground, close by the common grave of the four victims of the Boston Massacre.

The statue in bronze now standing in Adams Square is noble in design, and appropriate for situation. It is in almost the busiest position of the great city, and daily across its shadow pass tens of thousands of mechanics and artisans—the class of men with whom Samuel Adams used to love to hold intercourse. The Old State House and Faneuil Hall are only a stone's-throw distant from the statue, but the face is not looking in the direction of either; it is turned directly toward the visible shaft of granite on Bunker Hill—the monument which marks the first great battle in the struggle for that Independence toward which, in all his labors for so many years, the eyes of Samuel Adams were ever turned.

1 (return)
For the reproduction of the above portrait and the two following views of the Old State House, we are indebted to the courtesy of Messrs. Ticknor & Co., the well-known Boston publishers.—Ed.

2 (return)
Samuel Adams. By James K. Hosmer, 1 vol., 442 pp. American Statesmen Series. Boston: Houghton, Mifflin & Co. 1883.

AUTHORITATIVE LITERATURE OF THE CIVIL WAR.

By George Lowell Austin.

II.

The Life and Public Services of Abraham Lincoln, sixteenth President of the United States: together with His State Papers, including his Speeches, Addresses, Messages, Letters, and Proclamations, and the closing Scenes connected with his life and death. By Henry J. Raymond. To which are added Anecdotes and Personal Reminiscences of President Lincoln, by Frank B. Carpenter, with a steel portrait, and other illustrations, 1 vol. octavo, pp. 808. New York: Derby and Miller, 1865.

During the Presidential canvass of 1864, the author of this volume prepared a work upon the administration of President Lincoln. That canvass resulted in the re-election of Mr. Lincoln, whose death occurred soon after his second inauguration. As the editor of the New York Times, Mr. Raymond possessed at the time ample facilities to prepare such a book as was needed to interest the public in the life of one whose work was at once as great as it was successful. Up to the day of its publication, this book was the best and most authoritative that had been published. Twenty years have since elapsed, and in many respects it still maintains a just superiority and a historical value that cannot be questioned. Its errors are of omission, rather than of commission; while its merits are so great as to render it indispensable to all future writers on the subject. Every public speech, message, letter, or document of any sort of Mr. Lincoln's, so far as accessible in 1865, will be found included in the volume. The rapidly occuring events of the civil war, with much of their secret history, are tersely and graphically described. The "Reminiscences" of Mr. Carpenter, covering about thirty pages, add interest to the volume.

Abraham Lincoln: The True Story of a Great Life. Showing the inner growth, special training and peculiar fitness of the Man for his work. By William O. Stoddard. Illustrated. 1 vol. octavo, pp. 508. New York: Fords, Howard & Hurlbert, 1884.

Mr. Stoddard was one of President Lincoln's secretaries during the civil war, and very naturally his work ought to have strong claims upon the interest and attention of American readers. His book is not of a profound or critical character; but a singularly honest and candid and strictly personal biography, simply written for readers of all ages and degrees of intelligence. It sheds considerable light on the political history of the civil war and on the events which led to it. With the military history, it deals but little. Still its brief, vigorous and vivid sketches furnish an exceedingly fascinating bird's eye view of the great struggle. But its most valuable feature is the clearness with which it depicts Lincoln, the man,—his sagacity and patience at critical moments, his keen perception of "popular" sentiment and disposition, his individuality, his distinctive fitness for the tasks and burdens which fell upon him. This work, at once so accurate, so comprehensive, so discriminating and so well written, is one for all Americans, and particularly for younger readers. It has in it a charm possessed but by very few biographies, and a fascination that but few novels can surpass. To enjoy it and to profit by it, one need not always coincide with the author's judgments of men and measures, or his criticisms of military leaders and policies.

The Life of Abraham Lincoln. By Isaac N. Arnold. 1 vol. octavo, pp. 462. Chicago: Jansen, McClurg & Co., 1885.

This work also possesses strong claims upon our attention. It was completed only a few days before the death of its eminent author. Furthermore, Mr. Arnold knew President Lincoln better than almost any other man; they had been intimate friends for more than a quarter of a century, thinking, conversing and working together during all that time. When the civil war broke out, Mr. Arnold entered Congress; became one of the most trusted advisers of the President; and no one better than he knew and comprehended the latter's thoughts and intentions; even the cabinet officers and the private secretaries never approached so near to the heart and mind of President Lincoln as did his life long, trusted and admired friend. In 1867, Mr. Arnold published a "History of Abraham Lincoln and the Overthrow of Slavery" which is a work of rare interest and of exceptional historic value. But this work, in the judgment of the author, was unsatisfactory from the fact that, while it depicted well enough the times, it failed to portray the life of President Lincoln. The later volume meets the deficiency, and in fact leaves absolutely nothing to be desired. The spirit of tenderness broods over its charmful pages. Singularly unpretentious, its very simplicity is eloquent and inspiring, and makes the heart of the reader blend with the grand and noble heart of its subject. Its accuracy is unmarred; it explains all doubts that have ever existed in regard to Mr. Lincoln's motives and acts; it asserts nothing without proving it; it tells the plain, straightforward story, and leaves criticism to others. As a personal biography of Mr. Lincoln's life and character, this book is not only unsurpassed, but it deserves to rank as one of the classics in our native literature.

The Political Conspiracies Preceding the Rebellion; or the True Story of Sumter and Pickens, By Thomas M. Anderson, Lieut. Col. U.S.A. 1 vol. quarto, pp. 100. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1883.

The author assumes that there were "a number of conspiracies" antedating the immediate outbreak of the civil war, but makes no claim that the war was the result of such conspiracies. His narrative, then, is merely descriptive of the events which took place in the period between October 1860 and April 1861, purely resume in character and wholly based upon the disclosures of the Official Records. The author allows himself to criticise men and acts rather freely, and at times captiously; and has evidently intended his book to be a defence of his brother, the hero of Sumter, against certain charges which were once made against him. The old hero needs no defender, even if we suppose that he ever merited criticism. The volume is a small one,—trustworthy as regards its statements and valuable for reference. It may profitably be read in conjunction with the second volume of Mr. Curtis's Life of James Buchanan, also with the small volume, by General Doubleday, entitled The Reminiscences of Forts Sumter and Pickens in 1860-61.

The Peninsular Campaign of General McClellan in 1862. Papers read before the Military Historical Society of Massachusetts in 1876-77-78 and 80. Printed for the Society. Vol. I, octavo, pp. 249. Boston: James R. Osgood and Company, 1881.

The Military Society of Massachusetts was organized in 1876, with the object of investigating questions relating to the civil war. Up to the date of the publication of this volume, about forty papers were read, six of them being devoted to the Peninsular Campaign of 1862, eleven to General Pope's campaign of 1862, three to the campaign of Chancellorsville, three to the Antietam campaign, sixteen to the campaign of 1864, and one each to the battle of Mobile Bay and Grouchy controversy,—all, with the exception of the last two, bearing upon the operations of the Army of the Potomac in 1862 and 1864, and including discussions from different standpoints of the objects and general plans of the several campaigns and battles in which it participated, and of the controverted questions that have arisen concerning them. The first printed volume of the Society contains the following papers:—"General McClellan's Plans for the campaign of 1862, and the Alleged Interference of the Government with them," by John C. Ropes, Esq: "The Siege of Yorktown," by Bvt.-Brig.-Gen. John C. Palfrey, U.S.A.: "The Period which elapsed between the Fall of Yorktown and the Beginning of the Seven-Days-Battles," by Bvt.-Brig.-Gen. Francis W. Palfrey, U.S.V. "The Seven-Days Battles—to Malvern Hill," by same author. "The Battle of Malvern Hill," by same author; "Comments on the Peninsular Campaign," by Bvt.-Brig.-Gen. Charles A. Whittier, U.S.V. All of these are earnest discussions,—but of unequal worth—of the various merits or demerits of General McClellan in the Peninsular campaign, or the attitude of the government toward him at that time. The ground is traversed as often before; all the old arguments are again brought into comparison, and a very small amount of new evidence is discovered. What has previously been said in many books and pamphlets and by a score of writers, is here said in one volume by three writers. But nothing appears to be freshly said, and, as usual, the conclusions reached are colored by the political likes or dislikes of their several writers. The sole merit of the volume lies in the fact that its papers embody a mass of very valuable material, gleaned from trustworthy sources, for the future historian. It is very safe to assume, however, that the future historian while expressing gratitude for their investigations, will not be tempted to place much weight upon the conclusions of the gentlemen who hold the monopoly of this volume but have not solved a single mooted question.

Life of James Buchanan, Fifteenth President of the United States. By George Ticknor Curtis. 2 vols. octavo, pp. 625, 707. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1883.

The second volume of this exceedingly painstaking and meritorious biography sheds much light upon the events preceding, and those transpiring during, the civil war. As another writer has remarked, "there is something very pitiable, something almost tragic, in the figure of James Buchanan during the last months of his administration." He found himself wavering between two factions, between Right and Wrong. So long as he wavered, the South stood by him; when he ceased to be a wary politician and manifested a decision of character such as the times demanded, the South turned against him as one man. His biographer proves conclusively that the weak and time-serving President was opposed to secession; but as positively proves without intending to do so, that he favored it by his singular unfitness and indifference in emergencies. When secession threatened, Mr. Buchanan took the ground that he would not precipitate war by applying force to prevent a State from seceding, but that he would defend the flag and property of the United States. With this policy in his heart, he permitted public property to be seized, without striking a blow; he discovered treason in his cabinet, and coolly allowed the traitors to consummate their work and to depart. The fact was, that he was a very weak man, and his biographer is the best authority for the statement. The work is important; it will always, as it richly merits, be consulted by students, and may be read with interest and profit by all.

(To be continued.)

ASSESSMENT LIFE INSURANCE.

By Sheppard Romans.

Life insurance, by whatever system, plan or method, has, for its fundamental basis, the laws governing the rates of mortality at the different ages. These fundamental laws have been developed and made clear by a vast amount of statistical data obtained from observations among persons insured in life insurance companies among annuitants, among inhabitants of various towns and cities, and among the whole population in certain countries, notably in England and in Belgium. One uniform, unvarying, certain law has been thus established, which is that the rate of mortality, or in other words the cost of insurance, increases as a man grows older. From this law there is no escape. We must accept the inevitable. Hence any system of insurance which is not in accordance with this first principle, this unalterable law of nature, is unsound, and any company, whether charging level premiums or natural premiums, which does not recognize and conform to this fundamental law of nature, is doomed to disaster and wreck, sooner or later.

There are two methods of life insurance worthy of the name, and two only. The one is by payments accurately adjusted to the cost of insurance at each actual age, and which inevitably, unavoidably and inexorably, must increase with the age of the person insured, and the other is by level, or uniform payments extending over the whole duration of life or for a stated number of years. The first is the natural system and has been adopted in part, and imperfectly, by assessment companies; the second is the artificial system, and is the one which has been offered exclusively until lately, by all the regular life insurance companies. Properly carried out, the one is as sound in theory and as safe in practice as the other. In fact, the artificial premiums are the exact mathematical or commuted equivalents of the natural premiums.

Until within the last decade, the level premium system was practically the only one in use. Since then there have come into existence hundreds of co-operative or assessment companies. These institutions have had a wonderful growth. It is claimed that the number of members and the amounts insured, double those, respectively, in the old or regular companies.

Assessment companies do not, strictly speaking, grant insurance. They are rather agencies, or trust companies, and their functions or covenants are to make assessments upon survivors when deaths occur, and to pay over the proceeds of such assessments to the beneficiaries of the deceased members. There is no definite promise to pay in full, and no obligation to pay more than the assessments yield. There is no capital, no risk, no insurance! It is a voluntary association of individuals. There is usually but little if any penalty for discontinuance of membership, and the permanence of such institutions depends mainly upon the volition of their members. They spring into existence suddenly by the voluntary association of a few individuals without capital or personal risk, and as suddenly they may go out of existence by the voluntary act or withdrawal of their members. A breath may create, a breath destroy.

It must be evident then to the merest tyro, that the permanence and success of assessment companies depend upon the most rigid observance of those principles which science and sound business experience have demonstrated to be fundamental. Among these principles may be mentioned the following.

1. Rates of assessments or payments adjusted to the cost of insurance at the actual age of each person. These rates must inevitably and inexorably increase with the age of the individual.

2. The creation of a guaranty, or emergency fund, available not only to meet extra mortality, but as a cement to secure cohesion among the members, and prevent the exodus of the sound lives.

3. An assessment in advance at issue of certificate, otherwise some persons will be insured for nothing and the cost will fall on the persistent members.

As was well said by a contributor in your last number, assessment insurance has its defects, and these are well known to the managers of these institutions, and that great improvements have been made by the National Convention of assessment companies, which is composed of representatives from the best companies organized in almost every state. They recognize existing defects, they point out the remedies, and yet, but few seem to have the courage of their convictions. It is a fact beyond dispute, that with perhaps a half-dozen exceptions, the rates of assessment in every assessment company in the country remain constant as at the age of entry. That is to say, a man entering at the age of forty, pays the rate at forty only, as long as he remains a member. This is a direct violation of the inexorable law of nature which says, that as a man grows older the risk of dying, or in other words the cost of insurance, increases. It is all nonsense to urge that the average age and the average cost will be kept down by the influx of new members. The contract is made with the individual, and unless each person pays enough to compensate the company for the indemnity or insurance furnished to him, it follows of necessity, that others will be overcharged in order to meet the deficiency so occasioned. And this evil is intensified each year as the company grows older. When younger and fresher men find that they are overcharged in order to meet deficiencies arising from the act that older and inferior risks pay less than cost, they will either not enter, or, if members, will speedily desert and join an institution which is on a sounder and more equitable basis. No institution can be permanently successful which does not observe equity. I have no hesitation in saying that every assessment or corporation company which violates this fundamental law of nature by not making its rates of assessment increase with the age of the individuals insured, is doomed, and that disaster and wreck is only a question of time. This is not a new opinion. It's truth is attested by more than one wreck in this country already.

In every level, or uniform premium, there is a provision for the payment to the company of the rate of insurance at the actual present age, (no matter at what age the insurance was affected) on the net amount at risk.

The great danger for co-oporative or assessment companies lies in the facility with which such institutions may be organized, and by men without capital, character, experience or financial ability, who may thus be ushered into corporate existence by the indulgent laws of different states.

The members of the National Association of assessment companies should see to it that the laws of the different states should be so amended as to require at least a small capital, say $25,000, as a guaranty of good faith and ability on the part of the promoters, and that no company should be admitted to membership unless its system was founded on sound principles as demonstrated by science and business experience.

The managers of assessment companies should be careful lest their claims should prove to be unfounded. For instance, the writer of the article in your last number boldly asserts that it "is susceptible of mathematical demonstration that one or two million of dollars of reserve is adequate to perpetuate any well-conducted assessment company for all time, however large or small it may be, while the spectacle is presented to us of level premium companies holding fifty to one hundred millions of accumulations belonging to their policy holders, from which no possible benefit, in most cases, will ever accrue to them." On reflection he must see the absurdity of such statements.

The level premium system is a combination of insurance and investments. The hundred millions are investments, and are necessary for the integrity of the level premium contracts. Any assessment company in which the rates do not increase as the members grow older should be compelled to have the full premium reserve required by state law and actuarial science to be held on level premium contracts. This is capable of mathematical demonstration.

It must be borne in mind that the cost of insurance proper, that is, the provision to meet current death claims alone, is quite as high in the best assessment company as in a regular life insurance company, for this cost depends on the careful selection of lives. The difference in the two institutions is that the former dispenses with the investment element, while the latter exacts it in connection with all their contracts. Hence the price to be paid is greater. But is not the guarantee also greater?

The beneficiary under a death claim in an assessment company has for her security the hope, or promise if you please, that one thousand men will pay ten dollars each for her account. The beneficiary under a death claim in a regular life insurance company has for her security not only the actual payments of ten dollars each by one thousand men, but the definite promise to pay in full by an institution which has ample capital, assets, and surplus to back its contracts.

Assessment insurance is yet on trial, and its only hope of permanent business lies in a rigid compliance with the laws of mortality and of sound business experience.

THE OLD STATE HOUSE.

By Sidney Maxwell.

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The "Boston Massacre," March 5th, 1770.

THE PRECIOUS METALS.

By David N. Balfour.

From the earliest times to the commencement of the Christian Era, the amount of the gold and silver obtained from the surface and mines of the earth is estimated to be $5,084,000,000; from the latter event to the epoch of the discovery of America, $4,363,374,000 were obtained; from the date of the last event to the end of 1842, an addition of $8,500,000,000 was made; the extensive working of the Russian gold mines in 1843, and subsequent years, added to the close of 1852, $1,400,000,000 more; the quadruple discovery of the California gold mines in 1848, those of Australia in 1851, of New Zealand in 1861, and the silver mines of Nevada and other countries bordering upon the Pacific slope of the United States, added, at the close of 1884, $7,093,626,000, making a grand total at the present time of $26,441,000,000.

The average loss by the attrition of coin is estimated by Prof. Bowen at one-fortieth of one per cent, per annum; and the average loss by consumption in the arts, and destruction by fire and shipwreck, at $9,000,000 per annum. The amount of the precious metals in existence is estimated to be $13,670,000,000, of which gold furnishes $8,166,000,000, and silver $5,504,000,000. Of the amount now in existence, $10,500,000,000 are estimated to be in coin and bullion, $2,000,000,000 in watches, and the remainder in plate, jewelry, and ornaments. Of the amount now in existence, $9,448,000,000 is estimated to have been obtained from America, $1,908,000,000 from Asia (including Australia, New Zealand, and Oceanica); $1,004,000,000 from Europe, and $1,310,000,000 from Africa.

The following statement will exhibit the product of the precious metals throughout the world in 1884:—

The following statement will exhibit the annual product of the precious metals at different periods:—

The following statement will exhibit the amount of the precious metals estimated to be in existence at different periods:

The following statement will exhibit the amount of the precious metals estimated to have been obtained from the surface and mines of the earth, from the earliest times to the close of 1884:—

During the first period (prior to the commencement of the Christian Era,) the annual product of the precious metals was $2,000,000; during the second period (prior to the discovery of America,) it was $3,000,000; during the third period (prior to the extensive working of the Russian gold mines, in 1843,) it was $26,000,000; during the fourth period (prior to the double discovery of the California gold mines in 1858, and the Australia gold mines in 1851,) it was $140,000,000; during the fifth period (which immediately succeeded afore-mentioned discoveries,) it was $243,000,000; during the sixth period (immediately succeeding the double discovery of the New Zealand gold mines in 1861, and the silver mines of Nevada and other countries bordering on the Pacific slope of the United States,) it was $212,000,000. The annual products of the precious metals attained its acme in 1853, when it was $285,000,000. The increase in the amount of the precious metals in existence has been greater during the last forty-years than during the previous two hundred and ninety-four. Of the amount ($6,441,000,000) of the precious metals estimated to have been obtained from the surface and mines of the earth, from the earliest times to the close of 1884, $12,100,000,000 are estimated to have been obtained from America $6,724,000,000 from Asia (including Australia, New Zealand and Oceanica), $3,751,000,000 from Europe, and $2,866,000,000 from Africa.