Proceedings of the Annual Meeting Volume 50 (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1919 Excerpt: ...table of the eighteenth century, a food out of which all nutriment has long been chewed." Now that the event of which Ibsen spoke has happened, what do we find? A profound distrust of all governments, and the deepest dissatisfaction in all classes of society; in some quarters a lingering belief in the return of pre-war conditions, and in others a passionate determination to set up entirely new social relationships. Above all, a conviction that the remedy for the futilities of government is to be found in industrial and commercial associations wherein all ranks will combine to solve the problems of their respective businesses and agree upon the responsibilities and rewards of their members; the expert and complicated nature of modern operations being such as to demand the creation of large trade and professional groups possessing full legislative powers in their internal affairs. State socialism is as dead as mutton and individualism is taking on a new aspect. Then how are we insurance men fitted to meet the challenge that will be flung at our pretensions in the days that are near at hand? How are we equipped to run our own ship and resist piracy on the high seas? We know we carry a precious cargo that must be brought to port in the interest of the world at large, but how are we going to know that we can make the voyage without being overhauled by some privateer, _ licensed by a government that ought to protect its citizens but allows them to be plundered instead under the sham flag of public welfare? What the answer to these questions must be will depend a great deal on our professional attitude. It is obvious that the strength of any profession is determined by the quality of the ability and devotion of its members. The individual test is whether one p...