AN ECHO FROM THE PAST. Mr. Nat W. Foster, of Riverhead, N. Y., who is the oldest agent of the Society now in its service, sends the following interesting item of thirty years ago, showing that then, as now, the agents had troubles of their own:

"In 1871, after much labor on my part, and much anxiety on his, Mr. C. H. Pbecame assured for $1000, under policy No. 66,509. When the next premium came due he came to me and asked in all seriousness if I thought the Society was safe, as he had been told that it was not, and that he was a fool to pay anything into it. I asked him who told him so, and he at once gave me the name of one of my neighbors, a storekeeper in the town. I asked him if the man knew anything about life assurance or about the Equitable, and he replied that he didn't suppose he did. I then said, 'Do you think that I do?' He said, 'Yes, and I know that you wouldn't advise me to pay unless you thoroughly believed the Society was safe, and here is the money.' A few months afterward he came in and said that he was satisfied that the Society was safe, and that he had better take out another policy, which he did.

"About two years afterward he again began to borrow trouble, and to worry because the time might come when he might not be able to pay the permium. In spite of all my efforts, he gave up the second policy, but continued the first one. Eighteen years afterward, when he received the results of his policy, he said to me: 'What a donkey I was to drop that other policy, for there never has been a time when I couldn't have paid the premium.' I agreed with him."

[There is one trouble we don't have now, and that is, anyone fearing that the Society isn't safe.-ED.]

THE MAJOR AND THE LADIES. The ladies of the art league assembled at an afternoon entertainment recently were pleasantly surprised by a gift of art calendars from Major Myers, who has long been a silent member of the league. An interesting letter accompanied the gift, giving a sketch of De Monvel, the designer of the calendars, and, altogether, Major Myers' donation was particularly pleasant.-Norfolk Paper.

WATERS GETTING SPRUCED UP.

On Christmas Eve Mr. Will M. Waters, of Dallas, Texas, was presented by his agency force with a very handsome silver toilet set, accompanied by the following very clever letter, signed by all the donors: Dallas, Tex., Dec. 24, 1900.

To Our Esteemed Manager, Mr. Will M. Waters, Dallas, Tex.:

Please accept the accompanying token with the happiest greetings of your agency and office forces, hoping that we, with this sentiment, may aid you in combing out the tangles and brushing away the clouds in your future life. Wash out the stains of past annoyances and accept our individual pledges for your greatest ambition for 1901.

HOW ABOUT AN ANNUITY? "My dear," said Mrs. Blanks to her husband, according to an exchange, "don't you think it would be a good idea to get your life assured?" "No, I don't," he gruffly replied. "If I were to do that, it would just be my fool luck to live forever." "Oh, well," meekly retorted Mrs. B., "then I wouldn't think of doing it."

WIVES SOMETIMES
OBJECT TO LIFE

ASSURANCE, BUT

WIDOWS NEVER DO.

Gibsonburg, Nov. 24th, 1900.

MR. F. P. CHAPIN, Manager,

Equitable Life Agency,

Toledo, Ohio. DEAR SIR:-I am in receipt of the Equitable check for $1,000.00 in full of claim on life of my husband under Policy No. 800,957.

I can hardly express my thanks for your interest in having my hus. band keep his Policy in force, which he was willing to drop several times, he little appreciating what a God send it is to me now and the payment inside of a week makes it doubly acceptable..

Very truly,

(Signed) DORA S. KLOTZ.

a day all time."

HE TABLE PLUS

aan "strongest in nost profitable in

is the fund from and future divipolicy-holders

me to the policynk's surplus does f the bank.

interest in the plus of over

the Past is the ze of the

ears younger than etitor The Equit e ail other coms of excellence.

Richardson,

- AGENT,

reet, Indianapolis.

The old, reliable, Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States is a tower of strength and a bulwark of safety in time of storm and stress. The helpless survivors of many Galveston families owe it a debt of gratitude for its prompt response in their day of calamity and suffering. There was no unnecessary delay, no quibling over insufficient proof of death, no attempt to escape a just liability upon technicalities. The following extract from the letter of a grateful beneAclary is self explanatory:

"I wish to express my appreclation of the promptness in payment of claim. Words cannot express the importance of this prompt action in the great destitution which befell the city of Galveston after the recent caJamity. It affords me pleasure to state that the Equitable paid the claim immediately on presentation of proofs."

There is an old saying, as true as it is old: "The proof of the pudding is in the eating."

H. D. NEELY,

Manager for Nebraska,

206-208 Bee Building, Omaha.

$61,000,000.00

of SURPLUS is one comfortable fact if your
policy is in the EQUITABLE. Your banker
never throws back that kind because every-
one knows that this company's ability to
carry out its contract is beyond cavil.

THE FIVE PER CENT GOLD

DEBENTURE BONDS

which we a;e now issuing form the most
desirable combination of insurance and in-
vestment. Thir contract may be purchased
in a limited number of installments payable
annually. It is JUST AS SAFE AS A GOV-
ERNMENT BOND and pays FIVE PER CENT
Instead of TWO AND ONE-HALF.

QUERY COLUMN.

When the next Equitable Blotters are prepared, I venture to suggest that the blotter which has one smooth side is the most satisfactory blotter, and is the best advertisement of that kind. N. J. R.

Answer. If that is your opinion, we think you are one man in thousand. The average business man claims that the blotter with one smooth side is productive of more profanity, and imperils the safety of more immortal souls than any of the other triumphs of ingenuity ever invented by his Satanic Majesty. This, however, is merely giving you the opinions which we hear. With regard to ourselves, we never use profane language, so we can not be considered a good judge. Ask Mr. Van Cise.

The agent of the in this town, is advertising the settlement of a policy in this Society, in which the assured only paid in $2,200 during twenty years, and at the end of that time drew out $7,500. Do you know of any policy issued by any company that will show results like that? D.

Answer.-Nixie! So far as our knowledge goes, we can best answer your conundrum by asking you another: "The boy said, 'She's my sister, but I'm not her brother.' Question-What was the boy? Answer-The boy was a 1-r."

STRIKE A MAN ON HIS BIRTHDAY, WHEN HE IS FEELING GOOD.

I desire to offer a suggestion to our brother workers about a thing that may, at first glance, appear almost trivial, and yet I think it has been the means of landing many a case for me. Go to a man on his birthday, not the day before or the day after, but on the very day, and if you are intimate enough with him, offer your congratulations on his having lived to see another birthday, and your wishes that he will continue to see many more, etc. Ninetynine men out of one hundred seem to be in particularly good humor on their birthday, and are so thoroughly satisfied with themselves that they are ready to lavish a portion of their wealth, on themselves. The idea of being reminded annually, by the payment of this premium, that their birthday has again come around, seems to strike some people rather favorably, and it also appears to be a very pleasant thing to contemplate the magnificent birthday present, which will come to them in fifteen or twenty years. I have landed men in that way whom it has been absolutely impossible to land in any other way.

I shall be glad to hear from the NEWS whether any of our other agents have ever tried this, and whether it has been successful with them. L. Samuel.

"Each morning sees some task begun,
Each evening sees it close;
Something attempted, something done,
Has earned a night's repose."

No great achievements are wrought by accident. They are the result of thoughtful planning and deliberate action. Whether it be the building of the smallest machine or the construction of a locomotive, a plan must be conceived before the work is undertaken. Otherwise unforeseen obstacles would delay progress, and, perhaps, prevent ultimate success. Haphazard effort in any line cannot bring the best results, and it may bring failure.

Every man should outline his work and stick to his plan, as far as circumstances will allow. It is the daily attempting of some specific task and the accomplishment of it before sundown that forms a successful career.