There seemed to be no sort of selection and an arbitrary premium
of 5 per hundred was charged irrespective of health or age,
probably because it was vaguely understood that the ratio of
annual deaths in London was one in twenty, which would have
been a reasonable proposition if the company could have insured
every person in London. It could then have used all the mem-
bership fee and interest for running expenses, and still have
money enough to pay losses, but its charter expressly limited it to
a membership of 2,000.
In the following year there began a period of speculative
insurance that ran rampant for years.
In 1707 one Charles Povey, who is the original of the modern
"promoter," projected a company for 4,000 healthy persons
between the ages of 6 and 55 under the name, "The Proprietors
of the Traders' Exchange House." Every subscriber was to pay
2 s. 6 d. per quarter, for which premium ^300 were to be equally
distributed to the nominees of the assured persons dying in the
quarter, with one half-penny from the clear profits of the printed
papers sold by the office; for it must be understood that here
originated the custom of publishing periodical papers in aid of
the business. As Walford says : "These publications have
proved a valuable addition to our historic literature and were
most likely conducted at a far less expense than many offices
now go to annually in advertising." Some of these papers
developed into thick octavo pamphlets, which were sold to the
public and thereby made a source of profit. His insurance com-
pany, however, died an early death.
