slavery, which are never carried further than to secure subordination to the reasonable government of civilization, which brings with it benefits, individual and general, which are unknown in heathendom. If enlightened governments were to take this view of the heathen's condition and act, leaving the semi-civilized nations as the field for Christian effort and benevolence, what would be the effect? The enterprise and progress of the age would call into requisition many-fold the number that are at present engaged in the efficient school of civilization, and the odium which is attached to the epithet slavery would be lost in view of the mutual benefits accruing to the heathen and his enlightened instructors through this humane institution. If the labor of the present number of heathen that are employed in the moral arts has produced so good an effect on the world's commerce as has been shown, we would expect any multiplied number to produce a proportionate effect, the ocean highways between commercial nations would be so crowded with merchantmen that their canvas would never be out of each other's sight, bearing the valuable products of slave labor. Bearing on this subject is appended a transcript of the protest resolutions of Wellington, St. Vincent, Penshurst, and Winford, presented to the British Parliament on the 20th August, 1833, against the third reading of the slavery abolition bill.

DISSENTIENT.

"1. Because it is attempted by this bill to emancipate a nation of slaves, not prepared by a previous course of training, education, or of religious instruction, habits of industry, or of social intercourse, for the position in which they will be placed in society.

"2. Because the value, as possessions of the crown of Great Britain, of the colonies in which these negroes are located, as well as the value of these estates to the proprietors and colonists, depends upon the labor of the negroes to obtain the valuable produce of the soil, sugar, whether as slaves, as apprentices, or as free laborers for hire.

"3. Because the experience of all times, and of all nations, particularly that of modern times, and in our own colonies, and in St. Domingo, has proved that men uncivilized, and at liberty to labor or not as they please, will not work for hire at regular agricultural labor in the low grounds within the tropics; and the example of the United States, a country but thinly peopled in proportion to its extent and fertility, and always in want of hands, has shown that even in more temperate climates the labor of emancipated negroes could not be relied upon for the cultivation of the soil; and that the welfare of society, as well as that of the emancipated negroes themselves, required that they should be removed elsewhere."

"4. Because the number of negroes on the several islands and settlements on the continent of America in which they are located, is so small in proportion to the extent of the country which they occupy, and the fertility of the soil is so great, and the climate (however insalubrious and little inviting to exertion and labor) is so favorable to vegetation and the growth of all descriptions of the produce of the earth, that it cannot be expected that these emancipated slaves, thus uneducated and untrained, will be induced to work for hire.

"5. Because, upon this speculation depends the value of a capital of not less than 200,000,000 sterling, including therein the fortunes and existence, in a state of independence, of thousands of colonists and proprietors of es

tates in the colonies, the trade of the country, the employment of 250,000 tons of British shipping, and of 25,000 seamen, and a revenue which produces to the exchequer, upon sugar alone, not less than 5,000,000 sterling per annum."

WM. S. PRICE, M. D.

JOURNAL OF MERCANTILE LAW.

THE INCORPORATION OF FIRE INSURANCE COMPANIES IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK.

We publish below "An Act to provide for the Incorporation of Fire Insurance Companies," passed June 25th, 1853, by "The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly," which is now in force:

AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE INCORPORATION OF FIRE INSURANCE COMPANIES.

SEC. 1. Any number of persons, not less than thirteen, may associate and form an incorporated company for the following purposes, to wit:

To make insurance on dwelling-houses, stores, and all kinds of buildings, and upon household furniture, and other property, against loss or damage by fire, and the risks of inland navigation and transportation.

SEC. 2. Any company organized under this act, shall have power to effect reinsurance of any risks taken by them respectively.

SEC. 3. Such persons shall file in the office of the Controller, a declaration signed by all the corporators, expressing their intention to form a company for the purpose of transacting the business of insurance, as expressed in the first section of this act, which declaration shall also comprise a copy of the charter proposed to be adopted by them, and shall publish a notice of such their intention, once in each week for at least six weeks, in a public newspaper in the county in which such insurance company is proposed to be located.

SEC. 4. The charter comprised in such declaration, shall set forth the name of the company, the place where the principal office for the transaction of its business shall be located; the mode and manner in which the corporate powers granted by this act are to be exercised; the mode and manner of electing trustees or directors, a majority of whom shall be citizens of this State, and of filling vacancies, (but each director of a stock company shall be the owner in his own right of at least five hundred dollars worth of the stock of such company at its par value;) the period for the commencement and termination of its fiscal year, and the amount of capital to be employed in the transaction of its business; and the Controller shall have the right to reject any name or title of any company applied for, when he shall deem the name too similar to one already appropriated, or likely to mislead the public in any respect.

SEC. 5. No company formed under this act shall, directly or indirectly, deal or trade in buying or selling any goods, wares, merchandise, or other commodities whatever, excepting such articles as may have been insured by any company, and are claimed to be damaged by fire or water.

SEC. 6. No joint-stock company shall be incorporated under this act in the city and county of New York, nor in the county of Kings, nor shall any company incorporated under this act establish any agency for the transaction of business in either of said counties, with a smaller capital than one hundred and fifty thousand dollars, nor in any other county in this State, with a smaller capital than fifty thousand dollars; nor shall any company formed for the purpose of doing the business of fire or inland navigation insurance, on the plan of mutual insurance, commence business if located in the city of New York, or in the county of Kings, nor establish any agency for the transaction of business in either of said counties, until agreements have been entered into for insurance

with at least four hundred applicants, the premiums on which shall amount to not less than two hundred thousand dollars, of which forty thousand dollars shall have been paid in cash, and notes of solvent parties, founded on actual and bona fide applications for insurance, shall have been received for the remaining one hundred and sixty thousand dollars; nor shall any mutual insurance company in any other county of the State, commence business until agreements have been entered into for insurance with at least two hundred applicants, the premiums on which shall amount to not less than one hundred thousand dollars, of which twenty thousand dollars shall have been paid in cash, and notes of solvent parties, founded on actual and bona fide applications for insurance, shall have been received for the remaining eighty thousand dollars; no one of the notes received as aforesaid shall amount to more than five hundred dollars, and no two shall be given for the same risk, or be made by the same persons or firm, except where the whole amount of such notes shall not exceed five hundred dollars; nor shall any such note be represented as capital stock unless a policy be issued upon the same within thirty days after the organization of the company, upon a risk which shall be for no shorter period than twelve months. Each of said notes shall be payable in part or in whole, at any time when the directors shall deem the same requisite for the payment of losses by fire or inland navigation, and such incidental expenses as may be necessary for transacting the business of said company.

SEC. 7. It shall and may be lawful for the individuals associated for the purpose of organizing any company under this act, after having published the notice and filed their declaration and charter, as required by the third section of this act, and also on filing in the office of the controller proof of such publication, by the affidavit of the publisher of such newspaper, his foreman, or clerk, to open books for subscription to the capital stock of the company so intended to be organized, and to keep the same open until the full amount specified in the charter is subscribed; or in case the business of such company is proposed to be conducted on the plan of mutual insurance, then to open books to receive propositions, and enter into agreements in the manner and to the extent specified in the sixth section of this act.

SEC. 8. It shall be lawful for any company organized under this act, to invest its capital, or the funds accumulated in the course of its business, or any part thereof, in bonds and mortgages on unincumbered real estate within the State of New York, worth fifty per cent more than the sum loaned thereon; but in such valuation farm buildings shall not be estimated, and also in the stocks of this State or of the United States, or in the stocks or bonds of either of the incorporated cities of this State, which shall be at or above par at the time of the investment, and to lend the same or any part thereof, on the security of such stocks or bonds, or upon bonds and mortgages as aforesaid, and to change and re-invest the same as occasion may from time to time require; but any surplus moneys (over and above the capital stock) of any such fire and inland navigation insurance companies, or of any fire insurance company incorporated under any law of this State, may be invested in or loaned upon the pledge of the stock, bonds, or other evidences of indebtedness of any institution incorporated under the laws of this State, except their own stock; provided, always, that the current market value of such stocks, bonds, or other evidences of indebtedness shall be a least ten per cent more than the sum so loaned thereon.

SEC. 9. No company organized by or under this act, shall purchase, hold, or convey real estate, excepting for the purposes and in the manner herein set forth, to wit:

1. Such as shall be requisite for its convenient accommodation in the transaction of its business; or,

2. Such as shall have been mortgaged to it in good faith, by way of security for loans previously contracted, or for moneys due; or,

3. Such as shall have been conveyed to it in satisfaction of debts previously contracted in their legitimate business, or for moneys due; or,

4. Such as shall have been purchased at sales upon judgments, decrees or

mortgages obtained or made for such debts; and it shall not be lawful for any such company to purchase, hold, or convey real estate in any other case, or for any other purpose; and all such real estate as may be acquired as aforesaid, and which shall not be necessary for the accommodation of such company in the transaction of its business, shall be sold and disposed of within five years after such company shall have acquired title thereto, unless the company shall procure a certificate from the controller of the State, that the interests of the company will suffer materially by a forced sale thereof, in which event the sale may be postponed for such a period as the controller shall direct in said certificate; and the controller may also give such certificate and extend the time for holding real estate, in the like circumstances, on the application of any insurance company heretofore incorporated.

SEC. 10. The charter and proof of publication herein required to be filed by every such company, shall be examined by the attorney general, and if found conformable to this act and not inconsistent with the constitution or laws of this State, shall be certified by him to the controller of the State, who shall thereupon cause an examination to be made, either by himself, or by three disinterested persons specially appointed by him for that purpose, who shall certify under oath that the capital herein required of the company named in the charter according to the nature of the business proposed to be transacted by such company, has been paid in and is possessed by it in money, or in such stocks and bonds and mortgages as are required by the eighth section of this act; or if a mutual company, that it has received and is in actual possession of the capital, premiums, or bona fide engagements of insurance, or other securities, as the case may be, to the full extent and of the value required by the sixth section of this act; and the name and the residence of the maker of each premium note forming part of the capital, and the amount of such note shall be returned to the controller; and the corporators and officers of such company shall be required to certify under oath that the capital exhibited to those persons is bona fide property of the company. Such certificate shall be filed in the office of the controller, who shall thereupon deliver to such company a certified copy of the charter and of such certificates, which, on being filed in the office of the clerk of the county where the company is to be located, shall be their authority to commence business and issue policies; and such certified copy of the charter and of said certificates may be used in evidence for or against said company with the same effect with the originals.

SEC. 11. The corporators, or the trustees or directors, as the case may be, of any company organized under this act, shall have power to make such by-laws not inconsistent with the consitution or laws of this State, as may be deemed necessary for the government of its officers and the conduct of its affairs, and the same, when necessary, to alter and amend, and they and their successors may have a common seal, and may change and alter the same at their pleasure.

SEC. 12. It shall not be lawful for the directors, trustees, or managers of any such company, to make any dividend except from the surplus profits arising from their business, and in estimating such profits, there shall be reserved therefrom a sum equal to the amount of premiums unearned on risks not matured, and also all sums due the corporation on bonds and mortgages, bonds, stocks, and book accounts, of which no part of the interest or principal thereon has been paid during the last year, and for which foreclosure or suit has not been comme ced for collection, or which after judgment obtained thereon, shall have remained more than two years unsatisfied, and on which interest shall not have been paid, and also all interest due or accrued, and remaining unpaid. Any dividend made contrary to these provisions shall subject the stockholders receiving it to a joint and several liability to the creditors of such company, to the extent of the dividend.

SEC. 13. All notes deposited with any mutual insurance company at the time of its organization, as provided in section six, shall remain as security for all losses and claims until the accumulation of the profits, invested as required by the eighth section of this act, shall equal the amount of cash capital required to

be possessed by stock companies organized under this act, the liability of each note decreasing proportionately as the profits are accumulated; but any note which may have been deposited with any mutual insurance company subsequent to its organization, in addition to the cash premium on any insurance effected with such company, may, at the expiration of the time of such insurance, be relinquished and given up to the inaker thereof, or his representatives, upon his paying the proportion of all losses and expenses which may have accrued thereon during such term. The directors or trustees of any such company shall have the right to determine the amount of the note to be given in addition to the cash premium, by any person insuring in any such company; but in no case shall the note be more than five times the whole amount of the cash premium. And every person effecting insurance in any mutual company, and also their heirs, executors, administrators, and assigns, continuing to be so insured, shall thereby become members of said corporation during the period of insurance, and shall be bound to pay for losses and such necessary expenses as aforesaid, accruing in and to said company, in proportion to the amount of his deposit note or notes. The directors shall, after receiving notice of any loss or damage by fire sustained by any member, and ascertaining the same, or after the rendition of any judgment against said company for loss or damage, settle and determine the sums to be paid by the several members thereof as their respective portion of such loss, and publish the same in such manner as they shall see fit, or as the by-laws shall have prescribed; and the sum to be paid by each member shall always be in proportion to the original amount of his deposit note or notes, and shall be paid to the officers of the company within thirty days next after the publication of said notice. And if any member shall, for the space of thirty days after the publication of said notice, and after personal demand for payment shall have been made, neglect or refuse to pay the sum assessed upon him as his proportion of any loss us aforesaid, in such case the directors may sue for and recover the whole amount of his deposit note or notes, with costs of suit, but execution shall only issue for assessments and costs as they accrue, and every such execution shall be accompanied by a list of the losses for which the assessment is made. If the whole amount of deposit notes shall be insufficient to pay the loss occasioned by any fire or fires, in such case the sufferers insured by the said company shall receive toward making good their respective losses, a proportional share of the whole amount of said notes according to the sums by them respectively insured; but no member shall ever be required to pay for any loss occasioned by fire or inland navigation, more than the whole amount of his deposit note.

SEC. 14. It shall be lawful for any mutual insurance company established in conformity with the provisions of this act, to unite a cash capital to any extent, as an additional security to its members, over and above their cash premiums and premium notes; provided, that such cash capital shall not be less than thirty thousand dollars, and which additional cash capital shall be loaned and invested as provided in the eighth section of this act; and the company may allow an interest on such cash capital, and a participation in its profits, and prescribe the liability of the owner or owners thereof, to share in the losses of the company, and such cash capital shall be liable as the capital stock of the company, in the payment of its debts; provided, that such cash capital shall in all cases be paid in at the organization of the company, and satisfactory evidence of that fact furnished to the controller. Any existing joint-stock fire insurance company, and any company formed under this law may, (the written consent of the holders of three-fourths in amount of the stock first being had,) permit the insured to participate in the profits of the business of such company, and provide how for any scrip issued to the insured for such profits shall be liable for the losses to be sustained, and any company so doing, whenever an amount not less than one hundred thousand dollars has been accumulated and scrip so issued therefor, may, with the written consent of the holders of three-fourths in amount of the stock, pay off and cancel an amount of the original cash capital equal to one-half of the accumulated profits, and so may continue from time to time until the whole amount of the original cash capital is paid off: provided, that before any portion