Page:The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 18.djvu/316

308 They fell and died upon my ear,

As dew dies on the atmosphere;

And then an intense yearning thrilled

My Soul, that all might be fulfilled:

"Where art thou, Blessed Spirit, where?—

Whose Voice is dew upon the air!"

I looked, around me, and above,

And cried aloud: "Where art thou, Love?

O let me see thy living eye,

And clasp thy living hand, or die!"—

Again upon the atmosphere

The self-same words fell: "I Am Here."

"Here? Thou art here, Love!"—"I Am Here."

The echo died upon my ear!

I looked around me—everywhere,—

But ah! there was no mortal there!

The moonlight was upon the mart,

And awe and wonder in my heart.

I saw no form!—I only felt

Heaven's Peace upon me as I knelt,

And knew a Soul Beatified

Was at that moment by my side:—

And there was Silence in my ear,

And Silence in the atmosphere!

NE of the subjects which for some time has commanded the public attention is that of Life Assurance: the means by which a man may, through a moderate annual expenditure, make provision for his family when death shall have deprived them of his protection.

The number of companies organized for this purpose, their annual increase, the assiduity with which their agents press their respective claims, the books, pamphlets, and circulars which are disseminated, and the large space occupied by their announcements in the issues of the press, all unite in creating a spirit of inquiry on this interesting subject. We propose in this article to submit a few statements, the collection of which has been greatly furthered by recourse to the treatises of Babbage, Park, Duer, Ellis, Angell, Bunyon, Blayney, and other writers on insurance.

In the early history of insurance, objection was continually made that it was of the nature of a wager, and consequently not only unlawful, but contra bonos mores; yet the courts of law in England from the first drew a distinction between a wager and a contract founded on the principle of indemnity, which principle runs through and underlies the whole subject of insurance. Lord Mansfield denominated insurance "a contract upon speculation," and it has universally been considered as a contract of indemnity against loss or damage arising from some uncertain and future events.