The government is purely representative, every member in the Associa tion having a share in its management through the election of delegates to State and National conventions. The National Convention is called the Supreme Review and is held once in four years for the purpose of enacting laws, electing officers and transacting any other necessary business of the Association. In the interim between meetings of the Supreme Re sicw the Association is managed by the Su preme Board of Trustees, consisting of the Supreme Commander (president), Supreme Record-Keeper (secretary) and three other members elected by the Supreme Review. Each State has State supervision and the local re views are conducted with a full set of officers and handle their own business direct with the headquarters of the Association at Port Huron, Mich.
The Association was first incorporated on 6 March 1897 and is an independent corpora tion, making its own laws, transacting its own business, collecting rates and paying benefits according to its laws. The sums collected and paid out in the 27 years of the Order's exist ence amount to $18,500,000 and not one dollar has ever been lost through unwise investment or defalcation, or in any other way, and re ceipted bills are now on file carefully audited by the Board of Supreme Auditors for every penny that has been expended. Annual reports of all business transacted are made to State insurance departments and the has since 1904 made annual valuation of its certi ficates to determine its exact condition and re serves for paying promised benefits.
The Association was estab lished in Port Huron, Mich., in 1892 and still maintains its headquarters there. It has in the best section of that city a Home Office Lulling which cost $250,000 and which is one of the most modern and best equipped office buildings in the country. It is two stories high, of stone and reinforced concrete, and is fire proof throughout, with every provision for carrying on the immense volume of the Order's business, for the comfort of its office force of 100 young women and with private offices and meeting rooms for the Supreme Boards of the Association. It has rooms also for the use of local reviews in the city.
Social and Welfare Work.— The Woman's Benefit Association, besides providing death hr.nefits at cost for the protection of home and little ones, gises burial benefits and benefits for members totally disabled. More than this, it provides by general contribution a fund from NN ilia hospital service and medical care are given free to needy members. Contracts are in force between the Association and f“ hospitals beated in all the large centres of membership in which this free service is given_ Since its establishment in August 1915, 5.719 suffering members have been cared for in this way, who would otherwise have been unable to secure the necessary medical attention.
Auxiliary to the Woman's Benefit Associa tion us 'The Order of the Rose,• a society for girls up to lb sears of age. The of this Order is most inspiring, and through its courts, as the local bodies arc known, welfare work for children is being organized throughout the country, under the auspices of the local re views of the Order. It is planned in this way to give vocational training to hundreds of chil dren and it is hoped that its scope will in time be enlarged to embrace general welfare work for children of those not members of the Woman's Benefit Association as well as for the daughters and sisters of members.
Statistics.-- On 1 Oct. 1919 there were 216, 2q0 members of the Woman's Benefit Associa tion and 2,555 reviews in 55 States, Territories and provinces. The Association had on that datepaid out in benefits a total of $18,379, 122.27; with $220,867.25 additional expended for free hospital service. The reserve fund amounted to S11.780,904.87, bearing interest of more than $550,000 annually. The total in all funds was $12,695,47321. The present executive officers are Miss Bina M. West, Supreme Com mander. Miss Frances D. Partridge, Supreme Record-Keeper, both with offices at Port Huron, Mich., Mrs. M. Louise Hinrichs, Supreme Fi nance-Keeper and Mrs. Grace Meredith, Miss Nellie E. Lounsbury and Mrs. Nellie C. V. Heppert, Supreme Trustees. Dr. Ella J. Fifield is Supreme Medical Examiner for the Associa tion.