before such non-resident company shall be entitled to do business in the State of Maryland.

1888, art. 23, sec. 127. 1860, art. 56, sec. 32. 1858, ch. 432, sec. 4. 1872, ch. 388. 1874, ch. 400. 1876, ch. 248. 1878, ch. 106.

1880, ch. 387. 1888, ch. 424. 1894, ch. 258.

175. Any person, body politic or corporate, partnership or association, who or which shall make, negotiate or solicit within this State any contract of insurance, or shall effect an insurance or insurances, or pretend to effect an insurance or insurances, or connect any other person or persons with them in any policy they may at the time hold, or shall do any business of insurance of any kind, or make any guaranty, contract or pledge for the payment of annuities or endowments or money, whether the amount thereof be fixed or contingent, to the families or representatives of any policy or certificate holder, or the like, or shall advertise or circulate any card, circular, notice, or open or keep any office for the transaction of said business, except an insurance broker, duly licensed, without fully complying with all the provisions of this subtitle of this article, shall be subject to the fines and penalties imposed by Section 188 of this Article; and the term "Insurance Company," as used in this article, shall be taken to embrace every corporation, association, partnership or individual engaging in such business; and every such corporation, association, partnership or individual making any engagement for the payment of any money or other benefits in the event of sickness, accident or death, or other contingency, either to the member, policy or certificate holder, or by whatsoever name the same may be known, or to their families or representatives, or entering into any contract or agreement in which the chances or probabilities of the duration of life, or the rate of mortality or hazard of occupation are in any way involved as an element or condition of such contract or agreement, shall be deemed and taken to be a life insurance company, within the meaning of this article, and shall be subject to all the requirements of law applicable to said life insurance company; provided that the said business may be conducted on the mutual or co-operative plan, and that all such organizations shall, prior

to beginning business and thereafter, have in force bona fide applications for membership from at least one hundred persons; and in case said organization issues its certificates for a maximum sum of less than five hundred dollars, these said applications shall at least equal ten thousand dollars of insurance; and if any certificate of insurance on one life be issued in excess of five hundred dollars, then they shall at least equal the amount of insurance now required by law for a mutual company, and in addition thereto, comply with the seven following Sections of this article for said mutual or co-operative organization; provided, that nothing herein contained shall be construed to apply to the granting of relief or benefits to members or their families by any societies of a purely and exclusively religious, charitable or benevolent description, which are not operated with a view to a profit by their officers or members.

Metropolitan Life Ins. Co. v. Dempsey, 72 Md. 293. Order Int. Frat. All. v. State, 77 Md. 564. Barton v. Fraternal Alliance, 85 Md. 30. Fraternal Alliance v. State, 86 Md. 556-8. Md. Casualty Co. v. Gehrman, 96 Md. 648.

1888, art. 23, sec. 128. 1888, ch. 424. 1892, ch. 488. 1894, ch. 256. 1902, ch. 338.

176. Organizations, as described in Section 175, issuing certificates for the payment of money or other benefits in the event of sickness, accident or death, or other contingency, either to the member, policy certificate holder, or by whatsoever name the same may be known, or to their families or representatives, but issuing no certificate, certificates or any other form of contract of payment in the aggregate of a greater sum than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00), upon the termination of any one life or combinations of lives, or a greater sum than seventy-five dollars ($75.00) annually, or the equivalent thereof, whether the payments be stipulated to be made annually, or at longer or at shorter intervals, upon any contract or contracts of annuity in which the continuance of any one life, whether singly or in connection with other lives conjointly or in succession, or combined in any way whatsoever, or during sickness or disability, is involved as an element of the contract, may be formed on the mutual, co-operative, assessment or stock.

plan; and if on the latter plan, shall have a paid-up capital of at least fifty thousand dollars, and such companies, whether formed on the mutual, co-operative, assessment or stock plan, shall be possessed of and constantly maintain a sum of money not less in amount than fifty thousand dollars, or in interest or dividends-bearing securities of equal market value, and not in default for interest or dividend, which shall be deposited with the Insurance Commissioner of this State upon the terms prescribed for the deposits made with the Treasurer of this State, mentioned in Section 149 of this Article; provided, that weekly or monthly collection of industrial benefit societies of. this State, incorporated before the first day of January, 1898, and which made a report to the said Insurance Commissioner for the year 1897, may be only required to deposit with the Insurance Commissioner, upon the terms above in this section mentioned, the sum of five hundred dollars, before the first day of January, 1898, and to deposit as aforesaid an additional sum of five hundred dollars before the first day of January in every year thereafter, until they shall have each deposited, as aforesaid, the full sum of ten thousand dollars. But should any of said companies included within the terms of this proviso fail for thirty days after the first day of any January, as aforesaid, to make the deposit of five hundred dollars in this proviso required, such company shal be proceeded against by the Insurance Commissioner in the manner provided in the seventh paragraph of Section 160 of this Article; and provided, further, that nothing in this section shall be construed to affect companies which have been duly organized prior to April 28, 1902, and which were doing business in this State prior to said date; and provided further, that whenever any company referred to in this section shall elect to deposit with the said Insurance Commissioner the sum of fifty thousand dollars, then said company making said deposit shall have the right to issue policies up to five thousand dollars on any one life. Fraternal Alliance v. State, 86 Md. 556-558.

1898, ch. 468, sec. 128A.

177. Such organizations as are described in Section 176 of this Article may, upon complying with the requirements con

tained in said section, make such contracts of insurance as are by said section allowed, both of adults and infants; provided, however, that in all cases of the insurance of infants, some adult shall become responsible for all obligations of said infant to said organization.

1888, art. 23, sec. 129. 1888, ch. 424.

178. Organizations not excepted, as described in Section 175, not having heretofore filed an annual statement in or with the insurance department of this State, shall hereafter file an annual statement as required by law, except that they shall severally file their first report on or before June first, eighteen hundred and eighty-eight, showing the assets, liabilities, number of policies in force and amount thereof for the year ending December thirty-first, eighteen hundred and eighty-seven.

1888, art. 23, sec. 130. 1888. ch. 424.

179. Any agent, physician or other person who shall insure, or knowingly cause to be insured or reinstated in membership, any infirm or unhealthy person not at the time in an insurable condition, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor; and, upon conviction thereof, shall be subject to the penalty prescribed in Section 188 of this Article.

Ibid. sec. 131. 1888, ch. 424.

180. Any agent, collector or physician who shall cause to be presented to any organization, as described in Section 188, a false, dishonest and untrue claim for payment, or any agent or collector who shall falsely represent any such organization, or collect, or do business without authority of the organization, or secure cash advances by false statements, or failure to perform services therefor, or shall fail to turn over when required, or satisfactorily account for all collections for or property of any such organization incorporated in this State shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and be subject to the penalty as in Section 188.

Art. 23, sec. 177-Special Act of Legislature required. v. Governor Smith, 97 Md. 177.

Dundalk Railway Co.

Ibid. sec. 132. 1888, ch. 424.

181. No corporation of this State shall assume the name of any such foreign or home corporation as described in Section 175, nor one so closely resembling it as to mislead the public as to its identity.

Ibid. sec. 133. 1888, ch. 424.

182. The Insurance Commissioner of this State may examine all such corporations as described in Section 175, in order to verify the correctness of the annual report required by law to be made to him.

Ibid. sec. 134. 1888, ch. 424.

183. Any organization, as described in Section 175, doing business upon the industrial or weekly payment plan, whether of this or other States or districts, shall require from each of its agents or collectors in this State a good and sufficient bond for not less than fifty dollars, and for failure to do so shall be liable to the penalty prescribed in Section 188 and for all damage the public may have sustained by such negligence; provided, that the informant shall receive one-half of the fine imposed in any conviction under this section.

1888, art. 23, sec. 135. 1860, art. 56, sec. 33. 1858, ch. 432, sec. 3. 1872, ch. 388. 1874, ch. 400. 1876, ch. 248. 1878, ch. 106.

184. Every insurance company, including individuals, partnerships, joint stock associations and corporations, conducting any branch of insurance business in this State, must transmit to the Insurance Commissioner a statement of its condition and business for the year ending on the preceding thirty-first day of December, which statement shall be rendered on the first day of January following, or within sixty days thereafter (except that foreign companies may transmit their statement of business, other than that done in the United States, at any time prior to the following first of July), which statements must be in the form and state the particulars required by the blanks prescribed by the Insurance Commissioner; and he may require at any time statements from any company doing business within this State, or from any of its officers or agents, on such points as he may deem necessary and proper to elicit a