Chap. 203.—An ACT to afnend and re-enact section 1271 of the Code of Virginia.
Approved March 15, 1904.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That section
twelve hundred and seventy-one of the Code be amended and re-enacted
so as to read as follows:

§ 1271. Every insurance company shall, except a mutual fire insurance
company, having no capital stock and paying no dividends out of its
profits, by an agent employed to superintend or manage the business of
such company in this State, or through some authorized: officer, deliver
under oath to the treasurer of this State a statement of the amount of
capital stock of said company, unless it be a mutual company, and de-
posit with him bonds of the United States, or of the State of Virginia,
or of the cities or counties of this State, to an amount equal to five per
centum on the said capital stock, or not Jess than ten thousand nor more
than fifty thousand dollars, and the treasurer shall thereupon give the
agent a receipt for the same: provided, that the cash value of the se-
curities so deposited need not be more than fifty thousand dollars, nor
shall it be less than ten thousand dollars, and mo single bond so de-
posited shall exceed in amount the sum of ten thousand dollars; if a
mutual company, it shall make a deposit of not less than ten thousand
dollars nor more than fifty thousand dollars, the exact amount to be de-
termined by the State corporation commission, as may seem equitable
upon comparison with the deposit required by stock companies. And
upon the face value of such deposits the treasurer of the Common-
wealth shall be authorized to make an annual assessment of one-twentieth
of one per centum, to be by him collected of the general agent of such
company for the State of Virginia, or if there be no such general agent,
then of any local agent doing business for said company in this State,
to defray the expenses of his office in the safe-keeping and handling of
such securities; and after the payment of said expenses, whatever re-

mains shall be retained as a compensation to himself for his care and
labor in connection with said securities, a detailed statement of which
shall be furnished by him to each session of the general assembly. The
treasurer shall collect for the year nineteen hundred and four in the
month of January and annually thereafter in the month of January.
If the bonds so deposited be registered bonds, the company shall at the
same time deliver to the treasurer a power of attorney, authorizing him
to transfer said bonds, or any part thereof, for the purpose of paying
any of the liabilities provided for in this act. Upon the exhibition of
the treasurer’s receipt and of a license and authority from the State
corporation commission to such company to do business in this State,
to the commissioner of the revenue of the county, district, or city in
which an office of any such company in this State is or is to be located,
and the payment of the specific license tax, which may be imposed there-
on, a license shall be issued in the manner prescribed by law to said
company to carry on its business, and all renewals of such licenses shall
be obtained and issued in the same manner. The treasurer shail re-
quire any such company to make good any depreciation or reduction in
value of the said securities; and-he shall, in the month of December in
every year, examine all securities so deposited with him for the purpose
of ascertaining whether any of them have depreciated or been reduced in
value. Any insurance company incorporated by this State making a de-
posit of bonds with the treasurer shall be required to pay the assess-
ment required by this section: provided, this section shall not be con-
strued as requiring any deposit of bonds by any company transacting its
business upon a basis and under a form of contract which gives to the
patrons of said company in advance all that will ever be due them from
said company, so that nothing is left to be secured to said patrons.