The discussion of the methods of dealing with the mortuary statistics of a life insurance company has been hitherto almost entirely neglected by American actuarial writers. This is not a little singular, considering the attention bestowed on other subjects of not greater difficulty or importance. Viewing the large and rapidly-growing body of data already accumulated by American companies, the problem is not of less concern to us than to our English and German brethren, to whom, notwithstanding, we are indebted for the principal contributions to this branch of actuarial science.