Volume 2 - ElectricCanadian.com

1867 TO 1901 119Bank of Commerce at this period was not inattentive to theimportance of a contented and ambitious staff of officers,with a well developed esprit de corps. In February, 1891,the Amateur Athletic Association of Toronto, an enterprisein which the late Goldwin Smith took a keen interest,was formed for the promotion of athletic sport among youngmen, and the directors authorized an immediate donation of$2,000 and an annual subscription of $500 a year for fiveyears, on condition that the bank's staff in Toronto, thennumbering about one hundred, should be entitled to thefree use of the privileges of the Association. At this timethe bank was very active in encouraging its staff in every formof athletics, and although the Amateur Athletic Associationdid not realize the hopes of those who founded it, the assistancegiven by The Canadian Bank of Commerce to the enterpriseshowed the attitude of the management.Another step of similar character was taken in Novemberof the same year, when it was decided to enter into correspondencewith Archibald Hewat, actuary of the Edinburgh LifeAssurance Company, for the purpose of preparing a suitableplan for the establishment of a Pension Fund formembers of the staff. The bank took great care to ensure asound actuarial foundation for this fund, and keeping thisobject steadily in view, the fund has undergone an actuarialexamination every ten years, such changes being made in itsconstitution and rules on these occasions as experience showsto be necessary. Regular contributions are made to the fundby both the bank and its officers, and it has now grown to largeproportions. Its existence has done much to retain for thebank the services of its trained officers. The total amountcontributed by the bank out of its profits from the establishmentof the fund on June 1, 1894, down to the end of 1918 is$1,058,241. 1In March the bank had shown a new interest in educationalwork by a subscription of $200 per annum towards the1See Appendix VIII for a history of this fund.