NATIONAL INSURANCE COMPANY.

Auckland Star, Volume XXVI, Issue 4517, 20 November 1884, Page 2

NATIONAL INSURANCE COMPANY.

(by telegraph.—press ASSOCIATIok)-

Dunedin, this tjtny. r - At the twelfth annual meeting of the above - /;,''"' Company, held at the Chamber of Coin. \ merce Hall yesterday afternoon, Mr J. .Mi

Ritchie presiding, the balance-sheet was taken as read. The Chairman said tbey .- .. would observe that the additional capital called up and subscribed some two and a_,■-'. I half years ago had now been fully paid up, with the exception of the unallotted shares, | __ich remain in the hands of the Company. • , '. The reserve fund had also been fully paid "J up, and stood - now at the full amount > which was agreed upon at the time of tho allotment of fresh capita).,( ;*s Their mortgages had been carefully ex-','A nmkied lately, and were found to be of a .A Satisfactory nature", and as far as theinterest of them was concerned, he might mention that all the interestdue on the 30th Septem- : ber was paid up last month. That TOTOjfflß fair indication of the Company's securities-.;. ."; under that head. The fixed deposits else- :'* where amounted to £22,000, and were madgj j up of sums invested for the purpose of incrensing,there the Company's business in j * » France, Russia, and Germany,, Jn, Qoyerfl. merit bonds, bearing interest at about 4 per cent. The shareholders would, »nO'. AA doubt, be painfully aware that this .was the second year that the Company . . had been forced to draw upon its standjng revenue for the floating reserve. The total . " drawn from the standing reserve for |hg ■' floating reserve was about £35,000 ip 1881; £21,000 was withdrawn in onp year, as'f_ that represented accumulations of unearned premiums from the beginning of the Ppm- : pany. Then, in addition to that, during the succeeding three years they had had ib lay aside large sums for the purpose, in consequence of the increase of business in underwriting in both branches; consequently, tap accounts the directors had at present to lay , . \ before the shareholders were certainly not . ■ satisfactory. Theyo was one thing he woglq v ■.'. say with confidence, that in the balance": 'sheet nothing was disguised. Thisyear the 'S dividend,. 15 per cent., wss only a shade . .-* under what the average dividend had beet.-' during t}i£ previous years of tho Company's o existence. He had not much to tpll them as to the operations for the year. They had to congratulate themselves on '. not being losers on several large con_jagra: ■ tions. By the Invercargill fires tbeyjjwj not lost more than £200 or £300. With' reference to the ship Lastingham, wrecked in Cook's Straits, the National's share of the insurance was only a third of the amount "of tho policy. In the colonies thero was a.:' great amount of reckless competition among insurance companies, and abuse, or rather neglect of tariff, and great ignorance displayed of its guiding principles. "He could not sea what would cure that State'of: things. It seemed as if nothing short of mortal disease would bring insurance companies to repentance, and "he. be- " lieved a good many of them will leave this world before they do repent. (Laughtefcl Ifye concluded by moving tho adoption ; ol: the report and balance-sheet. " Mr' Kei|h Ramsay seconded tho adoption of the report.. In answer to a 'question from Mr Shrimski,-the Chairman could not at the." moment state the exact- amount of the losses sustained by the Company Outside the colony. MrShrimski then moved,' and l_r Esther seconded, the following resolution : —"•That-this meeting stand adjourned until the 'directors are in a position td furnish to tho shareholders all the information: required by them." Mr Shrin_Si stated that he considered the' Shareholder wore not getting a reniarkoblo rate of interest for their money, and he should suggest that tbe working '■' expenses ■ should1 be' reduced.' (Applause). All he wished to know was, whethor there vi.ai , a profit or a1 loss on.tho New Zealand Mb. , hess. The-Chairman: said the head office at Christchurch had paid well, and he considered oti the whole the New Zealand business had about paid itself, but unhappily there had been serious losses in Australia. Mr Shrimski withdrew his motion, • but ho could not help saying that not only had they lost all the interest on their capital, .... ■ .-■ but the premiums were mortgaged.* Mr Ilockon moved that Messrs W. J. M, Larnach, R. Wilson, and A. Burt, the re. \ c tiring directors, -be re-elected, which was carried, and the meeting closed. .-' - ,|