NORTHERN STEAMSHIP CO.

Auckland Star, Volume L, Issue 127, 29 May 1919, Page 8

NORTHERN STEAMSHIP CO.

ANNUAL MEETING. The thirty-eighth annual meeting of the Northern Steamship Company was held yesterday afternoon, Mr J. H. Upton presiding. The. annual report and balance sheet, which were adopted, stated:—Tke net profit on working account for the year ended March 31, after making provision forl insurance, depreciation, and boiler andj repairs account, was £11,332 3/3. i . Transfer feed amounted to £15 5/, and ■ the balance brought forward from April 1, IUIS, after deducting dividend, was £2034 10/2, making ii total available sum of .£13,!)51 18/5. Tile following appropriation of this was recommended: To payment of a dividend at the rate of 7 per cent, per annum (half of which was paid to shareholders on November 28, 1IJ1S), absorbing dCII,2!)S 17/, leaving a balance to be carried to the credit of profit and loss account of ;C2(iß3 1/5. The chairman, in moving the adoption of the report and balance-sheet, said:— "The exigencies of the war period have been very harassing, at no time more so than during the pasfe twelve months. This has forced us to revise our tarilT from time to time. We were obliged to do this in order to keep pace with increasing expenditure, and to enable us to carry on operations in such a manner ac to secure to shareholders the modest return on their capital to which they have been accustomed. Residents in country districts, who are not acquainted with all the facts, sometimes complain of our rates as excessive. An answer to such objections will be found in the balance-sheet. The figures there prove that the public have not been exploited, and that the increased rates have been fully justified. Contrary to the experience of most shipping companies, this company, owing to the peculiar conditions of our trade, has not profited in the least by war conditions. Our difficulties during "the period under review were further intensified by the unprecedented scourge of influenza which swept tlie city and Dominion during November and December last. The cost of the epidemic has been most serious, and. together with the increased coat of repairs and maintenance, has raised our expenditure beyond what could have been foreseen. The retiring directors, Messrs J II t pton. r. Rhodes and E. 11. Davis were re-elected, while Messrs Li. O'Halloran and \\. \\ ailacp i ?ruco were ap p omted auditors for the ensuing year. "The charges apiinst No. 2 insurance account, which provide for claims under the porkers' Compensation Act and tile snipping and Seamen Act, have been above the average, owing to a death claim of .£SOO arising from the sad loss >y accident of a seaman on the Manukau bar last May. The account consequently stands at about £450 less than in the previous balance-sheet. The only serious accident to our vessels during this year was k fire which broke out on the auxiliary schooner Greyhound while on a voyage to Hokianga. Both hull and cargo were extensively damased, which necessitated a general "averagc'adjustment. An addition to our fleet has to be recorded in the new scow Tuhoe, which it was found necessary to build for working our shallow harbours on the East Coast. An opportunity occurred of acquiring a property in Quay Street, adjoining the works of the United Repairing Company, and we availed ourselves of it as we consider it will prove a sound investment for the company." Speaking of the prospects for the coming year, the chairman said it was to be hoped that maximum prices had now been reached in their main articles of consumption, but this was by no means certain, and requests might be made for revised agreements in regard to wages, while income tax was now a formidable item in the nnnual expenditure, the last rissessment exceeding .£5,000. The company, the chairman remarked, in conclusion, had every reason to be satisfied with the services of all the staff. Mr. C. Chapman proposed a hearty vote of thanks to the management and staff, ashore and afloat, who, he said, had worked hard in the company's service during the strenuous time of the past year. This was seconded by Mr. P. J. Xerheny, and carried with applause by the shareholders present.