LINSEED OIL COMPANY.

Press, Volume XL, Issue 5830, 21 May 1884, Page 2

LINSEED OIL COMPANY.

The second annual meeting of the Canterbury Linseed Oil and Fibre Company, Limited, was held on April 26th in the rooms of the Agricultural and Pastoral Association. There were present about twenty shareholders, and Mr J. P. Jameson was in the chair. The Chaibman read the Directors' report, which was as follows :— Your Directors, in rendering their report of the year's operations and presenting a balance-aheeb, are not encouraged to speak with unmixed satisfaction. Their hope that a warm interest in the enterprise would be taken by the farmers generally has been somewhat disappointed. Something, however, has been accomplished in that a large amount of information respecting the growth of flax has been gathered and distributed throughout the province Experience has been gained of the possibilities of the industry, which certainly indicates that if taken up with spirit and patience by the growers, the results may be very profitable. The best machinery for dressing the fibre has been procnred, and eligible sites whereon to erect it, in the various agricultural centres, namely, Southbridge, Lincoln, Brookside, and Longbeach. At South-

bridge, one set of the machines has been erected and the premises are complete for carrying on scutching operations. The property is leasehold, with favorable purchasing clause. The Directors have been prepared to ere .t similar works in the other districts named, and have the machinery on hand, bus the delay in the payment of calls they take ss an indication that the shareholders aie not prepared to support their efforts to establish the industry. The area of flax grown is in advance of last year; but the farmers take no steps to prepare their straw for the scutching machines, and much valuable material is as yet unutilised. Several small soarings have been made on company's account, and the crop is under manipulation. It may be interesting to state that a quantity of fibre, scutched by your machinery at SouthbrUge, realised £40 per ton in the Home market. Notice of motion has been given, to be submitted at the annual meeting, to wind up the company, and unless a warm response is made by farmers and the public, by subscribing the necessary capital, your Directors cannot recommend the continuance of operations. The balance sheet, which was taken as read, showed a loss to date of £778 11s. O£ the subscribed capital, £2 per share had been called up, representing £2454.; £706 was unpaid at date, leaving the actual capital raised £1748. There was an overdraft of £tO7 83 from the Bank of Australasia. The assets were—machinery, seed, fibre and land, valued altogether at £1554 17s Bd. The Chairman said that it would bo for the meeting to decide whether the Company should be wound up or not. The ] Directors regretted that they could not bring a better report to the meeting, but the fact was they were crippled by want of funds and want of interest on the part of the farmers. Mr A. G. Howland asked if anything had been done about the flax, which was referred to as grown but not utilised. The Chairman said the farmers refused to do the preliminary work required, and the Company was not in a position itself to undertake it. Were it done by the farmers the Directors thought they could afford to give a price that would pay for the extra labor. Mr C. T. Dudley said the prospectu* stated that the flax would be purchased as grown. The Chaibman replied that that was only meant to be done the first year. The funds had never been sufficient to allow of it. In answer to further questions, he explained that the Company had an expert travelling from place to place to supply th& necessary information ; also, four sets of machines had been got ready to work the flax when brought to them. But the farmers expected the Company to'come and take the flax from their doors. The seed and fibre referred to in the report were grown by the Company itself, Mr Mubpht stated that the cost of cleaning the fibre referred to in the report was 20s per cwt, which was 10s more than it should have been. A shareholder had been informed by the man at the scutching works that the cost wbs £35 a ton. This was too much, if the product was to be sold for £36 a ton. The Chaibman thought the first trial was not a trustworthy guide, there being many difficulties which would be removed afterwards, and An expert of flax (Mr McCormick) judged the value of some samples in the room to be £80 a ton. A shareholder asked what had been done about the seed. The Chaxrican stated that it had been intended to establish the oil industry, and a section of land had been purchased for it; but funds would be necessary for it, and the experience of a Dunedin firm engaged in the business was not encouraging. The matter had not been lost sight of. The report and balance-sheet were adopted. Of Messrs E. Ruddock, G. King and Dr. Doyle, the first-named was the only one who had offered himself for re-election, and he was re-elected. Mr H. E. Alport waa re - appointed Auditor. The shareholders present then resolved themselves into a special general meeting to consider Mr Ruddenklau's motion, which was as follows: —"That the com- • pany be voluntarily wound up, and that Mr F. Waymouth be appointed liquidator at a remuneration of 5 per cent, on the proceeds. ,, |Mr J. G. Rttddenklatt, in moving the above, said he was satisfied that flax growing was a very profitable industry. Moreover all the operations connected with it could be carried on so as never to interfere with the general farm work. Here the farmers had not taken it up properly. The eompauy could never afford to buy the flax a3 grown, and the farmers would nt trouble to do the setting themselves. But the time would come when more than wheat and wool would have to be raised. He thought each farmer should grow a little at present until experience was gained, and then it would be attempted on a larger scale. Aβ for linseed, the capital has come in too slowly for the Directors to consider it prudent to risk the necessary expense. He was not altogether in favor of the motion, but, with the other Directors, he thought the shareholders should be consulted before entering on another year's trading. Mr A. S. Howland seconded the resolution. He was sorry to see that there was not enough enterprise in the colony to take advantage of its most valuable capacities. Hβ would ask Mr Button, who knew something of the Dunedin oil, if it was as good as the English. Mr Button said one sample he had used was fully equal in lighting power. If anything it wanted a little more refining. Mr Howland asked if that company was manufacturing at a profit. The Chaibman had not heard. Mr Milnh—" They weat bankrupt over it any how." Mr HowiiAND thought prospects were not very hopeful, if the buyers could not do well by giving 5s 6d a bushel for the seed, and the farmer could not grow it for less. Mr Mobphy explained that the firm in question had been heavily handicapped. People would have the oil in drums, like the imported article, and then they wanted credit such as they got from the merchants. Mr Milne eaid the high price of labor was kil'ing the business. [Hear, hear.] Sow the seed when they would, the work had always to be done at harvest time, and in any case men woold not work for less than the current wages at any time of the ! year. He had grown a nice crop, but it cost £3 an acre to pull. His return was eighty bushels of seed for three and a half aores. There was no sale for it in Chmt- ] church, and he had sold it in Dunedin, ; realising nett £16. The fibre he had ! stored. There was no market for it, and he was quite certain it would not pay him j to make a pound and rett it; nor did he j see that the Company could rett it for less than the farmers. He thought they had better wind up the Companj. The first loss was the best. The resolution wa3 also supported by Messrs Gebbie, Button, and other shareholders. It was altered so as to make Messrs Raddenklau, Kiver, and Jameson co-liquidators with Mr Waymouth, and carried. The meeting then broke up.