THE DROP IN WAIHIS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 807, 3 May 1910, Page 6

THE DROP IN WAIHIS.

FURTHER DISCUSSION. RESOLUTION BY STOCK EXCHANGE. " STATEMENT BY THE COMPANY'S s ATTORNEY. (By TeleEraph—Press Association.) Auckland, May 2. Another discussion took place at the noon call of tho Auckland Stock Exchange to-day regarding tho sharp decline that has taken placo in tho prico of Waihi shares. Mr. 1 , . Hull (vice-president) again raised the question at the close of the call asking tho chairman if he did not think it would be well to set up a committee to investisate matters" connected with tho sudden drop. The' chairman- (Mr. G. A. Buttle): What do you propose to do? Have you any motion to make? . Mr. Hull then moved that o committee of two or three be appointed to go through the register of tho company for the purpose of seeing what shares had been transferred during the last two months, and by whom. Mr. Whittaker seconded the motion. Mr. Masfen: Why not make it three months? Mr. Hull: I am quite agreeable to that. . Mr. Masfen: It is just as well to start at the beginning and 'ascertain who have been selling during the last three months. Mr. D. M'Donald said he knew there were a number of outside shareholders who wanted the matter investigated. The Stock Exchange was looked upon as the proper body,to mako the inquiry, and to report to tho public the result of such investigation. No doubt every assistance would be given for such an investigation, as tho officers of the Waihi Company were in a sense also the servants of the pnblic who hold the shares. He suggested that the chairman, secretary, and Mr. Hull form tho committee.

Mr. W. Colbeck considered it would bo jinoro dignified if the chairman of the Exchange first wrote to the attorney of the Waihi Company for official information regarding the-mine. It was possible that after all this was only a huge scare. They did not know the true position, and therefore they should inquire at the head before investigating the register. Mr. Hull said scare or no scare, the shares were falling soriously in price. These shares had been sold by hundreds and hundreds to people who did not know; but tho mine was looking a<! well as ever. Thousands of innocent yeople had bought these shares, and for anything he knew the shares might also have been sold by equally innocent persons, but when the price dropped from i>lo to £1 15s. it was fair to assume that there was something wrong at the, mine. If such was the case, he contended that shareholders had as much, right to know the facts as the officials of tho company had.

Mr. Greenslade supported Mr. Colbeck's suggestion about writing to the attorney. Hβ objected to taking.'any action in the matter until the attorney of the company had been asked for official information. A few weeks ago very reassuring news was published, and that was supposed to come from the attorney. Still, they wore not euro that it had until they had communicated with the gentleman. Once that was done they had something to go upon. Mr. Grruar supported the motion, as he considered it would,be well to ascertain if certain persons had been selling heavily upon private- information, which should have been available to every shareholder in the company. The chairman said that ho asced with Mr. Colbeck as to writing to the attorney of tho company first. Supposing the Exchange set up a committee to investigate,, the attorney of tho company might fairly claim they had nothing to do with the matter. Of course, they could claim to examine the register by paying the fee, but if that was to be done thoroughly, they should employ a competent man whom they could trust to do the work. Personally, he. was quite satisfied that something serious-was wrong to cause stock to. drop so much during the last few weeks. Ho thought they should first write to the attorney and ask if he could give any official explanation for the- fall in shares, and upon receiving his reply the Exchange could' further consider the matter. 1

The motion was then put and adopted, and on the suggestion of Mr. E. Prater it was decided that the committee be empowered to employ a solicitor to mako the search of the register. On tho motion of Mr. Colbeck it was agreed that the chairman write to the attorney of tho company to ask for some official information to enlighten the Stock Exchange regarding the serious drop in the price of Waihi shares from ,£lO to .£7 15s.

Mr. Hull suggested that the attorney should also be asked by the committee if the statement was official throe necks ago that everything about the mine was rosy. If it was not official it just as well thirt the public should know the trne position officially. Tha,t also w-as agreed to. THE ATTORNEY EXPLAINS.

At the afternoon call the chairman I stated that when the Exchange adjourned ; at the noon call he found that Mi. C j Rhodes, attorney for the company, had called to eee him twice, and he received a telegiam from the Wellington Exchange asking him to see Mr. Ehodes and get an explanation. He accordingly saw Mr. ■Ehodes and explained to him what had occurred at the noon call. "Mr. Bhodos, in reply, informed me,' proceeded Mr. Buttle, "that nothing fresh had occurred at the mine since tho publication of the last report from the .mine. These; as they came along, he said, wero handed to the press, and were regularly pnblished, and he said that any shareholder or siiarebroker, on inquiry at the company's office, would have been shown reports from the mine superintendent which disclosed all there was to disclose at the present time. He said that the values in tho crosscuts on the Martha lode at No, 9 level—there are three being put in at the present time—have already been published. He stated that ,in the drive east and west on the hanging wall of the lode the values ivare i atisfactory, but that in the crosscuts from the drive, each one of which goes through to the iootwall, the values are low, and in some cases are actually nil. 'This is all I can toll you,' he said., 'I know no more than that myself now.' He said a similar experience was met with, in No. 8 level, and No. 8 level disclosed barren jjuartz in about tho same position, the only different feature about the present experience at No. 9 level being that it is epreatj over a wider area of country, but he pointed out this: that at' No. 8 level they have extensive developments in hand not only on the Martha but also on the Eoyal Empire and Edward lodes, and that the Edward lode .went up to .£lO per ton. Then, he said, referring to No. 9 level; 'Who is to say what there is in the ground there as yet undisclosed? , Mr. Ehodes (added Mr. Buttle) had said that instead of making the matter public as they had dono ho would have given them all the information he knew. Ho said that ho was not responsible for what was said outside, and that so far as tie examination of the company's register was concerned, the Exchange was quite welcomo to cxaraino it at any time."

[The abjvo telegram came to hand after <rar editorial page wont to press.] '

"Social Sorvice" Sunday was observed at St James's Presbytorian Church, Wellington South, on Sunday last. The Bev. W. Shircr preached in the morning from the text, 'T?or the poor always yo have with you." Christianity, ho said, had taught the world the meaning of benevolence and social service. In proof of this the preacher contrasted the condition of the world boforo and after Christianity came into it. and tho condition of Christian and of heathen lands to-day. All through tho Christian centuries the work of benevolence had been manifested by the Church, and there was still ample room for -it to excrciso its influence in connection with tho suffering, tho stranger, tho v children, and the poor. Mucli good work had been done in the past, and thero was more to do. In the ovening Mr. T. P. Mills, social service agent, gave tho address, and a number of tho orphanage children took nart ia tho earvioa.