COMMERCIAL TRAVELLERS

Evening Star, Issue 20983, 23 December 1931, Page 16

COMMERCIAL TRAVELLERS

ASSOCIATION'S ANNUAL REFORT

The annual report of the Commercial Travellers’ and Warehousemen’s Association of Otago, to be submitted to the annual meeting of members on February 12, states that the funds of the association have made an advance of £529 7s 9d, The takings for the year amounted to £6,738 6s sd, yielding a gross profit of £2,217 18s Bd, as against £7,649 15s lOd, yielding a gross profit of £2,606 Os lOd for the previous year. Owing to general conditions, a steady decline in takings has been experienced throughout the year. Under former conditions this would have meant a considerable shrinkage in profit, but owing to the committee’s action in installing measures in the bars, the reduced takings have shown almost an equal return. For the year the percentage of gross profit on return was 32.92 per cent., but for the last six months since the installation of the measures, the percentage * rose to 37.5 per cent. Subscriptions from club members amounted to £651, a decrease of £l3 13s on the previous year’s figures. The club has been credited with its proportion of £1 Is out of every _ £3 3s association members’ subscriptions, in. -accordance with the resolution, carried at a special meeting on June 28, 1919. This amounted to £432 12s. The position of the account at the close of the year permitted a transfer of _ £197 9s 5d to the credit of the association account. Last year the transfer amounted to £235 10s 6d. These are the only years since 1916 that it has not been necessary for the club account to draw on the association account to. make good its loss on working for the year. Under the reciprocal treaty with the United Commercial Travellers’ Asociation of Australia, members have the entree to the welt-equipped club houses of the Commonwealth States, with the right of residence as well. The United Association is alive to the wants of travelling members, and makes every endeavour to secure concessions aud also facilities for their comfort. In order to keep constantly in touch with the Hail ways Department, the committee appointed Air J. _T. Gillan to act as railway representative. Air Gillan’s duties are to bring before tho department all complaints and suggestions made by commercial travellers, and this arrangement has worked out very well indeed. Immediately word was received regarding tho Hawke’s Bay earthquake disaster, arrangements were made for a cash drive throughout tho city and suburbs. Air Ben Ellis was organiser, and tho drive resulted in the sum of £1,588 5s 8d being raised to relievo distress in Napier and Hastings. The “ Big Day ” effort on behalf oj: the poor and needy of Dunedin was held on Saturday, July 11, and took the form of a cash, produce, and clothes drive. Considering that the city and suburbs had been thoroughly worked by other bodies throughout the preceding months, it was extremely gratifying to all concerned to find that the drive resulted in produce and clothes of excellent quality to tho value of £B,OOO, and cash £241 being collected. The financial members’ roll at November 30, 1931, was: Association, 412, as against 454 last year; club, 333, as against 375 last'year. The committee regrets to record the deaths of three association members during the _ year:—Messrs Leslie Churchill, Willian Lang, and 11. Young, and four chib members —Alessrs H. O. Anderson, G. W. O. Alacdonald, Roderick Alackenzie, and Walter Wyatt.