GLEN OROUA CO-OPERATIVE DAIRY CO., LTD.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLI, Issue 9361, 9 November 1910, Page 7

GLEN OROUA CO-OPERATIVE DAIRY CO., LTD.

ANNUAL MEETING.

The eleventh annual meeting of the above Company was held at the Glen Oroua Hall yesterday, Mr Ralph Boswell, Chairman of Directors, presiding over a large number.of shareholders. After reading the- notice calling the meeting the minutes of last annual meeting were read and confirmed, . The secretary read to the meeting a list of proxies with the names of the candidates for the vacant seats on the directorate they wished to vote for. Mr Vile and several others strongly objected to the proceeding, stating that it was a most improper thing to do. After a heated discussion the matter was allowed to drop. The next business was the adoption of the balance-sheet, which caused a. long and at times heated discussion. Mr T. McKenzie asked several questions relating to directors' fees, wages of employees and auditors' fees, the latter in hie opinion being too high. The Chairman and secretary answered all Mr McKenzie's questions satisfactorily, giving details for each item of expenditure asked for. Mr J. Thompson, the next speaker, complimented the directors on the excellent balance-sheet presented, and congratulated them on the great saving made in the manufacturing account. He asked for an explanation re the increased cost of firewood, coal and kerosene. This the Chairman stated-'was owing to the extra amount of butter produced requiring more fuel, and the installation of tho pasteurising plant. Mr Vile wanted to know how the Company arrived at the value of the buildings -set down as assets. in the balancesheet, stating that in his opinion they were valued too high.—The Chairman gave the necessary information, and stated that the valuations put on the bal-ance-sheet were what buildings had cost, nothing having been taken off for depreciation. Mr jjuncan, late manager of the Comi pany, who was present as a shareholder, was next on his feet and asked a lot of questions and entered into rather a wordy warfare with tho Chairman. He first wanted to know how much the manager's new house had cost? The Chairman replied £300. Mr Duncan then asked how it was that their Company wero paying less to the suppliers than the Bunnythorpe, Awahuri and Cambridge Companies? A voice: Perhaps they have had no law costs to pay. The Chairman contended that they coujd not compare the companies named with their own, and stated that they were paying fd a lb more than last-year. Mr Duncan persisted with his questions, Mr J. Sanson objecting, and pointed out that it was not a fair thing to compare the companies mentioned with their own, also that the Glen Oroua, Company gave more facilities in the .way _of creameries than most companies, which naturally cost more. Mr Duncan then asked for_ a minute of one of the directors' meetings, relating to the sale of butter, to be read to the meeting. This raised a storm of protest, but as Mr-Duncan pressed the question, and several of those present thought that if the minutes were read it would settle the question, a vote of _ the meeting was taken, and it was decided' by a small majority to have the minute read. . Tho minute, which was read by the secretary, was as follows: —"That Messrs Collott and Co. and Messrs Weller and Riley be requested not to make any forward sales, but to wait until the arrival of the butter in England." Matters after this cooled down, and the balance-sheet was eventually adopted, on the motion of Mr Boswell, seconded by Mr M. Carroll. The directors' report was adopted without discussion, on the '■ motion of Mr Lancaster, seconded by Mr Whitton. The election of two directors for the ensuing twelve months caused some keen competition, and resulted in the return of Messrs J. Thompson (204 votes) and M. J. McCutcheon (129). The other candidates polled as follows:— Messrs T. McKenzie 61, C. Hopping 38, H. Lancaster 29, R. Boswell (late chairman) 23. Messrs Thompson and McCutchan returned thanks for their election. A telegram wae here received from Messrs Reakes and Cuddie, of the Agricultural Department, apologising for absence from the meeting. The auditors' report was adopted, and Messrs Rutherfurd and Connell re-ap-pointed auditors at a fee of 20 guineas. A lot of time was wasted over the remuneration which the directors and Chairman should receive, and it was eventually decided, on the motion -of Mr Brady, seconded" by Mr Mudlord, that the directors should receive 10s per meeting, and the Chairman £40 per year for their services. Mr Algar moved that clause 50 in the Articles of the Association, which deals with tho election and status of directors, bo altorcd, but on the secretary reading an opinion from the Company's solicitor advising- that it was not legal, he withdrew it. Mr R. B. McKenzie then moved, and Mr Brady seconded, tha-t the directors be instructed to ask the solicitor to frame an article whereby the different creameries of tho Company could elect their own directors, the question to be discussed at the next annual meeting. _ A vote, of thanks to the late Chairman and tho manager and staff concluded a long and lively meeting.