ROBBING THE BRITISH EMPIRE

Maoriland Worker, Volume 13, Issue 1, 3 January 1923, Page 5

ROBBING THE BRITISH EMPIRE

toot SHIP FIKATKS ■ J •' In bbc first 31 moniths of the war the shjpowaers made a profit of £350,000,000. The pre-war value of all British mercantile, marine . was £170,000,000 S o 31 months the owners got twice the value of their ships < and added a Eur their £300,000,000 to the cai>i\-al value of their ships. Iα the House of Commons (17/2/19) it was admitted that the Government had pvzad cqmpsiusation of £104,000,000 for the loss of ships which when n?vv had only cost £51.000,000. The 104 millions was free of tax. The a.s. "Mary Jano" Ties at the Lottom of tho sea. Her shareholders got compensation of five times their nominal 'cap.ltj2.i- for her loss. This money is invested in War Loaii, and the s.s. "Mary Jane," though' she lies at the boltora of the vo>a, :aaiiAs sWll for her ex-owjners 1:6809, and they meet every year to disburse fcblat sum.—''The Triumph of N*£-j l .ionalis.at:.oii." Si? L°o, Chiozza Alou'cy. Page 30. . ISOBAR LAW'S COfff'ESSION I W'".& .shareholder in fourteen ships. Taking the- average of those snips, all ot them .pay.tag , well, the rate of dividend I received last year was 17 t>«r cfat., after pay ; <ng Excess 'Profits Tax.—Mr. Bou&r La-rf, in the Hcuu-vo Of Commons, May 24, 1917. - P.. A-SD 0, PBOFITS The cablegram that informed us that (the P. and O. declared at its .recent annual mee.jlng in London a 'dividend totalling 12 per cant., free ot" tax, for the year, did not tell us Uio whole truth. The following 'paragraph from the Financial Columns of the '•Manehe.ster Guardian," 6/10/22, indicates what w£,s omitted: "Despite 4he many difficulties \riVb. which it lias been faced durjng the past year, the Board of the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation. Company is able to recommend a final dividend of 6 per cent for the six months, free of tax—that is to say, a?, th« same as the interim distribution in May— and making 12 per for the year, or the same as for :n>2l. Although this is the lowest level reached in recent years and marks a considerable fall from the IS 'o&v cont. returns of the war-period. IT MUST NOT BE FORGOTTEN THAT THIS IS PAID ON THE ORIGINAL AMOUNT TWICE INCREASED BY SHARE BONUSES OF r> PER CENT. This mean* that the yield Is now some 135 l>ei' cenlt., iree of tax on the ca:pital originally invested, as compared with 15 per cent., ies fibax, for the pre-war period." Tn .a further reference to the matter the following week the ''Manchester Guardian" says that '-'the report hows a n increase in the net profit for the year, even when allowance is mude for the fact that £60,000 is requVed this time for the sinking fund in connection with the issue, last March, of debentures to the amount of £3,500,000 at 5.4 per. cent. la the following table the profit is staled ■.•iftisr provrding an unspecified amount for dcpreciatVm and also the discount <3i per cent.) and expenses of the, debenture issue, which together totalled £191.854: 1921-22 1920-21 £ £ Profits 696,661 623,531 Brought forward . 100 ? 305 111,939 Available ,-.. 796,966 735470 Debenture Interest 52,065 52,005 Do. sinking fund . 60,000 '— Preferred dividend 152,000 1f>2,000 Deferred ' dividend 431,102 431,100 Do. per cent. »,, 12 12

It is with this lot that the Union Steam Slip Company is merged, (asid between thorn they are raiding seamen's wages s o that they may snatch oven greater dividends.