SOUTHERN CROSS GLASS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23118, 18 February 1937, Page 6

SOUTHERN CROSS GLASS

Rumours have recently been current to the effect that the Southern Cross Glass Company of New Zealand, Ltd., works at Ashburton will shortly be reopened. Two circulars have recently been issued to shareholders, one from Mr D. W. Stalker, of Invercargill, and the other from Mr L. L. Cordery, chairman of directors of the company. Mr Stalker’s circular, which is a sharp criticism of the directorate, states in part:— “It has been ascertained that your company should command a very nice share of the potential trade in our Dominion, so surely it is our duty to go after it and make our shares worth a good deal more than they are to-day. In restarting the works, shareholders have nothing to lose and everything to gain. The present Government is sympathetic towards starting secondary industries, and we think we can look for-

ward with every confidence to Government support. “A special meeting will shortly be held to call on the directorate to resign, and to appoint a directorate which would immediately get to work and restart your company with every prospect of making it one of the soundest concerns industrially in our country. The present directorate has had ample time to put forward some reasonable proposition for your consideration, and it has failed to do so.” Mr Cordery’s circular states:— 1 “In reply to the circular issued over the name of D. W. Stalker, a copy of which he did not send to me or to any of the directors, I would state; (1) The company was formed in 1926, and until the present directors took over, the only glass that had been made by the company was that which blew the main furnace to destruction and spilt all over the floor. By that time £87,714 had been spent. (2) Under the present directors’ control large quantities of bottles, etc., were manufactured and of a good grade. (3) It was found, however, that under present conditions and the powerful, fully equipped opposition, it is impossible to make ordinary everyday ware at a profit at Ashburton. (4) Thanks to the present directors’ careful management and husbanding of assets, the company now has all its property free of debt and the interest from the cash assets practically meets all expenditure. (5) The company now being free from debt, your present directors will not incur unpayable liabilities without a prospect of success. (6) The position has been explained to the shareholders fully at each annual meeting to their entire satisfaction and approval. (7) I have repeatedly recmested to be permitted to resign, and have been urged for the shareholders’ sakes to continue. (8; None of the present directors has ever received one penny remuneration for their services to the board. (9) A company with good finance started in Dunedin, but after manufacturing for some time had to close down. < (10) The present policy has the unanimous approval of all members of the board and all the shareholders who attended the two last general meetings. “ Believing from our experience that the adoption of the suggestions from Mr Stalker, who holds five shares in the company, would result in the loss of the assets, I advise shareholders not to send proxies as he suggests.” MOUNTING TAXATION WELLINGTON GAS COMPANY MORTGAGE STOCK REPAID. An increase of £10,725 in revenue had been more than absorbed by the extra cost of wages and materials and increased taxation, said Sir Harold Beauchamp, chairman of directors, in his address at the annual meeting of the Wellington Gas Company, Ltd., on Tuesday. Income tax had been raised from 5s 10.2 d to 7s 6d in the pound. Land tax increased from Id to 6d in the pound. For the year 1935 the increases were: —Income tax £4OOI, land tax £llß7. The payment for land and income tax now amounted to 13s lOd for every £1 paid to shareholders in dividends. . , . The city rates had increased substantially, and, in no small measure, were keeping in step with the advance in Government taxation, it would be remembered that when the general reduction was made in wages the company immediately reduced the price of gas to consumers. Shareholders would have noticed that two of the larger gas undertakings had been forced to increase the price of gas to enable them to bear the heavy extra imposts, but so far this matter had not been considered by the Wellington Gas Company. The mortgage debenture stock of £200,000 was repaid on October 1, 1936. The money to provide for this was obtained from the sale of inscribed stock, face value of £100,315, and fixed deposits for one and two years were accepted in exchange for debentures, a total of £86.250, the balance being supplied by the company s bankers. The discharge of the debentures would reduce considerably the annual interest charges.