OUR LONDON LETTER.

Otago Witness, Issue 2232, 10 December 1896, Page 53

OUR LONDON LETTER.

(Fbom Oos Own Cobbbsposdknt.) London, October 3. COLONIAL CONSIGNMENT CO.

An ordinary general meetiag of the share* holders in the Colonial Consignment Company was held at Nelson's wharf on the 22ad ulfe. Mr E. Montague Nelson presided, and among the other directors present were Sir We»tby Perceval and Mr W. T. Holmes. The meeting, as on a former occasion! was not open to the representatives of the press, but an official report has beeu supplied.

From this I lease that the chairman, id ex- j planation of the smaller profit: aa compared with the previous year, said the main reason was that they had sold less me&fc. The number of their consignors had increased, but the principal consignors, Messrs Nelson Bros,, had sent lees meat tbis year than in the previous two years. Also, there was a loss iD the butter and produce department, owing to the late period at which the company was formed. They hoped and expected, however, that they should do thoroujhly well in the department for the future by means of their new premises in Tooley streeb. The company had over 5000 customers jn the country doing direcb trade with fchem - independently of Sniitbfidd Market, - Ncbcdy else connected witb, the' frozen meat; trade- has ever attempted to do so much as this. They bad travellers who covered the whole of Great Britain and sent orders regularly. ' They also got an enormous number of orders by poati One day recently the company sent out 9526 sheep, 4E9 lambs, 58 hindquarters of beef, 18 foreqnarters. 87 pieces of beef, 517 legs, and 5 crates, 353* haunches, 2229 shoulders, and 38 crate?, and 34doz kidneys. The total we ; ghtt of the meat w*« 561,7551b, and that was distributed to 663 different customers. Here is another day's returns— 43B3 sheep, 914 lambs, 684 quarters of beef and sundries, giving a total of 405,2321b ef meafc.

Tlie Chairman painted out that according to the article's of association the company divided between the consigners and ordinary shareholders, in certain proportions, any balance that remained after paying a 7 per cent, dividend. As, bowever, only a ♦ per cent, dividend was declared this year it was impossible to distribute anything to the consignors. But they hoped there would be a handsome return in the future Tho profit the company make on handling a frozen sheep is rather 1e35 than £d per carcase. Mr Nelson did rot advocate opening special shops for the sale of the meat, but deemed it better to make use of existing organisations. Two large importers of American meat had 500 shops each, but the CO. and D. Company had 5000 shop 3 and 5000 shopkeepers working for themselves, and that wax a much better plao.

Mi W. S. Davidson seconded the adoption of the. report, drawing ipeoial* attention to the fact that the compaoy had spent £6000 during tbs part year, in working up business in the country districts, and that they have travellers in -various parts of England working hard to pußh the trade in meat. He believed that when the various agents .who had beeu -tent Home from the colonies to report on the frozen meat trade, went back and told what they had seen, there would be many more coosignmeuts to this company. He said that taking the average total charges, producers would fiad that this company's rates are more economical than those of any other company engaged ia the ti&de on this side of the world.

The report was unanimously adopted, a 4- per cent, dividecd was declared, and the retiring directors (Messrs E. H. Byaa and W. S. DavidBon) were re-electtd, as also were the auditors. The proceedings closed with the usual votes of thanks.

October 9. 818 GEOEGE GEEY AND THH MINING DIRECTOBATE.

In my last letter J mentioned that the distinguished name of Sir George Grey appealed, much to everbody's surprise, on the draft prospectus of a mining company— the Hauraki Consols— which is to " ran " the New Whftu and Clones nines, and which also numbered Sir Somera Vine* ex-Beorefcary of the Imperial Institute, among its directors. It tarns oub that the appearance o£ the " Great Pro-consul'u" ncme on the prospectus of the H&uraki Consols was due to a double misconception — a misconception on Sir George Grey's part as to the nature and objects of the enterprise, and also a mistake on the part of the promoters of the company as to the position whioh Sir George imagined himself to be taking. "What Sir George Grey says is, that; he was earnestly solicited to assist in setting on foot an important undertaking which he understood had for its object the promotion of colonisation and of indnitrial interests. Well, no doubt a gold mining company might fairly be said to come within that category, although its methods might be different from those imagined by Sir Qeorge Grey. It was put to Sir George that irhat was sought was nob his money, not his jtapital, but his experience and advice, which, ife was put to him, could" not fail to ba highly beneficial to the people of the colony. Sir George replied that he would always have much pleasure in giving any such advice to the beet $£ Jds ftbilik* ami iv je>hw.m. $hejs£ulte oi hia

experience at the disposal of New Zealand coJonists. He doe 3 not appear ho have imagined for one moment that tbo3e terma on his part w«.re undoi-stoad a« an acceptance of aa honorary directorship iv a gold mining company. Such, however, was the construction placed np»n it by the deputation who waited upon him. And accordingly rhoy went on their way, and forthwith caused Sir George Grey's name to bs duly printed iv their draft prospectus. Some oil his friemds, on seeing the prospec&uis, lost no time iv communicating with him with the view of ascertaining how he came to have tsken this new departure. On receiving his explanation steps were at once taken to correct the misapprehension under which the' promoters of the company had been labouring. So I fear that the people of New Zealatid will not, after all, have the advantage of his experience arid cdvico in relation to gold mining. THE OTAGO MEDICAL SCHOOL. A loDg article appears iv tha Lancet with reference to the medical profession and its J prospects iv New Zealand. It seems tome, on I the whole, very acourate in its statements, and very shrewd and intelligent in- the advice it gives to youug doctors thinking of emigrating to Naw Zsaland. Ife warns thsse rhafc "unless they can go with a sufficiency of worldly goods to begin with, New Zealand will not prove to them the Elysium it was a few years ago." The Lancet goes on to Bay that most people ia the colony UJ struggling hard to make both ends meet, while many are members of medical clubs or frieudly societies, "and so. do not proi vide muoh employment for ordinary medical I practitioners. 1 Taafc aay young doefcora possessing the necessary qualifications alike .as to kuowledge and ability, steadiness and pluck, may by degrees work up themselves a good practice, the' Lancet freely admits, but ifc warns these who may he thinking of going oufc that unless they adopt what is perhaps the safest course— that of beginning business iv a young township and risiDg with it,— ife is only after years of struggling and excessive work that they can expect to reap their reward. One piece of excellent advice is cfftr._d. That is, that they should m»ke themselves masters of all the special departments of the profe»sion, as they may expect to be called upon to attend to all 6orts of different caios, and will never know when they may hare to perform some special operation. The medical educ3t : on provided in New Zealand by the Otago University is favourably noticed by the Lancet, It says tbat most New Zealand students have been well grounded at the Ofcago University, bufc do not, as a rule, begin practising until they have been to the mother country and taken degrees there. They follow on the same lines at Homo as they did at the Otago University, not omitting any opportunity of obtaining practical knowledge, and, adds the Lancet, they nob oDly do themselves great credit, bat also refleot the same on their New Zealand OruVenity. ANGLO-COLOKIAL NOTES. That unfortunate bill for compelling domestic servants to tske a weekly half holiday is stilly the subject of unmeasured ridicule iv the English press. The Illustrated London News, this week takes a tura at the p&lting, and pillories both th& unfortunate measure and the) ill-advi»ed authors, Mr £1. A. Fitzgerald and his New Zealand Alpine experiences are still being vociferously boomed by the publishers of his book. It seems to me the whole thing has been frightfully over-" done, and I r>m afraid that those concerned will find this oufc to their. c:wb before long. Already the resctron is beginning. Most of the reviews of Mr Fitzgerald's book have hitherto been not only favourable, but gashing in the highest degree. But now the Academy has a different tale to tell. Ifc describes 'Mr Firz- V gerald's book as "an excellent little book laboriously spoiled into a big one." Ifc praises generally the author's way of telling his story, bufc .is exceedingly rough on the illustrations, most of which, ifc says, are •• obviously faked." " Probably," says the Pall Mall Gazette, "not even the most sanguine of the pioneers iv New Zealand frozen meafc trade ever dreamed tbat the trade would meet the proportions it has attained at the pretenb day." Mr H. C. Cameron has at last succeeded in securing the adjoining premises off Piccadilly (Manchester) as an addition to his New Zealand produce stores in that city. He has now thrown the ground floors of the two premises into one, and jußt now the place is almost entirely given over to cirpenters, painters, aud paporhangers. When completed the new store will quite eclipse all the butchers' shops iv Manchester ; none of them in fact will come neat ib iv appearance. Mr Cameron is sanguine that this enlargement of his premises, whioh has long been so much needed, will tend to the further development of his steadily increasing business in New Zealand produce. ' Ifc will enable him to classify it much better by keeping the meafc aud the dairy produce departments more distinctly separate, while he" will be able to show the produce to much more advantage than he cculd ia the former corn- ' par&fcively limited space. Recently Mr Cameron : added another attraction to his store in tha shape of some large photographs of New Zealand scenery which were specially lent by the Agent-general. These attracted a great deal of public attention and tended to bring the prodace displayed iv the windows more into notice than before. What a pity i* is that New Zea- ( land cannot nod a few more men after the style i of Mr H. O. Cameron, possessing alike his , feb.iijtij^.eDviiufiaSDV.arul fotsr.mjua.tiHu . IM*

the usual story that what is most wanted, whfither in politics or in trade, is the right

A special meeting of the holders of debentures of the New Zealand Shipping Company was held at the company's offices, Leadenhall street, on Wednesday last, Sir Edwyn Dawes presiding. The business was of a purely formal character, consisting simply of obtaining the specific panctiou of the debenture-holders to the conversion scheme vrhich has jusb been carried oufc by the company so materially to the shareholders' advantage. The debenture-holders were unanimous in according this sanction, and a resolution to that effect was duly passed and recorded.

la spite of the prevalent "slump" in the Stock ' Exchange, New Zealand securities look very well. Only a week or two back New Zealand Three's were down to 97. Anybody who had bought largely jusb then could realiae now and make a little fortune, for they are up again to 101.

The s.s. Rimutaka goes out a very full ship this time, much diffioulty having been found at the London office in accommodating tbe numerous intending passengers.

"New Zealand" (s'vys the St. James's Gazette) "ia eviden ly dtterrnined to hold the champion belt for eccentric legislation. Its latest parliamentary freak is the Juvenile Depravity Suppression Bill, which is apparently regarded as a measure of aome importance, seeing that it was introduced 'by the Premier in person, Mr Seddon. It is a bill that seoifl3 to have for its' source and inipivafcion the law agamsfe streefc loitering that has long prevwled . in out principal university fcowos. If this' precious bill should pass into law" (continues th&Sb. James's Gazette) "New Zealand paliceman will find their hands pretty full. The provision for rouaing up •married persons of good repute,' and constituting them in their night gowns a court of anmmsry jenkdintion to try the moral character of any young female caught red-htnded in tho act cf taking the air after the statutory hour oi 10 p.m. is sublimely audacious in its absurdity and delightfully Gilbertian in its whimsical possibilities." "Hardly leas ridiculous " (in the opinion of the St. James's Gazette) "is the Undesirable Immigrants Bill, which the New Zealand Parliament was aho engaged in discussing when the last mail left. The time seems to have arrived to put the question. What are our colonial Parliaments coming to ? Fortanataly, sanity and level-headedness continue to characterise the prooecd : ngs of most of them, but in their general and collective interest they ought to make some representations to New Zealand that will have the effect of taking the control of the legislative machine out of the hands of cranks, faddists, and assorted idiots." It is often well " to see ourselves as others see us." I wonder how the Premier and Parliament of New Zaaland will relish the light in which they are viewed by a considerable section of the British pres3 and public.

I regret to record the death of Lady Glasgow's fs.(her, Sir Kdward Hunter-Blair, who passed away at his residence, Blairquhar Castle, Ayrshire, on Wedne? day last, afc -the age of 79. Sir Edward married Miss W&uchope in 1850, and. succeeded to the baronetcy seven 'years later. His eldest son, who becomes the new baroneb, joined the "Roman Catholic Church some years ago, and ia now well-known as the Rev. Father Hunter- Blair at, the Monastery of Fort Augustus, in Scotland, Seven other eons survive their father, also two daughters, the. elder of whom is Lady Glasgow, wife of the Earl of Glasgow, Governor of New Zealand.

Mr Harold Large has aa article in last week's Mmical News on the viola-alta, the stringed instrument devised by Herr Rifcter to take the place of the ordinary viola, which is admittedly more or les» unsatisfactory. It is not a little strange that this instrument appears never hitherto to have bsen regularly introduced into English music, whether chamber or orchestral. It is to be heard for the firsb time at a special recital in the Queen's Hall, when Herr Balling, who will be remembered in New Zealand as having established the Nelson School of Music, and who has already introduced the viola-alta in New Zealand, will make its merits practically known to the musical public of London.