STATEMENT OF COLONIAL BANK BALANCES, ETC.

Colonist, Issue 1567, 27 September 1872, Page 7

STATEMENT OF COLONIAL BANK BALANCES, ETC.

(From a Return laid before Parliament) The Bank balances at the close of business on 24th August 1872, after paying off on 23rd instant £100,000 to Trust Fund and Bank for Deficionoy Bill und Overdraft were :— £ a. d. Consolidated Fund ... 62,664 18 6 Trust Fund 115,364 19 4 Special Fund 98,861 1 2 Publio Works 40,171 19 11 817,062 18 11 Deduct debit balance Land Fund ... 136-19, 4 316,925 19 7 Amount undistributed I>4Bl 18 1 , £318,407 17 a The following ii ft •UUnawrt of the prwtnt positiu

of the Consolidated Fund Branoh of the Publio Account, with probable receipts and requirements to 31st October, 1872 (we omit shillings and pence) :— Cash in Bank ... ... 62,664 Probable receipts— Estimated revenue ... 222,500 Recoverable from Defence and Loan 8,358 Consolidated Loan ... 4.925 Confiscated Lands 13,650 Reserved Fund 314 City of Wellington ... 930 Province of Canterbury ... 3,502 County of Westland ... 503 Province of Otago, say ... 5,000 37,185 322,350 Ordinary Current Expenditure 192,376 Moiety of Stamp duty Payable to Public Works Account 13,000 205.376 Estimated balance ... £116,973 J". Woodwaed, Assistant Treasurer ; C. T. Batkin, Paymaster-General. Treasury, 27th August, 1872. The following memorandum is attached by the Auditor-Q-eneral:— 28th August, 1872. On the 23rd instant the Colonial Treasurer paid the sum of £40,000 into the " Public Account," at the Bank of New Zealand, in redemption of a Deficiency Bill in aid of the Consolidated Fund. On the same day, the Colonial Treasurer paid to the Bunk of New Zealand the sum of £60,000, in discharge of an overdraft in aid of the Consolidated Fund. Chaeies Knight, Auditor-General. THE GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. Mb. Geobge Didsbtjbt's report of the Government Printing Department for the year ended June 30th laßt, has been published, and from it we learn the following:— The value of work executed, is £12,302. For both Houses of Assembly—Bills, Mansard, Private Bill Office, £2,359 ; for the House of Representatives —Order Paper, Parliamentary Papers, Journal, &c, £4,165: for the Legislative Council—Order Paper, Eeturns, Reports, &c, £671; total value of work done for the General Assembly, £7,196. The number of impressions printed, 5,409,956. The number of pages, 14,401. The salaries amounted to £9,057; Permanent hands, £5,240; extra and Hansard hands, £3,817; contingencies, £697; stereotype branch, £217 ; total expenditure, £9,972. The net profit for the year was £3,146. The plant is estimated at £3.828. " The plant, therefore, may be said to have produced during the year work to the amount of three times its value." GOVERNMENT ANNUITIES. The Hon. Mr. Gisborne in his third annual report states :•—" The annexed returns show the satisfactory progress which has been made in the operation of the Government Annuities Act, 1869, and of the amending Act of 1870. The number of proposals received npring tbe year ended 30th June laßt is shown in the following statement: — Eeceived. Declined. Not taken up. Class, * ' ■ No. Amount No. Amount No. Amount £ £ Insurance ... 1,769 708,500 131 47,350 400 123,900 Endowments 51 5,400 24 2,400 Anauities ... 6 *345 Totals... 1,826 £713,900 131 £47,350 424 £126,300 *Per annum. One-third of the number not taken up are still under consideration, the prescribed time for taking them up not having elapsed. The amount of claims paid during the same period on Assurance Policies was £1200. The amount of receipts for the year was £18,100 19s. 2d., of which £543 was received as interest from the Colonial Treasury—interest for the last quarter, amounting to £221, being still due; and the expenditure was £8,089 13s. 2d. This expenditure includes £1526 2s. 6d. for claims under policies, and £2,847 paid as medical fees and comjnisiou on account of new policies for that year ;—the commision paid during that period was on new policies only, and not on policies previously granted. The following figures show the gross amount of all sums of money received, and the gross amount of life assurance, endowments, and annuities granted for the same — Total Monejs Insurances granted. Year. received. No. Amount. 1871-72 ... £18,100 ... 1322 ... £453,225 1870-71 ... 7,151 ... 395 ... 177,574 Part 1870 . 357 ... 53 ... 27,800 Totals £25,609 .'.'.' 1770 .*.'.' £658,599 Endowments granted. Annuities granted. Year. No. Amount. No. Amount. 1871-72 ... 27 .... £3000 ... 6 ... £345 10s. 1870-71 ... 10 ... 1100 ... 4 ... 352 ss. Totals... 37 ... £4100 ...10 ..." £697 15s. Statement of Receipts and Disbursements for the year ending 30th June, 1872 :-— Receipts. £ s. d. Insurance Premiums, Newandßenewal 14,738 7 7 Insurance Fines and Fees 13 7 0 Endowment Premiums New and Renewal 277 12 9 Annuity Premiums, New ... ... 2,528 1110 Interest from Investments 543 0 0 18,100 19 2 EXPENDITTTEW. £ B. d. Claims on Assurance Policies , 1,200 0 0 Annuities Paid 326 2 6 Salaries 1,385 7 0 Medical Fees 1,682 8 6 Commission 1,165 3 3 Advertising 1,415 8 11 General Expenses and Printing ... 915 3 0 Balance... 10,011 6 0 Total Expenditure ... £18,100 19 2 Balance as above £10,011 6 0 •Net Balance on 30th June, 1871 ... 5,044 15 9 Balance on 30th June, 1872 £15,056 1 9 * The Account with the Trust Fund in report for the year ending 20th June, 1871, headed General Account, shows a balance of £6832 Is. 4d. in favor of the Department; but in order to show the actual balance of Receipt and Expenditure, the sum of £1664 os. 7d., appearing in a foot note to that Account, together with a further sum of £123 155., •which was due as interest but not then received, should be deducted, leaving the balance as above. Me. Vogel on the Pebmissive Ciattses.—The ■shrewdness of the following remarks must oome lome to those temperate and respectable drinkerß -who could not be bribed to stand up and drink at a ■public bar exposed to the gaze of the passer by ; but ■at the same time would "double the horn" with pleasure in a snug back parlor:—Mr. Vogel, speaking ■on the permissive clauses in the Licensing Act, opposed the measure, but. thought that amopgst other remedial steps it should be made necessary that the bars of all public houses should 'have open glass windows, like ordinary shops, so that it •would be clearly Been who was drinking within them, and what scenes were taking place there. If this were done, he believed the present drinking habitß would, to a very great extent, be done away with Many persons who frequented publio houses did so ■under tbe knowledge that they would be shut out from the sight of the passers by ; but very shame -would prevent them from taking part in tho scenes which sometimes took place in public houses, if the windows were open like those of ordinary shops,—IndefendmU

THE AUSTRALIAN MUTUAL PROVIDENT SOCIETY. We have been requested to publish the following from the New touth Wales Agriculturist : — Of all the schemes which human wisdom and philanthropy have devised, that of life assurance is, undoubtedly, the noblest. There is no other which possesses the means for the accomplishment of so much good, and the bestowal of so much unostentatious charity, and whose operations are so far removed from the taint of selfishness. Starting at a period distinguished by the absence of all reliable data on which to rear its fabric, and opposed, as all novel and untried schemes are, by the blindness of prejudice, life assurance has steadily pursued its course, surmouuting all obstacles, and expanding its operations at every stride, until it has established itself on the broadest and firmest possible basis, and has made its benefits felt in every ramification of society. True, the pages of its history are tarnished by some dark spots, notably the late disastrous failures of the Albert and European offices, and although no excuse can be offered in extenuation of the shameless unscrupulousness which distinguished the management of these companies, yet, as the Review of the Ist March, 1872, remarks on this subject: —" It affects one side of the picture only; and if we will but consider the matter temperately and dispassionately, we shall soon have our minds disabused of the idea that life assurance, as such, is in any degree responsible for the opprobrium and discredit which the events we have referred to, have reflected upon it. The actual fact is, indeed, far otherwise, and these disasters and misfortunes which of late have occupied so great a share of attention, are but the legitimate offspring of a career of vicious management, profuse expenditure, and open violation of the first principles of actuarial science, of which it is difficult to speak in measured terms." With the invaluable aid of the experience of many years, acquired in almost all countries of the civilized globe, and among all classes of the community, and by the application of scientific knowledge, the development of which is mainly due to the existence of life offices, the value of their risks and contingencies can be ascertained with an accuracy that is unimpeachable. We, this week, present our readers with a woodcut of the Principal Office of the Australian Mutual Provident Society, situated in New Pitt-street. As this is a purely colonial institution, and one in which a great number of colonists have a large stake, a few facts concerning its rise and progress may be found both interesting and instructive to our readers. At a meeting of the Provisional Committee, held at 487, George-street, on the 15th December, 1848, the first Board of Directors was appointed, and consisted of Mr. Archibald Michie (Chairman), Mr. T. W. Smart (Deputy-Chairman), Mr. Thomas Holt, Mr. Frederick Ebsworth, Mr. David Jones, and Mr. M. E. Murnin. Little could these gentlemen have thought that their infant structure, starting without any capital but the energy of its promoters, and depending entirely for support on the provident habits of the community, would, in twenty-three years, have risen to the rank of first among colonial institutions, and become one of the most successful Life Assurance offices in the world ; and when, at the end of the first year of its existence, its receipts were found to be £268 6s. 3d., the most sanguine could scarcely have pictured it with an accumulated fund of nearly £1,000,000 sterling, and an annual income of nearly a quarter of a million. Yet, such i 3 the case now. There is scarcely an instance in the history of life assurance of an office which has been so uniformly successful, or which has risen to such a commanding position in so short a time. Since its establishment, this society has paid away, in claims, a sum of about £200,000, and has returned to its members cash bonuses, arising out of the profits of its transactions, amounting to about £185,000. These are startling results when viewed merely in the light of commercial transactions, but when we consider the channels through which these sums have passed, to what* an extent they have been employed in removing the obstacles which crowd the downward path of life, and in averting dependence on the cold charity of the world, our wonderment and admiration are indeed challenged. The following table shews the position of the A. M. P. Society, as compared with the principal mutual and proprietary offices in the United Kingdom. The figures are taken from the official returns furnished to the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies, and are to be found in the Review of Ist March, 1872 :—

Of these offices, the Scottish Widows' Fund, the Scottish Provident, and the Australian Mutual Provident Society, are conducted on the mutual principle, the others not being so, include their paid-up capital in the Accumulated Fund. From the above table, it will be seen that while the Australian Mutual Provident Society is the youngest office of the group, its new premium revenue (which is the most valuable evidence of prosperity, and without which no office can enjoy continuous prosperity) is second only to that of the Standard. The Australian Mutual Provident Society has on several occasions been made the subject of the highest eulogies from the most eminent authorities in England. In noticing the twenty-first Annual Report the Review says: — " The rate of expenditure including commissions and all other charges, does not exceed 11 per cent, of the income. The present position of the Australian Mutual Provident, with its clearness of accounts, vigour of management, and economy in expenditure, seems to us to be most creditable to all who have been concerned in bringing it to its present prosperous state." The Insurance Record, of the 3rd December, 1869, commenting on the Quinquennial Reporl of the Society, says:—" From the clear and intelligible manner in which the whole of the affairs of the Society are set forth, we are enabled almost nt a glance to judge of the progress and present position of the Society." The low rate of expenditure at which the busines.' of the Sooiety is oonduoted—rarely exoeeding 11 per cent, of the income (thus leaving ft large margin ot'

profit from loading), contrasts favourably with the cost of management incurred by many leading Eng- j lish offices. This economy is more remarkable when we consider that the entire cost of new business, which is met at its introduction by a single com- ■ muted commission, is comprised in this charge. In the accounts of English offices the item of conimis- ■ sion is not included in " expenses of management." Previous to the publication of the elaborate Report * of the Fourth Quinquennial Investigation, an erroneous opinion existed among members, to the effect that the acquaintance with the affairs of the Society, and with the principles on which its liabilities were estimated was only to be obtained by struggling through a labyrinth of mathematical formula) and scientific mystification, utterly incomprehensible to the uninitiated. But the exhaustive report of the Actuary has so thoroughly laid bare the transactions of the Society, so clearly indicated its position, that this misapprehension is entirely removed. The relation which exists between the policy holder and the office may be stated thus : —The policy holder contracts to pay to the office an annual sum by way of premium, and the present value of all these payments (i.e., the present value of an annuity equal to the amount of the annual premium on his life) is the measure of his indebtedness to the office. On the other hand, the office undertakes to pay a certain sum on the death of the policy-holder to his representatives, and the present value of this sum is the measure of the indebtedness of the office to the member. The difference between these two measures of indebtedness is the actual value of the policy, or the liability of the office in respect of such policy. Presuming this demonstration to be sufficiently explicit, it will be seen, on reference to page 37, column 9 of the Quinquennial Report, that the total indebtedness of the policy holders in the Assurance branch, was £1,248,358145. 6d., and that of the office (column 7), £1,612,704 9s. 7d.; the difference, or £364,345155.1 d. increased by £5,088 (adjustment for claims payable three months after death and climatic risks), in all £369,433 15s. Id., represented the liability of the office in respect of its Assurance policies, or, in other words, if the total assets of the Assurance branch amounted to £369,433 15s. Id,, it would just be solvent. But, in turning to page 31 of the Report, it will be seen that the assets there Bhewn amount to £536,901 os. 2d., or (after deducting £14,029145. 6d, on account of claims admitted but not paid) £153,437 10s. Bd. in excess of the amount required to meet its contingent liability. This amount, then, represents realised profit, and it does not include any part of the fund for future expenses and profit, for, on reference to page 37 (col. 6), it will be seen that the society has an annual income from loading, of £29,658 4s. 5d., the present value of which is (col. 10) £418,251 16s. 2d., for the purpose of defraying the future expenses, and providing for future bonuses. "It is a point of the utmost importance that no profit shall be taken into account but what has been actually earned." Much misapprehension has been engendered by attempts on the part of the Press to propound short rules for testing the stability of an assurance office, and one which was advanced in the Saturday Revieio was notably fallacious and misleading. In reviewing the " short rule" published in that paper, a writer in the Assurance Record of sth November, 1869, says:— " Many of our contemporaries have been trying to explain that an office should have on hand assets equal to a certain fixed number of years' purchase of their premium income, and a writer in a high-class weekly contemporary exhibits the grossest ignorance of the principles of life assurance." And after giving illustrations of the absurdity of the rule, remarks *. — " What, then, are we to say of eight years' premium income, at which the said contemporary has placed the solvency of an office ? Can the idea be entertained for one moment that a company cannot be solvent unless it has a fixed number of years' premium income on hand ? If so, then an office which is the least successful would shew the best account, which is a reductio ad absurdam. It will thus be seen that the proportion of assets to premium income can be no criterion to go upon in judging of the 'stability of an office." "In any inquiry into the financial position of a company recourse must naturally be had to the balance sheet and cash account, for it is only by such means that any satisfactory conclusions can be arrived at." And as tested by such statements of accounts, competent authorities have pronounced " the Australian Mutual Provident Society to be eminently satisfactory and deserving of all support." With respect to the investments of the Society, we have the assurance of the Chairman at the last annual meeting that "the balance of receipts over disbursements for the year has added £146,682 10s. lid. to the accumulated fund, whioh now amounts very nearly to one million sterling. The investments of the society represented by this sum your Directors believe me to be unquestionable. On the loans on mortgage, amounting in the aggregate to about £330,000, your Directors do not anticipate any further losses than the amounts written off prior to the last quinquennial division. The greater number of these mortgages are under table F, which involving a gradual liquidation of principal as well as payment of interest enhances annually the margin of security for balance of the debt." As no losses have been incurred on investments since the commencement of the present quinquennium, the account for Profit and Loss does not re-appear up to this date. In the disposal of its funds, the directors have endeavoured to localize the society in all the colonies by investing its revenue at the places from which its business is obtained. A reference to the last Annual Report will shew that it has the following amounts invested in the public funds of the several colonies:— Queensland . . £178,657 15 0 New Zealand . . . 63,950 0 0 New South Wales . . 31,959 0 0 Tasmania .... 26,700 0 0 South Australia . . 19,800 0 0 Whilst in Victoria alone upwards of £800,000 is advanced under mortgage. The society generously allows members to borrow money on the security of their policies, and thus gives them the means of relieving any temporary embarrassment, such as the inability to pay a premium, from which they may suffer. To such an extent have the members availed themselves of this privilege, that the sum of £80,440 lis. lOd. have been advanced in this way. Of course, the largest item of investment is loans on mortgage, amounting to £330,161 14s. 5d., and to which allusion has already been made. Since the establishment of this society, many improvements in the principles and practice of life assurance have been made, and more reliable data on which to base the investigation of the position of life offices, have been obtained. In order to keep pace with the progress, and to meet all the requirements of the times, the Directors propose shortly to ask the consent of the members to the introduction of the most modern improvements and liberal conditions, consistent with the safety of the society, and the interests of members. The society will then take its place in the ranks of the most liberal, as it does at present in those of the most secure and successful offices in the world, and will, we predict, be a lasting monument to attest the wisdom and energy of its promoters, and the prudence and forethought of the Australian people. With the view of ensuring efficiency in the conduct of its business, the society has branch offices, with Local Boards of Directors, in the following colonies : —Victoria, 35 Queen-street, Melbourne; New Zealand, Grey-street, Wellington; South Australia, 37 King William-street, Adelaide ; together with agencies in Tasmania—at Hobart Town, and Launoeston, and in all the principal towns throughout Australia and New Zealand. The Fiji correspondent of the Southern Cross ■<tates that " the roll of magistrates contains the names of many persons who have suffered shorter or longer terms of imprisonment in one or more of her Britannic Majesty's gaols." Dr. Murray will either be prosecuted at Melbourne or Sydney for murder on the brig Carl in the South fiew,

A Colonial Feinting Office.,—lt may not bo •enerally known that the printing department of the llelbburne Argus office is in duplicate. A fire-proof imlding has recently been erected, with a complete ilant of type, and a four-feeder Hoe machine. The jortable steam engine is wisely kept outside of the Ire-proof building. The two offices are connected rith an iron gallery, and are used for three publicaions alternately so as to be in a constant state of eadiness. So perfect are the arrangements that f the whole of Melbourne were in a state of ncande9cence, the Argus would not be interrupted, mt would be able to punctually publish a glowing iccount of the catastrophe next morning.— Melbourne Printer's Register. Holloway's Ointment and Pills.—Abscesses, Erysipelas, Piles.—Unvarying success attends all oho treat these diseases according to the simple Drinted directions, wrapped round each pot and box. they are invaluable to the young and timid, whose Dashfulness sometimes endangers life. A little ittention, moderate perseverance, and trifling expense ivill enable the most diffident to conduct any case to 1 happy issue without exposing secret infirmities to my one. The Ointment arrests the spreading inflammation, restrains the excited vessels, cools the sverheated skin, alleviates throbbing and smarting painß, and gives great ease. These directions also dearly point out when and how Holloway's Pills are to be taken, that their purifying and regulating powers may assist by adjusting and strengthening the 20nstitution.— Advt. Maravilla Cocoa.—Opinions of the Press.— ;< Those who have not yet tried Maravilla will do well to do so."— Morning Post. "It may justly be Balled the perfection of prepared Cocoa."— British Medical Journal. Maravilla Cocoa—The Globe says, "Tayor Brothers' Maravilla Cocoa has achieved a thorough Biiccess, and supersedes every other Cocoa in the market. Entire solubility, a delicate aroma, and a raie concentration of the purest elements of nutrition, distinguish the Maravilla Cocoa above all others. For Invalids and Dyspeptics, we could not recommend a more agreeable or valuable beverage." Homoeopathic Cocoa—This original prepara tion, which has attained such a world-wide reputation, is manufactured by TAYLOR BROTHERS under the ablest hemoeopathio advice aided by the skill and experience of the inventors, and will b« found to sombine in an eminent degree the purity fine aroma, and nutritious property of the fresh nut Soluble Chocolate made in one minute withoul boiling. The above articles are prepared exclusivelj by Taylor Brothers, the largest manufacturers ir Europe, and sold in tin-lined packets only, bj storekeepers and others all over the world. Steam Mills, Brick Lane, London. Export Chicory Mills, Bruges, Belgium. 234 C GOVERNMENT NOTICES.

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