BANK OF NEW ZEALAND.

Wanganui Chronicle, 10 August 1901, Page 2

BANK OF NEW ZEALAND.

THE ANNUAL MEETING,

INTERESTING STATEMENTS BY CHAIRMAN AND DIRECTORS.

(Per Press Association.)

WELLINGTON, August 9. In moving the adoption of the Bunk of New Zealand balance sheet to-day, the chairman added that> without desiring in. any. way to appear to think they were .■:• ot to' have prosperous times, the most prudent mail would consider that the business of such an institution as a Bank should be. conducted with a view to any such contingency arising. When we approached the question of the prosperity or depr??sion of the colony we were biassed by s.'jnditiona that did" not exist in tnis colony, such as convulsions of business lhafc li::A .occurred in oldei? countries. We haa prscfcically a new world to be developed, :,pA when it was considered in connection with what had been done and what v3ina;;ied i-j be done, there was not the risk oi' a »:nnlat* depression to- that which older countries had suffered from. Look it, tlt<: resources of the country. In Gi.i viorne. f<jr instance, there were immense areu o£ undeveloped land which, when op-euc'd up, would go a long way towards sefU'-i'-y prosperity, not only of the iia.UK, l>at of the'country as well. There were, again, largo tracts of land held by natives on the boundary of Mokau, so far absolutely untouched. When those things were before them people should take heart. There was an indication, too, that outside the colony there were those interested in it to the highest degree, who absolutely believed in the colony's progress. In illustration of this he referred to the recent addition to the fleets of tte New Zealand and Shaw Saville Shipping Companies. Ihose controlling those interests wxmld not ambark upon such an enterprise unless they had confidence an. the colony's vigour and the adaptability of the people of New Zealand would ■ carry them further than those in any other part of the world. He ivas sure they could, look forward to carryingl the business of the Bank to a successful termination, especially if the same amount of interest continued to be manifested in the Bank's affairs as had been manifested in ■ the past. Mr Martin Kennedy, in seconding the resolution, said1 the control of the Government was supreme, and without the Government's consent the directorsl could not declare a dividend. The Premier might have assumed .the attitude he had taken towards dividends on insufficient information, and if the business of the Bank progressed during the coming year as it had progressed during the past year, he considered the directors would be ,able to show the Government that they would be justified in declaring a dividend next year. It was only just to the shareholders that a dividend should be looked'forward to as x possibility in the neur future. Mr C. T. Richardson thought they ought , !to protest against the imputation made that the. shareholders were clamouring for a dividend before paying their .liabilities. They were not responsible for raising' the value of shares. The, shareholders had suffered a great deal in the past, and now ' that things were looking a bit better they were entitled to some consideration and sympathy. ■ ■ - The chairman said he had not referred to- the question of a dividend because it did not arise until next'year. The whole question would be dealt with at the proper time.:. What he 'had "said on the subject last year still held good. ' " ■ ' ' The motion for the adoption of-the balance sheet was then put and carried.