CO882-(6-8) — Page 613

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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

CO. 882

8

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

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you please inform me whether you desire it to be prepared by the Company's Solicitors or whether your advisers will prepare it and to whom if it is prepared by the Company's Solicitors it should be sub-

mitted?"

An Extraordinary General Meeting of the Company was held on the 18th November 1903 at which resolutions to the effect following were duly passed.

That the Directors be and are hereby authorised

(1) To receive from the Government the sum of $222,000 without prejudice to the right of the Company to demand from the Government the balance of the sum of $391,675.02 claimed by the Company to be profits available for immediate distribution as dividend and legally dis- tributable as such,

(2) To enter on behalf of the Company into an Agreement with the Govern- ment to refer the question of the liability of the Government to pay the balance of the sum of $891,675.02 or any part thereof to the Com- pany for final decision to the Arbitrators or in case of their difference to the Umpire appointed in pursuance of the Tanjong Pagar Dock Ordinance 1905.

(3) To distribute the sum of $222,000 when received amongst the members of the Company in part satisfaction of the dividend of $24 per share declared at the Extraordinary General Meeting held on the 13th of October 1905 at noon.

and on the 20th November 1905 the Secretary of the Company wrote on behalf of the Directors forwarding a copy of such resolutions and requesting the Govern- ment to cause the sum of $222,000 to be paid over to the Company for distribution among the shareholders and on the 21st November 1905 the Colonial Secretary on behalf of the Government wrote informing the Company that the Dock Board had been requested to pay to the Company a sum of $222,000 for distribution to the shareholders in accordance with the terms set out in the above-quoted letter of the 3rd November and such amount was paid over to the Company by the Dock Board in accordance with such direction.

A draft of the formal submission to be signed by the parties in accordance with the letter of the 3rd November 1905 and the said Resolution of the 18th November 1905 was thereupon prepared by the advisers of the Company and submitted to the advisers of the Government for consideration and certain alterations having been made therein on behalf of the Government raising in detail the contentions which the Government desired to put forward the said draft was returned to the advisers of the Company for consideration on their behalf but the Company refused to accept the alterations made on behalf of the Government which however the advisers of the Government consider to be essential to the due presentation of the case before the Court. The difficulty in arriving at the formal terms of the written submission has prevented any communication being addressed to the members of the Court prior to this date but having regard to the intimation received from the Court it has been thought proper that the facts above stated should be brought to the notice of the Court. Under Section 6 it is provided that in determining the compensation for the transfer of the undertaking of the Company the sum payable to the Company under that section is not to be valued as forming part of the undertaking and it is apprehended that the Court may consider that it is desirable that the sum payable to the Company under that section should be ascertained in order to enable the proper amount of the compensation money to be arrived at. It is submitted on behalf of the Government that there has already been a sufficient agreement between the parties for value to submit to the decision of the Court the questions relating to the ascertainment of the sum payable under Section 6 and that it is not now open to the Company who has received the payment of a large sum on account as a consideration for its submitting to have the questions referred to the Court to withdraw their consent to such submission or to render the same nugatory by refusing to concur in the settlement of a formal written submission. It is further submitted on behalf of the Government that under the above circumstances it is eminently desirable that opportunities should be given to the parties to place before the Court their contentions in reference to the points outstanding between the parties

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on the said balance sheet before the Court delivers its decision upon the questions already argued in the main arbitration.

Dated the 8th day of May 1906,

17167

SIR,

SUTTON, OMManney, and RENDALL,

3 and 4, Great Winchester Street, London, E.C.,

Solicitors for the Government of the

Colony of the Straits Settlements.

No. 341.

CROWN AGENTS to COLONIAL OFFICE.

(Received May 15, 1906.)

[Answered by No. 342.]

Whitehall Gardens, London, S.W., May 14, 1906.

Tanjong Pagar Dock Company.

I HAVE the honour to enclose copies of a correspondence which we have had with Messrs. Laing and Cruickshank as to the manner in which holders of the securi- ties of the Tanjong Pagar Dock Company will receive the monies due to them under the arbitration award.

2. I have to request that we may be informed whether the Secretary of State has any instructions to give us in the matter.

GENTLEMEN,

Enclosure 1 in No. 341.

I have, &c.,

E. E. BLAKE.

Messrs. LAING AND CRUICKSHANK to CROWN AGENTS.

3, Draper's Gardens, London, E.C., May 7, 1906. Tanjong Pagar Dock Company, Limited.

OUR client, Miss A. Stevenson, who is a holder of securities in the above Company, has received a circular from the Secretary, dated 5th March, with reference to obtaining and executing a power of attorney for the receipt of monies due.

We should be glad to know if the special form of power is to be obtained in London or if there is any other way of more easily receiving the money.

Yours, &c.,

Enclosure 2 in No. 341.

LAING AND CRUICKSHANK.

CROW: AGENTS to Messrs. LAING AND CRUICKSHANK.

(D. Tanjong Pagar Dock Company.)

GENTLEMEN,

Whitehall Gardens, London, S.W., May 10, 1906.

In reply to your letter of the 7th instant, I have to request that you will forward to us for inspection the circular to which you refer which has been for- warded to your client by the Secretary of the Tanjong Pagar Dock Company in Singapore.

I have &c.,

E. E. BLAKE.

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