CO882-(8-9) — Page 42

سلنا

25

The Ordinance was not passed until the 7th of April last. The accounts for Accounts the half-year ending 31st December, 1904, do not appear in some respects to have of 31st been made up on the lines of former balance sheets. For the balance sheet now 1904.

December, about to be prepared what standard can be enforced upon the Company? That adopted for the one of 31st December, 1904, or that of former ones? Presumably, that of former ones for there can be but little doubt that that of the 31st December, 1904, being issued some time after the notice of expropriation was prepared in view of the approaching compensation.

Turning to Section 5 "Until the appointed date the undertaking and business of the Company shall be maintained and carried on by the Company as heretofore in the ordinary course of business." Can this be made retrospective? If system I. be followed will not Government be entitled to claim to have stock and cash balances of the usual dimensions handed over? Supposing on the 30th June next the Com- pany divided all the available cash or materially reduced it, could not Government claim a deduction from the value arrived at? If the Company did what it is antici- pated they might do, the undertaking will not be handed over in the usual condition and by Section 2 "the undertaking" includes cash balances.

Can any dividend be declared which would involve the reduction of the cash balances which have usually been held by the Company?

It remains to be ascertained what was the effect on the cash balances of the payment of the large dividend for the half-year ending 31st December, 1904. The accountants will, of course, soon be able to ascertain this, and also the question of the loans at call, and for short terms which also appear to have been accorded a new principle of treatment in this last balance sheet.

This much even now appears that between the balance sheets for the 30th June, Compari- 1900, and the 31st December, 1904, the figures varied as follows:-

I

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

C.O. 882

8 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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

son with

former

accounts,

Dato.

Stook.

Cash, London,

Cash, Chartered Bank.

Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank.

C.

C.

$ C.

$ C.

30th June, 1900

480,333.19

52,484.61

398,712.79

115.228.36

31st December, 1900

462,976.00

220,530.98

113,125.27

54,611.65

30th June, 1901

521,203.93

200,497.31

130,309.29

71,297.80

31st December, 1901

493,322,28

113,968.36

161,050.20

82,695.31

30th June, 1902

541,394.82

200 409.95

69,145.38

25,138.77

31st December, 1902

M

619,338.51

172,560.54

95,833.14

36,216.65

30th June, 1903

690,159.59

137,323.17

31st December, 1903

30th June, 1904

31st December, 1904

638,150.08

155,008.23

International Banking Corporation. 82,882.43

International Banking Corporation. 62,412.11

250,000.00

45,431.12

100,000.00

338.88

+++

648,748.92

83,412.12

469,902.82

108,703.05

914,615.13

90,017,23

564,987.35

18,479.80

In this connection, and also generally, it is significant to notice that in order

to keep up the dividend declared for the second half of 1904 to, and 14 per cent. over, the usual figure, it inter alia involved:-

(1) A reduction in the carry forward of $58,000.

(2) A writing up in the stock of $200,000.

(8) Omission of the usual allowances for depreciation at Prye and the cent

Slipway.

Criterion

us to the

20 per

dividend.

G

23493c