The-Hong-Kong-Weekly-Press-1904-01-30 — Page 13

Hongkong Weekly Press AND China Overland Trade Report All

January 30, 1904.]

81st Dec., 1903.

Amount of capital, 80,000 shares of $15

CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.

ASSETS.

Land, factory, machinery, &c., $ 0.

as per last account

258,000.00 Expended on additions and exten-.

sions to 81st December, 1913 2.711.62

LIABILITIES.

0.

each, fully paid up.

..1,200,000.00

Amount at credit of depreciation and in-

suranos fund

633,000.00

Amount at credit of equalisation of divi-

dend fund.

250,000.00

$ 60,711,62

Amount at credit of investment fluctuation

acoount...

Less depreciation....

15,711.62

149,409.18

Unclaimed dividends

6,967.50

Rope, hemp, &c. in factory, valued at

Sundry creditora

40,538.8

Amount at credit of profit and loss account 161,538.86

Repe, on consignment, value, at Fire insurance promia, account 1904 Sundry debtors...

$2,441,454.37 | Cash in hand..

Cash at factory

Investment of reserve Ennd; in 3,800 shares China Provident Loan, & Mortgage

PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT.

Dr.

31st Dec., 19.8.

*

To amount paid for repairs to steamers To directors and auditors' fees

Balance to be appropriated, viz :— Dividend at 10 per cent. or .

$1,200,00

To be carried forward to new

account ...n

0.

21.216.87 4,750.00

120,000.00

41,538.88

--- 161 548.86

3th June, 1903.

By amount brought forward from last ac-

$187 505.79

Cr.

0.

oount

25,552.: 6

31st Dec., 1903,

By net earnings of steamers

By interest on investments

By transfer fees

By amount transferred from equalisation

of dividend fund

66,838.04 45,035.73 80.00

50,0 0 0

$187,505.73

FUND.

633,000.00 $ 0.

633,00 1,00

DEPRECIATION AND INSURANCE

31st Deo., 1963.

To balance...

30th June . 03.

By amount at credit

31st Dec., 19 3.

Dr.

Cr.

“ÈQUALISATION OF DIV.DEND FUND.

Dr.

To amount transferred to profit and loss

account

To balance

30th June, 1903. By amount at credit

Cr.'

0.

$ c.

50,0 0.00 250,000.00

$100 000.00

0.

300,000.00

HONGKONG ROPE MANU-

FACTURING CO., LD.

The following is the report for presentation to the shareholders at the twentieth ordinary general meeting to be held at the office of the general managers on the 6th February at 11 o'clock a.m.

The net profit including the balance brought forward from last year amounts to $123,95.13, which it is proposed to appropriate as follows: -To place to reserve fund $15000.00; to pay a dividend of 20 per cent., 100,000.00; to carry forward to the credit of next year's account, 8,395.13.

A. J.

Consulting Committee.-Inocordance with the articles of association, Messrs. Raymond, D. E. Brown and J. A. Lewis retire, but offer themselves for re-election,

Auditors. The accounts have been audited by Messrs. T. Arnold and W, H. Potts, who are

recommended for re-election.

The accounts are as follows:-

PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT.

Auditors' fees

Consulting committee's fees

Interest

SUPREME

245,000.00 195,545.19 153 075.0

1.746.72 05,853.33 2 051.03 50.00

81,300.00

$694,621.27

COURT.

Saturday, 23rd January.

IN ORIGINAL JURISDICTION.

BEFORE HIS HONOUR SIR WILLIAM M. GOODMAN (CHIEF JUSTICE).

o. | detonators. As his Lordship would see from the second affidavit there was a report from the Hongkong Observatory to the effect that e violent typhoon had occurred apparently just in the path of the Santa Crus on her voyage to Y p. Un the 15th and 16th Mr. Figg of the Observatory reported that a typhoon orvased the Philippines from the Pacifio in La'. 12, which would take the typhoon throughthe Sulu Sea in the midst of the Philippine archipelago. Then it got into the China Sea west of Mindoro, and was still in the China Sea west of the islan i of Luzon, at that time moving north. On the 19th the typhoon had got farther north, still to the west of the Balintang Channel and was re-curving to the north-east. On the next day the typhoou apparently returned to the Pacific through the Bashes Channel. These two channels together formed the Formoɑs - Channel. They did not know whether on this particular voyage Captain O'Keefe went to Yap by the west of Luzon or by the south of Luzon through the Sulu Sea. Apparently the proper course was by the south of Luzon ́ during the northerly monsoon and by the other channel during the southern, Whatever route the Santa Cruz followed she would almost certainly have encountered this typhoon. The average time for the voyage to Yap was about 52 days, and the minimum about four weeks. If she went by the Sulu Sea she would probably meet the typhoon coming up just as she got to the south of Mindoro. The weather report in the Gazette was that easterly winds were prevailing at this time making it more probable that the Santa Cruz went south by which she would get to Mindoro Strait about the 15th or 16th when the typhoon came through.

PRESUMPTION OF A SEA-CAPTAIN'S DEATH.

Mr. E. H. Sharp, K., barrister-at-law (instructed by Mr. Victor Deacon of Messrs. Deacon, Looker and Deacon. solicitors), appear-d in support of a motion for leave to swear the death of Captain David D. 'Keefe of the Santa Cruz. Mr. H. Hursthouse of Messrs. Dennys and Bowley, solicitors, watched the case on behalf of the widow and daughter, both of whom are in America.

Mr. Sharp said the motion asked his Lord- ship's leave to presume the death of Captain O'Keefe as having occurred on or about 31st May, 1901. There was no opposition to the motion. It was the desire of all parties that the death should be presumed,

His Lordship-The two sons were on board the ship also f

Mr. Sharp-Yes. There were other children of the family, he went on to say, in Yap, in the Caroline Islands. There was only one child of the family in America; that was the married daughter. The American wife was still living. This application was made on behalf of Mr. George P. Lammert who was the Hongkong executor appointed by Captain O'Keefe by his Lordship affidavits made by Mr. Lammert and will and codicils, and there were before his

Mr. Deacon giving the particulars of a violent typhoon which occurred at the time in question.

His Lordship-What struck me in this affidavit was that they say that on the 3rd May Captain O'Keefe left Hongkong.

lived

|

3rd but actually sailed on the 7th. The boat Mr. Sharp explained that he cleared on the

was delayed. The testator, Captain O'Keefe, Islands, at Yap, one of the most westerly of the for very many years in the Caroline group, a little south of Lat. 10 and about Long. .3 -139; that was a little way south of the there and amassed a very considerable fortunel Philippine Islands. Captain O'Keefe traded Yap was 1,500 to 2,00 miles distant from Hong kong. The property, valued on 31st May, 1901, at over $120,000, was at the time of Captain O'Keefe's death in Hongkong, which he had been in the habit of very frequently visiting on his schooner the Santa Cruz during $ o his long residence at Yap. It was a small and 400.00 rather old boat. 92 tons Burden, and at least 30 4,000.00

years old at the time of the voyage in question 1,178.25 15,711.62 inasmuch as they knew that this was the boat 123,395 13 formerly called the Southern Cross on which Bishop Paterson was murdered in the South $144,685.00 Seas in 1871. Therefore in 1901 th schooner must have been at least 30 years old. In the $ 18,5 1.86

year 1890 on the occassion of one of his visits 131,183.14 to Hongkong Captain O'Keefe made the will which was now before his Lordship and also $144,685,00 | two codioils in 1895. By one of those codicils Mr. Lammert was appointed Hongkong executor in lieu of the previous one. In May, $ O.

1901, Captain O'Keefe Was again in 500,000.00 85,000.00

Hongkong and on the 3rd of that month, 7,518.09 according to the Harbour-master's books, 8,963,78 the Santa Cruz cleared for Yap. Four days Hongkong and 'hai Ranking Corporation 19,749.35 later she was towed out of Hongkong Harbour, 123,395. 13 since which time neither the ship nor anybody $694,021.27 on board had been heard of. The cargo con- sisted of a quantity of dynamite, fuses and

Depreciation for 190) written off Balance

Balance brought forward from 1902 Balanes of working account

BALANCE-SHEET.

LIABILITIES,

Capital 10,000 shares at $50 paid up

Reserve fund

Sundry creditora

Due general managers

Balance of profit and loss account.

0.

|

|

His Lordship Has anybody besi to Yup! Mr. Sharp--Yes, several people have been. There is a regular service from Singapore and now there is a stemer ruaning direct from Hongkong to Lue Carolines calling at Yap. though it was not at that time.

His Lordship-What is the most recent news you have got ?

Mr. Sharp said the most recent news was in October last from Yap Since May the petitioner had got several letters from there, the last of which was dated February, 1903. This was filed on 15th May, 1903. Since May, 1901, be had received several letters stating that

Captain O'Keefe had never returned to the Carolines nor had his ship been seen by other ships trading to that group and the southern

seas.

Lave

His Lordship said it amounted to this, that neither Captain O'Keefe nor his two sons had been heard of. There were also on board à Scandinavian, Mr. Hoff, a Mr. Gillespie, and a Chinese carpenter who seemed to the general proposition was that you required been accepted by his family as dead. Of cours

to wait seven years before you could get presumption of a man's death.

Mr. Sharp remarked that that period had been very much cut down. He could refer his Lordship to a case where presumption of death in 1898 of that kind, but he was not going to rely was made after three years, There was a casa upon that. There were no special circumstances. The case he was going to cite was almost on all- fours with this, the case of a missing ship- Matthews, 77 Law Times Reports, p. 630.

-re

His Lordship said that it seemed to him that if 50 or 60 years ago seven years was a reason. able time when it took four or five months for information to travel frem Indis ́ and a voyage out here was a matter that made a man almost a marvel, the time might reasonably be shorten. ed, what with the telegraph and so on.

Mr. Sharp stated that practically the seven- years' period had been out down to the neighbourhood of three. There were no special circumstances in the case he had quoted. The man disappeared from his home it London and was missing for three years. The Court took the view that his people would have heard of his existence and allowed presump- tion of death for the purposes of probate. In the case of missing ships the Court gave such leave in from one and a half to two years.

His Lordship-That is in a case of insurance ? Mr. Sharp replied tha for insurance purposes a ship was supposed to have foundered if she was missing for one year. He went on to quote the cases re Halton, 1 Curtis, p. 595; re Alston, 1892, Probate, 142 ; [re Johnson, 78 Law Times

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