484
|
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
Murray, Directors; R. W. Mac Cabe, Secretary; O.L.Ilbert, Thomas Weir, E. W. Clement, and H. Prowett.
The Chairman said :-
assumed by the Chinese authorities, the Com- pany has received, and is receiving the utmost and ablest support from H. B. Consular Officials both at Chengta and Chungking as well as from the British Minister in Peking, to whom I have already referred. From the published reports of the China Association, you will have noticed that this body has also taken a keen interest in the affairs of this British enterprise; in fact, the London Chairman in his speech referred to the matter as sickening Bankers. You will see from the account that and disheartening.
CHINA MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE CO. LTD.
new
|
|
We recommend a dividend of 8 per cent., the same as last year. I regret, however, that you have had to wait for this instead of receiv- ing a portion by way of interim dividend after the usual half yearly balance, as heretofore, but at that time we had a heavy overdraft with our
at the end of the year we had worked to a credit; however, at the moment we are again overdrawn. The fact is with a growing business we want a little more working capital.
The company was started in 1903 with a capital of $100,000; on the 14th July, 1904 an extraordinary general meeting passed resolutions to the effect that, the capital be increased to $200.000 by the creation of 4,000 now shares but that only 1,000 of such shares be then issued, the remaining 3,000 to be issued and disposed of by the board from time to time and upon such con- ditions as the Board in their discretion shall deem advisable. Our paid-up capital is now 8125,000 we propose to issue as soon as the' time is propitious a further 1,000 shares bringing the capital issued up to $150,000. The necessity of carrying considerable stock absorbs our funds. I referred to this position last year and trusted that we should be able to reduce the amount so locked but unfortunately that does not seem possible. For our stock you will observe is valued at a sum just slightly in excess of our capital. We recommend, placing $5,000 to reserve, bringing that account up to $15,000 and that certain amounts be written off various accounts as detailed in the report.
up.
During the six years of the Company's existence to February 28, 1900. We have paid away in dividends Bonus to Staff
Created a Reserre account of... A special Reserve for bad and
doubtful debts of
And written off various accounts
$54.549.50 7,000.00 15,000.00
1
[June 7, 1909.
FAR EASTERN TELEGRAMS.
BRUTAL MURDER OF A TAOTAI.
Shameen, May 27th. Taotai Lau Sze Kee was brutally murdered in his house last night.
by the Governor of Kwangsi to proceed to the The deceased, some time ago, was delegated
Chinese settled there to subscribe funds for United States for the purpose of inviting the
agriculture in the province of Kwangsi. The the promotion of manufacturing industries and Taotai had only recently returned to Canton, having succeeded in getting over two million dollars subscribed for these schemes.
TRAGIC AFFAIR AT CANTON.
Shameen, May 28th.
dead in his room about noon to-day. It is pre- H. R. H. Appel, I.M. Customs, was found
sumed that he committed suicide by shooting himself, there being a bullet wound through the heart.
JAPANESE STATESMEN AND
THE PRESS.
Tokyo, May 30th. Last evening the International Press As- sociation held an inaugural dinner, the speakers including Prince Ito, Marquis Katsura, Mr. Chirol (Foreign Editor of "The Times "), Dr. Morrison (The Times" Peking correspondent) and Mr. Fairbanks, ex vice-President of the United States.
AN INTERESTING SPECULATION.
Tokyo, May 30th.
Valentine The presence in Japan of Mr. Chirol and Dr. Morrison has aroused a good deal of speculation in view of Dr. Morrison's 5,500,00 anti-Japanese attitude.
22,329.45
$ 104,378.95
At the annual meeting of share and policy holders of the China Mutual Life Insurance Co. Ltd. which took place last week Shanghai. Mr. Alexander McLood, who presided in the absence of Mr. Robert Macgregor, said:-In submitting the Directors' report for the year ending the 31st March last, I am glad to be able to make the same statement which my predecessors have for so many years past been able to make with never failing regularity, that, as the report will show, a very substantial progress has been made by the Company during the past year in all those points which go to make
financial up
strength. The insurances applied for, although only slightly in excess of the total amount for the preceding year, established a record, the total amount being $9,244,365, the total business in force amounting at the 31st March to over twenty five and a half million taels. This amount would have been considerably large but for the fact that during the past year important changes in the Company's rules aud regulations have been made, whereby all policies on which premiums are outstanding for more than a stipulated time are cancelled before the reduction which may be noted in the outstand- ing premiums for the past year, as compared with the same item for the preceeding year, the reduction being about Tls. 60,000, instead of which, in the ordinary course of events, there would have been a substantial increase in this item. It is quite possible, and the practice is often adopted by companies where the progress is not as satisfactory as they would like to represent, to inflate the business in force by retaining as in force many policies on which the premiums have been outstanding for an un- reasonable length of time. Your Directors desire that their report of the Company's affairs shall represent as nearly as possible the actual standing of the Company in every respect, and anything tending to this end is a step in the right direction. A substantial gain in the total income of the Company is noted of Tls. 327,480.27, or ten per cent. This represents a daily average income for the year of orer Tls 6,300.
There were no questions asked.and the first stated in the report, the Company has since the resolution, proposed by the Chairman and date of the last meeting fulfilled the require-seconded by Mr. Murray, that the report and ments of the Board of Trade in England and
statement of accounts as printed be adopted, secured a license to transact business in the was put to the meeting and carried. United Kingdom. Messrs. Thomas Cook and Son still remain the Company's collecting agents for the United Kingdom and Europe. As soon as the Hongkong authorities learned that the Company had made the required deposit in England, they returned to the Company, without any application on our part, the deposit of Tls, 200,000 which we had made with them. The Company have written the Hongkong authorities asking them to retain on behalf of our policyholders this deposit of Tls. 200,000. To this letter no reply has as yet been received. I am glad of this apportunity of making this explanation, in view of a statement recently appearing in the press in connection with a court case in which this Company is interested; to the effect that the Company was' misleading the public by advertising a deposit at Hongkong which did not exist. A most gratifying feature in the the report is the substantial increase in thereserve and surplus, or insurance fund, which represents the amount held by the Company as reserve liability for the security of policy holders and for distribution of bonuses, the increase in the fund being Tls. 862,820.52.
over
SHANGHAI ELECTRIC AND ASBESTOS CO.
As
The annual meeting of the Shanghai Electric and Asbestrs Co., Ltd., took place on the 25 inst in the Company's office No. 11. a Nanking Road. Mr. W. D. Little presided and the others present were Messrs. J. Frost, A. Hide, W. C.
pass
which shows I think a satisfactory working. We had a set back in 1906 owing to the defalca- tions of the Secretary at that time. For the year ending 31st March, 1907, we had to our dividend but wrote off the whole of the last Secretary's defalcations and the expenses con- nected therewith. amounting to $7.757.46 and carried forward to the new account 2,326.98. We are now in new premises in a most suitable location for our business and with, I hope, a good year before us.
THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL VACANCY.
MR. MURRAY STEWART ELECTED.
columns that Mr. Murray Stewart has been Official notice is given in our advertisement elected as the unofficial member of the Legisla tive Council, representing the Justices of the Peace, during the absence on leave of the Hon.
Mr. H. E. Pollock, K.C.
Mr. Stewart was the
only candidate proposed for nomination, and therefore the meeting of the Justices of the Fease notified in the Government Gazette will
not be held.
CHINA AND THE FAKUMEN RAILWAY.
China has
Tokyo, June 3rd. formally
her withdrawn proposal to submit the dispute with Japan, regarding the Fakumen railway question, to the Hague Tribunal.
EARTHQUAKE SHOCKS AT
SINGAPORE.
Singapore, June 4th. Severe earthquake shocks were felt here early
rocked this morning. Houses
and the inhabitants were startled, but no serious damage
was done.
+4
[FROM THE CHUNG NGOI BAN PO.”
CANTON-MACAO RAILWAY.
Peking, May 28th. The Portuguese minister in Peking has demanded that no parallel line should be built by the Chinese Government and that the Chinese Government should not interfere with the regulation governing the running of trains.
DESTRUCTIVE FIRE.
Peking, May 28th.
A great fire broke out to-day in the capital of the province of Shantung. Forty houses were destroyed, and the damage is estimated at several million dollars.
Taotai Chan, Superintendent of the Commercial Bureau, many officials and merchants, and representatives of the Press.
SUNNING RAILWAY PROGRESS. Magistracy on June 3 on a Chinese for having A very heavy penalty was imposed at the been found in possession of a quantity of opium railway was celebrated to-day in the presence of
Sancheung, June 4th. without a permit. The man, who was arrested
The opening of a section of the Sunning
at Hok Un Kok, tried to escape by means of a ladder, but without success. He also attempted to throw away a tin of opium. In view of the fact that there were five previous convictions
At ten o'clock this morning a train of many against him, the man was ordered by Mr. Kemp carriages conveyed the invited guests from months. to pay a fine of $750 or to go to prison for sirunning City to the railway works, where they elicited from the defendant that he obtained
Mr. Hoggarth, chief excise officer, stayed until the afternoon. the raw opium from Sam Chun, a fact which suggests the unwisdom of exporting raw opium from here to Sam Chun,
On the return to the city a feast was held to commemorate the occasion, many congratulatory speeches being made by merchants in
attendance.
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.