The subjoined paragraphs are take from the report of the directors of the and O, Steam Navigation Company, presented at the forty-third annual meeting, on the 4th December balance-sheet and accounts are printed at the end of this report. The net surplus for the year, including £8,97: brought forward from last year, amount: to £212,310, which, after deducting the interita dividend of 24 per cout., admits of a further dividend of 24 per cent., and a bonus of 2 per cent. (on account of Hgyptinn transport service), which the Girectors now recommend to be paid, a balance of £9,310 being carried forward to next your, The directors regret to state that the mail services, and the trafic arrangements of the company generally, have again been seriously disturbed by the re-imposi quarantine in Egypt, and forcement at the same time at all the ports in Italy. "Yo atate very briefly the particular ug this matter, it must be ame!
Egypt suddenly declared arrivals from India in quarantine in May, although at that time there was no alarm of any outbreak of epidemic cholera in India, Very shortly, huwevor, after the adoption of thia unnecessary precaution it was followed
virulent typo itself, which was eventually by the, sppencaico of cholera of & very shown to have been caused entirely by the abominable condition of Damietta and other towns in that country, from a aanitary point of view. the appearance of cholera in Egypt was immodiat by quarantine at all the por! vho result of this double quadrant been unfortunate for only in the fact that it has caused injury to the passenger trade via the Continent, but also because in order Lo carry on the mil service efficiently in the face of the disadvantages of the greater distance which the mails have had to be carried and delays in the Suez Canal, the speed and consumption of oval have been very materially ince i of fact, as fur as the ho yer trade vi and Venice is ruipletely caused to jwarantine was fico i 1g between Venice and Alexandria have also, owing to the same cause, obtained no '0, sv that, practically this weddly ser-Nas been for the last few mouths, and is, curried on simply and exclusively for the transport of the mils, as far us the homeward service is concerned, The quar-anting regulations in Italy are now being dually relaxed, but thei in a mitigated form, it power to domini many has incurred from this cause, have the plonsure of stating that within the last few days they luve chartered the Poonah to -the Admiralty for transport service.
In their report, at the close of the last financial your, the directors, in refe-ring to the tien condition of business, stated Sat on wearly every Tine the company was with a lower range of freight and that was gradually becoming They also pointed out that thia unfavourable result was owing to the large amount of wow tonnage which had crowded into the market, and which, isting mainly of a cheap class of cargo boats, were lao uble to carry at exceedingly low rates, It was aleo added that some time would probably have to elapse before the Eastern shipping trade would again be ina flourishing condition, Uufortnuately, the latter part of the above statement has proved to be rather below than above the mark, because the shipping trade hae not only not recovered nor shown any sign of improvement, but continues to grow steadily worse; and the cannot be far distant when, unless some change occurs for the better, a considerable amount of tonnage must be laid up because of the loss entailed in working it-these circumstances the proprietors will hardly be surprised to see that although the company's vessels have done more work than at any time before, the freight returns are £19,350 less than during the Happily, on the other increase in the passage roi ing to £50,546, and this, combined with the returns from directors, ting a considerable the working expenditure, and a decline in exchanges, to ronder an. account for the year which they trust will be considered, under the circumstances, fairly satisfactory.
The accounts appended to the report exhibit the following figures:—Exp ture: Navigating ships, &e., £1,105,617 5 through Egypt, £215,118; general istration, £143,625; repair and wal account, £250,000; reserve and court, £408,000. 'The total of pis is £2,362,482, i age money, charter "money, Egyptian ' expedition, £142,904; and' postal service contracts, '£464 954.' The total surplus is £212,310, of which £72,500 was distributed in Juno Inst, and a like sum will be paid to ti rebolders next month, the balance forward being £70,000 £00,000; bills payable, £79,122 5 sundry balances and debts due by the company, £72,863.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.