On Wednestay afternoon, the 13th March, 1901, the twelfth annual general meeting of shareholders in the Shinghai Land Investment Company, Limited, was held at the Offices of thy Compan No. 2, Yuenmingyuen Road. The chair was occupied by Mr. BE. Jenner Hoy, and others present were Messrs, W.
Platt (Legal Adviser), J. Hebden, R. E. Bredon, J. H. Tisdale, C. W. Wrightson, J. M. Young, H.R. Kinnear, ©. J. Dudgeon, Wherley, J. R. Brazier, B. H. Purcell, W. Burkill, H. a, J." Macray, Snethlage, H. J. Gardner, C.D, Kerr, and W. Lamond, representing in the aggre gate 618 votes, Mr. E. C. Ozorio was elected to act as secretary of the meeting, The Chairman said,—The Report and Accounts have no doubt had your attention, and I will ask you to consider them read, Iregret to say that owing to a clerical error in the Working Account, as at first issued, we have had to reprint the Accounts, and no doubt you received the corrected ones, showing the petual figures of Gross Rentals to be Tis, 241,885.53, and of the deductions for Fire Insurance, &e., Ts. 34,789.59, the net result being un: altered." The working of the Company shows satisfactory progress. During the anxious months of July and August last year, the Chinese, as you are aware, fled from Shanghai in'Jarge numbers, and during that pendd we experienced a diminution of rents; but during September our tenants returned, and at the present moment we have hardly any empty Chinese houses, and all our foreign houses are ocoupied, From the Working Account you will see that there is an increase of nearly Tis, 14,000 in Gross Rentals. while the expenses for Fire Insurance, Water, and Repairs are Tls. 2,200 more than last year; there being a slight decrease in Repairs; but Taxes are heavier and also water. The latter, however, is practically mare or less recovered in rent. On the whole we think it better not to include details of this entry in the account, though they a any available for shareholder desiring them. On the other side of the account, Charges are Tis, S10 more, due chiefly to an inerense of the overseers' wages, to charitable donations, and to payments for stationery. Interest account is, as you know, the balance between what earned from mortgages and what is paid on debentures and overdraft. Profit' ant Loss account ks for itself. Reserve Fund eased by the Tls. 5,535.60 apporti it last year. Reserve Fund special account shows the amount passed last year reserve for equalisation of di and is still untouched. Turning to the Balance Sheet, the in-rea in the cost of estates No. 1, 2. 4, and 6 is due to new s and of Nos. $ and 9 to interest es. No. is unaltered. From will be seen that we have spent about Is. M4,400 on new buildings, and may mention that those which are finished and (with two exceptions) those which are approaching completion are let at satisfactory rentals. Our mor are all well covered and sli; increased in amount. Iam glad to state that our estimates for the year 1901 promise an increasing income, and as our earning power will be greatly enhanced if the proposal I am about to lay before you at an extraordinary general i the issue of new capital is is yeat and those following on prove very satisfactory for' the Company, The Directors consider it desirable to add to their number, and they have invited Mr. C. J. Dudgeon to join
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.