The first annual meeting of the above Company was held on Monday afternoon at Messrs. Snethlage and Ca., No. 2, Ji the offices, of the general managers Road. There were present Messrs. C. Stepharius (Chairman), A. W. Burkill, J. M. Young, and H.'Snethlage, Direetors; A. P. Stokes, Legal Adviser; C. L. Seitz, E. Aeppli, F. Pape, J. Jameson, J. F. Seaman, Charles Stur: mann, H. T. R. Sternberg, and other shareholders, representing a total of 1,308 shares.
The Chairman.—A quorum being present, I beg to propose Mr.
Seitz to act as Secretary to this meeting, Mr. Seitz, will you kindly read the notice convening the meeting.
The notice convening the meeting having been read, the Chairman said—Our Report and Accounts having been in your possession for more than one week, with your kind mission I will take them as read as Feual.. I hope you will agree with me that the result of our first year's business is fairly satisfactory, particularly when T fell you that practically it merely covers eight months' working. We started on the Ist of February of last year, but, the stock of lumber, which we took orer from the Tseang Tah Lumber Ca. was very expensive grades, which, in order to satisfy small. At the same time it consisted oar customers and to keep in the market, Se had to sell at unremunerative prices, hnd in some cases even at a loss. Our fist own shipment of lumber from the Pacific Coast arrived in June, and from that time our business changed entirely. Tt steadily grew, and is increasing still, so that I can confidently say that the pre~ sent year will show a very good rest ut. This is due to the favourable arrange ments which Mr. Snethlage made in America, and the way in whi-a his firm attends to the management of our Company. Looking over our Profit and Loss Account, you will notice that we took over a profit of Tls. 6.02.68 from the Tseang Tah Lumber Ca. This profit, according to English Law, is not available as dividend and has to go to Reserve Fund. At the same time, also according to En lish Law, we are allowed to pay interest on our fully paid-up Capital from the 23h April only, when our Company was incoc porated. This induced us to propose to carry a further amount,—Tls. 10,000 altogethor—to Reserve Fund, and to car Tls. 3,086.65 forward to flew account, 2 policy with which we hope you will agre: as it is perfectly soumd and asa young Company, we cannot be careful enowzh with regard to our first dividend. We; didn't" put_hefore you extracts of our} Working Account, but they are the disposal of shareholder who} Wishes to havea look at them. With regard to our Balance Sheet, Buildings and Furniture represent th" value at which they are in our book:. Sundry Debtors, Tls. 98,625.56, pear large, but' that cannot be avoid in a business like ours. amounts outstanding see, are safe and Our stock fully represent: given. Our Saw Mill machinery has ust arrived and is in course of erection. Tt e. Tt will that it is the fret electric t great convenience.
Our debit with the Deutsch-Asiatische Bank will Lo reduced, or even wiped out entirely, whom our final call template certain which may of a further part of our aut In this case present shareholders will have the benefit. of obtaining a certain pa this now capital at a rate below the ket value of our shares. Before proposing the adoption of the Report and Accom shall be glad to answer any quest that shareholders No questions bein The Chairman pr Burkill seconded, and it wax That the Report of the Dir the Statement of Accounts for an proposed, Young seconded. and "That. the Directors b authorised to] ay a dividend representing interest the rate of ten per cent per annum fully paid-up shares from the 28th Apr 1902, and for partly paid-up date of payment of instalments to 31 January, 1903. seconded, and it was carr
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.