The twenty-second ordinary meeting of the Laou Kung Mow Cotton Spinning & Weaving Ca., Ltd, was held on February 9, 1916, at the offices of the general managers, Mesars. Libert & Ca., Ld. Those present at the meeting. were the following directors:. Mr. E. C. Pearce (Chairman),. Mr. Cc. M. Bain, Mr. E. I. Ezra, Mr. Chung Liang-yn, and shareholders representing altogether 1,736 shares.
After the seoretary, Mr. L. M. Beytagh, had read the notice calling the meeting, as well as the Auditor's report, the Chairman said:
Gentlemen, the report and accounts having been in your hands for some few days, we will, with your permission, adopt our usual procedure and take them as read.
In laying the report and accounts before the shareholders, your Board regret that the result of the year's working is not satisfactory.
In reviewing the past year, I have to report a complete dislocation of the mill's internal working during the greater part of the year due to staff and labour trou-ites Clu g the first quarter your Board were faced with an output from the mill showing " quantity of cotton to produce a bale of yarn out of all proportion to our previous records, owing to the amount of waste cotton produced in spinning. Very little better results were obtained for the next quarter. Your Board realized that it was necessary to make a drastic change in the working of the: mill. The resignation of our carding and spinning master was his retirement dated from the 7th July. Mr. Murphine, our manager for several years, endeavoured to do his best, but was unfortunately severely handicapped by ill health, which was corroborated by a letter from the Company's medical adviser informing the Board that he could not further stand the strain of management. During August the hands became so unruly that ib became necessary to dismiss the whole of the native staff.
Mr. Fairhurst, our present manager, was engaged on' September 14," and took over charge of the mill on October 2. Then commenced a period of intimidation on the part of the dismissed Chinese to breed discontent among the new bands; at one time in September the troubles almost resulting in a complete stoppage of the mill. In these circumstances, the output-was seriously affected. The labour trouble became so acute that on the evening of October 4 several loafers obtained access to the mill with the night shift, who, after extinguishing the lights, started a
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.