10th April Tax Mon ar Curxnva. report a serious disturbance in that city last week. The new cotton-mills put up recently by the gentry and officials were burnd and all the machinery destroyed, as well as the stuck of goods on hand, by a howling mob. The "outbreak s usual was sudden and unexpected. The immediate ing the confiscation and use of Buddhist temple property, for the mills. It seems the populace objected to the turning out of their Jong-rovered idyls and. the ins alment of modern machinery. The outbreak was at first directed against the mills, and then the mob turned to the manager, a leading member of the ud seriously injured him and his howe. In the city calling on the people to rise up and destroy and loot the yamens, the gentry, and the foreigners. With the exception of the Rev. F. Dickie of the ©.1.M, the latter all left for Lanch's, where they are staying for the present. ro are_now several hundred ts in Hangchow trying to gain admission to the various schools in the city. Although most of the old school.
The sixteenth ordinary general meotof the above Association was held at the Hend Office on Wedneaday afternoon. There wore present: Messrs. James L. Young (Chairman) H. J. Such, E. B. Skottowe, J. Prentice and OE. W. Wrightson (Directors), Mr. F. A. Cumming (Acting Secretary), Messrs, J. Cooper, A. McLeod, W. Ellis, J. Ambrose, J, P. Roberts, M. Wolff, D. W. Crawford, W. B. Buy McKie, Ach. Rit Liddell, J. Brow representing 5,081 shares.
The Chairman ssid:—Gontlomen it being past the hour appointed for holding the meeting and there being a quorum present I will ask Mr. Cumming to read the notice convening the Mr. Cumming having read the notice, The Chairman said, Gentlemen—The report and accounts for the year ending on the 30th December, 1905, having been in your hands for some time will, by your permission, be considered as read, but before formally proposing the adoption and passing of these I beg to offer a fow remarks as usual on the occasion, trusting they may be of some interest and will, at any rate, occupy but a very fow minutes.
The balance of working account 1904 and former years is $323,346.48 lat, $238,19062 last year; and ated in the report the directors recommend the following distribution, Dividend of 20 per cent $12—per share. Addition to Reserve Fund Addition to Reinsurance Fund.
Be carried forward 96,000.00 50,000.00
50,000.00 127,346.48
$323,346.48
If you sanction thi division the reserve fund will amount to $800,000, equally the subscribed capital of the Association and the Reman Fund, which was only established a when you voted $50,000 for $r'5i1,278,45, will stand at $111,278.45, and has since increased by a pro!
very useful auxiliary fund ' which, like our reserve fund, we hope to seo Pending Claims for 1905 are about $40,000 more than last year but full catimates for all knowe claims ard no allowances for possible salvages have been made, soit is hoped that a good balance will remain after the 1905 account has run off At last your's meeting I alluded to the case of the as. Ni, is which had been seized and. oonfiseated by the Japanese. It soams they id #0 on account of having found Russian officers on board. As this constitu. ted a risk we had not covered we refused payment of the claim sought tobe enforced against us by the Russo-Chinese Bank, and obtained the decision of the Supreme Court here in our favour with ce ts, The plaintiffs have, however, appealed to the Bury Council' at home, an tt wil ably take some months before we the final result. In the meantime, of course, we include the cine amongst the pending claims for 1904 and former years.
Unexpired risks are about 10 per cent heavier than ti 95,890.48 or $9,697.45 more than in Int year's account, owing to rome recovery in the value of certain of our investmen'a Under the arsots appears for the first Property account, land and buildings No. 26, The Bund, $165,827.23. The opportunity ocourred about year 8.0, and your directora deemed it desirable to avail themselves thereof, t) acquire the premises we have rented for the last eleven years with the land they stand on. Alterations for enlarging the office accommodation were commenced soon after we chinined possoxsion and will, we trust, noon be compl: ted. Aa (he se-4 of the building is old, though in very fair order we intend to bexia writing down the value of rame from the present year. Your directors are glad to tave secured so desi able axite for the offices ut the Astociatiou and hope their purchase will meet with your approval, and they have much pleasure in welcoming you to the first annual general meeting to be held under your own roof, The percentage of claims to premia is 87.25 per cent against 38.72 per cent while that of expens: s to premia is 16.27 per cent against 13.52 per cent Isat year. Premia in course of collection
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.