The Steady Growth of an Essential Industry: 'A Production of Over Five Hundred Million Cubic Feet Per Annum I: was on February 26, 1862, that a prospectus was issued calling for a subscription of Tls. 100,000 wherewith to purchase a gas plant, capable of supplying 600 street lamps, 100 foreign houses, and 1,600 miscel-Janeous lights, within the British and American Settlements, The first shipment of plant arrived in Shanghai on Christmas Day, 1863, and gas was supplied to private consumers on November 1, 1865, and has continued uninterruptea. The coal carbonized for the manufacture of gas was shipped from Australia.
In 1865 the paid-up capital of the company was Tls. 121,350 and approximately five miles of gas main had been laid, supplying 58 consumers.
In 1889 the plant of the French Gas Ca. was purchased, the greatest daily output at that period being 230,000 cubic feet, The progress of the Shanghai Gas Ca., La, will be appreciated if the following figures be digested:—At present the capital amounts to Tls. 2,416,224.57 (including debentures and share premium) there are more than 150 miles of gas main in the city and approximately 9,000 meters are in use, and in addition there are the street lamps which are supplied direct from the mains, the quantity of gas manufactured during the year amounting to about 540,000,000 cubic fect.
It is very pleasing to be able to record that in spite of intimidation and in many cases brutal treatment instigate ed by agitators, during the disturbances ast year, every' employee remained loyal to the gas company. This was probably due to the policy adopted by the management always to lend a sympathetie ear to all grievances (legitimate or otherwise),
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.